THIS STATE OF PRAYER NOT ONE OF IDLENESS, BUT OF NOBLE ACTION, WROUGHT
BY THE SPIRIT OF GOD, AND IN DEPENDENCE UPON HIM--THE COMMUNICATION OF
HIS LIFE AND UNION.
Some people, hearing of the prayer of silence, have wrongly imagined
that the soul remains _inactive_, _lifeless_, and _without movement_.
But the truth is, that its action is more noble and more extensive than
it ever was before it entered this degree, since it is moved by God
Himself, and acted upon by His Spirit. St Paul desires that we should be
_led by the Spirit of God_ (Rom. viii. 14). I do not say that there must
be no action, but that we must act in dependence upon the divine
movement. This is admirably set forth by Ezekiel. The prophet saw wheels
which had the spirit of life, and wherever this spirit was to go, they
went; they went on, or stood, or were lifted up, as they were moved,
for the spirit of life was in them: but they never went back (see Ezek.
i. 19-21). It should be the same with the soul: it should suffer itself
to be moved and guided by the living Spirit who is in it, following His
direction, and no other. Now this Spirit will never lead it to go
backwards, that is, to reflect upon the creature, or to lean upon
itself, but always to go forward, pressing continually towards the mark.
This action of the soul is a restful action. When it acts of itself, it
acts with effort; and is therefore more conscious of its action. But
when it acts in dependence upon the Spirit of grace, its action is so
free, so easy, so natural, that it does not seem to act at all. "He
brought me forth also into a large place; He delivered me, because He
delighted in me" (Ps. xviii. 19).
As soon as the soul has commenced its course towards its centre,[2] from
that moment its action becomes vigorous--that is, its course towards the
centre which attracts it, which infinitely surpasses the velocity of any
other movement.
2. See chap. ix.
It is action then, but an action so _noble_, so _peaceful_, so
_tranquil_, that it seems to the soul as though it were not acting at
all; because it rests, as it were, naturally. When a wheel is only
turning with a moderate speed, it can easily be distinguished; but when
it goes quickly, no part of it can be distinctly seen. So the soul which
remains at rest in God has an action infinitely noble and exalted, yet
very peaceful. The greater its peace, the greater is its velocity,
because it is abandoned to the Spirit, who moves it and makes it act.
This Spirit is God Himself, who draws us, and in drawing makes us run to
Him, as the Bride well knew when she said, "Draw me, we will run" (Cant.
i. 4). Draw me, O my Divine Centre, by my inmost heart: my powers and my
sensibilities will run at Thy attraction! This attraction alone is a
balm which heals me, and a perfume which draws. "We will run," she says,
"because of the savour of Thy good ointments." This attracting virtue is
_very strong_ but the soul follows it _very gladly_; and as it is
equally strong and sweet, it attracts by its strength and delights by
its sweetness.
The Bride says, "Draw me, we will run." She speaks of herself, and to
herself: "Draw _me_;" there is the unity of the object which is
attracted: "_We_ will run;" there is the correspondence of all the
powers and sensibilities which follow in the train of the centre of the
heart.
It is not then a question of remaining in idleness, but of acting _in
dependence upon the Spirit of God_, who animates us, since it is in Him
that "we live, and move, and have our being" (Acts xvii. 23). This calm
dependence upon the Spirit of God is absolutely necessary, and causes
the soul in a short time to attain the simplicity and unity in which it
was created. It was created one and simple, like God. In order, then, to
answer the end of our creation, we must quit the multiplicity of our own
actions, to enter into the simplicity and unity of God, in whose image
we were created (Gen. i. 27). The Spirit of God is "one only," "yet
manifold" (Wisdom of Solomon vii. 22), and its unity does not prevent
its multiplicity. We enter into God's unity when we are united to His
Spirit, because then we have the same Spirit that He has; and we are
multiplied outwardly, as regards His dispositions, without leaving the
unity.
So that, as God acts infinitely, and we are of one spirit with Him, we
act much more than we could do by our own action. We must suffer
ourselves to be guided by Wisdom. This "Wisdom" is more moving than any
motion (Wisdom of Solomon vii. 24). Let us, then, remain in dependence
upon His action, and our action will be vigorous indeed.
"All things were made by (the Word); and without Him was not anything
made that was made" (John i. 3). God, in creating us, created us in His
image, after His likeness (Gen. i. 26). He gave to us the Spirit of the
Word by the breath of life (Gen. ii. 7), which He breathed into us when
we were created in the image of God, by the participation of the life of
the Word, who is the image of His Father. Now this life is one, simple,
pure, intimate, and fruitful.
The devil having disfigured this beautiful image, it became necessary
that this same Word, whose breath had been breathed into us at our
creation, should come to restore it. It was necessary that it should be
He, because He is the image of the Father; and a defaced image cannot be
repaired by its own action, but by the action of him who seeks to
restore it. Our _action_ then should be, to _put ourselves_ into a
position to suffer the action of God, and to allow the Word to retrace
His image in us. An image, if it could move, would by its movement
prevent the sculptor's perfecting it. Every movement of our own hinders
the work of the Heavenly Sculptor, and produces false features.
We must then remain silent, and only move as He moves us. Jesus Christ
has _life in Himself_ (John v. 26), and He must communicate life to all
who live.
That this action is the most noble cannot be denied. Things are only of
value as the principle in which they originate is noble, grand, and
elevated. Actions committed by a divine principle are _divine actions_;
whereas the actions of the creature, however good they may appear, are
_human actions_ or at best they are virtuous actions, if they are done
with the help of grace.
Jesus says that He has life in Himself; all other beings have but a
borrowed life, but the Word has life in Himself; and as He is
communicative, He desires to communicate this life to men. We must then
give place to this life, that it may flow in us, which can only be done
by evacuation, and the loss of the life of Adam and of our own action,
as St Paul assures us: "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature:
old things are passed away; behold all things are become new" (2 Cor. v.
17). This can only be brought about by the death of ourselves and of our
own action, that the action of God may be substituted for it. We do not
profess, then, to be without action, but only to act in dependence upon
the Spirit of God, suffering His action to take the place of our own.
Jesus shows us this in the gospel. Martha did good things, but because
she did them of her own spirit, Christ reproved her for them. The spirit
of man is turbulent and boisterous; therefore it does little, though it
appears to do much. "Martha, Martha," said Jesus, "thou art careful and
troubled about many things; but one thing is needful; and Mary hath
chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her" (Luke x.
41, 42).
What had she chosen, this Magdalene? Peace, tranquillity, and repose.
She apparently ceased to act, that she might be moved by the Spirit of
God; she ceased to live, that Christ might live in her.
This is why it is so necessary to renounce ourselves and all our own
works to follow Jesus; for we cannot follow Him unless we are animated
with His Spirit. In order that the Spirit of Christ may dwell in us, our
own spirit must give place to Him. "He that is joined to the Lord," says
St Paul, "is one spirit" (1 Cor. vi. 17). "It is good for me to draw
near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord God" (Ps. lxxiii. 28). What
is this "drawing near"? It is the beginning of union.
Union has its beginning, its continuation, its completion, and its
consummation. The commencement of union is an inclination towards God.
When the soul is converted in the manner I have described, it has an
inclination to its centre, and a strong tendency to union: this tendency
is the commencement. Then it adheres, which happens when it approaches
nearer to God; then it is united to Him, and finally becomes one with
Him--that is, it becomes one spirit with Him; and it is then that this
spirit, which proceeded from God, returns to Him as its end.
It is, then, necessary that we should enter this way, which is the
divine motion, and the Spirit of Jesus Christ. St Paul says, "If any man
have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His" (Rom. viii. 9). To be
Christ's, then, we must suffer ourselves to be filled with His Spirit,
and emptied of our own: our hearts must be evacuated. St Paul, in the
same place, proves to us the necessity of this divine motion: he says,
"As many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God"
(Rom. viii. 14).
The divinely-imparted Spirit is the Spirit of divine sonship; therefore,
the same apostle continues, "Ye have not received the spirit of bondage
again to fear; but ye have received the spirit of adoption, whereby we
cry, Abba, Father" (Rom. viii. 15). This spirit is no other than the
Spirit of Christ, by whom we participate in His Sonship; and this
"Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit that we are the sons of
God."
As soon as the soul leaves itself to be moved by the Spirit of God, it
experiences the witness of this divine sonship; and this witness serves
the more to increase its joy, as it makes it know _that it is called to
the liberty of the sons of God_, and that the spirit it has received is
not a spirit of bondage, but of liberty.
The Spirit of the divine motion is so necessary for all things, that
Paul founds this necessity upon our ignorance of the things that we ask
for. "The Spirit," he says, "helpeth our infirmities; for we know not
what we should pray for as we ought; but the Spirit itself maketh
intercession for us, with groanings which cannot be uttered." This is
conclusive: if we do not know what to pray for, nor how to ask as we
ought for what is necessary for us, and if it is needful that the Spirit
who is in us, to whose motion we abandon ourselves, should ask it for
us, ought we not to leave Him to do it? He does it "with groanings which
cannot be uttered."
This Spirit is the Spirit of the Word, who is always heard, as He says
Himself: "I know that Thou hearest me always" (John xi. 42). If we leave
it to the Spirit within us to ask and to pray, we shall always be
answered. Why so? O great apostle, mystic teacher, so deeply taught in
the inner life! teach us why. "It is," he adds, "because He that
searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because He
maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God;" that
is to say, this Spirit only asks that which it is God's will to give. It
is God's will that we should be saved and that we should be perfect. He
asks, then, for all that is necessary to our perfection. Why, after
this, should we be burdened with superfluous cares, and be wearied in
the greatness of our way, without ever saying, There is no hope in
ourselves, and therefore resting in God? God Himself invites us to cast
all our care upon Him, and He complains, in inconceivable goodness, that
we employ our strength, our riches, and our treasure, in countless
exterior things, although there is so little joy to be found in them
all. "Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread, and your
labour for that which satisfieth not? Hearken diligently unto me, and
eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness"
(Isa. lv. 2).
Oh, if it were known what happiness there is in thus hearkening unto
God, and how the soul is strengthened by it! All flesh must be silent
before the Lord (see Zech. ii. 13). All self-effort must cease when He
appears. In order still further to induce us to abandon ourselves to Him
without reserve, God assures us that we need fear nothing from such
abandonment, because He has a special individual care over each of us.
He says, "Can a woman forget her sucking-child, that she should not have
compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, she may forget, yet will I not
forget thee" (Isa. xlix. 15). Ah, words full of consolation! Who on
hearing them can fear to abandon himself utterly to the guidance of
God?