Salesian Literature

Chapter 15  :  How to control virtuous zeal

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Since zeal is the earnestness and intensity of love, it requires prudent control; otherwise it would break the bounds of moderation or discretion.  This does not mean that charity, however intense, could ever be excessive in act or intention … only that, as it uses the mind to carry out its aims, setting it to seek out the best ways of ensuring success; and as it calls into play boldness or anger to overcome the obstacles it meets – it often happens that the mind suggests the adoption of methods which are too sharp, too impetuous; while anger or daring, which are uncontrollable once aroused, throw the heart into confusion.  This means that such zeal is indiscreetly, immoderately employed, so that it becomes wrong and reprehensible.

 

Anger is an aid to reason, supplied by nature; it is used by grace as an aid to zeal, to achieve its purpose.  It is a perilous aid, however, and scarcely advisable.  Anger, if it is violent, takes charge, usurps the authority of reason and the loving sway of zeal; if it is meek, it does no more than zeal could do alone, but leaves us all the time with a well-founded fear that it may flare up to take a firm hold on heart and zeal, to enslave them – exactly like a fire, deliberately started, which takes instant hold on a building and cannot be put out … To admit an unknown ally that could prove too strong for us is an act of desperation.

 

Self-love often deludes us, puts us on the wrong scent, as it gratifies its own passions under the name of zeal.  Zeal once expressed itself through anger; now anger in its turn expresses itself in the guise of zeal, as a cover for its shameful irregularity.  In the guise of zeal, I say; it cannot express itself through actual zeal.  All virtues, but especially charity (of which zeal is an appendage), possess the quality of being so good that no one can misuse them.

 

A pagan enticed a newly converted Christian of Crete back into idolatry.  Carpus, a man eminent for his purity and holiness of life – he was probably Bishop of Crete – was so enraged by the incident that his anger exceeded all bounds.  As he rose as usual in the middle of the night to pray, he came to the conclusion that it was unreasonable for wicked men to go on living; his great indignation led him to beg the divine justice to strike the two sinners dead with a thunderbolt.

 

The holy man Carpus was right in being zealous over those two men, and his zeal had justly aroused his anger towards them.  However, anger once excited left reason and zeal behind.  Overstepping all the bounds of charity – and therefore of zeal, which is its fervour – anger transformed hatred of the sin into hatred of the sinner, sweetest charity into fiercest cruelty.

 

There are people, in fact, who fancy that great zeal demands great anger, imagining that nothing is achieved unless everything is laid waste … although the contrary is true; genuine zeal scarcely ever employs anger.  After all, we don’t take the knife or the cauterising iron to patients if it can be avoided; zeal too makes use of anger only in cases of extreme necessity.

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