Salesian Literature

Chapter 7  :  The state of loving recollection experienced in contemplation

​

By recollection, in this context, Theotimus, I do not mean the effort to be aware of God’s presence, which people make at the beginning of their prayers, when they rein in their souls (so to speak), to have a heartfelt talk with God.  that sort of recollection takes place at love’s bidding; love it is which prompts us to pray, which inspires us to take this means of doing it well; so that such mental seclusion is our own doing.

 

No, the recollection I intent to describe here is not performed at love’s bidding, but by love itself.  In other words, it is not a question of our own choice; it is not ours to enjoy when we will, nor does it depend on our own efforts; it is all God’s doing, grace working as he wills.

 

If you were to put a piece of lodestone in the centre of a group of needles, you would see them all point immediately n the direction of the magnet, and stick to it; so, when our Lord makes his presence felt in the very core of the soul, all our faculties turn in that direction, eager for union with a loving-kindness beyond compare.

 

Then the soul, in imitation of St. Augustine[1] exclaims: “Where have I been seeking you, my God?  Search I made for you around me, O infinite beauty; yet deep in my heart, all the while, your dwelling-place.”  All the Magdalene’s affections, all her thoughts, as she turned this way and that in search of her Saviour, were concentrated on his tomb.  Even though she found him, even though he spoke to her, she failed to collect herself, still unaware of his presence.  But as soon as he called her by name, she recovered her senses and clung to his feet (cf. Jn. 20:11-16) – plunged into recollection by a single word.

 

Picture to yourself our blessed Lady pregnant with the Son of God, her only love.  No doubt that dear Mother’s soul was utterly centred on her beloved Child; since she was carrying the God she loved, all her spiritual faculties were concentrated within, like bees round honey in a hive.  In proportion as the grandeur of God shrank, so to speak, straitened by the Virgin’s womb, her soul increased and magnified the praise of his graciousness, and her spirit thrilled with joy (Lk. 1:46-37) (exulting like St. John in his mother’s womb (cf. Lk. 1:44)) over the divine presence of which she was conscious.  Her thoughts, her emotions, were locked within; centred in her sacred womb was her treasure, everything she loved, the source of all her delight.

 

A similar experience of this joy may be shared by those who are aware with the certainty of faith, after making their communions, that it is not flesh and blood, but the Father in heaven that has revealed (Mt. 16:17) to them that their Saviour, body and soul, is really present within their own bodies and souls in this sacrament.

 

On receiving the divine sacrament, which holds the dew of every blessing from heaven, their souls close upon it, all their faculties concentrate around it, not only to adore the king of kings newly and intimately present in a wonderful way, but also to experience the awareness which faith gives of that divine seed of immortality – an awareness bringing to the soul a comfort, a refreshment past all belief.

 

But I want you to take careful note of this: it is love, and love alone, which is responsible for all that recollection. Love, aware of the beloved’s presence through his heart-felt attractions, pulls the soul together, turns it in on him.  All its faculties are delightfully withdrawn, gently turned and lovingly directed towards the beloved, irresistibly attracted by those charms he uses to bind and carry off hearts, as we might use ropes to take bodies captive.

 

Such inward recollection of soul, however, is caused not only by an awareness of God’s sacramental presence deep down in the heart, but by anything at all which makes us aware of his presence.  Sometimes all the powers of our souls are concentrated and withdrawn as a result of the deep reverence, the undisturbing fear, that takes hold of us as we reflect on the majesty of the king in whose presence we are, who is looking at us; just as we should pull ourselves together and collect our thoughts, however distracted we were, if pope or prince came on the scene, in order to behave with proper respect.

 

This is what happens in the type of recollection of which I am speaking.  The mere presence of God, the mere impression we have that he is looking at us from outside, so to speak, from heaven or anywhere else (even though, for the time being, we have forgotten his presence within us), causes our faculties and powers to concentrate, to recollect themselves, out of reverence for his divine majesty.  Love make us fear him, but it is a fear born of honour, of respect.

 

I knew a soul[2], as a matter of fact, to whom you had only to say something (in confession or in private conversation) which reminded her of God’s presence a little more vividly than usual, and she would go into such a deep state of recollection that she was hard put to it to emerge from it, to speak and answer you.  So much so, that she gave the impression of being lifeless, all her senses deadened, until (sooner or later) the bridegroom allowed her to recover.

 

​

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[1]  Cf. Confessions 10.27.

[2]  Mother Anne-Marie Rosset – an early Visitation nun, also mentioned by Bossuet in his book on prayer.

​

​

Back to Top

​