Salesian Literature

Salesian Views on

::   Laity  ::   Little Virtues  ::   Love  ::   Love of God  ::   Love of Neighbour

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Little Virtues

 

Letters of Spiritual Direction, Theme VI:  “We cannot always offer God great things, but at each instant we can offer him little things with great love.”  There is in the Salesian spirit a deep appreciation for the significance of little things.  The insistence on hiddenness in the process of spiritual growth corresponds to this appreciation.

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Letters of Spiritual Direction, Theme VI: Chief among the Salesian virtues, and the one that belongs distinctively to this tradition, rather than to the wider contemplative heritage, is douceur.  A difficult term to translate, douceur has been rendered in English as “sweetness,” “gentleness,” “graciousness,” “meekness,” and “suavity.”  Letters of Spiritual Direction, Theme VI: A second little virtue highly prized in Salesian spirituality is humility.  Long an ideal in the classic spirituality of Christendom, humility retained its centrality in the thought of Francis and Jane. 

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Letters of Spiritual Direction, Theme VI: Third of the key Salesian virtues is simplicity.  Simplicity unlocks a whole treasure chest full of Salesian wisdom that is best exemplified in the life of the community of the Visitation.

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