Salesian Literature

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2.  Temptation   

Sermon for the First Sunday of Lent, February 13, 1622, concerning the universality of temptation, the spiritual danger of idleness, faith as a prime weapon against temptation, slothful souls, presumptuous reliance of beginners on the strength from their sensible fervour, attachment to the consolations of God, Our Lord's example in undergoing temptation from the devil, battling one's faults with patience and perseverance, vain hopes which distract the soul from practising solid virtue, the folly of avariciously chasing after a multiplicity of devotions, and vain complacency in God's consolations.

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"My son, when you come to serve God, prepare your soul for temptation." [Ecclus.(Sirach) 2:1]

 

This is an admonition of the Sage: "My son, if you intend to serve God, prepare your soul for temptation," for it is an infallible truth that no one is exempt from temptation when he has truly resolved to serve God. This being the case, Our Lord Himself chose to be subjected to temptation in order to show us how we ought to resist it. Thus the Evangelists tell us: He was led into the desert by the Spirit to be tempted [Matt. 4:1; Mk. 1:12; Lk. 4:1]. I shall draw lessons from this mystery for our particular instruction, in as familiar a manner as I am able.

 

In the first place, I note that although no one can be exempt from temptation, still no one should seek it or go of his own accord to the place where it may be found, for undoubtedly he who loves it will perish in it [Ecclus. (Sirach) 3:27]. That is why the Evangelist says that Our Lord was led into the desert by the Spirit to be tempted; it was not then by His choice (I am speaking with regard to His human nature) that He went to the place of temptation, but He was led by the obedience He owed to His heavenly Father.

 

I find in Holy Scripture two young princes who furnish us with examples on this subject. One sought temptation and perished in it. The other, without seeking it, encountered it but left the combat victorious.

 

At the time when kings should go to war, as his own army faced the enemy, David strolled about on the roof of the king's house, idling his time away as though he had nothing to do. Being idle in this way, he was overcome by temptation. Bethsheba, that inconsiderate lady, went to bathe in a place where she could be seen from the roof of the king's house. Certainly, this was an act of unparalleled imprudence which I cannot excuse, even though several modern writers wish to render it excusable by saying that she did not think of that. To bathe in a place where she exposed herself to view from the roof of the royal palace was a very great indiscretion. Whether she thought of it or not, young Prince David began by allowing himself to gaze on her, and then perished in the temptation which he had sought by his idleness and sloth [2 Kgs. (2 Sam.) 11:1-4]. You see, idleness is a great help to temptation. Never say: "I do not seek it; I am not doing anything." That is enough in order to be tempted, for temptation has a tremendous power over us when it finds us idle. Oh, if David had gone out on campaign at the time that he should have gone, or if he had been engaged in some­thing good, the temptation would not have had the power of attacking him, or at least of overcoming and vanquishing him.

 

In contrast, young Prince Joseph, who was later viceroy of Egypt, did not seek temptation at all, and so upon meeting it he did not perish in it. He had been sold by his brothers [Gen. 37:28], and his master's wife exposed him to danger.  But he had never indulged or heeded the amorous glances of his mistress; rather, he nobly resisted her advances and was victorious, thus triumphing not only over the temptation but also over her who had been the cause of it [Gen. 39:7-12].

 

If we are led by the Spirit of God to the place of temptation, we should not fear, but should be assured that He will render us victorious[1] [1 Cor. 10:13]. But we must not seek temptation nor go out to allure it, however holy and generous we may think ourselves to be, for we are not more valiant than David, nor than our Divine Master Himself, who did not choose to seek it. Our enemy is like a chained dog; if we do not approach, it will do us no harm, even though it tries to frighten us by barking at us.

 

But wait a little, I pray you, and see how certain it is that no one who comes to serve God can avoid temptations. We could give many examples of this but one or two will suffice. Ananias and Saphira made a vow to dedicate themselves and their possessions to the perfection which all the first Christians professed, submitting themselves to obedience to the Apostles. They had no sooner made their resolution than temp­tation attacked them, as St. Peter said: Who has tempted you to lie to the Holy Spirit? [Acts.5:1-3]. The great Apostle St. Paul, as soon as he had given himself to the divine service and ranged himself on the side of Christianity, was im­mediately tempted for the rest of his life. [2 Cor. 12:7]. While he was an enemy of God and persecuted the Christians he did not feel the attack of any temptation, or at least he has given us no testimony of it in his writings. But he did when he was converted by Our Lord.

 

Thus, it is a very necessary practice to prepare our soul for temptation. That is, wherever we may be and however perfect we may be, we must rest assured that temptation will attack us. Hence, we ought to be so disposed and to provide ourselves with the weapons necessary to fight valiantly in order to carry off the victory, since the crown is only for the combatants and conquerors [2 Tim. 2:5; Jas. 1:12]. We ought never to trust in our own strength or in our courage and go out to seek temptation, thinking to confound it; but if in that place where the Spirit of God has led us we encounter it, we must remain firm in the confidence which we ought to have that He will strengthen us against the at­tacks of our enemy, however furious they may be.

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Let us proceed and consider a little the weapons which Our Lord made use of to repulse the devil that came to tempt Him in the desert. They were none other, my dear friends, than those the Psalmist speaks of in the Psalm we recite every day at Compline: "Qui habitat in adjutorio Altissimi" ("Who dwells in the aid of the Most High") [Ps. 90 (91)]. From this Psalm we learn an admirable doctrine. He speaks in this manner as though addressing Christians or someone in particular: "Oh how happy you are, you who are armed with the truth of God, for it will serve you as a shield against the arrows of your enemies and will make you victorious. Therefore, do not fear, O blessed souls, you who are armed with this armour of truth. Fear neither the terrors of the night, for you will not stumble into them; nor the arrows that fly in the air by day, for arrows will not be able to injure you; nor the business that roams in the night; much less the devil that advances and reveals himself at noon."

 

O how divinely well armed with truth was Our Lord and Master, for He was truth itself [Jn. 14:6]. This truth of which the Psalmist speaks is nothing other than faith [1 Thess. 5:8]. Whoever is armed with faith need fear nothing; this is the only armour necessary to repel and confound our enemy; for what can harm him who says Credo, "I believe" in God, who is our Father, and our Father Almighty? In saying these words we show that we do not trust in our own strength and that it is only in the strength of God, "the Father Al­mighty," that we undertake the combat, that we hope for vic­tory [Ps. 17 (18):30; 43 (44):6-7; Heb. 11:33-34; 1 Jn. 5:4]. No, let us not go on our own to meet temptation by any presumption of spirit, but only rebuff it when God permits it to attack us and seek us out where we are, as it did Our Lord in the desert. By using the words of Holy Scripture our dear Master overcame all the temptations the enemy presented to Him.

 

But I want it to be understood that the Saviour was not tempted as we are and that temptation could not be in Him as it is in us, for He was an impregnable stronghold to which it did not have access. Just as a man who is vested from head to foot in fine steel could not be injured in any way by the blows of a weapon, since it would glance off on either side, not even scratching the armour; so temptation could indeed encompass Our Lord but never enter into Him, nor do any injury to His integrity and perfect purity. But we are different. If, by the grace of God, we do not consent to temptations, and avoid the fault and the sin in them, ordinarily we are nevertheless wounded a little by some importunity, trouble, or emotion that they produce in our heart.

 

Our Divine Master could not have faith, since He possessed in the superior part of His soul, from the moment that He began to be, a perfect knowledge of the truths which faith teaches us; however, He wished to make use of this virtue in order to repel the enemy, for no other reason, my dear friends, than to teach all that we have to do. Do not then seek for other arms nor other weapons in order to refuse consent to a temptation except to say, "I believe." And what do you believe? "In God" my "Father Almighty."

 

St. Bernard, referring to these words of the Psalm which we have cited, said that the terrors of the night of which the Psalmist speaks are of three kinds. From this I will draw my third lesson. The first fear is that of cowards and slothful souls; the second, that of children; and the third, that of the weak. Fear is the first temptation which the enemy presents to those who have resolved to serve God, for as soon as they are shown what perfection requires of them they think, "Alas, I shall never be able to do it." It seems to them that it is almost an impossibility to attain to that height, and they readily say, "O God, what perfection is needed to live in this house, or in this way of life and in my vocation! It is too high for me: I cannot attain it!"[2] Do not trouble yourself and do not frame these idle fears that you are not able to accomplish that to which you have bound yourself, since you are armed and encompassed with the truth of God and with His word. Having called you to this manner of life and to this house, He will strengthen you and will give you the grace to persevere [1 Cor. 1:7-8; 1 Thess. 5:24] and to do what is required for His greater glory and for your greater welfare and happiness, provided you walk simply in faithful observance.

 

Do not be astonished, therefore, and do not do as the slothful, who are troubled when they wake at night by the fear that daylight will come very soon when they will have to work. The slothful and cowardly fear everything and find everything difficult and trying because they amuse themselves in thinking, with the foolish and slothful imagination which they have created for themselves, more about future difficulties than what they have to do at present. "Oh," they say, "if I devote myself to the service of God, it will be necessary for me to work so much in order to resist the temptations which will attack me." You are quite right, for you will not be exempt from them, since it is a general rule that all the servants of God are tempted, as St. Jerome wrote in that beautiful epistle which he addressed to his dear daughter, Eustochium.

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To whom do you wish, I pray, that the devil should present his temptations if not to those who despise them? Sinners tempt themselves; the devil already regards them as his own; they are his confederates because they do not reject his suggestions. On the contrary, they seek them and temptation resides in them. The devil does not work much to set his snares in the secular world, but rather in retired places where he expects a great gain in bringing about the downfall of souls who are secluded there serving the Divine Majesty more perfectly. St. Thomas used to marvel greatly at how the greatest sinners went out into the streets, laughing and joyful, as though their sins did not weigh on their consciences. And who would not be astonished at seeing a soul not in God's grace making merry? Oh, how vain are their joys, and how false their gaiety, for they have gone after anguish and eternal regrets! Let us leave them, I pray you, and return to the fear of the slothful.

 

They are always lamenting—and why? Why, you ask? "Alas, we must work, and yet I thought that it would be enough to embark on God's way and in His service to find rest." But do you not know that sloth and idleness made poor David perish in temptation? You perhaps would wish to be among those garrison soldiers who have everything they wish in a good town; they are merry, they are masters of their host's home, they sleep in his bed and live well; nevertheless, they are called "soldiers," feigning to be valiant and courageous while they go neither to battle nor to war. But Our Lord does not want this kind of warrior in His army; He wants combatants and conquerors, not sluggards and cowards. He chose to be tempted, and Himself attacked in order to give us an example.

 

Ah, fear nothing, I pray you, since you are encompassed with the armour of truth and of faith [Eph.  6:11-16J. Rise from your bed, indolent one, for it is time [Cf. Prov. 6:9; Rom.   13:11], and do not be frightened by the day's work, for it is natural that the night is given for rest and the day following for work. Rise, for mercy's sake, from your cowardice, and keep clearly before your mind this infallible truth: all must be tempted, all must keep readied for combat in order to win the victory. Since temptation has a remarkable power over us when it finds us idle, let us work and not grow weary, for we do not wish to lose the eternal rest which has been prepared for us as reward for our labours. Let us trust in God who is our "Father Almighty." By virtue of this fact all things will be rendered easy, although at first they may frighten us a little.

 

The second terror of the night, according to St. Bernard, is that experienced by children. As you are aware, children are very much afraid when they are out of their mother's arms. If they see a barking dog they suddenly begin to cry, and will not stop until they are again with their mamma. In her arms they feel secure. They feel that nothing can harm them provided they are holding her hand.[3] Ah, then, the Psalmist says, why do you fear, you who are encompassed with truth and armed with the strong shield of faith which teaches you that God is your "Father Almighty"? Hold His hand and do not be frightened, for He will save you and protect you against all your enemies. Consider how St. Peter, after he made that generous act of throwing himself into the sea and began walking on the water in order more quickly to reach our Divine Saviour who had called to him, suddenly began to fear and at the same time to sink down, and cried out, "Lord, save me!" And at once his good Master stretched out His hand and took hold of him, thus saving him from drowning [Matt.   14:29-31]. Let us do the same, my dear friends. If we feel that we lack courage let us cry out in a loud voice full of confidence, "Lord, save me!" Let us not doubt that God will strengthen us and prevent us from perishing.

 

There are some who, feigning courage, go someplace alone at night. When they hear a little stone fall from the ceiling, or just hear a mouse running, they cry out, "O my God!" We say to them, "What has happened?" "I heard something." "What?" "I do not know." We meet others who, when they go into the fields and from a distance see the shadow of trees, are very much frightened indeed, believing that it is someone waiting for them. Such great chimeras and childishness! Often persons who have just come into God's service are like these people. They affect fearlessness and seem never to feed enough on the crucifix. Nothing can satisfy them. They think of nothing but living always in tranquil rest. Noth­ing can overcome their courage and generosity.

 

This is what happened to poor St. Peter. Being but a mere child in the spiritual life, he made this act of generosity of which I just now spoke. But he made still another later on, and it cost him dearly. For when Our Lord announced to His Apostles how He was to suffer death, St. Peter, quick to speak but fainthearted and cowardly in acting, boasted: "For my part, I will never abandon You!" [Matt. 26:31-35; Mk. 14:27-31; Lk. 22:33; Jn. 13:37]. And Our Lord went on, "... I shall be scourged." "And I too, for love of Thee." "I  shall be crowned with thorns." "And I as well." In short, he would yield in nothing to his good Master. The more Our Lord expounded on the greatness of His afflictions, the more did St. Peter passionately insist that he would do as much. But how well he realized how completely he had been deceived when he found himself, at the time of his Saviour's Passion, so fainthearted and timid in the execution of his promises. It would have been much better for poor St. Peter to keep humble, relying on the power of Our Lord, than to trust vainly in the fervour which he felt at the time.

 

Thus it happens to those young souls who testify to so much ardour in their conversion. While these first sentiments of devotion last, they do wonders. It seems that in the way of perfection nothing is too difficult for them; nothing can lessen their courage. They greatly desire to be mortified, to be tested, in order to show their generosity and the fire which burns in their breast! But just wait a little. For if they hear a mouse, by which I mean if the consolation and sentiments of devotion which they have had until then happen to be with­drawn and if some little temptation attacks them, "Alas," they say,  "what is it?" They begin to fear and to be troubled. Everything seems hard to them if they are not always in the Heart of their heavenly Father, if He does not give them consolations and speak sweetly to them. They simply cannot live in peace and contentment unless they receive endless consolations and no pain. "Oh, how miserable my condition is!" they say; "I am in the Lord's service where I thought 1 would live in peace, and yet all different sorts of temptations have come and only agitate me. My passions so annoy me that I do not have so much as an hour of real peace."

 

One could answer them, "My dear friends, do you really think that one never encounters temptations in solitude and retreat? Oh, how greatly mistaken you are! Our Divine Master was not attacked by the enemy while He lived among the Pharisees and publicans but only when He retired to the desert. There is no place where temptation does not have access. Yes, even in heaven,[4] where it was born in the heart of Lucifer and his angels, and at the same moment cast them forth into damnation and perdition. The enemy brought it to Eden, and with it made our first parents forfeit original justice with which God had gifted them. Temptation entered the very ranks of the Apostles themselves. Why, then, are you astonished if it attacks you?"

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Had you lived in Our Lord's time, during His mortal life, and met His very holy Mother, our glorious Mistress, and had she allowed you to live anywhere you wanted, you would no doubt have questioned her in this manner:  "My Lady, where is your Son?" She would have replied, "My Son is in the desert, where He must remain for forty days, continually fasting, watching, and praying" [Matt. 4:2]. "O my Lady," you might have answered, "I wish to live in no other place but the desert where my Saviour is." But if the holy Virgin asked you, "Why do you desire to dwell there?" you would have replied, "Because where Our Lord is, all good things abound; consolation is never lacking there and temptation cannot find entrance."

 

O how completely mistaken you are! It is precisely because our Divine Saviour is there that temptation is found there too. We might indeed have found it terribly frightening, for the devil came there completely undisguised. He did not act with Our Lord as he did with St. Pachomius and St. Antony. He frightened them by hellish noise with which he surrounded them, pretending to rend Heaven and earth before their very eyes. He did this to make them fear and tremble like children. Nevertheless, these holy Fathers fought him, mocking him and his antics by reciting scriptural passages. But seeing such strength, constancy, generosity, and confidence in the face of our dear Saviour, the devil thought he would gain nothing by treating Him in this way. Therefore he came visibly to Him, presenting his temptations with unparalleled impudence. This he did not only those three times of which the Gospel makes mention, but at other times dur­ing those forty days that He dwelt in the desert. The Evangelists were simply content to single out these three [Matt. 4:3-10; Lk. 4:2-13] as being the greatest and most remarkable.

 

These young apprentices of perfection ask, "What shall I do? The passions which I thought I had mortified by my fervent resolution to follow them no more torment me greatly. Alas! It is so true that I become so disappointed that in a short time I feel there is no possibility of going on, and discouragement overcomes me." What a great pity that the desire for perfection is not itself sufficient for having it, but that it must be acquired by the sweat of our brow and hard work! Do you not realize that Our Lord willed to be tempted during the forty days He was in the desert precisely in order to teach us that we shall also be tempted during the entire time that we dwell in the desert of this mortal life, which is the place of our penance? The life of the perfect Christian is a continual penance. Console yourself, I pray, and take courage. Now is not the time for rest.

 

"But I am so imperfect," you say. I believe it, indeed! Therefore do not hope to be able to live without committing imperfections, seeing that this is impossible while you are in this life. It is enough that you do not love them and that they do not remain in your heart. That is, you do not commit them voluntarily and you do not want to continue in your faults.[5] That being so, remain in peace and do not trouble yourself about the perfection you so much desire. It will be enough if you have it in dying. Be not so timid! Walk confidently! If you are armed with the armour of faith, nothing can harm you.

 

The third terror of the night is that of the weak. These fear not only what can bring evil but what can in any way disturb or trouble their peace. They do not want any little noise whatever to come between God and them, since they have convinced themselves that there is a certain quiet and tranquillity which maintains those who have it in uninterrupted peace and happiness. Therefore, they want to enjoy it at Our Lord's feet like Magdalene, to savour without interruption the comfort, the pleasure, and every sweetness that falls from the sacred lips of their Master, without Martha ever coming to rouse them or murmur against them, entreating Our Lord to make them work [Lk. 10:39-40]. This spiritual comfort makes them so able and so courageous, it seems to them, that nothing is comparable to their perfec­tion. Nothing is too difficult for them. In short, they would like to melt away in order to please their Beloved, whom they love with so perfect a love.

 

Yes, indeed, provided He continues with His consolations and treats them tenderly! If He ceases to do so, all is lost: there is no one so afflicted as they are, their misery is insufferable, they never stop complaining.  "O my God[6] [we say to them], what has happened?" [They answer:] "What is wrong? I have reason indeed to complain." "But what is it that torments you so?" "It is because I am not holy." "You are not holy! And who has told you that you are not? Perhaps you think you have returned to some fault again. If it is that, do not make yourself so uneasy. Perhaps you have, and someone has corrected you for it in order to aid you toward perfection. You ought to know that those who have true charity cannot endure to see any fault in their neighbour. They try to remove it by correction, and especially in all those whom they consider holy or very much advanced in perfection, because they think them more apt to welcome the correction. They also desire by this means to make them grow more and more in self-knowledge, which is so necessary for everyone."[7]

 

"But that disturbs my peace." That is indeed well said! Do you think that in this life you can have a tranquillity so permanent as never to meet with disturbance? One must not desire graces which God does not commonly give. What He has done for a Magdalene, for instance, ought not to be desired by us. Happy indeed shall we be if we have this peace of soul at the time of death, or even only after our death![8] Do not imagine that the Magdalene enjoyed this special contemplation, which kept her in so sweet a peace, without first passing through thorny difficulties and severe penance and enduring the bitterness of a very great confusion. For when she went to the Pharisee's house to weep over her sins and to obtain pardon, she suffered the murmuring they uttered against her. They despised her and called her a sinner and a woman of evil life [Lk. 7:37-39]. Do not imagine that you can become worthy of receiving these divine sweetnesses and consolations, of being lifted up by angels as she was several times a day, if you are not first willing to suffer together with her the confusions, contempt, and reproofs which our imperfections very much deserve and which will disturb us from time to time, whether we desire them or not. This rule is general: no one will be so holy in this life as not to be always subject to committing some imperfection or other.[9]

 

We must keep ourselves constant and tranquil in the knowledge of this truth if we will not be troubled with the unrealistic expectation of never committing any imperfection at all. We should have a strong and constant resolution never to be so cowardly as to commit any imperfection voluntarily. But we ought also to be unshaken in this other resolution: not to be astonished or troubled at seeing that we are subject to fall into these imperfections, even often. We must rather confide ourselves to the goodness of God who, for all that, does not love us less. "But I shall never be capable of receiving the divine caresses of Our Lord while I am so imperfect; I shall not be able to approach Him who is so sovereignly perfect." What relation, I pray you, can there be between our perfection and His, between our purity and His, since He is purity itself? In short, let us for our part do what we can and remain in peace about the rest. Whether God gives us a share in His consolations or not, we must keep ourselves submissive to His very holy will. That should be the mistress and guide of our life. After this we have nothing to desire.

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The Psalmist, as interpreted by St. Bernard, assures us that he who has faith and is armed with truth will not fear these terrors of the night, nor the fears of the slothful, nor of children, much less the fears of the weak. But he goes further and says that he will no longer fear the arrow that flies by day, and this is the fourth lesson that I take from the Psalm quoted above.

 

These arrows are the vain hopes and expectations on which those feed who aspire to perfection. We find those who hope for nothing so much as to be Mother Teresa [of Avila] very soon, and even Sts. Catherine of Siena and Genoa.[10] That is good; but tell me, how long do you give yourself for this task? "Three months," you reply, "even less, if it is possible." You do well to add, "if it is possible," for otherwise you would be much deceived. Do not those fine hopes, notwithstanding their vanity, greatly console those who have them? But the more these hopes and expectations bring joy to the heart, while there is reason for hope, so much more does the contrary condition bring sadness to those fervent souls. Not finding themselves the saints they had hoped to be, but, on the contrary, very imperfect creatures, they are very often discouraged in the pursuit of the real virtue which leads to sanctity.  "Gently," we say to them.  "Do not hurry on so fast! Begin to live well, according to your vocation: sweetly, simply, and humbly. Then trust in God, who will make you holy when it pleases Him."

 

My dear friends, there are still other kinds of vain hopes, one of which is to desire continual consolation, sweetness, and tenderness in prayer throughout this mortal and fleeting life. This is surely a futile and foolish hope. As though our perfection and happiness depended upon that! Do you not realize that ordinarily Our Lord gives these "sweets" only to allure and gain us over, much as one does with little children in giving them sweets?[11] But let us go on, for we must finish.

 

In discussing what this business is which takes place in the night and of which the Psalmist speaks, St. Bernard observes that those armed with truth will not fear it. For my part (and this is the fifth lesson that I offer you), I consider that this business which takes place in darkness represents avarice and ambition, vices which traffic in the night, that is, in an underhand manner, and secretly. You see, ambitious people have no desire of being obvious in their pursuit of honours, prominence, charges or high offices. They proceed in secret, fearing to be discovered. Misers cannot sleep because they are always thinking of ways to increase their goods and fill their purses. But it is not of temporal misers that I wish to speak, but of spiritual avarice.

 

Regarding the spiritual danger of ambition, those who seek to be promoted to high office or authority and obtain them through their pursuit of them, or embrace them by their own choice—woe betide them, for they are seeking temptation! They will surely perish if they are not converted and, with humility, make use of that which they have embraced in the spirit of vanity. Of course, I am not speaking of those who have been raised up not by their own choice, but by their submission to the obedience they owe to God and to their superiors. They have nothing to fear any more than did Joseph in the house of Putiphar. If they are indeed in a place of temptation, they will not perish there. Wherever we may be, provided we have been led there by the Holy Spirit, as Our Lord was into the desert, we shall have nothing to fear.

 

The spiritually avaricious are those who can never have enough of embracing and seeking after countless exercises of piety, hoping thereby to attain perfection all that much sooner, they say.[12] They do this as though perfection consisted in the multitude of things we do and not in the perfec­tion with which we do them! I have already said this very often,[13] but it is necessary to repeat it: God has not placed perfection in the multiplicity of acts we perform to please Him, but only in the way we perform them, which is simply to do the little we do according to our vocation, in love, by love, and for love. One could well reproach these spiritually avaricious with that reproach which the prophet made to the temporally avaricious: "What do you want, poor men? You want to have this mansion now, because you say it faces yours. After that there will be another which adjoins it and because it is convenient for you, you will want that one too. This will go on and on. What! Do you want to become the sole master of the entire earth, with no one but yourself own­ing property?" [Is. 5:8].

 

Please consider the spiritually avaricious. They are never content with the spiritual exercises presented to them. If they think of Chartreuse, they say, "That, indeed, is a holy life, but they never preach." One must preach then. The life of the Jesuit Fathers may be filled with perfection, but they do not have the blessing of solitude from which one receives so much consolation. The Capuchins, as well as all religious orders, are very good, but they do not have everything that such people are looking for,[14] namely, the spiritual exercises of all mixed together into one. They ceaselessly struggle to find new ways of joining the sanctity of all the various saints into the one they would like to have. As a result, they are never content, since they cannot possibly embrace all they hope to. Whoever embraces too much enchains himself therein. They would always want to wear a hairshirt, take the discipline, pray continually on bare knees, live in solitude, and God knows what else! Still this would not satisfy them. You poor people! You do not want anyone to be holier than yourselves. You are not satisfied with the available sanctity, that gained not by making such a multiplicity of exercises, but by practising well and as perfectly as possible those to which your condition and vocation oblige you. Enough cannot be said about how much this spiritual avarice impedes perfection, since it takes away the sweet and tranquil attention we ought to have in doing well what we do for God, as I have already said.

 

The sixth lesson is drawn from the same Psalm, where the prophet asserts that those so armed will not fear the noonday devil, that is, that spirit which comes to tempt us in broad daylight. I am very familiar with how St. Bernard explained this passage, but I wish to speak only on what is more to my purpose. This spirit which walks in broad daylight is that which attacks us in the fair noontide of interior consolations, at the time when the divine Sun of Justice [Mal. 4:2] so lovingly sends forth His rays upon us and fills us with so agreeable a warmth and light, a warmth which inflames us with so delightful and tender a love that we die to almost everything else so as better to enjoy our Well-Beloved. This divine light so illumines our heart that it feels itself entirely open to the Saviour's Heart, a Heart which, drop by drop, gives so sweet a liquid and so fragrant a perfume that it cannot be appreciated enough by this lover who is always languishing for His love [Cant.  5:8]. She does not want anyone to come and trouble her in her repose which, in the end, terminates only in the vain complacency she takes in it. For she admires the goodness and sweetness of God, but in herself, and not in God. To her, solitude is very desira­ble at this time so as to enjoy the Divine Presence without any distractions. Yet she does not really desire it for the glory of God, but only for the satisfaction which she herself experiences in receiving these sweet caresses and holy delights issuing from this well-beloved Heart of the Saviour.

 

That is how the noonday devil deceives souls, transforming himself into an angel of light and causing them to stumble [2 Cor. 11:14]. For they entertain themselves with these consolations and vain delights, in the complacency they draw from these tender feelings and spiritual delights. Yet whoever will be armed with the shield of truth and of faith will overcome these enemies as courageously as all the others, as David promises[15] [Ps. 90: (91)5-6].

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I doubt not that many prefer the end of today's Gospel to its beginning. It is said there that after Our Lord had overcome His enemy and rejected his temptations, angels came and brought Him heavenly food. [Matt. 4:11]. What joy to find oneself with the Saviour at this delicious feast! My dear friends, we shall never be capable of keeping company with Him in His consolations, nor be invited to His heavenly banquet, if we are not sharers of His labours and sufferings [2 Cor. 1:7]. He fasted forty days, but the angels brought Him something to eat only at the end of that time.

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These forty days, as we said just now, symbolize the life of the Christian, of each one of us. Let us then desire these consolations only at the end of our lives, and let us busy ourselves in steadfast resistance to the frontal attacks of our enemies. For whether we desire it or not we shall be tempted. If we do not struggle, we shall not be victorious, nor shall we merit the crown of immortal glory which God has prepared for those of us who are victorious and triumphant. Let us fear neither the temptation nor the tempter, for if we make use of the shield of faith and the armour of truth, they will have no power whatsoever over us. Let us no longer fear the three terrors of the night. And let us not entertain the vain hope of being or wishing to be saints in three months! Let us also shun both spiritual avarice and the ambition which occasion so much disorder in our hearts and so greatly impede our perfection. The noonday devil will be powerless in causing us to fail in our firm and steadfast resolution to serve God generously and as perfectly as possible in this life, so that after this life we shall go to enjoy Him forever.

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May He be blessed! Amen.

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[1] Cf. Spiritual Conferences, Conference XII, Simplicity and Religious Prudence.

[2] Cf. Spiritual Conferences, V,  Generosity.

[3] Cf. Introduction to a Devout Life, Part IV, chap. 7; Spiritual Conferences, II, "Confidence"; Spiritual Conferences, Conference XII, Simplicity and Religious Prudence.

[4] The "heaven" where Lucifer sinned was not the Heaven of glory and Beatific Vision, but was rather the abode of the spirit world during the period of probation; for no sin is possible in the land of the blessed. Elsewhere St. Francis de Sales assures us (God’s spiritual providence, Hearing the Word of God, and The Passion and what it means) that in Heaven we shall possess eternal glory securely, with no possibility or fear of falling through sin.

[5] Cf. Introduction to a Devout Life, Part I, chap. 22; Spiritual Conferences, IX, "Religious Modesty”.

[6] The expressions "O my God" and "O God" are very characteristic of St. Francis de Sales, who lived and spoke in the presence of God.

[7] St. Francis de Sales, knowing so well the temptations that attack beginners in the spiritual life, makes use of examples to warn the Sisters of some of the pitfalls of novices. Like any good preacher, he is trying to reach the real people who are before him.

[8] Cf. Spiritual Conferences, XX, "Why We Should Become Religious"; Sermons of St. Francis de Sales on Our Lady, "The Purification," February 2, 1620.

[9] St. Francis de Sales is familiar with the Council of Trent's teaching to the effect that because of the perduring consequences of the Fall, no Christian can go for long without sinning, at least venially, without a special grace from God.

[10] Cf. Spiritual Conferences, IX, "Religious Modesty”.

[11] Cf. Introduction to a Devout Life, Part IV, chap. 13.

[12] Cf. Spiritual Conferences, Conference XII, "Simplicity and Religious Prudence”.

[13] Cf. Spiritual Conferences, XIII, "The Spirit of the Rules”.

[14] Cf. Spiritual Conferences, XIII, "The Spirit of the Rules”.

[15] St. Francis is here criticizing those who in prayer are solely interested in the consolations of God, not in the will and glory of God who consoles.

 

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