TORONTO
RAVIGNAN S
LAST RETREAT.
GIVEN TO THE CARMELITE NUNS OF THE
MONASTERY, RUE DE MESSINE, PARIS,
IN NOVEMBER, 1857.
from the Drench
F. M DONOGH M A H O N Y.
BURNS AND GATES,
LONDON :
GRANVILLE MANSIONS,
ORCHARD STREET, W.
NEW YORK :
CATHOLIC PUBLICATION
SOCIETY CO., *
BARCLAY STREET.
8 S3
Imprimatur.
HENRICUS EDUARDUS,
A rchiepiscopus Westinonast.
ii xibstat.
DAVID O LEARY,
Censor Deputatus.
impnmatnt.
^ ANDREAS, EP. KERR1ENS1S.
^ CHRIST? REGIS
BIS. MAJOR
JOflOflTO
TO
THE SISTERS OF THE PRESENTATION
CONVENT OF S. JOSEPH,
CAHIRCIVEEN, CO. KERRY,
^Lhis ([Bark is
IN MEMORY OF LONG ACQUAINTANCESHIP AND
" AULD LANG SYNE,"
BY
THE TRANSLATOR.
CONTENTS.
FIRST DAY.
EXERCISE I. PAGE
Meditation on the End of Man, ... ... I
EXERCISE II.
Meditation on the End of Creatures, ... ... 6
EXERCISE III.
Meditation on Holy Indifference, ... ... n
EXERCISE IV.
Meditation on Our Own End, ... ... 16
SECOND DAY.
EXERCISE I.
Meditation on Threefold Sin, ... ... 21
EXERCISE II.
Meditation on Our Own Sins, ... ... 26
EXERCISE III.
Conference on the Graces to Ask for, ... 32
EXERCISE IV.
Meditation on Hell, ... ... ... 39
THIRD DAY.
EXERCISE I.
The Justice of God, ... ... ... 44
EXERCISE II.
The Particular Judgment, ... ... ... 45
EXERCISE III.
Luke XV., ... ... ... ... 45
EXERCISE IV.
Repetition Justice and Mercy, ... ... 46
VI
FOURTH DAY.
EXERCISE I. ,, AGE
Meditation on the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, .. 48
EXERCISE II.
Second Meditation on the Kingdom of Jesus
Christ, ... ... ... ... 52
EXERCISE III.
Conference on True Devotion to Our Lord, ... 59
EXERCISE IV.
Meditation on the Mystery of the Visitation, ... 66
FIFTH DAY,
EXERCISE I.
Meditation on Our Lord in the Desert, ... 74
EXERCISE II.
Meditation on the Sermon on the Mount, ... 78
EXERCISE III.
Conference on Peace, ... ... ... 85
EXERCISE IV.
Repetition of the Two First Exercises of the
Day, ... ... ... ... 92
SIXTH DAY (I.).
EXERCISE I.
First Meditation on the Two Standards, ... 98
EXERCISE II.
Repetition on the Preceding Meditation, ... 102
EXERCISE III.
Conference on the Three Degrees of Humility, 107
EXERCISE IV.
Meditation on the Three Classes, ... ... 114
SIXTH DAY (II.).
EXERCISE I.
Our Lord Walking upon the Waters, ... 120
EXERCISE II.
Meditation on the Transfiguration, ... ... 125
Vll
EXERCISE III. PAGE
Considerations on Election, ... ... 132
EXERCISE IV.
Meditation on the Resurrection of Lazarus, ... 139
SEVENTH DAY.
EXERCISE I.
Meditation on the Agony of Our Lord, . . 145
EXERCISE II.
Meditation on the Passion, ... ... ... 150
EXERCISE III.
Conference on Mortification, ... 156
EXERCISE IV.
Meditation on Our Lord s Death, .. ... 162
EIGHTH DAY.
EXERCISE I.
Meditation on the Resurrection, ... ... 166
EXERCISE II.
Meditation on the Ascension of Our Lord, ... 171
EXERCISE III.
Conference on True Love, ... ... 176
EXERCISE IV.
Meditation on the Love of God, .. ... 182
REFLECTIONS AND INSTRUCTIONS.
Peace on the Cross : an Instruction given at the End
ofLent, 1857, ... ... ... "... 189
Discourse on Spiritual Joy, ... .. 196
Considerations, ... ... ... ... 202
The Apostleship of Carmel, ... .... ... 209
Reflection for Time of Sickness and Suffering, ... 210
LETTER INTRODUCTORY.
J- M. J.
DEAR REV. MOTHER, May the Grace of the
Holy Ghost be ever in your soul !
Our Lord s mercy having granted us a few
days retreat under the guidance of Pere de
Ravignan, in the month of November, 1857,
we thought that so precious a faith should not
remain shut up in our Monastery, and we
were eager to spread throughout our whole
holy Order the same salutary fruits which it
brought forth in ourselves.
To the care of a pious ecclesiastic to whom
we entrusted the notes taken during Pere
de Ravignan s instructions, we owe the con
solation of being enabled to realise our design.
Permit us, Rev. Mother, in our gratitude, to
recommend to your prayers this virtuous
priest, who belongs to a congregation which
formerly deserved well at the hands of the
Carmelites in France.
We ask you also for your prayers, and for
a general communion of your pious com
munity for the generous lady (already known
by her charities in many of our houses) who
is pleased to send, at her own expense, a
copy of this pious Retreat to each of our
monasteries. She hopes that all the religious
will profit thereby, and will not forget to
make a pious memento for her at the feet
of our Good Master, and that is her only
ambition. Deign to make little Carmel,
dear Rev. Mother, a participator in the same
favour, and we beg to salute you with the
greatest humility in the sacred hearts of Jesus
and Mary Immaculate.
Your most obedient Servant,
ST. MARIE DE LA CROIX,
R. C. I.
PARIS,
Feast of Mount-Carmel, July 16, 1859.
From our Monastery of Reparation to the Sacred Face of our
Saviour, of the Carmelites of Paris,
5 Rue de Messine.
PREFACE TO THE FRENCH EDITION.
THE discourses composing this Retreat were
delivered by Pere de Ravignan, three months
before his death, to the Carmelite nuns of the
Monastery of the Rue de Messine. They
themselves, with pious care, gathered together
the last apostolic words let fall from a mouth
so revered. They thought they ought not bury
this treasure in the earth, but ought rather
share it with their Sisters in the different
convents which follow the rule of S. Theresa,
and with all religious souls, both in and out
of the cloister, who love to feed on the holy
teachings of evangelical perfection.
However faithfully and exactly they sought
to reproduce Pere de Ravignan s own words,
it may be readily supposed that they have
not always thoroughly succeeded. And even
if they had, we must not wonder if we find in
simple meditations, given by way of dialogue
to nuns, neither perfect harmony of style,
rounded periods, nor great oratorical effect
All the editor s work has consisted in remov
ing the unavoidable slips of easy and impro
vised dialogue ; nothing has been added, and
but little abridged ; it would be a matter of
scruple to go farther, and, by a desire for
introducing numerous corrections, to expose
oneself to alter, however little, the original
ideas of the holy religious.
The only merit, too, that accrues to iis is
the highest recognition of Pere de Ravignan s
ordinary style in his pious discourses, in the
following pages. Here indeed may be found
that austere and simple, that grave and
familiar language, and, without ever going in
quest of eloquence, finding it incessantly, the
eloquence of inspiration, at its purest and
most exalted source, the love of God and
men. There may we recognise the sweet
unction of his words, the penetrating vivacity
of his zeal, the manly energy of his faith, and
his vast experience in ministering to souls.
We hope still for better things, and we long
for more ; if we take our food from these dis
courses, delivered for the sake of being medi-
Xlll
tated on rather than for the sake of being-
read, we cannot escape the salutary con
tagion of apostolic zeal which penetrated
that priestly soul, burdened in vain by the
weight of a body worn out by labour and
already on the threshold of the grave, with
accents of sublime charity not of earth, but
which the Seraphic Theresa seems to have
inspired from the heights of heaven, as a last
consolation for her beloved daughter, who can
never see him more.
In this Retreat, Pere de Ravignan, following
his invariable custom, has not departed from
the ordinary course of S. Ignatius Exercises.
The Exercises, as everyone knows, comprise a
certain number of weeks and days, which the
preacher can vary according to the needs of
the congregation, or according to the time at
his disposal. The word day, any more than
the word week, does not necessarily signify, in
the language of S. Ignatius, the interval of
time which the expression is generally used to
denote ; by this word S. Ignatius simply
means a time, or a phase of the Retreat ; and
the preacher, according to circumstances, can
limit to one or more days the exercises of the
XIV
week, or can abridge or lengthen the exercises
of the day. Agreeably to this power, Pere de
Ravignan confined himself to indicating, with
out giving them in detail, the exercises of the
third day, while he devoted two days to the
exercises of the sixth.
In addition to the meditations for the Re
treat, we have given two discourses delivered
by Pere de Ravignan to the nuns of the same
convent, which have been gathered together
by them in like manner. Some fragments
and ideas, collected from various sources,
complete the volume.
PARIS,
Feast of S. Louis de Gonzagnes, June 24, 1859.
MEDITATION FOR THE EVE OF THE
RETREAT.
BELOVED Sisters, you are entering on retreat,
and the first thing you ought to do is to ask
yourselves this question: What is retreat?
What is the intention of our Lord towards
us in giving us these holy and precious days ?
What is the intention of our Blessed Mother
who looks down on us from the heights of
heaven ?
We find the answer in the teachings of the
holy Exercises, as they have been modelled
and bequeathed to us by the soldier of
Maureze, who himself received them from
the Holy Ghost, his first and only Master.
Not a word has been changed in them since
that time. In this golden book we find the
conditions necessary to be fulfilled in order
to profit by these holy Exercises ; two words
sum up everything under this head, retreat
XVI
is the labour of the soul. The one with the
other, the one by the other ; labour by rest,
and rest by labour.
And first, rest, the salutary and wonder
fully efficacious rest of the soul. Why?
Because the first thing you ought to do on
entering on this retreat, Sisters, is to cast your
selves into the hands of your Creator, like a
block of clay, in order that He may remodel
you; in order that He may work in your
favour a new creation, a new being. " My
God, create in me a pure heart, and renew the
spirit of uprightness and justice within me.
O my God, I give myself to Thee to do unto
me according to Thy will."
This offering must be made with the desire
of forgetting the world, and of abandoning
yourselves ; it must be made with a generous
heart. There must be no hesitating weak
ness, no, Sisters, but great courage, because
God requires much of us during retreat What
is it that God requires of you ? You know
not at the end of these holy days, and, in
fine, neither is it the time to know. Later,
the light will come. From this time until
then, whenever anything causes you uneasi-
XV11
ness, or fear, you must banish it, because it
would impair your rest.
This rest has still another element, soli
tude. But are you not always in solitude ?
That may be ; but you need a more perfect
solitude, a more absolute interior solitude by
even separation from your customary occupa
tions, and, above all, by the entire separation
of yourselves in order that you may find God
alone. Now, the solitude and the separation
of retreat consist in the religious and con
scientious observance of silence. Retreat is
perpetual silence ; there must not be a word
beyond what the strictest necessity requires,
there must not be a voluntary thought to
distract you from God. Be ye, Sisters, pene
trated with this idea. Have nothing more at
heart than the offering of all that you are
to God, by silence and rest ; you shall draw
therefrom marvellous fruits.
S. Ignatius says that retreat is more pro
fitable to the soul than any other exercise
to which she can devote herself, because, in
retreat, the soul is exclusively united to God.
Believe me, there is immense profit in the
solitude of these days ; the world can still
penetrate behind the cloister and the grat
ings ; but in retreat there is a more complete
separation than ever, there is silence, calm,
rest, certain progress.
We have already said, Sisters, that retreat
is the labour of the soul. The soul needs
exercise as much as the body, and this
exercise, or labour of the soul, consists in
examination, meditation, and contemplation,
which prepare and dispose it to a second
very important and very needful labour. At
certain periods of our lives we require to
reckon with ourselves, and to see if there is
not in our soul some inclination, some desire,
contrary to the rule of our holy vows, and
contrary to what God expects of us. Then
I stand in presence of myself, I reckon with
my conscience, I weigh my inclinations, and
more than once do I say to myself : " That is
not right ".
When we discern our failings, and see what
is not conformable to our holy state, we must
immediately uproot and check our ill-regu
lated passions, and make way for the restora
tion of free will, in order to seek and to find
the will of God for the reformation of our
^^
XIX
lives. That labour is expressed in one word,
you know it well, victory over self.
Victory over self ! it is a great word !
victory over self always ! There will be
always battles to fight and victories to gain.
We must always recommence our lives, and
let us, therefore, cast ourselves into the hands
of our Creator, in order that He may remodel
us. In Him, by Him, and for Him, we see
what ought to be checked, and what ought
to be practised ; then, we are free to act with
the light of understanding.
You must, therefore, be careful in retreat,
and above all at its close, to devote your
selves to one thing, to approaching God,
and tasting of His favours. For the soul the
all-important point is to reach God ; if she
becomes wedded to many things her occupa
tions distract her from Him ; she loses
recollection, strength, and vigour ; it becomes
impossible for her to reach God alone.
But remember, Sisters, that prayer is every
thing. This labour of retreat is in the spirit
of prayer ; because, since we are bound to
seek virtue and to check vice, we are bound
above all to co-operate with grace, and to cast
XX
ourselves into the hands of God. How can
we do this ? By prayer. Is not prayer the
rest of the soul ? Should we not seek in
prayer peace and strength alike ? You may
then say with S. Augustine : " Thou alone
art sufficient for me, O my God ! " and again,
" Give me, O Lord, Thy commandments, and
command me according to Thy will ! "
Retreat, then, in two words is, Rest and
Labour. Rest, separation, recollection, silence.
Labour, seeking the will of God, ascertaining
the will of the infinite charity of Jesus towards
us, and conforming ourselves thereto. You
see that this labour and rest consist first in
seeking God, in order that He may operate
upon us ; and, secondly, in destroying in our
selves everything that is not God. Sisters,
enter on this labour with joy and generosity
of purpose, and, believe me, you have much to
obtain from it. Enter, too, on this rest with
pleasure. Enter on it with Mary Immaculate,
with your Blessed Mother, and, believe me, you
shall draw therefrom lasting consolations.
\\\^^
RAVIGNAN S LAST RETREAT.
FIRST DAY.
EXERCISE I.
MEDITATION ON THE END OF MAN.
" JV/T AN is created to praise, to honour, and to
serve God, and by this means to save his
soul." With this simple and profound truth, S.
Ignatius opens his Exercises.
We can reduce this fundamental truth to two
ideas. First, we receive everything from God;
secondly, we are bound to refer everything to God,
that is to say, to return everything to Him. When
I say everything, I mean chiefly what is in our
selves, spirit, heart, soul, all entire.
And we may first remark that we receive every
thing from God. Everything good and evil, com-
fort and trials ; the holy indifference which does
not make us estimate ourselves the more, nor desire
one thing more than another, everything comes to
me from God, from whom is all my good.
We should receive everything from God with
profound faith, we should believe sincerely that
everything comes to us from God, that He has
given us everything to draw us to Him, with no
other end than Himself; we should believe every
day, at every instant, that He renews in us the
benefits for which we were created, that He creates
us anew for Himself alone.
Have I perfectly understood hitherto that I re
ceive everything from God ? Do I approach God
with this lively sentiment of faith ? And yet this
sentiment should animate all my existence, it should
be my life according to the words of the Apostle :
The just man liveth by faith. To live by faith is
nothing more than the firm conviction that we re
ceive everything from God, and that everything
ought to guide us to Him.
We should receive everything from God, not
merely with lively faith, but also with entire de
pendence. God is the Master, and I am the slave ;
I am bound to obey Him only, to serve Him, and
to serve no other than Him ; is this what I have
done ? Is this, then, my only object in everything,
3
to know God, to love God, and to serve God ? Yet
this is my end, and this shall henceforth be my life,
at least I shall ask the grace to let it be so.
Secondly, Sisters, we are bound to refer every
thing to God. This is our duty, my body, my
soul, my existence, my whole self, health, sickness,
worldly goods, pleasures, sorrows, poverty, riches,
I am bound to refer them all to God, and why ?
Because He hath given me all to this end. This
thought should first inspire a feeling of gratitude
within me. What happiness for a soul to say to
herself: "I am bound to give everything to God,
who Himself was the first to give me everything.
Gratitude and praise be for ever to the good and
great God ! " To praise Him is a necessity for
every creature, but for you, Sisters, it is more than
that, your mission is to give glory to God. Each
one of you ought to say to herself : " My life must
give honour to God. In my vocation, in my con
secration, in my profession, I am bound to be of
honour to God."
Another sentiment most commendable towards
God is respect. This sentiment embraces fear, but
a fear full of love.
We are bound to respect God, to respect Him
deeply, above all things, to respect Him as our
Father \ and then this outburst of filial fear escapes
from our heart : " What, my God, Thou hast done
everything for me, and is it possible that I could
displease Thee, or offend Thee? No, my God,
no ! " Respect of God everywhere, always, at the
holy office, in holy prayer. How often do we not
respect God ! Alas ! in my past life how many
actions are there that respect not God !
Together with respect, devotion of heart is still
needed; a soul that is not devout cannot respect
God, cannot love Him ; but you, Sisters, you are
devoted to God, you love Him, and you long to
share in His kingdom and His glory. Oh ! be
devout ; give everything to God, forgetting all else
in Him ; forget the world, forget yourselves for God
alone. This is that true and constant devotion
which alone constitutes happiness; but remember
that this devotion must be accompanied by great
courage, for there will be sacrifices in thus referring
everything to God ; there are sacrifices, and there
will be always. But what matters it ? This is our
life, the end for which we were created, our desti
nation, to sacrifice everything to God with devo
tion and courage, and to find everything in God in
eternity.
Let us, Sisters, recall S. Stanislaus to mind, that
amiable saint who died so young and so perfect
under whose protection you are entering on your
II
Let us, then, always bury ourselves in the almighty
graces of God !
EXERCISE III.
MEDITATION ON HOLY INDIFFERENCE.
The reflections we have made in the two fore
going meditations, necessarily lead us to this con
clusion :
Therefore, I must be indifferent.
Beloved Sisters, we are bound to be indifferent
without choice or will of our own ; to love health
no more than sickness, honour no more than
obloquy, riches no more than poverty, life no more
than death. During these holy Exercises, the soul
ought to cast herself into total indifference, like
scales not bearing weights, in order to go to God ;
the balance preserves an equilibrium, it inclines
neither to one side nor to the other. And this can
be readily believed, namely, that if the soul inclines
to one side before God hath spoken to her, it is
not the side. of God.
Therefore, then, indifference.
12
This is the necessary condition for choosing well,
for leading a good life, for obeying promptly, and
for suffering patiently.
Bear this, Sisters, well in mind ; without indiffer
ence you could never make a good choice, and you
have past experience to convince you of it. When
ever you allowed your soul to be inclined to attach
herself to anything of her own free will, did you
not then experience fatigue, agitation, trouble, suf
fering? If we except from this the trials sent, or
permitted by God, affliction of spirit is always the
result of the soul s want of indifference. If you
possess this virtue, it disappears entirely. Indiffer
ence is justice, order, peace, and in the same way
it is happiness and true liberty. That is logic.
This happiness and liberty follow the soul through
all vicissitudes. I am suffering, I have trials.
What does that do for me ? It is the will of God
that is being fulfilled in me. Or again, I am tried
in affection, wounded in self-love, I feel bruised
and heartbroken, what matter ? God wills it. I
will it also. I accept it, I behold but one thing,
the will of God. There is joy, peace, and happi
ness. On the other hand, immediately I follow my
own will without consulting the will of God, and
abandon my heart to sensual affection, I feel an
indefinable malady, because I am out of order.
13
Wherefore indifference, that complete denial of will,
which rests at nothing, is alone rest.
I do not say that we obtain this indifference all
at once, but we must try to do so.
Let us, Sisters, examine the secrets of our hearts
to find the source of the obstacles to this indiffer
ence. Have we not some attachment, or hankering
after position, wealth, or family ? Some too sensual
affection, some desire too little submissive to divine
consolation, some preference for employment?
Those obstacles must be made to vanish ; and,
hence, we must fight them. Battle is the first
means for attaining indifference. This battle is
necessary, it will give you life. And this battle will
last unto death, because we cannot die without
there being in us some radical influences to draw
us away from God, ensnare our will, and incline us
to evil.
Patience, O religious souls ! Remove every
obstacle courageously; but do not exact, do not
require complete victory on the spot, namely, per
fect and entire indifference ; you must first volun
tarily make up your mind to seek it incessantly in
the midst of impressions, inclinations, and natural
affections, to find grace and the divine will, and, by
this means, to eradicate preconceived preferences.
I should not prefer one thing beyond another ; no,
14
a thousand times, no ; because that would be my
own will, and I want to do only the will of God ;
everything that is not the divine will is a phantom,
a caprice, is nature !
Sisters, this indifference must be attained at any
price ; but observe the chief point, the mere will
is everything ; contrary impressions are nothing,
absolutely nothing.
Nay, more, we must not seek to embrace every
thing, to do everything at once, that is impossible.
I take up, therefore, one thing, and one thing only ;
I see that only, I think of that only, I seek that
only ; to be delivered from this only obstacle all my
efforts are directed at this moment. There is real
strength in this limited choice. Why ? Because
the soul directing all her powers to one object, does
not divide, but concentrates, her resources. The
saints never chose any other path in the correction
of their faults, or in the acquisition of virtues.
And, in effect, Sisters, what is a saint ? A saint
is a man who has one fixed idea. Behold your
holy mother 1 ; the glory of God and the salvation
of souls was her only thought, her sole strength,
and with her nothing was impossible; she conquered
every obstacle, she triumphed over her passions,
over the world, and the devil.
1 S. Theresa.
To battle must be joined constant prayer; prayer
weighs the balance before God, and pauseth. To
pray is to desire ardently, and desire, as you know,
is that within us which expects, demands, calls for,
and importunes. But lax and effeminate desire is
not prayer; to allow yourself to follow nature is
not prayer ; to grow weary is not prayer. We must,
therefore, persevere. If you were to obtain perfec
tion at the end of a quarter of an hour, what would
you do afterwards ? But, indeed, perfection is never
acquired on earth, we shall possess it only in heaven.
Here below we must pray, pray always, fight, and
groan. And, now, you will do all that you can
to-day, you will employ your whole being to enter
on this holy indifference. I repeat that you cannot
do it all in a day. Patience, you will do more to
morrow ; only always have the disposition of heart
and will.
As to the practice of indifference, you have your
rules, and constitutions, you have obedience. Con
sult them in everything ; you have no choice, you
have only to follow them.
Let us, Sisters, sum up in a few words that indif
ference is justice, order, the condition necessary for
choosing well, it is rest.
We shall not go to God, we shall not please Him,
except insomuch as we are indifferent; for every
i6
affection that is too sensual is to us an obstacle to
indifference. Henceforth, we must fight against all
seeking after self, and all self-love, in opposition to
its will, or its ideas. This almost imperceptible
thread must be broken by particular examination
and prayer; I will say that prayer that pursueth,
importuneth, and wearieth God, and obtaineth
everything. And you shall obtain, Sisters, because
you pray thus.
EXERCISE IV.
MEDITATION ON OUR OWN END.
Beloved Sisters, let us meditate on the last words
of the fundamental principle which open the Exer
cises. Let us once more recall to mind that man is
created to know God, to love God, and to serve
God, and "by this means to ensure his salvation ".
Let us ponder over these last words, and draw
our conclusions from them. In everything we must
wish for and seek only that which is the best to
guide us to our sovereign and only end, that is to
say, to the end for which we were created. This is
everything.
Consider then, in peace of heart, the four follow
ing subjects :
First, the end towards which you are tending.
Secondly, the desire for that end.
Thirdly, the choice of means ; and,
Fourthly, the better choice.
What is the end of my life, of my vocation, of
the will of God towards me ? To unite me to God.
But, alas ! here below perfect union cannot exist,
that is reserved for the vision of heaven; yet we
can love, we can pray. Oh ! to love and to pray is
the beginning, in this life, of the eternal union ; it
is the union of the soul to God in faith, it is para
dise on earth.
God is, therefore, my end; I was created to reach
Him, to go unto Him, to touch Him, to be bound
to Him, to be one with Him alone.
God being the Sovereign End, above all other
things, there are neither obstacles, nor temptations,
nor trials to prevent me from going to Him. Such
is the charity of God towards the creature, behold
how He has loved us !
And how are the majority of men in this respect ?
Is this their sole thought, their predominant truth :
I am created to go unto God, Who reigneth in
souls ? Oh ! no. But we, Sisters, retired from the
world, and cut off from the crimes of earth, have
2
i8
we been careful to establish within us the kingdom
of God, our only end? At every moment of my
life, can I say that I am going to God ? Is my soul
with all her powers elevated directly to Him ;
directly to Him alone ?
On the second point, there is only one thing to
be said to show that this end should be desired.
Desire is life. Yes, Sisters, our whole life should
be one of desire in God. God must be desired ;
for desire, as you know, is that tendency of the soul
to expect, to call, to pray ; and we know well that
to pray is to wish. Desire, wish, and prayer are
all the same, the sole end to be attained by love.
Prayer should be for everyone, and still more for
the religious soul, for the Carmelite, the soul of life ;
prayer should be our good. We may deprive our
selves of many things ; we may even, by an effort,
do without bread for the sustenance of bodily life ;
we have the experience of some saints who have
done so, by a special grace ; but for the soul to do
without prayer is impossible.
Devotion is included in desire for God ; it is the
necessities of the heart that aspire to God, for to be
devout is to love, to sacrifice self. We must give
ourselves up, and devote ourselves to God, but,
above all things, we must love Him to reach
Him. Love is the shortest way ; it is that which
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almost impossible for you to fall into this state,
believe that this is so. In a very fervent and devout
soul that follows the counsel of her good angel, and
that, consequently, cannot go against God, the di
vine action is peaceful and often consoling; the Lord
gives her peace, He does not tempt her, and He it
is that sustains, consoles, and fortifies her. The
devil, on the other hand, cannot enter in the
character of a friend, that is to say, pleasantly, into
this faithful soul ; he disturbs her, creates a tumult,
torments her, he cannot leave her in the peace she
is enjoying, simply because it is peace. We may
therefore conclude, Sisters, that, in a devout and
fervent soul, the action of God is peace ; and, on
the other hand, everything that troubles and dis
quiets her is the devil. This is very simple, but
very clear.
In a lax and faithless soul, the spiritual action of
both is different, which is easily understood; for
God, in order to enter, has to do violence, either
by Himself, or by His agents, because God is not
at home in a faithless soul. Hence He will send
trouble, He will permit uneasiness, but never dis
couragement. God does not discourage, He en
courages always. As to the devil, he will not
trouble this soul ; on the contrary, he abandons her,
and lets her slumber; but he cannot give her peace,
3
34
for he is the enemy of peace. Therefore, if trouble,
sorrow, disquietude, or desolation, spring up in the
faithful soul, it is the work of the enemy, and
what are we to do ? We must be patient, and bear
it. We must be careful above all things, not to
abandon prayer ; we ought to pray much. And
then see if I have not consolation, sensible help,
patience. Is my will contrary to God ? No. Have
I not acted according to His will? Yes. Then
patience ! Wait, seek, and pray ! Has not God
said that we must wait ?
Patience, then, patience ! in order that we may
give to God that which He loveth, a cheerful
heart.
MEDITATION. In retreat, beloved Sisters, in the
practice of meditation, the really important thing,
the most important of all things, is to ask for grace,
and, above all, the grace attached to the truth
which is occupying you. For you, particularly at
this moment, there are three graces which you ought
to ask for fervently :
The first grace, eminently needful, is that sorrow
which we may also call contrition and confusion.
Not sensible sorrow (which is good when God gives
it to us), but substantial, real sorrow, which has for
its foundation the knowledge of ourselves. We
must ask for this fervently, for it is indispensable
35
to perfect conversion ; the heart must be penetrated
with profound sorrow for its sins, before it begins
the work of its purification. The saints, who had
led such wonderful lives, were covered with confu
sion at the remembrance of their sins; they regarded
themselves as the greatest criminals, and yet what
were their faults, great God? And yet they did
not deceive themselves, they were right; we shall
think thus, too, when we are holy like them. Be
hold your mother, your seraphic mother Theresa;
how many times did she not write that she com
mitted grave faults, mortal sins, and yet she never
committed a single mortal sin; it was her contrition,
her confusion, and above all her love for God that
made her imagine she had done so. And perhaps
we, Sisters, think that we have nothing very great
to reproach ourselves with. The saints used to
weep for whole years over one sin ; they had the
light of God. And as for us, our self-love blinds
us. Let us ask the grace of light in order that we
may be humiliated, and covered with confusion ; it
is an act of humility already to feel that we stand in
need of it. Ask also for horror and detestation of
sin, in a word, for everything that is necessary to
obtain for you forgiveness.
We should also ask for another grace, Sisters, and
one no less important than the first. In your holy
36
vocation you may have glided into sickness or dis
order. It is not enough to be freely and generously
separated from the world, and all that passes
therein ; there is yet another thing to do, and that
is to set about maintaining order. There are very
few souls moulded and regulated by purity of faith ;
we have all within us disorder, disorder in our
senses, in our affections, in our memory, in our
thoughts, in our intelligence ; disorder in our heart,
disorder in our actions, and disorder even some
times in our virtues. Order is the complete sub
mission of our being to God, and hence, you call it
obedience. Wherever disorder is found, there, too,
is imperfection ; order is perfection. God is order,
for order is peace, justice, wisdom, truth ; and God
requires His intelligent creatures to be also in order,
so as to unite themselves to Him. It is here,
Sisters, at the feet of our Lord that you must recog
nise disorder and all the miseries that follow in its
train, the fluctuations of life, and the faults com
mitted in this house through failing to regulate your
senses, and all your faculties by faith. Ask the
grace of order whilst humbly acknowledging every
thing in which you fail in this respect ; pray, pray
to Mary to implore this benefit for you, and to
obtain for you a will noble and strong enough to
draw you out of disorder, to hate it, and to establish
37
you in that which tends towards God alone, and
enables you to live a supernatural life.
The third grace to be asked for, is contempt and
forgetfulness of the world. We are easily persuaded
by the world in which we mixed, the world still
follows us, notwithstanding the cloister, holy disci
pline, the bars ; and the world with its frivolous
character, its base inclinations, and its perversity, is
still capable of exercising on us, and over us, its
influences. We know well that the world is vanity,
frivolity, pride. Oh ! we do not know the world
well enough, we do not separate ourselves suffi
ciently from it. You maintain its spirit and its affec
tions, which ought to be unknown and strangers to
this retreat of piety. Ask for knowledge of the
world in the sense in which we explain it ; you
have need of it, great need. For a soul to have
this knowledge is to be in the way of the highest
perfection. Recall to mind the things which for
merly occupied your worldly life, and whatsoever
you still keep thereof in your words, thoughts, and
affections, and in the alliance which your heart
makes with natural, rather than with spiritual and
supernatural, things. In your present life of con
templation, you ought to break from this alliance,
in order that you may be occupied more easily with
spiritual things alone; this, Sisters, is of supreme
33
importance. Nothing human, no sensual or grievous
impressions, we must have none of these. We
may not be able to attain of ourselves this end, but
let us ask and we shall receive ; grace is promised
to those who pray for it. Our Lord Himself has
said, With Me all things are possible. Prostrate
yourselves at His feet, entreat Him, conjure Him,
importune Him, and you are sure to be heard.
But remember that the tilling of the soil is necessary
for the harvest ; God then gives us noble desires,
effectual desires, and do you never forget to address
your prayer to Him through the immaculate heart
of Mary, for this is the surest as well as the
sweetest means of obtaining the triple grace, which
is the theme of this day s exercises.
Finally, make a full offering of all that you have
and all that you are, into the hands of your Lord
and Creator. Devote yourselves altogether to one
thing, to one thing only, purification and sorrow.
For now the day is at hand, and the moment of
forgiveness.
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III. It strikes :
1. In life, the decisive crisis, utinam 1
2. At the hour of death, pcena peccati,
the sacrifice of life, the hour is at
hand.
3. In eternity without remedy or per
haps, in purgatory.
EXERCISE II.
THE PARTICULAR JUDGMENT.
EXERCISE III.
LUKE XV.
I. The joy of the Pastor.
II. The joy of the Master.
III. The joy of the Father.
Ita gaudium erit in ccelo.
4 6
EXERCISE IV.
REPETITION JUSTICE AND MERCY.
I. Justice awaits mercy is preventive.
II. Justice tests mercy sustains.
III. Justice strikes mercy saves.
N.B. The subjects for the third day were only
indicated and not developed by Pere de Ravignan.
We reproduce them here as he left them, for the
sake of those who wish to devote the third day to
the first work, that is to say, to the practice of the
purgative life.
The authors of Directoire des Exercises, relying
on a note in The Book of Exercises, and on their
own experience in the guidance of souls, observe
that meditation on death, judgment, and the other
punishments with which sin is visited, should only
be omitted very rarely, because they are very effica
cious in detaching the heart from visible objects,
and in inspiring it with the holy fear of the Lord,
which is one of the most powerful means of salva
tion.
In case it is desired to spend the third day of
retreat in the exercises of the purgative life, we may
59
make you enter on this divine life, and to give you
that peace and happiness which make atonement
for every sacrifice.
EXERCISE III.
CONFERENCE ON TRUE DEVOTION TO OUR LORD.
From this moment, from this day forth, you
understand perfectly, beloved Sisters, that we must
endeavour to dwell in, and have constant inter
course with, our Lord. Our first thought when
awaking, when, so to speak, we resume life,
should be our Lord. In like manner, in all these
exercises it is His Adorable Person, His words,
His actions, that we should consider. And in this
the first moment in which we apply ourselves in a
special manner to the attachment of the Divine
Saviour, we ought to fortify ourselves by every means
in our resolutions, and be devoted to Him.
Let us consider one of the chief obstacles which
prevent a soul from becoming attached to our
Lord.
There is a kind of half-will, which is neither good
nor bad ; I am fully assured that it is not yours ;
6o
but it may attack religious souls as well as others,
in order to prevent them from going to the Divine
Master. There is then a bad midway, which I
shall call hesitation, and which may be thus ex
plained, To will and not to will ; to know and
not to know. In this melancholy midway, people
hesitate and do nothing. There may be in this a
want of light, but there may also be weakness,
laxity, and I know not what inclination of the soul,
which we have called hesitation, and which is the
contrary to decision. Now, to answer our Lord s
call, it is evident there is needed decision, con
stant, true, assiduous decision, a decision conform
able to His intentions and your desires ; we must
be willing to, and must actually make war on
everything that is changeable and uncertain. Thu^-
to know or not to know, to do or not to do, is a
bad midway ; and you are more unfitted than
anyone to stop at this. This hesitation is so much
to be avoided that the author of the holy Exercises
does not speak of them, or even imagine them ; he
recognises only two things, to will, and not to will ;
but there is no question of indecision in so far as
the rules of the government of the spirit, or any
thing else is concerned, because S. Ignatius has no
advice to give for a disposition which ought not to
exist. Not to will is bad, very bad, but at least it
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is something ; to will and not to will is not a state
or a vocation, is not a disposition of Providence,
it is nothing.
Sisters, give not the least entrance into your
heart to this will and will not. For you above all
others, and in your life, it is error, delusion, and
the most dangerous of all things. It is not, it
cannot be your life ; for you it is nameless. We
must then hate this shameful indecision. To hesi
tate, to balance, to waver, belongs not to a true
daughter of S. Theresa ; it is impossible to a child
of Carmel. Take care then, the enemy of salvation
is there ; the soul that is willing may be very im
perfect, but then she wills, and there is hope. On
the other hand, the soul that wavers pleases the
devil, who greatly loves hesitation ; she borders on
lukewarmness. and lukewarmness of the most
dangerous kind. Our Lord has said, Better crime.,
better death, for then at least there is sometimes a
chance of repentance. Far better those follies that
are so commonly known, provided only that one
gives them up, and preserves the disposition of going
to our Lord.
Sisters, sound your soul, descend into it torch in
hand, asking our Lord to descend with you into
her most hidden depths ; and there look and ask
yourselves if there is not uncertainty, hesitation, the
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will cuid will not there ; then throw into all your
actions a disposition of decisiveness, to will, and
to will even unto folly to cast yourselves on God.
O my Saviour, I protest that my deliberate decision
is to follow Thee. With that, perhaps, you will
say, we should also pray and fight, since this is life ;
but is not to will to pray and to fight ? Yes, and
our Lord is satisfied therewith, because this is what
He requires, what He expects ; and He makes to
Himself great peace in the soul. Our Lord wishes
for these souls, He seeks them, He asked them of
S. Theresa, He has numbered them among His
daughters ; and thus numbered fear not, you have
peace. If trouble comes, it will only come from
the devil, and this is a good sign, because then he
is displeased. Behold then laid the first foundation
of devotion to our Lord, to be decisive, to have no
hesitation, to be willing to follow this divine Master,
and to become firmly attached to Him.
But what is the meaning of becoming attached
to our Lord. It is this. Let us put aside spiritual
labour which is good, but which we leave for the
moment, and let us approach God from our heart.
In order to approach our Lord, and to become
attached to Him, we must ardently desire to know
Him familiarly in the different stages of His mortal
life. By this means I shall love Him the more, I
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shall follow Him more closely, I shall know His
spirit, the business and the desire of His heart in
everything that He has done, in His words, actions,
sufferings, and in all that He now inspires me with
in the bottom of my heart. Oh ! let us ask for
this profound knowledge of His Sacred Humanity,
His life, and His works ; let us apply our hearts
and our minds thereto, and think not by this means,
Sisters, that you will withdraw from the path of
prayer and true and solid devotion. This thought
on occurring to you should be banished with indig
nation and anger. Remember what S. John of the
Cross and your holy Mother say to you on this
point, A soul which is attached to our Lord, as we
have just said, hears His voice. Now our Divine
Saviour speaks to us, and calls us incessantly in
three ways, by His lessons, by His example, and
by the inspirations of His grace ; but, above all, by
the eminent grace of vocation.
But, again, what is the meaning of becoming
attached to our Lord ? It is to offer ourselves to
Him, and to become devoted to His service always
and entirely, with all the perfection indicated in
your vows and rule. Now, Sisters, to make this
offering of yourselves and to be devout is your life ;
for immolation is the essence of your soul, your
element. Suffer, oh ! suffer your soul to be pene-
64
trated with this desire; you must not lessen the
grace of your vocation ; that would not be humility,
but disdain and laxity. Desire, oh ! desire to dis
tinguish yourselves in the service of your God, to
please Him, to love Him before any other ; this
need not prevent you from rejoicing when others
do better than you ; you should rejoice, and any
other disposition would show that it was your own
glory, not God s, that you desired. Come, Sisters,
no hesitation, no fear, since it is your God that
calls you. Come and follow Me. To hesitate, I
say again, is a disease worse than death. You
must, therefore, give yourselves to our Lord. But
this is already done. We must at least believe so ;
but neither must we believe that there is to be no
fresh beginning; on the contrary, we must always
begin anew. Then you must have the universal
desire of devoting yourselves, not as you wish of
yourselves, but as it shall please the Lord to choose
for you. As for that, you have only to follow the
path which this good Master has chosen for you,
this life of Carmel to which you are called. To be
sure, you can perform, or not perform a journey,
follow, or not follow a path ; but when you do
perform a journey, when you do follow a path, be
sure that you perform it well, that you follow it well.
Come, Sisters, and perform this journey of the
65
religious life, follow this path of Carmel, but per
form it, follow it in the company of our Lord ;
remain at His side by your fidelity, by your zeal, by
your obedience ; make Him a truly general offering
of yourselves.
Behold then the meaning of becoming attached
to our Lord. Is there yet another thing? Yes,
here it is, a simple, but a most direct way, and that
is to love what He loved, to reject what He re
jected, to choose what He chose. And what did
this good Saviour, the King of heaven, the God of
our hearts, love ? What did He love ? The oppo
site of that which the world loves, the opposite of
nature, of flesh, of the senses. What did He
choose ? Warfare, suffering, contradiction, the
cross. What did He love with the love of predi
lection ? Poverty. He loved poverty in a special
manner ; it was His mother next to Mary His
Mother. And it is after His example that all the
founders of Orders say to us in their writings :
"You must love poverty as your mother". For
the rest, I have only to regard Jesus Christ to say
to myself, "Poverty is my mother, she it is that
makes me a religious ". Then what did our good
Master love ? Humiliation and contempt, beneath
which He was always patient, always mild, always
good. What indulgence, what mercy in all His
5
66
Admirable Person. The virtue of our Divine
Master is no better virtue, and yet His heart was
oppressed with sorrow, but still compassionate as
ever. And should we not therefore, Sisters, love
humiliation and contempt ? Should we not desire
them ? Would to God that we were called to shun
with Jesus this better part of self-denial. Ah !
would to God !
We shall conclude this meditation by asking of
the Heart of Jesus the grace to love what He loved,
and to become attached to His service, by devoting
ourselves to the better part. When He took a
heart, everything is told ; it is done. Let us in
like manner pray to the Immaculate Heart of Mary
to obtain for us the fulness of grace and blessings.
EXERCISE IV.
MEDITATION ON THE MYSTERY OF THE VISITATION.
INTRODUCTION. We shall now take successively
some of the mysteries of our Lord s Life, since we
cannot comprise it altogether. As you know,
Sisters, the grace to ask for in the meditations or
contemplations on the mysteries of our Lord, is an
75
proposals, and that our Lord always confounded
him with His Divine Wisdom. In fine, after this
threefold temptation, the devil retired in confusion,
and angels hovered round our Lord, and ministered
unto Him. You will then picture to yourselves this
desert, this vast and silent solitude, and you will
ask for the grace, always the same of intimately
knowing our Lord, in order to love Him more
than ever, and to keep His enemy, the devil, far
away from you.
You shall consider three things in this mystery
of our Lord : First, the preparation, that is to
say, the solitude of the desert and the fast ;
Secondly, the temptation ; Thirdly, the conso
lation.
First, Jesus alone in the desert with beasts and
Satan. Solitude, fast, and prayer are the prepara
tions which our Lord makes against temptation.
He wishes to set us the example, and to show us
that it is against the just and unworldly man that
the devil looses himself with more fury and tenacity
of purpose. Solitude, fast, and prayer, there
indeed is the life of Carmel. Oh ! Sisters, be
faithful unto it. Prayer above all things, and con
stant prayer, is the preparation which our Lord
expects of you in everything that He wishes to do
with you, or by you. It is the better preparation ;
76
it is the action of the Holy Ghost on the soul. But
do not forget that the soul in solitude is liable to
temptation. So it will be for you in the silence of
your solitude, in your desert. But courage, fear
not ; you are prepared for fighting, you shall be also
prepared for victory !
Secondly, Temptation. Let us contemplate
our Lord far removed from any human being in
a desert, in the midst of beasts. And the beasts
may well represent to us Satan, that fierce beast,
who dares to contemplate our Lord, to approach
His Admirable Person, and to offer Him bread, the
bread of corruption, Him, Who is the Glory of
the World, and the Benefactor of the Earth. But
this spectacle is given us to be our consolation and
strength ; for the things which Satan here offers
our Lord, the Holy of Holies, he will present to us
likewise. We shall be tempted by pride, tempted
by sensuality. Our Lord has vouchsafed to undergo
this humiliation in order to give us a lesson of
consolation, and an example to follow; and with
precept and example, we earn victory. With what
energy He repels the tempter ! He does not
reason with him, but says : " Get thee behind Me,
Satan, for it is written, Not in bread alone doth man
live, but in every word that proceedeth from the mouth
of God" &c. O fundamental and encouraging words,
77
which reveal to us the basis and the structure of our
faith ! It is written in the Book of Truth Whom I
ought to adore, Whom I ought to love, what I ought
to do : therefore, I do not reason with the Spirit of
Lies, but I believe. It is written that we shall be
never tempted beyond our strength ; this is an article
of faith, which we must believe. Whatever temp
tation we experience, we shall have victory always,
if we ask for it ; for God is faithful, He never
abandons a soul, and in solitude above all He is
with her, and fights with her and on her behalf.
So you too, Sisters, blessing Him, loving Him, and
adoring Him, must also endeavour in your solitude
to fight with your good Master, and Satan shall be
conquered. It is true he goes only for a time, he
will return, but always to be conquered !
Thirdly, Consolation. Satan withdraws to a
distance, and angels take his place. Observe,
Sisters, it is after prolonged solitude in the desert
in the midst of beasts, after a threefold temptation,
that our Lord calls angels unto Him. Such is the
law, whatever God reserves to us, pain, suffering,
temptation ; whatever happens to our soul, there is
the compensation on the part of God; so it is
always, always. Angels shall be sent to minister to
this tried, though faithful, soul ; because God is the
God of all consolation, and He tries the soul by
78
temptation; after the conflict He hearkens to the
afflicted soul with the riches and pleasures of His
magnificence.
And angels ministered unto Him, and set before
Him a feast. And a feast is set before us likewise ;
a feast which brings us heavenly joy, the feast of
the Blessed Eucharist, a divine repast served by
angels; this is our strength, our life, divine strength,
divine life, and against which Satan can do nothing.
But we know well that this Bread of the Strong was
given us here below only to excite us still to con
flict, and to assure us of victory with God always.
Consolation bespeaks trial ; temptation will then
return. But at length life will come to a close, and
then what joys after the trial ! What ineffable
happiness ! Come, Sisters, we must be brave.
Let us pray to our Lord to obtain courage ; let us
pray without ceasing until we come face to face with
God and His angels in heaven.
EXERCISE II.
MEDITATION ON THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT.
Beloved Sisters, this morning we may recall to
mind some passages from the admirable Sermon on
79
the Mount. There, for the first time, did our Lord
disclose His heavenly doctrines. He addressed
His disciples, and the crowd that followed Him.
We shall take to ourselves the precepts more speci
ally adapted to us.
Let us then recall to mind that our Lord, after
His prolonged solitude in the desert, after the
temptation to which He vouchsafed to be exposed,
after the miracle of Cana in Galilee, withdrew into
a mountain, whither a great multitude of people,
attracted by His beauty, by His divine grace, by
His meekness, by His goodness, and by all the
charms of His Adorable Person, followed Him.
Let us picture to ourselves our Divine Master in
the midst of His disciples, and let us listen to Him
pronouncing with majesty and sweetness the eight
beatitudes which you know ; then, in the midst of
a thousand such graces, let us ask for the special
grace of becoming supremely attached to our Lord.
Blessed are the poor. Blessed are the meek.
Blessed are the merciful. Blessed are they who
hunger and thirst after justice. Blessed are the
peacemakers. Blessed are the clean of heart. Blessed
are they who suffer persecution for justice sake. What
words ! And when they come to us from the lips
and from the Sacred Heart of Jesus, how attentively
should we bear them in mind !
8o
To return to them, Sisters (for here there is an
inexhaustible fountain), we shall divide them into
two parts, which will enable us to know the two con
ditions of perfect virtue, the two attributes of God,
power and meekness. But observe, I entreat
you, that seven beatitudes belong to meekness, and
only one to power. Blessed are the poor. Blessed
are the meek. Blessed are they who mourn. Blessed
are the merciful. Blessed are the clean of heart.
Blessed are the peacemakers. Blessed are they who
suffer persecution for justice sake. You see it is
throughout patience, peace, humility, in a word,
meekness. This is the teaching of our Lord.
But it is also His Spirit. And so it should be ours
likewise.
Now, Sisters, have we entered into it well ? Are
we poor in heart and in spirit ? Have we a humble,
meek, and patient soul? Are we indulgent and
merciful ? Have we an upright heart ? Are we
the children of peace? Whence come difficulties
and trouble from time to time ? What is all this ?
And do we love suffering ? Do we accept it with
a smiling face ? Do we support it calmly, peace
fully, and patiently ? Blessed are they who suffer !
And if there is suffering for you, religious souls,
from time to time (and is it not your inheritance
always), remember your holy reformer s meekness
8i
in her different trials, and her amiability in sorrow
and continual sickness. Your holy mother used to
say with humility : " Oh ! I know well why I
suffer. I would be too great a coward to go in
quest of suffering, and to do penance. Our Lord
does well to supply me with it in His mercy."
And yet she never spared herself. Blessed are they
who suffer. Let us pause at this sentence, endea
vour to taste suffering, and ask of our Lord the
grace to make it the food of our lives. Yea, blessed
are they who suffer.
But then remains the beatitude belonging to
power, Blessed are they who hunger and thirst after
justice. That is to say, after perfection, after the
end proposed by our vocation. Do we hunger and
thirst after justice ? Do we hunger and thirst after
devotion ? Do we hunger and thirst with zeal for
the salvation of souls? Do we hunger and thirst
after the glory of God ? Do we hunger and thirst
after the fulfilment of our holy vows? Do we
hunger and thirst after the fulfilment of the divine
law ? Do we hunger and thirst after the end, in a
word, proposed to us by our vocation, after the
high perfection to which God calls us? Do you
and I hunger and thirst after justice ? And if we
do not hunger, if we do not thirst, let us at least
have the desire of doing so ; and if we think we
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82
have not even the desire of hungering and thirsting,
let us have the desire of the desire, according to
the words of the prophet. Yea, Sisters, desire
much, ask for thirst for the salvation of souls, for
that thirst, that hunger after the glory of God, and
perfection, that justice, in a word, which is the
proper object of our vocation, and the end of our
life.
Behold then the characters of meekness, charity,
patience, and suffering, which rule the teachings of
our Divine Master ; and likewise power in love of
justice. Meekness and power, these united virtues
are the seal of the spirit of God.
In the second place, let us pause at these other
words of Jesus : " So let your light shine before
men, that they may see your good works, and
glorify your Father Who is in heaven". This
means that we have all received graces and intellec
tual faculties capable of conceiving and doing good.
And we have not received these gifts for ourselves
alone; their light must shine before men for the
glory of God. And has not the Daughter of S.
Theresa, the Daughter of Carmel, more than any
other, received the most consoling promises, the
most precious talents ? Do you make good use of
them? Do you make good use of them in holy
prayer, your darkness and your difficulties notwith-
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standing ? Have you been careful to cultivate -this
grace of prayer by recollection ? Do you edify the
eyes that are turned on you, by your modesty, your
meekness, your indulgence, and your charity ? On
beholding you, do they glorify God the Father Who
is within us ? And yet so it should be. This grace
must bear fruit, not that vanity may be drawn
therefrom, but in order to make shine in peace with
an interior spirit, this treasure which God hath
placed in us. Yea, we must show the talents which
God has given us, and employ them successfully
to soothe and to comfort hearts, and to be the
witnesses of our patience and indulgence towards
the souls of the poor. Let us then ask that we may
make good use of the gifts and graces of our Lord,
in order that He may bless us.
Lastly, in the third place, we shall take another
passage where our Lord said that He came not to
destroy the law, but to fulfil it, and to perfect it.
This sublime perfection of the law our Lord teaches
us in what is simply counsel ; no rash word, no out-
of-place desire, to love our enemies, to give the
little remaining to us to one who has acted unjustly
towards us, to turn the other cheek to him who
smote us, and so forth. What perfection ! But
there is yet another thing for the religious soul,
the vows, and the rule. Can we say that we have
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fulfilled the rules to which we are bound ? Have
we fulfilled the law of our holy vows ? this law of
the perfection of Carmel ? this practice of the better
virtues, this law of holy desire and constant prayer ?
Where are we with regard to it ? Can we say with
our Lord that we have been faithful to the last
iota?
Have you answered to the desire of the Sacred
Heart of Jesus who seeks perfect souls, or at least
who seeks those who endeavour to become perfect ?
He seeks them, He asks for them. So much does
He love souls ! You know that for one soul that is
devoted to the solitude of the cloister, buried from
the world, removed from every eye, with the sole
desire of seeking only the perfection of devotion,
God would overthrow kingdoms : He stirs up the
heavens and the earth. And what did He not do
for S. Theresa ?
There must be perfect souls in the Church of
God. What could we do without them in the
sacred ministry ? Oh ! Sisters, how great is your
mission ! But if you lag behind, you take from the
common treasure instead of adding to it. What an
account have we to render if we fail to profit by
grace ! Let us then humble ourselves, Sisters, and
humble ourselves exceedingly in our shortcomings,
in our faithlessness. This is the time to hunger
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and thirst. Let us ask that the light be made
shine, and that we may answer to our holy vocation
in all its perfection, and with the fullest devotion.
Our Lord calls you to this consummation of perfec
tion in your thoughts, in your desires, in your whole
life, to make but one with Him.
EXERCISE III.
CONFERENCE ON PEACE.
Beloved Sisters, we can at this moment recall
a sentence of our Lord s, which is not only a con
solation, but a teaching, a doctrine, and a promise.
It is that great sentence which He repeated fre
quently, and chiefly at the moment when He con
summated His sacrifice : " My peace I leave you,
My peace I give you ".
We can take up this sentence, and add to it :
" / shall not leave you orphans ". That is to say, I
will not leave you fatherless, without consolation.
These words, Sisters, were spoken for you. Where
fore, endeavour to estimate to yourselves a little the
value of this divine promise, when you are in
presence of our Lord.
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Could it be possible that these words should not
be fulfilled in a faithful soul? Do we not know
that we all need this peace, this spiritual calm,
whether it be the time of trial or not, to see the
light without which all is trouble within us ? And
when in two days the time for taking your resolu
tions will come, you must then, as you ought now,
ask for peace ; it is the condition of choosing, the
preparation for obtaining; in a word, peace is the
great good of the soul.
Peace may, it is true, be bitter, but bitter or not,
we ought to ask for it. It is certain, and it is a
precept transmitted to us by the saints and found
in Holy Writ, that in a soul God is, by His own
proper action, the cause and the author of peace.
Yea, the very character of God in a soul that does
not oppose obstacles, in a well-disposed soul, the
action of God by Himself, or by His good angel,
is to give peace. You have peace by being well
directed ; be assured that God approves of your
aim, that He has blessed it, and that He is infal
libly the Author of it. And, on the other hand, in
a well-disposed soul whose intentions are straight,
the devil can only be the author of trouble, be
cause he cannot do what God does, he cannot give
peace.
There is besides, in the bottom of the soul, a still
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greater depth to which the devil cannot penetrate ;
God has reserved it to Himself for His sanctuary.
The devil may exert himself, make a noise, paralyse
the imagination, and weary by temptation ; but in
this superior part of the soul peace dwells, because
this depth belongs to God alone. We may there
fore have peace in the midst of pain and tempta
tion. Oh ! Sisters, ask for this inestimable peace,
pursue it at every instant by prayer, and guard the
entrance to your soul carefully, watch !
And when I speak of peace, I do not speak of
sensible consolation, but of the peace of God, of
that peace which cannot come otherwise. What
ever passes in the depths of your being, you must
say to our Lord : " I do not refuse the cross. I
do not refuse suffering. I do not ask for consola
tion. But give me peace, give me calm, in order
that I may know where I am to walk ; then dispose
of me according to Thy will, but oh ! give me
peace."
Beloved Sisters, we have said that the devil
cannot give peace. In truth, there is a false peace
that comes from him, but how far it is from the
true peace ! For example, he may make us believe
at prayer, in order to weaken our vigilance and our
good desires, that we have nothing more to do but
to rest ; he may make us taste a certain calm, by
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which he seeks to lull us to slumber in the practice
of virtue (and he holds out this snare chiefly to
faithless and lukewarm souls) ; but the trail of the
serpent must appear, it will appear. The imperfec
tion and the laxity will soon be seen. He may
persuade a soul that she has acquired her measure
of perfection, that she is doing very well. False
peace; we should always be satisfied with God
never with ourselves. Peace should be stamped
with self-contempt and true humility. And of this
peace the devil can never be the author.
We know well that we must not seek peace in
sensible consolation ; this would be to act like a
child who knows not the value of solid virtue. It
is in the straight way that leads to Calvary, that we
must seek peace in contempt of self.
When we are on this way we must avoid reason
ing and uneasiness ; we must abandon ourselves
unreservedly like a child. But we must unite the
strength of maturer years with this childlike sim
plicity ; we must desire peace above all things, and
wage war against every obstacle, and abandon
everything that turns us aside from peace. Peace
is always the partner of goodwill. Goodwill it is
that fosters and favours peace. And we learn this
from the angels canticle : " Peace to men of good
will!"
8 9
Let us too, Sisters, foster and favour this good
will ; it is the surest token of the presence of a
good conscience ; and then fear not, advance
always, and never look back. Let the past not
trouble you. Have confidence. When we have
the happiness to receive absolution of our sins,
everything is blotted out, the past exists no longer,
there is nothing save the present any more. To
say, " I have been faithless, I cannot recover lost
ground," is as if you said. " God who created me
once is not powerful enough to create me anew ".
What is this but a want of faith ? Instead of
disquieting ourselves by reason of the past, turn to
God, and cast yourselves into His Creative Hands,
and say : " O Lord, give me a new heart, and a
new soul ". After this there must be no return to
self; remembrances, impressions, temptations, are
no longer anything but obstacles ; the soul goes on,
and goes on for ever. Whither does she go ? She
knows not, she reasons not ; but she goes on for
ever. A soul it is that becomes foolish in order
to be wise ; and then peace to this soul of good
will !
We have said already, Sisters, that the necessary
condition for enjoying peace is the accord of our
will with God s. But, it may be objected, some
times we do not enjoy peace, and yet we will all
9 o
that God wills. In this case we must look and
examine ; is there not some weak side ? Is there
not some faithlessness ? To will what God wills,
and to stop there, weak and apathetic, is, not to
have a good will, above all things in your vocation,
where so much more is needed. What then are
we to do ? To pray, to pray exceedingly, and to
conquer self; for it is impossible that a soul that
will labour in prayer and by prayer to conquer self,
and will be unwilling to admit into her head a
certain indolent and apathetic joy, it is impos
sible, I say, that such a soul will not experience
divine strength within her. It may cost her some
thing. Yea, truly it may cost her something not
to abandon herself to her own weakness, and not
to forsake her good resolutions, even though she
may have despised the cost the day before; but
patience ! God will come. Once more, I say,
He will come if you persevere in prayer and good
will.
It is true, and we see it every day, that persons
of upright and simple will suffer pains, and cruel
pains, and there is nothing more certain ; but it is
a trial which God in His mercy sends them ; He
permits the action of the enemy who bears trouble
into the soul, this is his weapon. You have only
to consult the blessed books of your holy mother
elsewhere, she says to you : " You shall have
severe and poignant trials; but in the midst of
these trials, peace rests in the depths of the soul.
Do we not see our Lord in the Garden of Olives
experiencing the most violent agony ? Father !
Father ! if it be possible, let this chalice pass from
me! But He grows not discouraged, and He adds:
Not my will, but Thine be done"
Wherefore then, in your life of prayer, you have,
and you shall have always, to undergo trials ; you
shall be tempted like our Lord in the desert. God
wills it so in order to put your strength to the test,
in order to encompass you with His benefits, in
order to purify you. He wills it also in order to
humiliate and to encourage you. Yea, Sisters, in
your inability, in your powerlessness, when you
say : " I can do nothing," you should add with
S. Paul : "I can do everything in Him who
strengthens me". No, I can do nothing, nothing
of myself ; but with God I can do, and I will do,
everything. This is courage, and God will reward
it.
We may be very willing to devote ourselves to
prayer, and to occupy ourselves with the better
things, but only for our own satisfaction. Then
God puts us to the test, and the soul should unite
herself generously to Him or the grasp of sorrow.
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Come, courage and goodwill ! We must not regard
the hour, nor count the minutes. We desire our
deliverance in order to pray more fervently, and to
enjoy peace ; we are deceived. We would be de
livered from the cross ; but do you not know that
trials beget patience? And when we suffer patiently,
we wait and we hope ; we have peace ! To suffer
and pray is to believe, is to unite ourselves to Jesus
Christ in prayer.
Come then, Sisters, come to the Feet of this
Good Master, and you shall hear Him say to
you : " My child, My peace I leave you, My
peace I give you ". And you shall pray, and be
devout ; and you shall ask for peace in sacrifice,
for that is the truest and the best peace. There,
I am sure, is the blessing that is destined for you.
EXERCISE IV.
REPETITION OF THE Two FIRST EXERCISES OF
THE DAY.
Beloved Sisters, it is recommended to make
what are called repetitions, that is, to return to
certain points in the preceding meditations or con-
93
temptations. We shall now endeavour to do this
in the Temptation in the Desert, and the admirable
Sermon on the Mount.
Endeavour to be as recollected as possible in
offering to God all your intentions, and in asking of
Him the grace of due observance, so as to do
nothing that may turn your soul from the right way
which leadeth unto perfection and sanctity.
Turn to our Lord again, and ask Him to grant
you to know Him in the desert, alone, praying,
fasting, and vouchsafing to be tempted for love of
you. And in this repetition, remember three
things :
First, The inevitable necessity of temptation.
Secondly, The precept of solitary prayer, accom
panied by penance, which our Lord gives us in
order to obtain grace.
Thirdly, The infallibility of victory.
First, The inevitable necessity of temptation.
This is shown everywhere : " My son," says
the wise man, "when thou comest to the service
of God, prepare thy soul for temptation". And
again to Tobias : " Because thou wast acceptable
to God, it was necessary that temptation should
prove thee". Elsewhere it is said: "What doth
he know, that hath not been tried ? " Our Lord
vouchsafed to undergo this necessity, He vouch-
94
safed to suffer temptation in order to make Himself
like unto us, and to make us understand that when
He had been tempted, we could not avoid being
tempted. And if there be elsewhere, religious souls,
a life which God destines for temptation in order to
conduct it to the greatest good, to the greatest gifts,
that life is yours. Then withdraw not, but accept,
accept everything.
Secondly, Solitary prayer and frequent fast are
the true means of acquiring heavenly grace. In
the desert of Carmel, whither you have retired into
solitude, how much need is there that everything
within you should be shut out from the world, and
that in nothing should the world penetrate to your
blessed retreat ! And moreover, in the desert of
your soul, guard yourselves against the beasts that
may glide therein, impressions, passions, by which
we are, alas ! too often brought to the level of the
beast.
And likewise fast, mortification in health, and
patience in infirmity. Then it is no longer fast,
God does not will it. Patience ! But whether in
health or in sickness, we must always love fast and
mortification, accompanied by prayer.
But we must pray always and at all times. Oh !
here we can arm ourselves with patience. We must
pray, and often, how many obstacles we encounter !
95
Then say : " I am alone with my God in the
desert, and dead to the world ; O my God, I shall
wait as long as it shall be pleasing to Thee, but I
will be faithful to prayer".
Thirdly, Our Lord in the desert assures us of
the infallibility of victory. Yea. victory is certain,
this is an article of faith ; we shall never be tempted
beyond our strength. The devil can only have as
much power over us as we let him have, he cannot
conquer us in spite of ourselves, still less cause our
death. Courage, therefore, let us fight with our
Lord, let us say with Him to the tempter : " Man
liveth not by bread alone ". And then, Sisters, do
not forget that the great means of conquering is to
act by opposite ways; to oppose humility to pride,
mortification to sensuality, and so of the rest. We
are weak, and we must, therefore, yield some
times ; but patience ! patience ! self-compassion !
let us fear not, and be never troubled. When
shall we live in faith? What are impressions
and trials? All that I feel is nothing, absolutely
nothing ?
We may now recall to mind the admirable Ser
mon on the Mount, in which Jesus Christ gives us
teaching and example of the better and the purer
virtues. When we remember that it is God Who
has spoken, our Saviour, the Devoted Friend of
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souls, He whose burning love desires a thousand
times to save us ! What has He not taught us in
these admirable beatitudes? Two things chiefly,
patience and peace. Blessed are the poor. Blessed
are the meek. Blessed are they who mourn. Blessed
are the merciful. Blessed are the dean of heart.
Blessed are the peacemakers. Blessed are they who
suffer. What words ! and it is to us that He
addresses them ; His word is ever present, centuries
are nothing to God; yea, it is to us He speaks, let
us hear Him, and become attached to all the
virtues of the Heart of Jesus. Let us become
attached to poverty of spirit and humility, which
detach us from all things ; to the meekness which
makes the soul enduring, which makes her bear all
things, and forget every sorrow. Blessed are the
dean of heart. God alone and no other this is
purity of heart. And then the tears and sufferings
which our Lord blesses, oh ! if we had His Spirit,
how we would understand them ! how we would love
them ! Let us not forget the ardour of zeal.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst after
justice That is to say, that justice which fulfils
all that is agreeable unto God, that hunger which
establishes the kingdom of God in ourselves and
others. We have seen this morning that all is
comprised in this hunger and thirst zeal for charity,
97
desire for the glory of God, for those better gifts,
for our greatest perfection all in fine.
We must not leave the ground fallow ; we must
sow, and hunger and thirst after the harvest ; and if
we do not hunger and thirst, if we are still cold, let
us ask of God to kindle in us the fire of His
burning charity, which will give us the consumma
tion of purest virtue, the consummation of holiness
in Jesus Christ; and then abandon your heart
to the zeal of holy love, to the virtues of meek
ness, patience, peacemaking virtues difficult, I
acknowledge, to practise, but virtues which are the
strength of the soul. Ask for them, desire them ;
to desire is to begin to practise already ; if we do
not desire, if we do not help ourselves, if we do not
say that we want many things, but that God can
give us much, what then are we capable of? Pray,
Sisters, to Mary Immaculate, and she will obtain
everything for you from the meek and humble
Heart of Jesus.
SIXTH DAY (I.).
EXERCISE I.
FIRST MEDITATION ON THE Two STANDARDS.
"DELOVED Sisters, every day of the retreat is
important and precious to you ; yet it is true
to say that in proportion as we advance, we must
use more preparation in order to know the will of
God towards us better, so as that we may practise
it, amend our lives, and remodel ourselves. This
is the day proposed for the knowledge of the will
of God towards us, and for the adoption of resolu
tions towards its fulfilment.
But as it is more than ever important to be able
to distinguish the spirit of Jesus Christ from the
spirit of His capital enemy, S. Ignatius proposes
the Meditation on the Two Standards to this end.
You shall therefore ask again, beloved Sisters, that
everything within you may tend in an orderly
99
manner to the glory of God, and the perfection of
your souls.
You will then picture to yourself two camps,
Babylon and Jerusalem ; in the one you behold
your enemy the devil ; in the other, Jesus Christ,
your Friend and Master. You will ask for the grace
of light the better to know and to discern the tricks
of the enemy, and to protect yourself therefrom ;
the better also to know the secret of the true life,
and to follow it. Oh ! it is here that you must
abandon yourselves to holy and burning desires, as
far as it may be possible to you.
In the first place, consider your enemy on his
throne of fire, spreading noise and terror everywhere
around. Hear the instructions which he gives his
ministers ; he sends them everywhere, irrespective
of the holiest places. He commands them to bear
disturbance and trouble in their train, and to catch
souls, without any exception whatever, in their per
fidious net. " Go," he says to them, " go about,
everywhere, endeavour to enrol souls, and to keep
them with you by love of riches, and love of pleasure
and honours." And, in effect, we see these limbs of
Satan, and Satan himself, catching souls in the net
of worldly honours and vain glory, to lead them to
pride, and from pride to the abyss of every crime
and despair. Oh I let us flee courageously every-
COLL: CHRISTI RFGIS sj;
N BIB. MAJOR
JOfiONTQ
100
thing ever so little resembling the snares of the
enemy. Ask our Lord to keep you far removed
from all that may flatter the senses, consolations,
dispensations, and corrections, which are not neces
sary ; to pluck from your heart all desire for the
esteem of creatures, all sensual love ; to turn you
away for ever from the path of pride, and the thou
sand ways leading thereto. For the spirit of Satan
can penetrate even into Carmel, and that in a very
subtle manner, so well does it harmonize with our
natural inclinations. Let us then defy an enemy
who knows our tendencies so well, our love of im
perfection and vanity. You know the comparison
employed by the Masters of the Spiritual Life, in
order to make us understand the action of Satan in
us : <! It is given to Satan," they say, " to use our
imagination as if it were a harp, to press on it every
touch, and to draw from it every sound ".
Now turn your eyes on the peaceful camp at
Jerusalem. We behold our Lord sitting calmly
there, beautiful, indulgent, good, meek, merciful.
He is seeking devout souls to establish His kingdom.
He calls them sweetly and forcibly, and what does
He say to them ? He speaks to them of poverty
and detachment from sensual things. This is His
teaching : Love poverty, love contempt. Blessed
are the poor in spirit. Blessed are they who mourn.
101
Blessed are they who suffer persecution. Detachment
from all earthly things, then, the desire of receiving
insults, yea,, nothing more than this to imitate and
to follow Him, and to fight Satan. The desire of
receiving insults is nothing but true humility which
consists itself in the love of God, joined to the
knowledge of ourselves.
And this is our Lord s pure spirit, Himself, His
very self !
Oh ! we may not, perhaps, be able to attain this
spirit and to follow Him perfectly all at once ; but
we should pray exceedingly. We should earnestly
ask for the love of contempt in order to practise it,
not only when we cannot refuse to do so without
being guilty of a fault, but even when there would
not be a shadow of imperfection in refusing, for it is
enough for us that the glory of God demands it.
Address Mary, ask her to keep you under the
covering of poverty and contempt, under the
standard of the love of her Divine Son. Then ask
our Lord, who is the culmination of all that is good,
to remodel you, to transform you, to regenerate you.
And think not that it is a little thing for you to
ask this grace of knowing and following the spirit of
our Lord. Were you to spend a whole day at this
single request it would not be too much.
Excite yourselves likewise with the desire of
102
following our Good Saviour in His sufferings and
insults. Embrace this true humility to its widest
extent. Oh ! fear not to repeat this prayer to the
Divine Master, to God the Father, in the most
pressing manner ; insist on, and persevere in your
demand. You shall be heard at any cost ; this is
what the glory of God, the care of your own perfec
tion, and the salvation of souls require of you.
EXERCISE II.
REPETITION OF THE PRECEDING MEDITATION.
Beloved Sisters, let us then prepare ourselves
to know perfectly the special- will of God towards"-
our souls, in order that we may fulfil it. This is
the day of preparation during which you ought to
apply all your faculties, all the powers of your soul,
to seek the true sense, to penetrate into the spirit of
the counsels of Jesus Christ, and thence into the
true sense of your vocation, which, as you know
well, is a call to perfection. There is a principle
without which there is nothing solid or durable, and
that is, that we advance therein in proportion as we
renounce ourselves, and strip ourselves of what we
103
are, of our personal interests, of our love of ease
and pleasure, in such wise that it may be the love of
our Lord which transforms, remodels, and operates
a new creation within us. And this, the eve of the
day on which you shall have to take your resolutions,
and to determine the manner in which you are to
serve our Lord, is also a day of special penance
(according to the measure of strength and of
obedience) for drawing down on you the graces of
God. Verily, we may wonder that having once per
ceived and recognised this spirit, which is called the
Standard of our Lord, we do not embrace it. And
why ? What a surprising thing that we do not
hearken to the voice of our Lord, and that we
hearken, while we ought not, to our own voice, for
we must not forget to go to God, and to go to God
alone !
Let us return, Sisters, to the meditation on the
Two Standards, and let us hearken to the voice of
the Lord, saying to us : " He who is not with
Me, is against Me". Cast a rapid glance on
Babylon, the city of confusion. There we have
an enemy, tricky, clever, always on the watch,
never at rest ; a sworn enemy of God and souls,
above all, religious souls ; and when he sees virtue
lessen, and labour towards perfection relax, it is a
moment of victory for him. At all times and in all
104
places, at the most sacred moments, Lucifer is acting
against God and us, against truth, true welfare,
peace ; he is inspiring us with sophisms, and pro
voking us to ideas which savour of earth and the
world, which awake nature and the love of riches
and prosperity within us, and which excite in us the
desire of honour human pride. This is the
character of Satan s mission ; it is the contrary of
the spirit of Jesus Christ. Are we ever so little willing
to rank ourselves under His standard, or to give Him
the least little portion ! To have Satan for our chief
is to put ourselves under him, and what baseness is
under Satan! And yet what do we do when we stop
in a cowardly manner in our efforts towards perfec
tion ? We are contenting the devil who rejoices,
and if we could listen, we would hear him laugh.
And behold where we have placed ourselves at
certain moments of our life. But we are speaking
too much of Satan. Let us pray to Mary, to Mary
who is his mortal enemy, to guard us from his
snares, and to take us herself under her protection,
under the standard of her Divine Son.
Let us go to Jesus Christ, He is calling us,
Sisters. " Come to Me" He requires us to be
zealous for the salvation of souls, He wishes us to
have a heart like the Apostles ; your holy mother
was an apostle. He calls you then, Daughters of
S. Theresa, for the welfare of souls, and for the
support of His Church. " Come to Me." If He
were Himself to appear to you this moment to
repeat these words, your vocation could not be
more certain ; but how would you answer His
invitation ? Prostrate at His feet, and lovingly and
respectfully kissing the hem of His garment, you
would give yourselves entirely to Him. Thus
answer, therefore, to this summons.
Our Lord s summons is peaceful and humble, but
it is likewise powerful. And where can this summons
be more inviting, more pressing, nay, even more
beseeching, than at Carmel ? Come, Sisters, our
Lord seeks to establish Himself in you ; He wishes
you to be generous souls in order to fight and to
conquer with Him. What must you do for this?
You know well that the perfection which He asks
of you, and which you embraced, is poverty,
poverty under the name of detachment and humility,
poverty which is one of your holy vows. Oh, love
it, and be intimately attached to it. Take what
you get indifferently, and say always : " This is too
much for me. I have nothing ; I am poor." How
excellent is this one virtue ! But nature raves and
grows rebellious, pray, therefore, pray ; but above
all things reason not, so as not to give the enemy a
victory. The Devil can do nothing against prayer,
io6
because over prayer he has no power. He cannot
take part against it; but it is not the same with
reasoning, for Satan is a most clever sophist, a
most clever rhetorician ; take care of him, and pray.
Then love contempt. Ask, Sisters, for that which
is contrary to self-love, to vanity, to the esteem of
creatures, contrary, in order that it may be for
our Lord. "He who is not with Me is against Me."
With prayer, and, by its means, with the desire of
contempt, we reach true humility. But we must
always remember that the desire of humility is not
enough ; it is not difficult to desire it, but to
practise, to accept, to go in quest of humiliation is
another thing. Humility itself is sweet, very sweet ;
but it is a fruit, a product, and we must labour and
work for a long time, and pray above all things
before gathering it. For the rest, we always have
this condition in prayer, that success will come when
it is the will of God. To desire detachment, love
of contempt, is well, and we ought to do so, but we
must not desire them except insomuch as God is
willing to bestow them on us, and not to a greater
degreee than He Himself wills. Let us labour, it
is our lot; but victory depends on God; He gives it
if He wills, and when He wills.
Before closing your meditation, place yourselves
in the heart of the peaceful city, at the feet of our
Lord. There drink, and become impregnated with
His spirit ; all else is vanity, cowardice, the counsels
of self-love, the sophistry of the devil. Abridge
nothing of the greatness of your vocation; recall
incessantly to mind your holy mother s end in
establishing her reform. Yea ! you are apostles, you
are victims, and our Lord hath chosen you ; He
hath vouchsafed to make you devout souls to co
operate in His work of redemption.
Offer, Sisters, an urgent prayer to Mary, begging
of her to obtain for you the grace of walking faith
fully under the standard of poverty, humility, and
contempt, then you will go to our Lord through the
Immaculate Heart of Mary, and, finally, to God the
Father, and you will say with hearts burning with
zeal, " Behold me, Lord".
EXERCISE III.
CONFERENCE ON THE THREE DEGREES OF HUMILITY.
Sisters, in order to dispose ourselves to know
well and to estimate well the Divine will, and the
means to be taken in order to fulfil it in a solid and
enduring manner, we must recall to mind all that
io8
is calculated to unite us to the spirit of our Lord,
on which you have just been meditating, a spirit
which is eminently fitted to make us enter into the
light of faith, and to crush our natural reason
beneath its yoke.
Behold, then, some rules of election, or disposi
tions with which we ought begin this day.
First, as a fundamental disposition, let us en
deavour to find and to keep peace, and then we
have full and entire freedom of spirit.
Second disposition, To despise all that is not
faith, pure faith, and instant prayer to obtain light.
The third disposition, and the best and the
sweetest of all, is to dwell in our Lord s heart for
true and solid motives of love. We should not,
therefore, allow our heart to follow its own bent,
human affections. Nothing of the kind ; all that is
not our Lord alone is bad, and ought to be rejected.
And, Sisters, how could you be attached to any of
the things of earth, you who have left them all ?
It is impossible. We must above all things lay
bare ourselves ; for to cling to our own will, to our
own lights, is to choose darkness, and there is
nothing more dangerous to the soul. Place before
your eyes the end of your vocation ; and in peace
and grace ask yourselves : " What have I wished ?
What did I come to seek here ? " And we must
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answer these questions, and to answer them we
must take the best point, God alone ! The highest
perfection, such as it should be at Carmel, such as
S. Theresa desired, is what I have come to seek.
Everything else is of no consequence to me. But
do not forget that your predominant disposition
should be the love of our Lord, no other motive
can conduct you to your end.
We find in the Book of Exercises a very useful
consideration, and one to which S. Ignatius attaches
great importance. He even says that a whole day
might be spent in helping one s self to make a good
choice. This principle par excellence which we
should have engraved on our hands and in our
hearts in letters of gold, so as never to forget, is
that we advance, only in so much as we renounce
ourselves, and strip ourselves of our personal in
terests. It is only by this way that we arrive at
true humility, and this disposition, more or less
perfect, S. Ignatius explains to us in his considera
tion on the three degrees of humility.
The principle on which this consideration is based
is this : We should bow down so profoundly before
God in order to fulfil His holy will, that we should
be ready to embrace everything to submit to Him.
In effect, if there is anything that may be called
humility, it is certainly this perfect submission,
no
which renders our will conformable to the will of
God, and removes everything that is opposed to
Him.
From this point of departure let us make the follow
ing reflections on the first degree of humility. We
should never admit the thought or the deliberation
to offend God t by mortal sin, even though by so
doing there was question of preserving our life, to
which man is so strongly attached. Surely, Sisters,
this is a disposition on which you have entered long
since, but remember that no matter what we are, no
matter what may be our perfection, we shall always
have to make progress in horror of sin, in order to
have a clean and pure conscience like the saints.
God who demands of you purity unalloyed, wishes
you to go far in this way. Behold to what a point
S. Theresa reached on this path, and pray God that
you may be made more and more perfect in sub
mission to Him, a thing so precious, and at the
same time so necessary.
The first degree acquired, we pass on to the
second. What is it ? Oh, Sisters ! a soul pro
foundly bowed down before God arrives at having
no will of her own, no taste for one thing beyond
another, but always the simple will of God. And if
she has no especial or decisive reason for preferring
one thing to another, because the glory of God is
Ill
not clearly manifested [unto her, she has no will,
but she waits. Take for example, health and sick
ness, both are equal in the sight of God ; she may
not perceive at the moment which is the more
conducive to God s glory ; therefore, she is indif
ferent, she desires health no more than suffering.
We must also, Sisters, have this holy indifference
in all that comes to us from creatures. Honour
and contempt present themselves ; if I see that I
can glorify God by honour, then I accept honour ;
but if I glorify Him more by contempt, I choose
contempt. And if the will of God is not clearly
manifested unto me, I rest indifferent. But where
fore ? God chooseth not, and should you choose ?
God prefers not, and should you prefer ? But then
it is not God whom you seek, but yourself, and this
is egotism. Neither is it truth that you seek, for
truth is the choice of God. Behold then the second
degree of humility, to seek nothing, to desire
nothing, an even balance. Thou art good, indiffer
ence ! And furthermore, Sisters, pray exceedingly,
and reason not. What signify reasonings compared
with the loss of your way ? Pray that you may
remain in the spirit of our Lord s words, that one
advances in proportion as one renounces one s self.
To what a sublime degree did not your holy
mother carry this virtue of indifference ? The
reform which had cost her so much, and which she
loved so dearly, she would have abandoned without
a moment s regret, if obedience, which was for her
the manifestation of the divine will, required.
Therefore practise perfect indifference. Adopt
to-day, Sisters, more than ever the generous resolu
tion of not deliberating on a single venial sin ; I do
not say consenting, but deliberating. For example,
discouragement, impatience, want of charity, take
hold of me ; oh ! may such things keep far away
from me because they are displeasing to God, and
therefore I have a horror of them. But it may be
objected that these are imperfections against which
we cannot defend ourselves. Undoubtedly, we are
so weak. But we must never consent to venial sin.
With imperfections we must be humble and have
patience ; we shall have them always ; and in pro
portion as we advance in years and acquire greater
experience we shall see more than ever how much
need there is of commiseration and charity for souls.
Yea, there is great need of kindness and indulgence.
We are so weak, so inconstant, so miserable, and,
alas ! we love our misery.
But this is not all ; when you are a daughter of
S. Theresa, when you are a victim as you are, and
when you are devoted to souls, there is a better
thing. You know what our Lord has done and
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Our Lord approaches them, and they know Him not,
and Jesus says in accents full of kindness : " Fear
not, it is I, fear not ". Peter then asks if he may go
to meet our Lord on the waters : " Lord, if it be
Thou, command me that I go to Thee ". Our Lord
says to him: "Come". Peter alighting from the
boat, walked over the waters to meet Jesus. Then
there arose a great tempest on the sea, and Peter
being frightened and about to sink, cried : " Lord,
save me ". And Jesus held out His hand to him,
and cried: "Why hast thou doubted, O thou of
little faith ? " And in fine, by the Divine power
there ensued a calm.
Then after picturing to ourselves our Lord in
prayer, in which you will join Him, and subsequently
working the miracle, ask of Him the grace, always
the same, of knowing your Master intimately in
order that you may learn to love Him, and follow
in the spirit which He desires to give you.
First, consider our Lord in prayer on the moun
tain. What a prayer is that of our Lord s ! who
could understand it ? Holy, sacred, Divine prayer !
Yet we shall try to lisp something about it. Our
Lord s prayer is a prayer of desire, a prayer of
sacrifice, and a prayer of charity and goodness ! A
prayer of desire, as He Himself has said : " I have
a Baptism,, wherewith I am to be baptised. And
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how am I straitened, until it be accomplished" A
prayer of desire, yea, of desire for the glory of God
and the salvation of souls the desire of their per
fection; and you were present to Him, Sisters, in the
desire of eternal beatitude. What desires are there,
great God, in this contemplation of heavenly joys, in
the divine heart of Jesus !
And you too, Sisters, whilst abandoning yourselves
in your profound solitude to the life of prayer,
should have great desires, the immense desire of
the glory of God and the salvation of souls, and the
desire of sacrificing and immolating yourselves in
so noble a cause.
Prayer of sacrifice is the immolation, the aban
donment, and the devotion of self. Yes, we sacri
fice ourselves for God and souls; labour, pain,
fatigue, preaching, prolonged watches, in nothing
do we spare, in nothing do we hearken to ourselves.
Prayer of sacrifice ! This should indeed be yours,
beloved Sisters, it is the true, the better prayer. It
is, perhaps, a prayer of union, but a prayer of union
and sacrifice. In fine, a prayer of charity ; Jesus
remembers His Apostles, He knows well whither
He has sent them, and why He has sent them,
His beloved Apostles. And He steers their barque
through the tempest ; He prays for them, and
watches over them. And He knows well that we,
I2 3
Sisters, shall likewise have disturbance and storms,
but He watches over us. A prayer of charity and
goodness, Sisters, is that of devout souls ; and this
should be yours likewise.
Secondly, We behold the Apostles alighting from
the tempest-tossed barque. What are their disposi
tions ? Fear, dread ; they tremble and pray not,
although they should pray. And, Sisters, have we
not often trembled ? Has not our poor soul feared
temptations and the devil ? Oh ! we must never,
never fear temptation. We must not fear it ; fear
prays not, and we ought to pray. This was the one
thing to be done in the barque, to pray ; and once
again the Apostles did it not, because they were
afraid.
The fear which prevents us from praying, will
prevent us also from knowing our Lord. The
Apostles take Him for a phantom when He goes
forth upon the waters to meet them ; they are
frightened. When our soul is troubled by fear she
does the same thing ; God comes to her and she
knows Him not. " Delusion ! " she murmurs, and
troubles herself no further, instead of leaning her
hopes on Him who manifests Himself unto her.
Poor soul ! it is no delusion, it is the visit of the
Divine Master ; He comes to enlighten and console
you ; fear not.
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Thirdly, and lastly, We behold our Lord walking
upon the waters by His divine power, and we hear
Him say kindly : " It is I, fear not ; it is I, be not
afraid ". Sweet words, though scarcely sufficient,
for His Apostles knew Him not, believed not. And
the poor soul ? To her likewise our Lord says
when He comes to visit her : " It is I, be not afraid;
it is I, fear not," and she scarcely hears Him, so
much is she disturbed and troubled. Then S. Peter
cries : " Lord, if it be Thou, tell me to go to Thee
on the waters ". An indiscreet request perhaps, but
our Lord in His great goodness answers : " Come ".
And behold S. Peter upon the waters. Then he
grows frightened and is sinking ; this is what
happens when there is fear. And our Lord says to
him : " Thou art afraid, O man of little faith ". He
enters the barque with His Apostles, and there
ensues a great calm.
And let us likewise, Sisters, enter the barque, and
sit beside our Lord with deep devotion, imploring
the grace of always going to Him fearlessly ; do you
ask Him with lively, strong, and ardent faith the
grace to dare everything and trust in Him alone.
Courage ! let us walk upon the waters through the
tempest. What matters the tempest ? It is like
powerless rain falling on the roof-top when one is
125
in shelter. The tempest itself is nothing to a soul
which belongs to Jesus Christ.
EXERCISE II.
MEDITATION ON THE TRANSFIGURATION.
Beloved Sisters, let us continue to contemplate
the double person of our Lord in some of the
mysteries of His life; it is in this contemplation
that we are better enabled to study the will and
the designs of God towards us. How I wish you
to be to-day more than ever calm and recollected.
You will now contemplate the mystery of the
transfiguration, and ask the grace of upright and
pure intention devoted to the glory of God. You
will then remember that our Lord took with Him
Peter, James, and John, His most beloved disciples,
and having led them into a high mountain, He was
transfigured before them.
His face became brilliant as the sun, and His
garments white as snow. At the same time they
beheld Moses and Elias conversing with Him.
Peter opening the colloquy, said to Jesus : " Lord,
it is good for us to be here ; let us erect three taber-
126
nacles one for Thee, one for Moses, and one for
Elias ". And behold, as he was speaking, a lumi
nous cloud covered them, and at the same time there
came from the cloud a voice from heaven speaking
these words : " This is My beloved Son in whom
I am well pleased ; hear Him ". At these words
the disciples, seized with terror, fell prostrate to the
ground. But Jesus, approaching, touched them
and said : " Arise and fear not ". And when they
arose they beheld Jesus alone. As they were com
ing down from the mountain, the Divine Master
gave them this prohibition : " Tell the vision to
no one until the Son of Man be risen from the
dead ".
Following the most convenient method, and the
manner which seems to you easiest, you can con
template the persons, behold the facts, and hear the
words.
And for the persons, it is always our beloved
Saviour, destined for suffering and ignominy on
this earth. He wishes, however, to give a momen
tary manifestation of His glory. He takes with
Him Peter, James, and John the same who, later
on, were destined to be the witnesses of His agony
in the Garden of Gethsemane. Thus it is that they
who partake of His sufferings partake likewise of
His glory. For so hath the Eternal Wisdom de-
127
creed in His divine counsels. And in considering
Moses and Elias conversing so intimately with Him,
let us return to ourselves. Have we tasted any
thing like this happiness in prayer ? We may have
for a few fleeting moments j but if we have not been
initiated into this mystery of the transfiguration, if
we have not the spiritual joys and consolation, if on
the contrary we are reserved for torments and agony,
let us nevertheless remember that we should always
say : " Lord, it is good to be here ".
And for the facts of this mystery, let us first
place ourselves in the mountain, and ask our Lord
to give us His light with the intimate knowledge of
His heart, to love Him the more, and to follow
Him the nearer. Then we behold Him whom we
so often see in humiliation and sorrow, in the full
brilliancy of His splendour ; and let us contemplate
Him with faith and love, and say that one day
we likewise shall behold Him face to face. Yes,
Sisters, in some days or hours, on one condition
however, that we wait for the appointed time, and
endure labour. Let us, then, humbly ask our Lord
what could have been His thoughts, His motives,
and the sentiments of His mind in this glory of
Thabor. It was undoubtedly to elevate the still
wavering faith of His disciples, and likewise ours.
He vouchsafed to give us to understand this
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mysterious union of ignominy and glory, and to
tell us that Thabor and Calvary are one and the
same, in a sense, since it is the same God who
sanctified Thabor and Calvary. Therefore, we
should bear in mind whatever temptations we
may have to undergo, whatever consolations we
may or may not have in a word, whatever may
be our condition, that God remains the same for
us always, that He is always the Saviour, always
great, good, mighty, and inclined unto us with
an infinite love. Hence, whatever happens, we
should always say : " God is always the same ;
that is enough for me, I shall wait ".
Then, Sisters, Jesus is transfigured ; and we see
from the witnesses which He was pleased to take
with Him, that He manifested Himself to His
disciples in all His glory and splendour to lead
them subsequently to the Cross, and to prepare
them to sacrifice and to immolate themselves. At
first they did not understand this; it was only later
on that they came to know it, according to the
testimony given by S. Peter to increase his own
faith and the faith of nations. And it is the truth,
Sisters, that in this life of contemplation, in this
assiduous labour after perfection, which is like the
ascent of Calvary, you should always say that the
joy of the transfiguration may indeed in this life be
I2 9
sometimes given, but that it is short, very short;
and that suffering is what we need to establish, and
to lay the foundations of devotion and zeal within
us. And here you will pause, and ask our Lord for
the intimate grace of knowing Him, and following
Him everywhere, if not to Thabor then to Calvary.
And for the words, we are told that our Lord
conversed with Moses and Elias. Of this colloquy
nothing has survived, nothing has been revealed to
us ; it is a secret. We may suppose that He con
versed on the Old Law with Moses, who was its
type, and on the New Law with the Prophet Elias,
whom you so gloriously and so justly call your
father. And in this colloquy we behold the unity
of all time, because it unveils to us one only God,
one only Saviour.
We likewise hear S. Peter, whose heart, ever
burning with love for its Master, spoke in trans
ports of joy : " O Lord, it is well to be here ; let us
make, if it please Thee, three tabernacles one for
Thee, one for Moses, and one for Elias ". // is well
here, indeed, I believe so ; S. Peter was not wrong.
Let us stay here, and what for to taste of joy ?
No, that is not enough ; we must not be eager to
preserve joy when it is given to us ; we must not
be eager to erect its dwelling here, but we must go
off elsewhere. But are not you, Sisters, on
9
I 3
Thabor always in this beloved Carmel, and do you
not say likewise : " It is well to be here ". Yea,
and here you have pitched your tent for ever. Ah !
dwell therein and be happy whatever your state,
whether you taste here the pleasures of the divine
union, which are always easy and momentary,
or whether you experience all the bitterness of
Calvary.
And then we shall hear those words which came
down from heaven : " This is My beloved Son in
whom I am well pleased ; hear Him ". It is as if
the Eternal Father were to say in answer to S.
Peter : " This is My Son ; He will tell you of the
sacrifices to be made, of the labours to be endured,
of the souls to be conquered ; hear Him, He is My
beloved Son ; hear Him, and you need not seek
consolation, nor rest, nor enjoyment for yourselves".
And then the Apostles, seized with terror, fall on
their faces to the ground. Our Lord after being
stripped of His glory and returning to the condi
tion in which He wished to live, in humility and
poverty, approaches His Apostles, touches them,
and speaks these consoling words : " Arise, fear
not, it is I". Beloved Sisters, these words are for
us; often does our Lord say : " Arise, fear not, it
is /". And when we have any resolutions to take,
let us fear not, but be generous, and arise. T ~
repentance. We shall then consider Jesus carrying
His cross.
In this adorable spectacle we may fix on three
points which shall be thoroughly understood by
taking of them that which speaks best to the heart,
and induces it to the love of the Divine Victim.
i. Jesus advances always. 2. He rises always. 3.
However sad He be, He proceeds always.
I. He advances always. Solemn was the moment
in which Jesus, for the salvation of the world, took
the heavy cross and laid it on His shoulders satisfied
and content. Proposito gaudio sustinuit crucem :
"Having joy set before Him, He endured the
cross" His joy was to suffer voluntarily for us.
You know what S. Paul has written on this sub
ject ; instead of the joy and glory which were
offered Him, and which He might have chosen
in order to work our redemption, He preferred
the cross, He seized it. And do we likewise, Sis
ters, seize the cross every day with delight the
cross of the rule, the cross of love, the cross of the
reform of our faults, the cross of the complete sacri
fice of self, even to our innermost depths ? Do we
carry the cross ? O Jesus, grant me the grace of
carrying it with Thee, like Thee, by love of Thee.
He advances with His cross, and this cross is
laden with the sins, the iniquities, and the ingrati-
152
tude of the world, but above all with the ingratitude
and baseness of souls that were dearest to His heart.
The sins, the fatigues, and the contempt which
overpower Him, He beholds and bears. Oh ! let
us from the bottom of our hearts compassionate
His sufferings and His sorrow. He sets out, He
advances, He ascends weary yet He ascends
always. For so He has said : " If anyone wishes
to come after Me, if anyone wishes to partake of
My glory and My crown, let him renounce him
self, and take up his cross and follow Me ". We
have nothing to do but to take up our cross and
follow Jesus on the Via Dolorosa. There He ap
peared to you ; there He beholds you.
And do you likewise, Sisters, set out, and ad
vance, and ascend, not with a half will, but with
courage. Your Divine Saviour is advancing always;
follow Him, and say : " It is for my sake that
Thou dost bear the cross. Oh ! what shall I do to
comfort and console Thee ? "
II. Jesus falls, and thrice yields beneath the
burden, but He rises always. Tradition points out to
us our Lord s three falls. God falls to earth what
k mystery ! And He vouchsafes this weakness,
this oppression ; He vouchsafes those falls, and His
bodily infirmity. In this we find a remarkable
lesson for our weakness. It was through compas-
sion for our infirmities that Jesus became weak,
and halted, and fell. And alas ! Sisters, how many
times have we fallen after so many graces, and not
beneath a stupendous weight !
Jesus makes an effort and rises. Let us ask of
Him the grace of rising likewise. There is for us
powerful help in our Lord s triple fall, because in
all His acts, in all His sorrows, our Divine Saviour
vouchsafed by teaching to make us capable of de
serving grace. Hence whatever be our burthens,
our languor, our aridity, or our repugnances, we
must remember that we shall always find grace
near Jesus falling under the cross the grace of
rising, and marching on always. What a consola
tion !
Not that we should be anxious to fall oh ! no ;
but we are so weak, so feeble, so inconstant. We
pause and turn aside on the way which Jesus fol
lowed, but we shall arise by the help which His fall
has earned for us. Let us at least always give this
Divine Master who is so good to us, a tender senti
ment of piety and compassion, and let us conceive
a just indignation against ourselves which will give
us energy to rise always and for ever.
III. Thus our Lord passes through every obstacle
and proceeds always. But He meets by the way
the most legitimate objects of His regard His
154
Mother and the holy women. How hard was this
trial to His Mother whom He loved so tenderly.
He saw her, but made not even a movement to
look at her, He spoke to her not a word, nor did
He attempt to comfort Her ; she had no need of
comfort. He never chose to give way to natural
sensibility. Grace and spiritual love only nothing
for flesh and blood. The holy women, whom the
sight of His sorrows caused to weep, had the con
solation of hearing one sentence from the lips of
their Redeemer : " Weep not over Me, weep over
yourselves", Jesus wills not compassion for Himself.
Among all the testimonies of love on the part of
His friends, Jesus thinks not of Himself; His
Father, the cross, and the salvation of souls are
His only occupation, His only thought. Nothing
for Himself. He to think of Himself! Never.
He is dead, He is the Penitent, the Victim. He
thinks of nothing but of humbling Himself and
suffering. Jesus never pleased Himself, and there
fore the Eternal Father exalted Him, and used fre
quently to say that He was His beloved Son in
whom He was well pleased. There are souls that
always please themselves, and that, while having
the best intentions, think only of themselves. O
Sisters, never think of yourselves. Then the words
addressed to the holy women, you may take unto
yourselves. Yea, weep over yourselves, but above
all over souls. Weep also over Jesus, but let your
tears be the much-longed-for tears of loving com
passion. It may be also a consoling reflection to
you that the devout sex were there with Jesus ; the
Gospel tells us that many women followed Him,
but there is no mention of a single man. This is
not much to our credit.
In fine, Jesus beneath His burden, in the midst
of tears, the jeerings of the mob, insults, contempt,
and injuries of every kind, ascends courageously
and calmly ; nothing stops Him, He pushes on, He
ascends always. Neither the buffets, nor the spits
retard His progress ; there is here no sensibility,
but all for the spiritual good of others. Do you also,
beloved Sisters, set out, advance, and ascend. Some
thing relating to the senses may befal you, a
humiliation for aught I know. Answer it not, but,
like Jesus, proceed onwards. Oh ! He is truly the
Divine Hero, but He has done this and we should
do it. S. Peter says : " He hath marked out for
us the way in order that we may follow it ". Let us
then put our steps on His steps, our marks on His
marks, and let us walk behind Him and advance.
And if there happen anything relating to the senses
or the affections, any adverse passion, we must not
pause, but always peaceably and constantly ascend
156
with Jesus Christ, and we shall with Him attain the
goal.
EXERCISE III.
CONFERENCE ON MORTIFICATION.
Sisters, we are always at the Cross of Jesus
Christ ; it is to us a book on which we could never
sufficiently meditate ; it is for us, and particularly
for you, the doctrine of truth and life.
One of the first lessons of the Divine Saviour
whom we contemplate always carrying the cross
is: " He suffered because it was His will". He
could be unwilling to suffer and save the world
otherwise ; but it was His will to suffer in order to
instruct us and move us to pity. The first con
clusion to be drawn from this is very plain and
simple : " To imitate our Lord directly , we must
devote ourselves to voluntary suffering, and suffer
voluntarily ". And if this be not perfection, it is at
least the right way conducting thither.
Hence, in order to follow Jesus Christ carrying
His cross, let us remember this precious principle
which flows naturally from the mystery : We must
suffer voluntarily.
And wherefore ? Our Lord s Passion, a volun
tary choice, indicates to us that there are reasons
why we should suffer, and surfer voluntarily. Hence
we should say to ourselves that there are reasons,
and powerful reasons, which we ought to believe,
even though we do not comprehend them ; the
sight of the cross is sufficient to ensure them un
hesitating recognition in our minds.
But is there not also this manifest signification in
the Cross of Jesus that our Divine Saviour having
chosen it for our redemption, by its means we like
wise should co-operate in our redemption ; and
that in order to associate ourselves with Him, we
have the utmost need of suffering ? Hence, this
is His own proposal : " If you wish to come after
Me, take up My cross ". In order to participate in
His victory, we must partake of His labours.
But do we not know besides that we must always
have suffering on this earth ? If I do not accept
and choose it, God will impose it on me, because
there is always need of the cross ; but I shall not
then have entered into free participation in the
suffering of Jesus Christ. Rather do I ask the will
to suffer, and to mortify my flesh and senses ; I ask
to carry my cross, and when that cross comes to
me, by others or by myself, I shall accept and love
it. Therefore, Sisters, we perfectly comprehend the
teaching of faith, that, since our Lord has esta
blished this way of reparation, since He has chosen
this manner of expiation, it should be ours likewise
with the help of His grace, by the union of our
hearts with His ; for of ourselves we can do noth
ing.
This, then, Sisters, is your life, your vocation.
Go, and test the excellence of the way of the cross,
the better way, or that which best realises the in
tentions of our Lord. You suffer for Him, you
live for Him, you are willing to die for Him, do it
well Never refuse grace, never refuse the cross.
There is another consideration to which we shall
attend more particularly, in the example of our Lord.
Let us recall to mind the very remarkable words of
S. Peter the Apostle. "Jesus Christ suffered" he
says, " to leave us an example"
Now, I venture to ask if we can discover in the
example of our Lord, apart from the expiation of
our sins and the meritorious graces to be acquired
by us, the reason of His voluntary suffering. It is
this, Sisters. Jesus had to clothe us anew, and to
remodel us. Order was not observed ; of this
there are but too many traces in our souls. Dis
order is the empire of the senses and of things
natural and sensual. Yea, the empire, and the
empire in such a way that the spirit is not its master.
That which rules us is flesh and blood, the animal
instinct, imagination. Now I understand the words
of S. Peter. When I take my Master s cross, and,
united to my Saviour despite my weaknesses and
infirmities, I embrace this divine cross, apply it to
my flesh, and press it to my heart, there may indeed
be some natural inclinations within me, but I am in
order, I am the master, because I suffer voluntarily
and freely as did my Divine Saviour. The flesh
may indeed rebel, but only after the manner of a
slave dragging at his fetters, and unable to break
them.
Beloved Sisters, choose this suffering in prac
tice ; there are inexpressible advantages in mortifi
cation ; there we again discover original justice, and
portion of our primitive power which we regain like
many of the saints, as S. Francis of Assisi, for
instance, who exercised command over wild beasts,
as did the first man in his state of innocence. In
suffering and the cross is also found the very es
sence of all true virtue, purity, humility, patience,
sacrifice, and love of our Lord.
In fine, mortification is the better prayer, it ob
tains grace. S. Bernard says, that we have two
wings to fly ; two, because with one alone we could
not fly; and "those two wings," he says, "are
prayer and mortification". That is to say, that
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prayer with mortification is always heard. As to
prayer without mortification, it may be good
sometimes; but it will be far less efficacious.
This is hard on nature, but it is what our Lord
loveth.
We must therefore, Sisters, follow our Divine
Master s example in desiring mortification; a desire,
of course, which should be confined within proper
limits there should be no imprudence ; but we are
naturally prone to live in the opposite direction.
We have holy obedience always as our guide.
But we must be careful to be exceedingly zealous in
the practice of meekness and humility ; indifference
for the cross of Jesus Christ is the evil of the re
ligious soul.
And, in conclusion, in the lesson on which we
have been meditating, let us also take in the motives
of voluntary suffering, the motives of love for our
Lord. You love our Divine Saviour, oh ! yea, you
love Him, and you have proved it by consecrating
yourselves to Him, since you are willing to live and
die for Him. When, in presence of our Lord, I
consider Him carrying His cross, overcome by
fatigue, wounded, scourged, insulted, and I say to
myself: "That is all for me, because He loved
me," is it possible that I would be unwilling to
surfer, or could seek to avoid suffering, and pretend
to love my Master ? I am deceiving myself, it is
impossible.
The seal of divine love and the seal of perfection
is love of suffering. Behold S. Theresa, truly did
she love suffering ; truly she suffered much. And
all the saints likewise. Oh ! Sisters, I humble my
self in speaking thus to you, for it is easy to speak,
but we must likewise know and thoroughly under
stand that there is no true love without sacrifice.
Oh ! ask our Lord for love of sacrifice. We are
on this earth only to glorify God by our immola
tion. Yea, Sisters, a humble, bruised, and crucified
soul, a soul satisfied to die for God, a soul seeking
self-denial, makes God triumph by her voluntary
sufferings ; she proclaims Him unto all things pre
ferable and superior. On beholding Him, I cry :
" God is great. There is only one God whom we
could love thus." We ought to do this, Sisters.
And if we cannot offer to God the voluntary sacri
fice of martyrdom, there is martyrdom every day
and every moment the martyrdom of mortification,
rule, and obedience. Let us embrace this mortifi
cation with all our hearts, and let no limits to our
desire to suffer, except those assigned by obedience.
You now understand, Sisters, something of what
the Cross says to us. Whilst contemplating our
Lord on the way of Calvary, go and ask Him for
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this love of the Cross. And entreat Mary, Mater
Dolorosa, to obtain for you the strength never to
pause except before the barriers of obedience.
EXERCISE IV.
MEDITATION ON OUR LORD S DEATH.
Beloved Sisters, let us assist this evening at the
death of our Lord upon the cross. We shall briefly
recapitulate the facts our Lord on the Via Dolo
rosa, and subsequently on the cross, and the deri
sion and mockery of the populace. We shall take
our stand on Calvary with Mary and the holy
women, to contemplate our expiring Saviour, and
we shall ask for the grace to die spiritually with
Him. You shall then pause at the three considera
tions of the death of Jesus Christ : i. A sacrifice
of reparation. 2. A Sacrifice of consummation.
3. A death of love.
I. A sacrifice of reparation. The death of Jesus
Christ is the effect of sin. We, sinners, are the
real authors of His agony and cruel death. Per
peccatum, mors. Through sin, death. As fire con
sumes wood, so did our sins consume Jesus Christ.
This is an article of Faith. We may therefore say
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to ourselves that we are the characters taking part
in His death, and that it was the voice of our
iniquities which cried : " Crucify Him, crucify
Him ". Then we shall better than ever understand
the words of Jesus carrying His cross : " Weep not
over Me, weep over yourselves" . Enter then, Sisters,
into the innermost depths of your souls, and say
with bitterness and compassion : " It is true that
Jesus alone reckoned, measured, and felt my sins
and iniquities ; that is to say, He alone endured the
torments which I deserved ". Let us be penetrated
with a profound sentiment of compassion for our
Divine Lord. He offered Himself, He gave Him
self up, He immolated Himself. What love ! Then
He hath called us, and reckons us among His
beloved friends. And what do we offer Him ?
What have we done for Him? Alas ! how often have
we been guilty of coldness, indifference, forgetful-
ness, raillery, contempt ? What a return ! what in
gratitude ! We must turn on ourselves, and despise
ourselves, and be confounded. And then in our
humiliation, let us unite ourselves to Mary and the
holy women, and ask for participation in the suffer
ings and death of Jesus Christ, and for the tears of
repentance and love.
II. The death of Jesus Christ is the consumma
tion of sacrifice ; the reparation is consummated,
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Jesus says to Himself. Our Lord is purified by
reparation ; but that is not all, we must realise the
words of S. Paul within us : " I fulfil in my flesh
what is wanting in me of the passion of Jesus Christ".
And what is wanting in me? My suffering, my
crucifixion, the participation of my whole being in
this sacrifice, the entire oblation of myself. Oh !
Sisters, let us from this day henceforth die with
Jesus Christ. I can do nothing, it is true ; but
what a consolation ! We have said : " All is con
summated ". With this grace of consummation in
Jesus Christ, I shall be enabled to fulfil every
sacrifice. Courage, Sisters, courage, the last moment
of consummation will come for us likewise. At the
hour of death, or when in your thoughts you bring
your last moments vividly before you, say with your
seraphic mother : " I shall be judged by Him
whom I have loved so much ". But this is not all ;
our life should be consummated beforehand, for
this is the work of a religious soul, but above all, of
a Carmelite. United to Jesus the Victim, she
should say with S. Paul: "/ die every day". O
my God, take my life, accept my death, I receive
the sentence of my destruction in expiation of my
iniquities, for love of Thee. I offer it and abandon
it to Thee ; Thy will be done. And thus, Sisters,
let us live in such manner that on our last day we
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with her in God, and in God only, in complete
forgetfulness of self.
EXERCISE II.
MEDITATION ON THE ASCENSION OF OUR LORD.
We must remember that, agreeably to the spirit
of the last day of these exercises, you should
earnestly ask of God the grace of pure spiritual
joy, true joy, that supernatural joy which springs
from perfect love. Outside the time of retreat
there will be other joys, and other hours for other
desires and other virtues; but in contemplating
the glory of our Lord to-day, we must endeavour
to rejoice in Him and for Him, whatever vain
thoughts may be passing within our minds.
You will then contemplate the Ascension of
our Lord. You know that for forty days He ap
peared to His apostles frequently and manifested
unto them all manner of goodness, power, and
~^ry. Then after commanding them to remain
at Jerusalem and there to await the Holy Spirit
whom He promised them, He led them upon
Mount Olivet, and wherefore? You know, Sisters,
that on this mount of suffering, He was about to
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manifest His glory. On reaching this privileged
mountain, He arose to heaven in presence of His
disciples. In their astonishment, pausing with their
eyes raised towards their Divine Master, Jesus dis
appeared. And angels came to tell them that they
had other things to do, and that Jesus whom they
beheld rising into heaven, would return one day in
like manner.
Behold the fact, behold the history. When you
are recollected peacefully in the superior part of
your soul, picture to yourselves Mount Olivet where
you will find the apostles and disciples with our
Lord, and ask for the grace of the mystery. You
can then behold the persons, hear the words, and
assist at the performance of the mystery. And
first to behold the persons.
What are the dispositions of the apostles and
disciples ? There is reason to be surprised at and
long for them ; they are still hesitating ; there
are even some who doubt ; others ask : " When
wilt Thou set up the kingdom of Israel ? " And
Ascension Day finds them still at this point weak,
feeble, and even wavering in their faith. What
misery! But we must be surprised at nothing;
these were only natural impressions ; they had
not yet received the Holy Ghost. We must pity
them. And we, Sisters, in our vocation have still
ideas of the world, when we should rise above them,
we who have received the divine spirit of Jesus.
But we must never be troubled, whatever our im
pressions. Impressions are nothing, they may be
despised. We must not wonder at anything that
happens to us despite our efforts. After being raised
up and ravished, we may descend in a moment to
infamy and the mere animal life, but what matter !
And behold Jesus triumphant and immortal,
gazing for the last time on this earth which He
was about to leave, and bestowing a special blessing
on the souls to Him most beloved. What should
we do in sight of this strength, this goodness, and
this glory of our beloved Saviour. We should raise
ourselves up by forgetting self, and follow Him in
desire to heaven, likening ourselves to a cast-off
garment, and rejoicing in the Lord.
We shall now hear the words.
After blessing His apostles for the last time on
earth, our Lord says to them : "Withdraw and
await the Holy Spirit". And this is what we
should do, we should await the Holy Spirit ; He
has His moments, He breathes wheresoever He
wills. Let us always hold ourselves in readiness
above all in prayer ; and let us long for Him
earnestly and patiently. And the angels say to
the astonished disciples : Men of Galilee, why do
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you pause and look t " It was as if they said :
" Go, fight, labour, suffer, and advance. Jesus,
whom you have seen ascending into heaven, will
return in like manner on the last day." Here, then,
we behold the end of all things, the General Judg
ment, so much the better. And our Lord will
appear to us in His glory. We shall behold our
Friend, our Saviour. What happiness to have
for a Judge one whom you have loved so much !
S. Theresa used to say : " 1 shall be judged by
Him whom my heart loveth ". And this thought
used to transport her with joy. But we must pre
pare for this by victory over self.
We now come to the performance of the mystery.
Our Lord ascends into heaven from the Garden of
Olives. It is then evident that suffering is followed
by happiness and glory. The Divine Master has
said so. And we read likewise in S. Paul : " If
you have suffered, you shall be glorified". The
Garden of Olives leads to heaven ; it is the degree,
the path, and in this manner did our Lord indicate
to His disciples the route He had taken to rejoin
them. Let us pause then, Sisters, on this beloved
mountain of glory and sorrow, in peace and joy,
renouncing all natural satisfaction, and awaiting
our Lord only. And let us make an act of faith
on the necessity of suffering. We shall make a
second act of faith on the triumph which the
cross afforded Jesus Christ, and we shall say :
" We likewise shall soon ascend into heaven ".
And God in His love hath placed us on this
privileged way. Confidence, therefore, we shall
suffer for His glory and His love, but not for
ourselves, no, for God, and for heaven which
we love for Jesus sake. And heaven is God ;
beatitude is the life of the happy God, the great
God, the supremely perfect God. Let us endea
vour to understand these things in order to free
ourselves from the oppressive yoke of nature and
our depraved inclinations ; all which are so much
mud. Let us endeavour likewise to make here
below a heaven of holy prayer and contemplation
insomuch as the grace of so doing is bestowed
on us, while we are waiting for our Lord Himself
to come, and to set us in the places which He
has destined for us. Let us ask our Immaculate
Mother to obtain for us this grace, and likewise
all others belonging to the contemplation of our
Lord s Ascension. She beheld not her Divine
Son rising into heaven. Jesus was unwilling that
she should be comforted; He loved her and left
her in suffering and long years of exile ; and
eventually He destined her for heaven.
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EXERCISE III.
CONFERENCE ON TRUE LOVE.
In order to prepare us for the close of the retreat,
we must seek that which is the conclusion, the
limit, and the consummation of all things.
And what is this last limit on which our soul is
fixed ? Surely we cannot doubt that it is Divine
love ; everything is summed up in that. But we
must first endeavour to form an adequate notion of
Divine love. Does it consist in affected senti
mentality, or in the outward expression of what
we inwardly experience in our souls ? We have
on this point the words of S. John, who gives us
in answer : " We should love not in word, but in
deed". And our Lord Himself tells us : " Who
soever loveth Me keepeth My commandments ".
The love of God is not altogether, therefore,
as we might suppose, in the dispositions or tender
ness of the soul. These may form a portion of
love, it is true, and may tend to the love of God,
but it is not they that constitute it. There is need
of deeds and actions pleasing to God ; there is
need of practising virtue even unto perfection. It
is true love that makes us always, and in every-
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thing, turn to God as our Sovereign Good. Be
loved Sisters, earnestly ask for this love which
is the true liberty of our souls; to ask for it is
already to practise it.
Another simple principle is, that true love of
God consists in the reciprocity or mutual inter
change of love. God loves us, and His love does
not consist in words ; He makes everything, He
gives everything, His wisdom, power, goodness,
light, nay, even His very self.
What love ! We should understand that while
on the one hand God gives Himself to us, on the
other we should give Him all that we have, and all
that we are.
We may therefore justly say that the religious
life is a true and most excellent act of Divine
charity, since it consists in making to God the
offering of all one s being.
Thus, to abandon one s heart and soul to the
quest of God is to devote oneself in holy prayer
to Divine charity, which is not enough ; it should
be followed by solid virtue, which is the gift of all
that we are.
But what is the work of a soul that truly loves
God, and is not satisfied with merely saying so?
What is there in your life, for instance, to prove
to God that you love Him ? What is there to
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manifest it to all your Sisters ? Self-denial, for in
this there is no deception. If you love God you
cannot love yourself, you must hate yourself, and
I wish to call your attention to the full force of
the term hating yourself, for whoever hates self,
renounces self, despises self, forgets self. Now,
Sisters, you understand that God, who asks this
perfection of the souls that He hath chosen, so
willed that even in the essence of the religious
life there should be excellent opportunities for the
practice of self-denial in the holy vows. To-morrow
you will renew those sacred vows, and those which
yet remain unuttered will be united to them in the
expression of their desires. And among those vows,
so sacred, so great, so perfect, there is certainly one
which is the perfect expression of the love of God,
because it bears upon it, when practised faithfully,
the most absolute self-denial, namely, the vow of
obedience. And wherefore ? Because when acting
under obedience we lay aside our own tastes, in
clinations, and desires ; we may say : " It is no
longer I that live, and move, and have my being ;
I am dead to everything". Why did your holy
mother, and all founders of orders, so exalt and
recommend obedience? Because it is the better
way of perfection, and the true expression of
sacrifice and love. We must obey unto death,
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even unto the death of the cross. Everything
is in obedience, because then we can say : " I
have given everything to God". We must be
very careful not to neglect the practice of holy
obedience, and to believe, for example, that in
contemplating it we contemplate all that is perfect.
The love of God in holy prayer is good ; to love
and cherish holy contemplation is likewise good.
But prayer in a soul will not be true, nor good,
nor holy, unless there may likewise be found
humble, perfect, silent, unaccusing, unmurmuring,
unreasoning obedience ; silence, above all things ;
above all things, doing and loving what is pre
scribed by even the simple wish of our superiors
without asking wherefore, because God invites us.
I adhere to everything that I am bidden by an act
of faith, recognising and adoring in the orders of
my superior, whoever he may be, the Divine will.
There is no question of the person so commanding,
of his qualities or virtues; I behold, I serve, and
I obey but God alone. And this, Sisters, is the
love of God and perfection, because the sacrifice
is fulfilled.
And when we have seen many souls, do we not
know by experience that obedience is the surest
guarantee of advancement and perseverance ? Thus
when we wish to be informed of a soul that seems
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but little recollected, little advanced in the ways of
God, we ask: "Is she obedient?" "Yes, per
fectly. " That is enough ; that is the better way ;
and we have every hope for this soul, because she
gives all to God by obedience. To love God we
must put ourselves in communication with the
source, and we shall reach this source by the canal
of obedience. Hence, when I put myself entirely
into the hands of my superiors and suffer myself
to be led by them exteriorly and interiorly at any
cost, I am in communication with the living waters
of grace and divine charity. And Thou, Lord,
hast said : Whoever heareth you heareth Me.
Whoever followeth Me walketh not in darkness ".
Our Lord vouchsafed that the perfection of His
life should be obedience " He was submissive ".
And to whom? To all His creatures, even those
who insulted and spat upon Him. We should
not ask wherefore according to the lights of human
reason. Wherefore? Because Jesus loved. O
Sisters, to love God more, love obedience exceed
ingly, set no limits to your love, obey not only in
act, but submit your judgment likewise to obedience
blindly, as the saints have done even to the extent
of doing foolish things; but this is the folly of
obedience, which is no other than the folly of the
Cross, the folly of Divine love.
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Above all things, avoid murmurs, reasoning, and
opposition, all which are so displeasing to God.
We say : " But if I were to do something else !
Such another means would be more convenient.
They are recommending me to act contrary to
rule." Avoid all that, Sisters. Renounce your
own views and will, and obey calmly and gladly.
You will then understand what the love of God is,
and love it really.
Observe, Sisters, that as effects proceed from
causes, sometimes, and reveal them, effects may
also in their turn become causes ; in this manner
does a soul detached from self, and renouncing her
own will in conformity with the vow of obedience,
destroy the principle of natural life. God then
comes into this soul to be her life ; He dwells in
her, and she reclines upon His bosom. Now, to
live and breathe in God is to love Him, because
love is the very life of God ; a soul dwelling deep
in the depths of God s life forgets everything to
love Him only, and then how nobly obedience is
rewarded !
What is now to be done ? O Sisters, ask for the
love of God, that excellent gift, ask for, press and
entreat for this supernatural love with all humility ;
and this is what you should do. Charity is God.
He alone can give it to us. When they sought to
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bring our Lord into their hearts the days of His
mortal life, they should ask Him : " Come, O
Lord ". And we likewise should say : " Come,
O Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou canst make me whole ;
do according to Thy will ". And this evening and
to-morrow, when renewing your vows at the close of
the retreat, you must give up all, your thoughts,
your love, your very selves ; and our Lord satisfied
with the oblation, will answer it with the most abun
dant blessings.
EXERCISE IV.
MEDITATION ON THE LOVE OF GOD.
Beloved Sisters, we shall now bring this retreat
to a close, thanking God from the bottom of our
hearts.
We shall this evening again return to divine love,
and you can ask yourselves once more, in holy
prayer: " What is divine love ? what is pure love ?"
You will remember the two principles which we this
morning established, i. That love does not con
sist in words, or sensible consolation, but in deed.
2. That love consists in the reciprocal communica
tion of all good.
Cast yourselves now at the feet of our Lord in
presence of Mary, and the angels and saints who
shall be the witnesses of your oblation. The grace
to ask for, whatever your dispositions, is to
thoroughly penetrate what God is for you, with the
ardent desire of doing all that you do for love of
Him.
We shall now for the practical conclusion to be
drawn from the exercises pause at four very fruitful
considerations, which the Holy Ghost dictated to
the soldier of Manreze in the ever-memorable grotto
where He disclosed to him such great things.
At the end of this long month of retreat, S.
Ignatius says to himself: "God gives, we must
give ; God is everywhere, He dwells in me, I must
dwell in Him ; God operates and acts in everything,
I must operate in Him ; God is the treasure and
the centre of all perfection, I must place my
treasure and centre my perfection in Him."
I. God gives, I must give. Yea, Sisters, God
gives everything, we should likewise give everything.
And here we should recall all the benefits which
He has showered on us creation, redemption,
sanctification, tenderness, solicitude, indulgence for
our miseries, and the holy vocation.
God gives, what has He not given ? He gives
His very Self, He identifies Himself with us by
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every means of union, especially in the Blessed
Eucharist and in prayer, which are both a participa
tion in heavenly life. And what else must I do ?
I must also give up everything organs, memory,
intelligence, affections, will, sufferings, in a word,
everything appertaining to self. I shall give myself
up and sacrifice myself, and this oblation I shall
make through obedience. I shall give myself up,
and abandon my whole being. And lo ! before
God and Mary, before the whole court of heaven,
I shall make my act of oblation with or without
consolation, as well as I can, and as pleasing as
possible to God, but I shall make it and make it
fully.
II. God dwells everywhere : He is on earth, He
bestows being and life all round, He dwells in me
likewise, and especially in my soul, which He fills
with the divine essence ; He expands my intellect,
enlivens my heart ; there is nothing in me that
does not come from God, and is not in Him and
for Him. Let an ardent prayer then escape your
heart : " Give me, O my God, the grace to dwell
in Thee, and to live always in Thee". Make this
request lovingly ; it is indeed the expression of full
and perfect denial.
Behold likewise, Sisters, God dwelling in all
creatures and giving them life ; this is a sweet
thought, which makes us live the life of faith. And
here again, Sisters, you must renew the oblation of
yourselves, for this is the means of living without
other attachment the life of immolation and the
life of death in God and for God.
III. God operates and works in every creature
and in myself by love. Everything comes from
God; there is no good, no help that is not the action
of God ; all creatures are only so many instruments
in His hands. And what does He not operate for
His sanctification in the soul ? And by what return
are we to mark our appreciation of this benefit ?
What are we to do ? You, Sisters, know well. We
must act for God, and operate in Him. I have an
imperfect thought, a human desire; I sacrifice
them in order to abandon myself always and in all
things to the practice of true virtue. Yea, Sisters,
this is the return, the reciprocity of good, and the
communion of works in true, and pure, and perfect
love. Here too lie the fruits of the retreat. If, then,
in a short time, this evening, or perhaps to-morrow,
temptation returns and pursues us, let us despise it ;
it is nothing, it is not for us. Let us act in God and
for God only. O my God, let me die and live for
Thee and in Thee alone.
IV. Lastly, in considering things carefully, we
may ask where is true love, that is to say, the centre
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of all good and of all perfection, and the treasure
of justice ? Is it not in God and in God alone ?
Yea, God alone is good, alone" is great, alone is
holy; we must then rejoice in His beatitude and
glory, and centre all our affections in Him. Let us
ask Him in the language of prayer to shower down
on us the abundance of His graces, which will
detach us from creatures and from ourselves, and
let us abandon ourselves to holy love, and say with
S. Ignatius :
" Take and receive, O Lord, my entire liberty ;
receive my memory, my intelligence, and my will.
Thou didst give me all that I am, and all that I
have, and to Thee I return it ; I devote it to Thy
good pleasure. The only thing that I ask of Thee
is Thy love ; if I obtain this, I am rich enough and
desire nothing more."
And thus, on this evening, beloved Sisters, you
shall close the retreat in peace and silence, and to
morrow finding yourselves again together, be faith
ful, and let your conversation be such that one may
easily perceive that the Spirit of God hath pene
trated you.
REFLECTIONS AND INSTRUCTIONS.
PEACE ON THE CROSS.
AN INSTRUCTION GIVEN AT THE END OF LENT,
1857-
"DELOVED Sisters, what ought we meditate and
speak on during this season of the Passion, in
order to prepare ourselves for Holy Week? There is
but one thing that should be present to our thoughts
and feelings namely, the cross ; and it is on this
point that I wish to give you a token which shall
be as a motto. That motto is Peace on the cross.
We must not say, nor would you, I am sure, wish to
say, Peace without the cross ; we must not say this,
because it is contrary to the will of God, and our
Lord Jesus Christ willed not for Himself, Peace
without the cross. Thus the resemblance is com
plete, and it is only imitating our Lord and express
ing His own sentiment when we say Peace on the
cross.
For you know well, beloved Sisters, that our Lord
enjoyed peace in the midst of insults, blasphemies,
and the most grievous torments ; and to say that
He did not enjoy peace would be blasphemy. He
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enjoyed peace, and ponder well over this mystery
His soul, united from the time of His incarna
tion to the Word, enjoyed the beatific vision, even
as His humanity enjoyeth it since the Ascension in
the bosom of His Father in Heaven. Our Lord
Jesus Christ enjoyed beatitude to its highest degree
in the superior part of His soul. This beatitude He
never lost for an instant ; and He was in the enjoy
ment thereof while He was suffering the most griev
ous torments, receiving the most outrageous insults,
and experiencing the bitterest sorrow.
Therefore, Peace on the cross.
But how shall we obtain it ? Can we groan and
wring our hands, weeping and wailing, and suffer as
did our Lord, and still enjoy peace ? Yea, we can.
But how ? It is said that it is better to do things
than to know the laws of things, and that is true ;
yet we must acknowledge that definitions are of
great assistance. Let us then see what is this law
of suffering in peace. How can we preserve peace
on the cross ?
I. By considering the necessity of suffering. We
acknowledge this in theory, but are we willing to
fulfil it in practice ? Alas ! we are weak and often
times draw back, for Nature is not dead within us,
and she cannot endure suffering. It is only grace
that loves suffering and enables us in those moments
to say to our souls : " My soul, thou must suffer,
thou must suffer ".
" But am I always to suffer," crieth out our self-
love. " I cannot endure that ; it is opposed to my
happiness and comfort." Yea, my soul, thou must
surfer. Thou must bear the cross, and that cross
cannot be of thine own choosing ; thou must only
bear it up when it is given to thee. It will come of
itself some time or another, for in some way or other
we all must suffer; and this obligation our Lord
Himself imposeth on us, when He says : " If any
one will come after Me, let him take up his cross
and follow Me". And again, "Christ had to suffer,"
of His own will, no doubt, for He had perfect liberty
of will, even as we. Now, to wish for the cross in
one way and not to wish for it in another, is to wish
for the one and to repel the other, and indicates a
failing in the observance of the law of suffering.
Therefore, we must suffer ; and whether we be tried
by men, by sorrow, or by any other cause, let us say
within us : " My soul, thou must suffer " ; and then
let us rest and suffer in peace. Suppose a sick
man whose leg has to be amputated ; he undergoes
the torture, and accepts it with resignation, because
it is necessary. Is not this a means of enjoying
peace rather than suffering at his lot ? This sick
man is our model ; a cross is before us, and let us
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shut our eyes, stretch ourselves on it, and be nailed
thereto. It is God who crucifies me be His holy
name for ever blessed.
II. Hope is the greatest need of our soul ; hence,
the cross is her greatest good and securest repose.
The greatest need of a religious soul is to resemble
Jesus Christ ; on this lies the foundation of all her
hopes. Would this need be satisfied if we had
nothing to suffer either spiritually or corporally ?
Our Lord Jesus Christ carried the cross, and surely
we have need to practise virtue for our greater
merit, in order that we may approach nearer unto
the heart of our Lord. And there is no virtue that
we could practise without the cross. Where would
patience be without the cross? Patience is syno
nymous with the cross. We know, alas ! that we
have passed long years in the ministry ; but to have
suffered is the best secret for raising a despairing
soul, and helping her advantageously.
III. Finally, we require to be purified. Now,
the cross is needful for our purification ; for suffer
ing is the only means by which we can be purified.
The cross then is a necessity. It is the inseparable
complement of our existence and the source of our
most solid virtues. We need the cross to imitate
our Lord Jesus Christ. The cross is a necessity,
and I speak of the cross that is actually present to
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us; for that is no cross which exists only in imagina
tion. When, therefore, the cross presents itself to
us, let us say to ourselves that it is necessary, and
resign ourselves to submit to it and bear it.
Oh ! if there be a sight that is agreeable unto
God and His angels, it is that of a soul meek and
submissive under crosses and humiliations ; for this
is the image of Jesus Christ, and the part He hath
chosen. But for Himself He vouchsafed unmea-
surable sorrow; while for you He diminished it
from the infinite. Peace on the cross is a mystery,
but the mystery of a profound truth. Teach me to
know, O my God, how to suffer peacefully and
lovingly as did my Saviour !
Therefore, the cross is a necessity.
And what more remains to be said, beloved
Sisters, on this subject ? Only that which we should
keep repeating to ourselves incessantly, that the
cross is good, and that it comprehends and em
braces within itself all the goods and pleasures of
this earth. Meekness, joy, and rest are in the cross
that is accepted ; for immortification brings nought
but sadness in its train. If you suffer, accept the
cross, take it, and you will be happy. And what
would you that the world would do to a soul that
has thus stripped herself for sacrifice ? It will flee
from her. And what would you that God would
13
i 9 4
do to a soul that is thus crucified ? He makes her
another with Him, another Jesus, another victim.
In her He beholdeth His Son, and His Son s cross
and peace. For He loves her ; and then the cruci
fied soul, if she be brave, is happy and holy, for
herein lies all perfection in the cross and peace on
the cross.
And then it comes to pass that we hate sensual
gratification, and despise worldly pleasures. S.
Theresa used to think herself unfortunate when she
was not suffering, and used to cry : " O mystery of
suffering thus accepted ! True mystery, because it
is an overthrow of nature, to rest peaceful on the
cross, and there to slumber and abandon one s self
as a vessel of whom God is the sole pilot, to cut the
cables, weigh anchor, and set sail from earth, with
nothing save the heavens over the deep ! "
Such is the mystery of peace on the, cross.
Then, courage, Sisters, and let us take up the
cross during this holy season while you are going to
dwell in contemplation on the Passion, scourging
and insults offered to Jesus Christ. Say unto Him :
"Yea, Lord, I will rest with Thee on the cross ; and
I will stretch myself peacefully thereon. I will
suffer it to penetrate into my innermost bowels.
Even though thou wilt abandon me, repel me, or
crush me, still I will remain." How do we know
but a religious may find herein an heroic act in the
interior life ; great suffering or a great sacrifice to be
embraced. And if God so wills, you must undergo
it, and undergo it fully. For the more closely you
press the cross of your Master to your heart, the
greater will be the measure of peace vouchsafed to
you while waiting for eternity.
DISCOURSE ON SPIRITUAL JOY.
IN Scripture we often find a text that might with
advantage be applied to the spiritual life in its in
ward progress. Such a text is calculated to excite
spiritual joy within us. S. Paul forcibly repeats to
us : " Rejoice ye in the Lord ". And applying
these words to himself, he cries : " I superabound
with joy in the midst of tribulation ". When our
Lord was quitting this earth, He told His disciples
unto the end of time, and especially those souls
that were so intimately united to Him : " I go to
My Father, but I will pray for you, and I will send
you My Spirit that My joy may be full and perfect
in you ".
But what is spiritual joy ? It is an independent
condition of our sensible being, and independent,
moreover, of all sufferings. This joy, which should
always exist in a faithful soul, establishes it in a per
fect contentment that is superior to any impressions
from without. Yea, truly we may say this joy is
perfection. He who possesses it rejoices always in
God with contentment of spirit, pure and unchange
able, in union with the Divine joy. In this state
was our Lord s soul in the midst of the most
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grievous torments of His Passion, ever enjoying the
beatific vision a mystery, still a reality.
We must remember that in our soul there lies a
faculty to which the grace of God grants joy and
peace, independently of the most sorrowing sensa
tions. This joy is no sensible consolation or con
tentment caused by external objects. It is a joy in
God who comes and dwells in the soul, indepen
dently of the sensations created by the devil, the
world, and the flesh within us. This joy consists,
moreover, in being always content in God. How
can we think ill of the will of the God of Goodness,
the Incarnation of Wisdom ? Now, everything
comes from God ; therefore, everything is good ;
and, therefore, we ought to rejoice in everything,
for joy is the contentment of good. May my soul,
O God, be ever content in Thee !
There are times when we must be content against
our will, and struggle energetically against all the
evil inclinations of our nature, in order that, come
what may, our spirit united to the Spirit of God,
may rest in Him and enjoy contentment. Behold
the joy manifested by our Lord in the Garden of
Olives, by Mary on Calvary, by the martyrs in the
midst of their torments ! It is an error to imagine
that spiritual joy is incompatible with sensible sor
row ; for a soul united to God suffers when she
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suffereth not. Let us ardently desire this treasure,
ask for it unceasingly, and pursue it with all the
strength of our soul. Yea, it is truly a treasure,
which can have no other first principle than grace ;
for, if there is anything supernatural in the world,
it is spiritual joy in the midst of suffering. Our
Lord vouchsafed to give it to us with His spirit.
Let us ask it of Him, and seek it every moment of
the day ; and every morning let one of our first
prayers be a claim for this gift on Heaven. O my
God ! grant me to be always content in Thee.
Yea, Sisters, if at the first moments of the day
when, so to speak, we resume life anew a religious
soul breathed forth this prayer to God, with the
Laudate to bless her actions and sufferings during
the day, what progress would she not make in thus
abandoning herself to Providence? Such a soul
would advance rapidly in perfection, and would
soon acquire spiritual joy, which is the source of
peace and happiness the symbol of the Divine
union. Therefore, we must in all things be content.
This is no easy task ; nay, sometimes it must seem
to us impossible. I know it is not pleasant to be
on a bed of suffering for a month or two ; * yet
there one has to lie powerless, helpless, plunged in
* Pe"re de Ravignan had only just recovered from a three
months illness.
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physical, and sometimes overcome by moral weak
ness. Human nature revolts against it what
matter? suffering is very good, and we must be
content despite all things despite even ourselves.
This joy is the better mortification, the better
denial of self, because we are eager to be content
in self and for self, whilst thus we lay ourselves open
to rejoice in God and for God.
But to obtain spiritual joy we must co-operate
with grace ; it is not merely enough to lie in wait
for it from heaven as for one of those rays of light
and consolation which, from time to time, descend
into our soul ; for this is a solid virtue which must
be acquired by a thorough co-operation of our will.
In our habits of life, we should resolve to be con
tent despite everything. Yea, O my God, I believe
that Thou art good and merciful ; and I will believe
so, notwithstanding the murmurings and revoltings
of my weak flesh ! Whether we are subject to dis
tractions or not, we should pray ; and then rising,
we should abandon ourselves to spiritual joy, any
sorrows or trials whatever notwithstanding.
Let us then ask of God this supereminent grace
of spiritual joy. Let us ask it unceasingly ; and let
our whole life be one continual petition for this
grace. Let us also have the constant dispositions
to acquire it, and think that we are in the better
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state because we are in that in which God has put
us.
As to practice, God will teach us this Himself;
yet we may help ourselves with the counsels and
the example of the saints.
One of the most important things in the interior
life of a religious is to take up arms in self-defence,
and unmindful of what is to the rear, to dash to
the front like the driver in the chariot-race. " Go
forth to battle," says S. Paul, " by patience." But
to go forth we must make a motion, cast ourselves
in front, and swoop down upon the foe. And it is
likewise with the interior life. Go forth, then, by
patience, and gird yourselves beforehand for strug
gles in suffering and wherefore? Because God
so wills, and because it is He who calls you, urges
you, sustains you, waits for you. Go forth then
courageously. Do you hesitate, or resist, or look
behind ? Take care, lest you fall into the clutches
of the devil.
But what are the obstacles to spiritual joy and to
our spiritual advancement ? The most dangerous
is the facility and multiplicity of our reasonings and
fallings-back with ourselves, which is a detestable
habit, and can only draw evil upon us. The greatest
weaknesses result from these multiplied reflexions
on ourselves ; but if, on the other hand, we cast
201
aside all the promptings of self-love, and turn our
heart, howsoever stricken, to prayer, rejecting every
distrustful thought or multiple idea, and resting only
in God, we shall find in Him spiritual joy, and any
other line of conduct on our part would be offensive
to Him. Let us go forth to the front, and become
foolish that we may become wise. A fool reasons
not. "The less you reason," says Fe nelon, "the
more will you be reasonable." We must incline
our soul to this joy in order to attain the life of
prayer that life which should be the end of our
every effort. It is impossible not to think and not
to wish ; but when perceiving ourselves falling back
into self-scrutiny or useless thoughts and desires,
we must immediately and constantly change the
acts of our soul in prayer. A Carmelite should,
so to say, be transformed in prayer, be a living
prayer. Yea, she should rise incessantly like the
smoke of incense ascending unto God, or like the
angels ascending and descending uninterruptedly
the mysterious ladder. This will prevent no neces
sary occupation only an abuse of our own spirit.
And it will obtain for us spiritual joy.
Let us now turn towards God and towards the
cross of our Saviour, and say : " All is well. We
belong to this world no longer, we are dead ; and
we can only resume true^life in spiritual joy."
CONSIDERATIONS
Extracted from a Profession Sermon, preached
Tuesday, April 14, 1857, on the following
text : "&mulamini charismata meliora, qucz-
rite qucz sunt meliora" 2 Cor. xii.
WHAT are those better gifts which a daughter of S.
Theresa comes to find in Carmel ? I can express
them in four sentences.
First, a better life, the life of Jesus Christ.
Secondly, better gifts, the gifts of heaven.
Thirdly, the better affections which lead us the
more to love through the religious life.
Finally, a higher and a nobler freedom, where we
obey only God alone.
I. What is this better life ? It is that of Jesus
Christ the life of poverty, crucifixion, and sacrifice
which He embraced for the glory of His Father and
the salvation of souls ; the life which you, beloved
Sisters, have chosen. When the intimate love of
Jesus Christ has touched a soul, every barrier .must
fall and every obstacle vanish, while she walks step
by step on the footprints of our Saviour. The
Apostle who followed Him most closely cried: "He
suffered in order that we might imitate Him and
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walk after Him ". This is the better life to imitate
our Saviour by love. O Saviour ! Thou hast chosen
this part and vouchsafed it also to be mine. Hither
did I feel myself drawn by an inspiration of Thy
grace, and when I understood the price of a soul
and the honour of bearing a cross with Thee, and
perceived the value of suffering endured after Thine
example, should I be the one to recoil therefrom
and leave Thee in sadness all alone ? Oh ! no.
Behold then, beloved daughter, what you have
understood, and heard, and chosen the life of your
Master in preference to worldly cares and virtues.
Then be brave and shrink not. God will know
well how to recompense what the world calls your
sacrifice, and what you term your happiness and
your glory.
II. Then better than the world s gifts are the
interior life the hidden life in God with Jesus, a
life of prayer wherein the soul converses with God
in solitude.
There are immense degrees in. this life of prayer
and meditation. S. Theresa understood them and
went through them all. She ascended them even
to the utmost limit. Would that we likewise could
traverse them to unite ourselves to the same God !
In our familiar intercourse with God we have too
often an importunate companion in the interior
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activity which presses us on ; we think, we call, we
seek, we labour ; this is the spirit which S. Theresa
calls bavard, or that multiplicity of intellectual acts
which she terms drawing water from the well. But
there is another habitation which S. Theresa com
pares to a well-tilled field, watered by rains softly
falling down from heaven, which render it fruitful
without an effort ; that is to say, in the uniformity
of this life of silence and prayer, in the even changes
of day and night, the soul ends by freeing herself
from the medley of reflections that are burthening
her ; and it is only then that a great void is created
within her wherein she rests in perfect peace. But
the flesh shudders at this repose, and the soul must
repel those inclinations, and boldly combat the
promptings of weak nature ; for truly great is the
courage needed to imbue the soul with such a devo
tional spirit that God in fine vouchsafes to rise like
a solitary star in the midst of the loving and respect
ful silence that reigns within her.
O child of Carmel, follow the example of your
mother, and escape the abyss. Go into the desert
and meet night boldly. Seek and you shall find
God. Give yourselves up to Him, and thus you
will obtain for souls and also for our ministry the
blessings and grace of which I stand so much in
need. Is it possible He will not hear you, or refuse
205
you anything when you have refused Him nothing ?
Break from all that may still keep you from Him.
Another land awaits you. You are dead and cruci
fied to the world ; forget all, and break from all ;
and then you shall find a far better life, because
then you will live alone with God.
III. And of better affections. Alas ! you, ladies,*
know better than I do that there is always at bottom
of all worldly affections a mixture of trouble, and
that never in the interchange of natural friendship
have you met with the fulness of rest in your soul.
God forbid that I should condemn that which He
Himself implanted in your hearts ; nevertheless, I
venture to say to you that in the world you cannot,
even in your holiest affections and I take those
which are the purest and most lawful of all your
affections, the affections of the domestic hearth, a
mother s love for her children love, for you know
not how to love.
You neglect no opportunity to give your children
a brilliant education, and to procure for them a
brilliant future in the world. But do you ever ask
them if their eternal salvation is compromised, or if
sin rests on their soul thereby ? Oh ! what weak
ness do you too often show in this respect ! No,
* Pere de Ravignan here addressed himself to the secular ladies
assisting at the ceremony.
206
you know not how to love. Do you fear the mala
dies of the soul as much as the maladies of the
body for your children ? Yet, a mother s love con
sists solely in affection before God for the salvation
of her children. You remember the Christian queen
and mother who used to say to her son : " My son,
I would rather see you dead than guilty of one
mortal sin ". The value of our affections, therefore,
lies in referring them to God. Nor do I fear to say
that it is in the religious life that we know how to
love best, for these holy souls are continually immo
lating themselves to God for those who are left in
the desert, with the sole desire of devoting them
selves to the work of their sanctification ; and it is
with the view of our salvation that God adorned
the world, created the firmament, and sent His Son
to suffer on the cross. It was not for worldly
honours that Jesus Christ suffered and died ; but for
the eternal salvation of souls. And so in like
manner God does not call a novice to Carmel nor
immolate Himself upon the cross except for His
glory and the salvation of His creatures.
Picture to yourselves for a moment the number
of souls, who, despising the most sacred duties,
fetter themselves through life with the chains of sin ;
then pause and contemplate the others that take the
place of the former souls as devoted victims like
20 7
Jesus Christ between heaven and earth ; and will
you say to yourselves that these are not the better
affections ? Yea, this is to love as God loved, by
the cross and sacrifice.
IV. Finally, Sister, you are about to enter behind
the grating, and this door will soon close upon you
as your tomb on earth. And what do this cloister
and this grating say to you ? They tell you that this
moment you have entered into the holy freedom of
the children of God, and that you have gained your
liberty. In the world are the chains and yoke we
have to bear while we are the slaves of our own
tastes, habits, and passions, of worldly customs,
habits, opinions, and requirements ; but in the reli
gious life we are free, nothing weighs upon us. In
this life of religion which ought to regulate the
simplest actions of our life, O Lord, Thee alone do
I behold. The soul is freed from the world ;
delivered from her most heavy burden, from her
self and her desires. These she has placed in God
alone. This privileged soul do Thou, O God, bear
in Thine arms. Authority speaks by the mouth of
the superior, but it is Thou that directest it, it is
Thy voice I hear; no longer do I obey myself; I
am free !
Behold, then, this life of freedom and the better
liberty. To obey is to be free. It is a mystery and
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a miracle. To everyone it is not given to know
and to taste of these things ; but when once we
understand all the happiness and peace there lying,
there shall be nothing more but hymns of thanks
giving. ;
THE APOSTLESHIP OF CARMEL.
GOD hath taken you from the midst of the world
and separated you therefrom ; be ye always devoted
unto Him. The world is egotistical, seeking nought
but self; but be ye apostles, seeking for souls, as
divers seek in the depths of the ocean for the price
less pearl, and plunging into the fountains of divine
justice to save them. When there occurs to you a
zealous thought which brings you into intimate
union with the heart of Jesus, treasure it, and
answer to it in order that God may be glorified, the
sacrifice of Jesus Christ perpetuated in its fulness,
and your own merits increased in eternity.
A purified soul rises like a sunbeam even to the
throne of the incarnate light ; sometimes indeed it
may be enveloped in obscuring clouds, for as long
as we are on this earth we cannot behold God face
to face : but they are clouds which only conceal His
beauty, without interrupting our union with Him or
our love.
REFLECTIONS FOR TIME OF SICKNESS
AND SUFFERING.
WHAT is that affection of the soul, that interior dis
position which comprehends, or at least supplies all
others the disposition to which our Lord, by one
of the greatest miracles of His grace, frequently
inclines the sick man, and which seems to be the
sufferer s sole petition to God ?
To be content in God, and in Him to rejoice
over all things over the sufferings He sends, the
pain or uncertainty in which He leaves us, as well
as over the health He has given us and the consola
tions He has poured down on us in a word, to be
resigned to and content in God with blind filial de
votion and love.
To throw the past and its bitter memories into the
infinite fountain of God s pardon and mercy, and
to have no fear or preoccupation for the present or
the future, is the result of peace and joy in faith ;
is to die with pleasure and live submissive, happy
and devoted; is that which is most agreeable to
the heart of Jesus.
Interior sorrow, bitter pains, or even physical
and moral weakness, long fits of insomnia, all are
211
lost and forgotten in the attitude of filial devotion
and love, in the .supernatural grace of perfect con
tentment vouchsafed to the soul, in order that she
may approve and accept all that God wills and does.
O God, my Saviour, give me and preserve me
always in this perfect contentment, in order that I
may thereby live in Thee ; 6;<;<> /// te ct tu in me, I in
Thee and Thou in me.
e
