神操

与 Spiritual Exercises 对照
圣依纳爵·罗耀拉

第二部分

方法与规则

1. 特定省察的方法

省察有两种：总省察与特定省察。前者的目标，是发现我们所犯的一切过错。第二种或特定省察，其目标则是我们已经决心纠正的某一个过错或恶习。每天按以下方式进行：

  1. 清晨起床时，决心避免这罪或缺点。

  2. 中午前后，向神求恩典，好记得自己多少次落入此罪，并在将来避免它。然后作省察：回想从起床到此时所经过的时间，数一数所犯过失的次数，并在如下图式的第一行中用相应数目的点标出：

一周的日子

第一天 ____________________________________

第二天 ________________________________

第三天 ____________________________

第四天 ______________________

第五天 _________________

第六天 ___________

第七天 ______

完成此事后，请为今日剩余的时间更新你的决心。

  1. 晚间，晚餐后，像第一次那样进行新的省察，将过错标在第二行。

注意事项

  1. 每当你违反自己所定的决心时，请将手放在心上，为跌倒而悔改。这样做可以不为人所察觉。

  2. 晚上，计算这两次省察的点数，并检视你是否从第一次到第二次有所改进。

  3. 同样方式，将刚结束的这一天或这一周与前一天或前一周相比较。各行长度递减，这是因为有理由期待过失的数目也相应减少。

  4. 特定省察的题材通常应当是主导情欲——也就是你所犯较多过失的根源，因而也是你成圣的重大阻碍。

  5. 这种针对主导情欲的省察应当持续进行，直到它被完全克服，或至少显著削弱。

2. 关于良心总省察的建议

思想上的罪

我们可以接受一条原则：人心之中会产生三种思想，一种源自自身，另外两种则分别来自善灵与恶灵。

一个坏念头，一旦同意就会成为致死的罪，却可能成为赢得功德的契机——（1）当这个念头一出现，便立即予以抵制或驱除；（2）当这个被击退的念头不久后一次或多次卷土重来，但经过持续抵抗终被战胜：这第二种胜利比第一种更有功德。反之，若对念头稍作停留，仿佛在倾听它，或对取悦感官之事略有快感，或在抵制时有所疏忽，那人就犯了小罪。

致死的罪可由思想所犯：首先，当人同意这个思想时；其次，当这个思想付诸行动时，而这是更严重的罪：（1）因为它停留得更久；（2）因为我们更热切地沉溺其中；（3）因为我们通常通过使他人跌倒而伤害他们。

言语上的罪

有许多方式会以言语冒犯神；例如起誓与亵渎。不可指创造主起誓，也不可指任何受造物起誓，除非具备以下三个条件——真实、必要、尊重。「必要」指的是有义务以誓言确认的事，并非一切事实，而只是那些有助于取得属灵或属世重大益处的事实。一个人若在宣告神之名时，给予祂当得的尊荣，便是带着尊重起誓。

冒失且徒然地指着创造主起誓，比指着受造物起誓是更大的罪。然而，指着创造主起誓时比指着受造物起誓时，更容易满足所要求的条件：（1）因为指着后者起誓时，我们对真实性与必要性的考虑较少；（2）因为我们请神的作为作见证时，对神当有的尊重，比口称神的圣名时考虑得少。一切闲话都当避免，即那些对说话者或他人皆无益处，且说话时并无任何有益意图的言语。但有些话，本身倾向于我们自己或邻人灵魂的属灵益处，或倾向于属世的益处或利益，或者说话者的意图与之相关，则不应视为闲话——譬如一个修道人谈论商贸或战争等事。怀着善意的言谈是一种功德；无益的交谈或以恶意为目的则是罪。

言语最常见的罪就是说谎、作假见证和毁谤。至于最后一项，若出于恶意或对邻舍的声名造成显著损害而揭露非公开的严重过错，这是致死的罪。若揭露的过错较轻，则仅是小罪。

若出于善意，我们可以谈论邻人的过失：（1）当其过失为公开的；（2）当我们向可能使他们远离罪恶的人谈论时。

辱骂、嘲笑及带有类似倾向的言语，也属于舌头所犯的罪。

行为上的罪

凡使我们违犯神或教会诫命的行为，按其事项的严重程度以及行事时思虑与同意的程度，便构成致死的罪或小罪。

3. 每日总省察的方法

第一点是为我们所领受的恩惠向主献上感谢。

第二点是祈求我们认识自己的过错并加以改正。

第三点，是对我们一天中所犯的罪作详尽查考和省察。我们必须逐时向自己的灵魂严格追问所思、所言、所为。所遵循的次序与方法，须与前面为特定省察所给出的相同。

第四点在于祈求神宽恕我们所犯的罪。

4. 论总告解与领圣体

以下是在神操期间所推荐的总告解（虽非绝对义务）的一些主要益处：

  1. 对过去生活中罪过的回忆与细察，能在灵魂中激发更生动的痛悔。

  2. 由于神操使人对罪的邪恶有更清晰、更明确的认识，告解也会更用心、更有成效。

  3. 经验表明，许多基督徒在领受告解圣事时，往往省察不足、缺少必要的痛悔、也无任何——或至少是极其微弱的——改善生活的决心。由此便会产生困扰与不安，即使不是在一生中，至少也会在临终时刻出现。神操期间作总告解的目的，是净化灵魂的一切过往过失，并赋予其未来的平安与宁静。因此，虽然我们在这次告解中必须避免焦虑、疑惧以及不断回溯过去，但仍应努力给予它我们力所能及的一切关注与用心，以便我们总能确信自己没有任何疏忽；没有这种确信，我们就永远无法享有内心的平安或良心的安息。在准备这次告解时，最好使用某种省察的方法或指南。这样的好方法有好几种，很容易取得。

  4. 总告解的最后一个益处在于，它通常能带来更热忱的领圣体。无论对于避免犯罪，还是对于保守并增长我们蒙福所领受的恩典，没有什么比一次善领圣体更为有效了。

5. 补赎规则或第十增补（见第5页「十增补」）

  1. 我将在已推荐的操练之外，增加一些补赎或忏悔的工夫。

补赎有内在与外在之分。

内在补赎是因我们个人的罪而感到忧伤，并伴随着坚定决心不再犯罪。

外在补赎是内在情感的果实。它是真诚悔改使我们加诸自身的惩罚，主要以三种方式实行。

首先，在饮食方面：如果我们削减一些对我们合宜的食物，而非多余的食物（那是节制的职责，而非补赎），削减得越多越好，只要不至于令身体过度虚弱或生病。

其次，在睡眠与休息方面；如果我们放弃的不仅是奢华——即会带来愉悦的——而且还有仅仅便利的；但始终要避免会严重危及健康或生命的事物。因此，我们不应减少必需的睡眠，或者至少减得很少，并且只在必须纠正自己睡眠时间过长的坏习惯时才这样做。

最后，在对待身体方面；如果我们通过使用苦衣、绳索或铁腰带，或通过击伤或打伤自己，从而给我们的身体带来痛感。然而，在所有这些做法中，似乎更为有益的是，疼痛应仅影响皮肉，而不深入内脏，以免造成危险的损伤；因此，我们更应选择用小绳索制成的苦鞭，因为它们只给外在部位带来痛苦，而不会损害健康。

外在补赎有三个目的或产生三种主要效果：它是为过往罪行作出的卓越补赎；它训练人征服自己，使较低的部分——感官，服从于较高的部分，即理性；最后，它恳求并获得我们渴望的那些神恩典的恩赐——例如，对我们罪过生动的痛悔，为这些罪过或为耶稣基督的十字架而流下丰沛的泪水，以及对困扰我们的疑惑的解决等等。

若从神操中未能获得所渴望的安慰或忧伤，宜稍稍调整生活安排，即以与先前不同的方式克己，比如在饮食、睡眠或对待身体方面。如此一来，当某种补赎已实践三日，例如，即可中断两日或更长，按灵魂状态需要更多或更少的补赎而定。

在神操期间谨慎变换和中断这些外在克修方式，可以带来以下极大益处。常有人因过度耽于感官，或因为说服自己相信其体质无法承受而不致危险，便完全忽视补赎实践；另一些人则相反，倚仗己力过甚，逾越一切审慎的界限。然而，通过变换补赎的方式——先尝试一种，再尝试另一种——我们便能通过这种经验，并借着洞悉我们本性深处的神的恩典，认识到什么对我们最为有益。

6. 辨别诸灵的规则

灵魂受多种灵的推动，分辨这些灵至关重要，以便跟随善灵、抗拒恶灵。以下是一些规则，其中前几条适用于较不完善的灵魂，其余的则适用于更为完善的灵魂。

第一组规则

（更特别适用于第一周。）

  1. 让我们设想一个灵魂，它容易陷入致死的罪，并从一次跌倒走向另一次跌倒：为了使它更深地沉入罪恶，填满不义的尺度，地狱的仇敌通常会使用淫乐的诱惑和一切感官的诱饵，并不断将其摆在它眼前。相反，为使它转离罪恶，善灵从不停止用悔恨的刺痛和理性的劝告来刺戳它的良心。

  2. 但若这灵魂决意尽一切努力洁净自己的罪，并日复一日更进一步服事神，那恶灵便会在它路上设置各样疑惧、不安、似是而非的托辞，以及烦恼与搅扰的缘由，为要拦阻并困扰它。相反地，当我们一开始改正，善灵就鼓舞、坚固、安慰我们，甚至使我们柔和到流泪，照亮悟性，将平安倾注于心，消除一切艰难与阻碍，使我们借着善工的实践，得以一天比一天更自由、更喜乐、更迅速地在德行上前进。

  3. 真实的属灵安慰，可通过以下征兆来辨识：有一种内在的推动，使灵魂向创造主提升，使灵魂以炽热的爱去爱祂，且不容灵魂爱任何受造物，除非是为了祂；有时，这爱会产生温柔的泪水，这些泪水或出于悔恨过去的过失，或出于看见耶稣基督的忧苦，或出于被光照的信仰所激发的任何其他动机；最后，凡增进信心、盼望与仁爱的一切；凡使灵魂充满圣洁喜乐的一切；凡使灵魂更专注于默想天上的事、更关切得救的一切；凡引导灵魂在主内找到安息与平安的一切——这一切都是真实的、属灵的安慰。

  4. 相反，所有使灵魂黑暗、扰乱灵魂、使灵魂倾向低下与属地之物、使灵魂不安且烦躁、会使灵魂对得救绝望、削弱盼望并驱逐仁爱、使灵魂忧愁、冷淡、懈怠，甚至怀疑创造主与救赎主仁慈的一切——这一切可被称为属灵枯寂。枯寂与安慰是两个相反的词语；因此，由二者所生的思想与情感也是截然相反的。

  5. 在枯寂时期，恶灵使我们感受到他的影响。若随从他的启发，我们就不能做出任何良善或有益的决定；因此，在这种时候，我们必须谨慎，不要在关乎我们先前决心或选择生活状态的任何事上重新考虑或作出任何改变；相反，我们必须坚持在安慰之日或安慰之时——也就是在善灵的影响下——所做出的决定。

  6. 然而，在不改变先前所规定和确定的任何事的前提下，人若被枯寂所困，最好采用一些方法，或增加这些方法，以驱散枯寂——例如更加迫切地献上祈祷、省察、唤醒并激发良心、为已知或未知的过错作一些补赎作为惩罚。

  7. 在枯寂的压力下，我们应以以下思想支撑自己：神的恩典虽可能不再能被感觉到，却仍存留在我们内；虽然我们不再感到仁爱最初的热忱，我们仍拥有一切为行善并成就救恩所必需的。那么，我们的主期望我们作什么呢？祂要看看，若有本性与恩典的寻常助力，我们能否抵挡我们的仇敌。哦，无疑我们能够！

  8. 那搅扰、折磨我们的不安之灵，在忍耐之灵中有其直接的对抗者和敌手。因此，保持耐心与宁静的意志，将对我们抵抗它大有助益。最后，我们必须呼求盼望来帮助我们；如果我们知道如何运用上述方法来对抗枯寂，我们就可以对自己说：「安慰不久就会来到。」

  9. 枯寂最常由以下三种原因之一产生：（1）或许是由于我们在属灵操练上缺乏殷勤与热忱，以致理当被剥夺神的安慰。（2）或许是神正在试炼我们，祂想察看我们是怎样的人，以及我们如何为祂的事奉与荣耀效力，即便祂并非每天都把祂圣灵的赏报，以恩赐和可感的恩典赐给我们。（3）又或许这是祂给予我们的一课：祂希望通过经验向我们证明，要获得灵修的热忱、炽热的爱、丰沛的泪水，或要保守自己在这些属灵的喜乐中，超出我们天然的力量，而是祂慷慨恩赐的一份白白礼物。除非我们被一种对救恩极为危险的骄傲与自爱所占据，否则这一切都不能被我们当作权利而要求。

  10. 当心中充满安慰时，我们必须思考在受试炼时应当遵行的举止；为承受冲击，我们必须及时预备勇气与坚定的决心。

  11. 我们也必须谦卑自己，看轻自己，尽可能预见到在枯寂的打击下，若非神的恩典迅速相助，我们将是何等软弱、何等胆怯；相反地，受试探的人必须说服自己，有神的帮助他就无所不能，只要他将信靠建立在神的力量上并勇敢面对，他就必能轻易胜过所有仇敌。

  12. 撒但有着软弱却固执的性格，当牠攻击我们时，可比作一个胆敢与丈夫争斗的女人。只要丈夫坚定地抵抗她，她很快就会放下好斗的情绪，迅速把战场让给他；相反，她若在丈夫身上看到任何胆怯、逃跑或退让的倾向，她就会变得大胆、傲慢，残忍如复仇女神。同样，当撒但看见耶稣基督的兵丁心里不动摇、昂首挺立、毫不畏缩地击退每一次攻击，牠立刻就丧失勇气；但如果牠察觉到他在第一次冲击下就颤抖、准备求饶，牠就会立刻以一种狂怒、暴烈和凶猛扑向他，其程度在被激怒而扑向猎物的野兽中也无可比拟：牠固执于地狱般的恶意，一心只寻求并渴望我们的毁灭。

  13. 我们也可以将他的一些诡计比作一个浪荡子，企图引诱一位出身良家的少女或一个诚实人的妻子。他向自己情欲的对象所建议的，首先就是保密——对他的提议保密，对他的会面保密；如果他得不到这种保密，如果女儿不向父母保密，妻子不向丈夫保密，对他而言一切就都完了，他的计划就破灭了。同样，那位大诽谤者的主要诡计就是诱使他想夺取的灵魂对他的暗示保守秘密；而当这些暗示被告解神父或一位明达的指导者发现时，他的愤怒与痛苦便达到顶点，因为他的圈套被识破，他的努力化为泡影。

  14. 最后，在战术上，我们的仇敌模仿一位围攻堡垒的军队将领：他首先观察地形与防御工事的状况，以便集中攻击最薄弱之处。为了作类似的侦察，我们的仇敌仿佛绕着我们的灵魂巡视一圈：他检视哪些超性德行或道德德性构成我们灵魂的城墙，或我们在哪些德行上有所欠缺；然后，他将所有火力对准我们疏于守卫和防御的那一点，并说：「我必在此处发动猛攻。」

为更好辨别诸灵的其他规则

（更特别适用于第二周。）

  1. 神与祂的善天使所特有的作为，是向祂们所行动于其上的灵魂倾注真实的属灵喜乐，驱除魔鬼在其中所引入的忧愁与困扰。相反，魔鬼见到这喜乐存在于灵魂中，便竭力借着某些披着虚假真理外衣的诡辩来摧毁它。

  2. 唯独创造主能深入祂的受造物，提升他，改变他，在他心中点燃祂爱的火焰。因此，当感官、理智、意志都没有遇到任何性质上能带来喜乐的事物，灵魂却突然无先前原因地得到安慰时，这就是神在作用于它。

  3. 若安慰先有自然原因在前，是谁差遣了它？可能是我们的善天使，也可能是恶天使。善天使的目的，是帮助我们认识并行出正道；恶天使的目的，则是引诱我们行恶并毁灭我们。

  4. 恶灵深知如何把自己变成光明的天使。他察觉灵魂的敬虔渴望，起初会附和这些渴望，但不久就会开始把灵魂引向自己的目的。因此，起初他会假装赞同你良善而圣洁的念头，甚至为之喝彩，但渐渐地，他会诱你落入他隐藏的陷阱，将你缠在他黑暗的网罗之中。

  5. 因此，我们必须对我们的启发与思想进行严格而审慎的检视。它们的开端、发展与终结都必须仔细考量。这一切都是良善的吗？那么，这就是我们的善天使在启发我们。反之，若其中含有任何内在的恶，任何诱使我们偏离善，或驱使我们退回到低于所选目标的事物；任何使灵魂疲惫、使其陷入忧虑与烦乱，并使其丧失所享有的平安、安息与宁静的事物呢？如果我们反思后发现情况如此，那便是一个明确的标记：这启发来自黑暗的灵，并且隐藏着他为我们设下的某种圈套。

  6. 一旦我们识破了那地狱的毒蛇；一旦从他那些总导向恶果的暗示中，我们识破了他那邪魔的意图，在灵里重走一遍那诱惑者带领我们的道路就极为有益。我们要拆解他精心布置的诡计，留意他是以怎样似是而非的托词开始使我们听从他的；他如何逐步成功地改变了我们先前所享有的那纯洁的品味、那属灵的甘甜、那完全的安宁；他又是如何竭力将他的毒液注入灵魂的。对这种可憎伎俩的研习，将使我们日后更能逃脱它们的陷阱。

  7. 两种灵都想渗透进那些在得救之路上前行者的灵魂；但采取的手段大相径庭：善天使来时，温柔、和平、和婉，好似一滴水滴在海绵上；恶天使则粗暴、猛烈、喧嚷地闯入，如同暴雨敲击岩石。对于那些一天天远离神、更深陷入罪恶的人，情形则相反。此外，一个灵进入灵魂是温柔还是粗暴，取决于灵魂的状态是与之相合还是相悖。若遇到抗拒和反感，它会以一种易被察觉的突然冲击宣告自己的到来；若发现灵魂与它同向，它就安静地进入，如同进入一个属于它、向它敞开的居所。

  8. 如前所述，当没有任何自然原因导致心灵突然充满这种安慰时，乃是神亲自探访这灵魂。因此，这种感受不可能出于幻觉；然而，我们必须极其谨慎地将这幸福的起初时刻与其随后立即出现的时刻区分开来——尽管灵魂仍能感到其炽热及所领受的属天恩惠；因为在这第二阶段，无论是出于习惯、个人判断与观察的方式，还是来自善灵或恶灵的启发，我们常常会产生某些思想或形成某些计划，这些并非直接来自神，需要在同意它们或将它们付诸实行之前，仔细加以察验。

论选择

第一条 论必备的预备

要在任何事情上作出正确选择，我们首先必须怀着纯洁正直的意向默想我们受造的目的——就是神的荣耀和我们自己的得救。因此，我们的选择绝不应落在任何不能引领我们走向此目的的事物上；因为显然，方法应当始终服从目的，而不是目的服从方法。那些一开始就决定了这种或那种生活状态——例如婚姻——随后才下定决心在该状态中尽力服事神的人，他们是自欺的。那是颠倒了次序，把方法当作了目的，把目的当作了方法；那可以说是以一种迂回的方式趋向神，期待神的意志迁就我们自己的意志，而不是使我们自己的意志顺服神的意志。

我们必须做的恰恰相反：首先，我们必须确立人真正的目的——即事奉神；然后，为了这个目的，选择某个特定的生活状态，如婚姻或圣职等，并且仅以是否能更确定地达到我们的目的作为抉择的动机。简而言之，我们不应因偏爱某种状态而选择它，而应看哪一种更能导向神的荣耀与我们的救恩。

第二条 论选择的事项

  1. 选择所涉及的一切事项，都必须是良善的，至少本身不应为恶，也不得违背教会的原则与准则。

  2. 可以作为选择之事项与对象的事物有两类：一类是，一旦选定就无法更改；例如司铎职分与婚姻。另一类则其选择是可撤销的；比如某些教会性或世俗性的职务，可能先接受、后因正当理由而放弃。

  3. 一旦选择已在不可更改的事务上作出，就不再有任何选择可做。然而，若是因轻率或某种放纵的情感导致了一项选择，而这项选择又无法撤回，那么唯一可作的决定就是：透过我们生活的规整与对所有责任的忠诚来弥补已犯的过错。此处不涉及改变，因为那已不被允许。选择必须在其全部范围内生效，尽管它若因轻率或可疑的动机作出，却绝不能被视为神的呼召；因为除非出于纯洁的动机和坚实的理性，不受属肉体的情感或不规整倾向的混杂，否则就不是神的呼召。

  4. 关于那些可能被更改的状态：若选择是在审慎与智慧中作出，便不应更改，反倒应当竭力在这状态中日益完善自我。反之，若选择显得不够明智、不够符合基督徒精神，那么无论代价如何，都必须改变它，为的是更蒙神悦纳，并更稳妥地得救。

第三条 论作出好选择的三个最有利时机

  1. 当神的能力赋予意志如此强烈的驱动，以至于灵魂不怀疑也不可能怀疑自己应该遵从这个驱动。圣保罗、圣马太以及许多其他人蒙耶稣基督呼召时便是如此。

  2. 当神的灵借着将祂的恩典运用于我们内心，以足够清晰明确的方式使我们辨识祂的美意。通过将我们所感受到的安慰和各种感动提交于辨别诸灵的规则，我们就能辨别这种神的作为——它总是带着神自己的特征。

  3. 当我们的心灵享有极大的平静；灵魂摆脱烦扰，自由运用其天然能力；理解力被照亮——正如其正确运作时，总是由神的道之光所照亮——我们选择最合适的方法，可靠而轻松地引导我们达到我们的目标。这目标就是神的荣耀与我们的得救。我们确立这个真理作为原则；并且，作为达到这个终点的结果或途径，在教会所允许的一切状态中，我们选择最能引领我们到达它的那一种。

若我们感官被神的能力所震撼、心灵被神的灵所感动的见证，都不能坚定我们的抉择，我们就必须诉诸那被永恒真理所光照的心灵之见证；我们必须借助以下两种方法：

第一种方法

  1. 向自己提出你决意的对象——例如，某种生活状态，或某种职务。应当接受它吗？应当放弃它吗？一切可作为选择事项的事物，皆可如此设问。

  2. 谨记此理：我的目的，是在荣耀神中拯救自己。不要让你的意志过早地对所论之事表示赞成或反对；倒要使自己处于完全的平衡之中，好能全然且立刻转向你认出最有利于神的荣耀和你自己得救的一方。

  3. 祈求神的美善光照你的灵，使你的意志转向你所当选择的呼召；然而，也不要忽略借助基于信心的推理，来帮助自己寻求并发现神的旨意，因为这旨意将决定你的选择。

  4. 准确权衡利弊：这种或那种职务或生活状态，能提供何种益处、何种助力，使你达到你的目的；反之，其中又有何种危险、何种障碍等待着你。同样地，检视相反的状态——它向你提供何种方法，或有何种危险；有何资源，或有何困难。

  5. 经过这番省察后，比较双方，不听从肉体的建议，而按看来最合乎健全理性的那一方作出抉择。

  6. 一旦作出了选择，就应当求助于祈祷；将你的决定献给神，并祈求祂，若这是祂所喜悦的，就收纳并坚定你的心志。

第二种方法

  1. 既然选择若要臻于完美，就应当由神之爱的属天运动来决定，你要切实确认自己对所选对象怀有的任何倾向（无论强弱皆无关紧要）确实源于对神的爱，并且唯独着眼于神的利益。

  2. 假设另有一人，他的得救与成全对你来说至关重要，如今他处于与你相同的处境，并在不确定中前来请教你，为神的更大荣耀及他自己灵魂的更大成全，你会劝他什么？你所给予他的劝告，正是你自己应当遵循的。

  3. 在死亡的时刻，你会希望自己在这场思虑中如何行事？现在就照那样去行吧。

  4. 当蒙召站在神的审判台前时，你会希望自己曾做出怎样的选择？这选择就是你此刻必须做出的；因为只有这一选择，才能让你在那可畏的时刻最具信心。

  5. 决心一旦确定，就用祷告把它献给神，并祈求祂接纳并祝福它，一如前面的方法。

论改正

或在已经采取的生活状态中的改革

对于已受婚姻纽带约束者，或被提升至难以或不可能放弃的教会尊位者，我们不向他们提出关于选择生活状态的规则。取而代之的是，我们附加一种改革的方法或行为准则，用以帮助他们在已经确定的生活状态中改正生活。

以下是这一方法的要素：

你是否愿意采纳并遵循一种符合神创造你之目的的生活计划？

进行即将指出的第二周神操。

运用上述的选择方法，以极大的反思与精确，将其应用于以下对象，或其他可作为你审议事项的对象：

你保有怎样风格的住宅、多少仆人才合宜？

你该如何管理并安排你的事务才合宜？

你应当给予儿女和仆人什么教导与榜样，以建造他们？

你应当将收入的哪一部分用于自己和家中的开支？

你应当将另一部分指定给穷人，或奉献给虔敬事业？

在这一切上，你所应当注目的，唯有神的荣耀与你自己的救恩。

你也应当确信，你越是从自己、从自爱、从追求自身安逸中抽离，你就越会在救恩与成全的道路上前进。

在开始这项改革工作之前应做的神操是（除了默想耶稣基督通常的奥秘之外）：两面旗帜的默观、三等人的神操、选择的前奏。这些将极大帮助退省者构想并渴望他所能达到、且其生活状态所能容纳的那种成全。

关于选择的第二条在此几乎不适用，倒是第三条及其双重方法更适用。我们必须这样进行：每一个需要在神面前省察的事项——例如家中人员、开销、虔敬事业——都应分别考虑。每当就某一点进行审议并作出决定后，便转向另一点。问题越重大、越困难，所需的时间就越多：有时必须为一件事项花费一小时或更长时间；有时在这段时间内，可以连续决定数个要点。

关于节制的一些规则

  1. 对于面包无需像其他食物那样多加留意，因为它较少取悦味觉，也较少使我们暴露于诱惑。

  2. 饮用葡萄酒需要更多留意。在这一点上，我们必须省察什么是必要的，以便严格持守；也要省察什么是有害的，以便加以削减。

  3. 节制尤应适用于精美罕有的食物，因为它们会刺激情欲并挑起试探。我们可以通过两种方式来达成这一点：一是让自己习惯于满足于最简单的食物，二是在享用较精细的食物时有所节制。

  4. 我们愈削减饮食（始终避免有损健康的克减），就愈容易找到适合自己的分量，缘由在于：一方面，节制为我们获得恩典的光照与安慰，使我们更容易知道身体能力需要多少养分；另一方面，身体的虚弱——表现为难以完成我们的神操——也通过经验教导我们，本性所需要的是什么。

  5. 用餐时，我们最好想像我们的主与门徒们一起生活、同桌共餐的场景，并以祂为榜样来使用我们的感官。心思专注于这些虔敬的对象时，节制便更容易达成。

  6. 我们也可以使自己专注于其他思想：例如圣人的生平、某些虔敬的对象，或某件属灵事务，好让这种心思的转移可以削弱本性中过于强烈的感受。

  7. 首先，在我们的用餐中，我们必须谨防贪食、仓促，或者那种灵魂以某种方式倾注于食物上的放纵。我们必须始终管束自己的食欲，并且在食量和进食方式上践行节制。

  8. 为彻底革除饮食无度的恶习，最好在用餐前、尚未感到食欲之时，便预先根据反思判断设定适宜摄取的分量。即使本性要求更多、撒但也助长这种要求，我们也应满足于所定的分量。为战胜这两者，我们甚至可考虑再削减少许。

关于以施舍分配财物的一些规则

你是否因为对亲属或朋友怀有深厚的情感，想要将一部分财物分给他们？请将这份心意，依照此前给出的四项选择规则来考量，这些规则在此稍作展开如下：

  1. 我对邻舍所有的爱，若要是完美的，都应当源于对神的爱；我应当感到，这纯洁的仁爱是我一切情感与依恋的起点和动机。在这件事上，就如在其他一切事上一样，它必须显明为我决定的主要动机。

  2. 假如有一位我并不认识的人，但我希望看到他能履行其生活状态的责任，并在类似情境中以一切可能的成全行动，前来向我请教，为了神的荣耀和他自身的成全，我应当建议他做什么？我自己也应当采取同样的行动。

  3. 倘若我命在旦夕，在这件事上我会希望自己做过什么？同样的事我现在就应当做。

  4. 当我被召到神的审判台前时，我会庆幸自己作了怎样的财物分配呢？这正是我如今就应当作的分配。

  5. 若我感觉自己对自然纽带所联结的人怀有过分的依恋，我必须先按照前述四条规则来省察这份依恋本身，而尚不去考虑财物或施舍的分配问题。在作任何安排之前，必须先纠正这种倾向。

  6. 一位完美的圣职人员，应当将其教会收入中的多少用于自身开销？这一问题引发了许多顾虑，许多人总是担心会走得太远。要解决此问题并确定恰当的比例，应遵循上文所述的规则。

  7. 关于我们个人、住宅、家具或仆人的开支，最完美、最可靠的方法，就是尽量削减我们的便利与舒适，并忠实地效法我们的大祭司耶稣基督的榜样。正是按照这项适用于一切生活状态的总规则（尽管必须适当考虑不同的人，甚至不同的境况），圣奥古斯丁曾出席的第三次迦太基会议规定，主教所用的一切家具都应价格低廉，并应显出贫穷。在婚姻生活状态中，我们能引述的最佳榜样是圣约亚敬与圣亚纳，他们每年都将收入分为三份：一份给穷人，第二份给圣殿和事奉神之用，第三份留作己用。

关于魔鬼在灵魂中引发的良心疑虑的说明

  1. 通常称为良心疑虑的，是这样一种判断：我们在心智完全自由的情况下，把一个并非有罪的行为称为有罪。例如，一个人从交叉成十字形的两根稻草上走过，便因此责备自己犯了过错；然而，这严格说来并不是良心疑虑，倒是一种错误判断，必须由教导与健全理智来纠正。

  2. 然而，你践踏了这个十字架，或者你曾想过、说过、做过某种同样无关紧要的事；你全部的理智和道德能力都告诉你，你并没有犯罪，但在你的良心中却浮现出你做了错事的念头。由此便产生了困惑与不安，而恶灵使之持续；这就是严格意义上的良心疑虑。

  3. 第一种疑虑既属于道德错误，就理应受到憎恶。至于第二种疑虑，它们对刚从罪中站起来的灵魂而言，犹如净化剂——有时作用十分猛烈。它们对他暂时是有用的，能激发他对罪之阴影的恐惧与厌恶。圣额我略说：「那是善良的灵魂，即使自己无罪，也仍以为自己有罪。」

  4. 我们的地狱仇敌以恶毒的注意力察看我们良心的类型——是敏锐还是松懈。若良心敏锐，他便试图使其更加敏感；他竭力将其推向烦扰与痛苦的极端，以致阻碍它在属灵生命中的进展。对于这位胆怯的基督徒——他绝不同意任何致死的罪或小罪，甚至惧怕自愿过失的表象——既然仇敌无法呈上真实罪恶的诱饵，他便将想象中的过错呈现为骇人的幻影。在他眼中，罪会显现在一句轻微的话、一个只是掠过脑海的念头等等。相反，若他发现哪里有松懈的良心，他便力求使其更加松懈。那灵魂既不怕小罪，他便逐步使其习惯于致死的罪，并日复一日地削弱它眼中对此罪的恐惧。

  5. 为使灵魂能在属灵的道路上稳步前进，必须坚定地行走在与救恩之仇敌试图引领它的方向相反的方向上。倘若仇敌想使良心松懈，就当收紧；倘若他想使良心收紧，就当放松。避开这两种极端，灵魂便能确立一条中庸之道，这将成为其安稳与平安之境。

  6. 当一个摆在面前的话语或行动并不违背教会的见解和大公传统，并且趋向于荣耀神时，若有一个来自与你自身相异之灵的思想袭来，借口说它会使你虚荣而劝你不要说或不要做，或在你里面激起任何其他虚幻的恐惧，那么就当将你的心思举向神；倘若这话语或行动在你看来仍然趋向于你主人的荣耀，或至少并不违背祂，就当直接反对这个思想；当仇敌在你耳边低语时，要像圣伯尔纳铎那样回答他：「我起初不是为你；停止也不会为你。」

正统信仰的规则

  1. 要时常准备好，抛开一切个人见解，以心思与心灵顺服耶稣基督真正的配偶——我们的慈母圣教会、无误且正统的导师大公教会；她的权柄借其牧者的圣统体系施行在我们身上。

  2. 赞同教会所实行的告解罪过；每年一次领圣体，更好的是每周一次，或至少每月一次，并作必要的准备。

  3. 应鼓励信徒经常并虔诚地参与弥撒圣祭、教会圣歌、日课，以及一般在固定时间举行的祈祷与灵修，无论是在教堂中公开举行，还是私下进行。

  4. 要高度尊重修会生活，并以独身或守贞优先于婚姻生活状态。

  5. 要赞同贞洁、贫穷、永久服从的修会誓愿，以及其他成全和超义务的善工。顺便说明，我们绝不可发愿进入一种会妨碍更完美生活状态的生活状态（例如婚姻）；因为誓愿本质上是对成全的承担——如神学所言，是对更高之善的承诺。

  6. 认可敬奉与呼求圣徒、尊敬圣像、游行、虔诚朝圣、大赦、禧年、在祭台前点燃蜡烛与灯盏的习俗，以及其他有助于虔敬的类似做法。

  7. 要遵守禁食与斋戒，不仅是诫命所定的，如四旬期、四季斋期、守夜日，也包括纯出虔敬的禁食与斋戒，以及自愿的克己与补赎，不仅是内心的，也是外在的。

  8. 要赞同教堂建筑与装饰的宏伟，以及圣像；我们因这些圣像所代表的事物而正当地尊敬它们。

  9. 绝不在任何事上指责教会的规诫，而要运用研习所能提供给我们的一切理由，大胆地捍卫它们，以对抗那些攻击它们的人。

  10. 要努力赞同我们信仰上的先辈或长上的法令、规章、传统、条例、礼节与习俗。至于他们的行为，虽其品行操守可能并非处处达到应有的完整，但若在私下交谈或公开讲论中批评他们，所引起的恶表和混乱往往多于益处。此类抨击只会激怒民众，使他们反抗其君主与牧者；因此，我们必须避免此类指责，切莫在属下前控诉不在场的长上。若遇恶事，不如私下向手握必要权柄者陈情，以求匡正。

  11. 要高度珍视教父和神学家的教导。前者，如圣耶柔米、圣奥古斯丁和圣额我略，主要致力于塑造基督徒的心灵；后者，循着圣托马斯阿奎那、圣文德等人开辟的道路，以纠正时代的谬误，并以精确的概念和界定清晰的教义来启迪信徒为目标。他们生活在教父之后的时代，如同教父一样，有圣经和古代著作作为教导他们的资源。此外，他们还拥有大公会议的条例与定义，以及圣教会的规则与宪章；神的灵有力地协助他们善用所有这些资源，以引导信徒走在得救的道路上。

  12. 切勿将今人——无论其功绩多大——与圣人相比；例如，切勿说：「某人的学识超过圣奥古斯丁；此人是另一位圣方济各；此人像圣保罗一样热忱，一样雄辩」等等。

  13. 要与耶稣基督的教会同心同灵，我们就必须对她怀有信赖，同时对自己抱有不信任，以至于只要教会断定某件在我们看来为假的事为真，我们也要宣认为真；因为我们必须毫不犹豫地相信，我们主耶稣基督的灵就是祂配偶的灵，并且那从前赐下十诫的神，与如今启发并引导祂教会的是同一位神。

  14. 虽然确实，若非蒙预定，就没有人能达到救恩，但在此事上我们必须非常审慎地言说，以免因过分强调恩典，而显得破坏了人的自由意志与善工的功德；或因过分强调自由意志，而削弱了恩典的能力与功效。

  15. 出于同样的理由，我们必须很少谈及预定；如果确实谈及，也不可用这样的方式，使人能说：「若我的永恒命运已经确定，无论我行恶或行善，都只会是神所决定的事」；这常常会导致人忽略善工以及一切得救的途径。

  16. 我们必须留意，免得因高举信心的功德、却未加任何区分或解释，而给人们在善工实践上懈怠提供借口。

  17. 我们也必须当心，不可将神的恩典抬得过高，以致听者不再相信自己是自由的；我们必须按神的荣耀所要求的方式谈论它，以免使人对自由与善工的功效产生疑虑。

  18. 尽管出于纯全仁爱的动机服事神是极值得称赞且有益的，但我们仍当推崇对神的敬畏；不仅是子女般的敬畏，也包括奴仆般的敬畏，后者极为有益，甚至常常是使人从罪中起来所必需的。一旦从致死的罪的状态中起来，并摆脱对它的依恋，我们便可以谈及那种真正配得上神、并赐予且保持纯爱结合的子女般的敬畏。

注：这些规则对福音工作者和宣讲神的道的人尤其有用。虽为其他时代而写，并特别针对十六世纪的革新者，但它们多半仍适用于我们自己的时代，并且确实或多或少直接关乎当今社会之需；这个社会正不断受同一种无法无天之灵侵蚀。

论祈祷的不同方式

第一种方式

这与其说是一篇祈祷，不如说是一项灵修操练，帮助灵魂，并使其祈祷更蒙神悦纳。它包括默想神的诫命、七宗罪、灵魂的三种能力，以及身体的五种感官，具体如下：

  1. 在开始之前，先用几分钟想一想你将要做什么。

  2. 求神赐予恩典，好叫你能认识自己违背祂诫命所犯的罪，并从此更忠实地履行祂律法的义务。

  3. 逐一思想神的诫命，看你如何遵守或触犯了它们。为你所能记起的罪求赦免，并念主祷文。每条诫命停留三遍主祷文的时间即可；但这段时间应视每条诫命上过失的多少而缩短或延长。

  4. 如此通览所有诫命后，你要谦卑自己，控告自己；祈求恩典，为能在未来更好地遵守它们；最后以一段向神所作、适合于你当下状态与心境的交谈作为结束。

若你打算以七宗罪、灵魂的三种能力、五种感官等为主题，只需更换省察的事项；其余部分与诫命相同。

我们要留意的是，若基督徒愿在感官运用上效法我们的主耶稣基督，就必须祈求父神的恩典，使他能如此行；并要逐一审视自己的感官，察看它们在何种程度上接近或偏离他这位神性典范。在从一种感官转向另一种之前，念一遍主祷文。

若有人愿意效法至圣童贞马利亚，我们就必须求她从她的圣子那里为我们取得这恩典，并在省察每一感官之后念一遍圣母经。

第二种方式

这种祈祷方式在于诵念某个口祷文，并在构成该祷文的词语上依次停留，只要我们还感到甘甜与虔敬，就继续停留。

  1. 开始前，先收敛心神。

  2. 转向你将要祈祷的那一位。

  3. 开始祈祷——比如主祷文；停留在「我们在天上的父」这些词上；只要它们带给你思绪、情感等等，就默想下去，然后再转到下一些词，以同样的方式加以思考。

  4. 当到了结束的时候，就不停顿地念完祷文的其余部分，并向你一直祈祷的那一位作一短祷，以祈求你所需要的恩典或德行。

Third Part

说明：（1）一切口祷文，如信经、《万福母后》、《基督之魂》等，都可以用这种方式诵念。（2）若我们以这种方式诵念祈祷时，其中仅一个词就足以占据整个指定祈祷时间中的心思与心灵，就必须把其余部分的默想推迟到另一天。次日必须先不停顿地诵念前一天所默想过的内容，然后继续思考该祷文其余的词语。

Fundamental Meditations

第三种方式 这种方式在于念诵一篇口祷文，并且若我们愿意，也可连续念诵数篇祷文，只在每一词之间停留一息的间隔，或思想该词的意义，或思想我们所祈祷对象的尊荣，或思想自己的不配，或思想两者之间的距离。让我们以圣母经为例。

The End of Man

  1. 思想你将要进行的行动。

  2. 从「万福，马利亚」开始，稍作思想这些话是什么意思，或思想你所问候的至圣童贞女的尊荣，或思想你的悲惨；正是这些悲惨，使你与神之母之间有如此巨大的距离。

  3. 然后你念出其余的词语，照我们所说的，每个词只停留一息的时间。

Text of St. Ignatius. Man was created to praise and adore the Lord his God, and in serving Him to save himself. This is his end.

This meditation comprises three great truths, which are the foundation of the exercises: I come from God—I belong to God—I am destined for God; that is, God is at the same time my first beginning, my sovereign master, my last end.

First Truth / I come from God

  1. Where was I a hundred years ago? I was in nothingness. Oh, how many centuries there were when not any one thought of me! For, can nothing be the subject of thought? How many ages that an insect, an atom was more than I, for it possessed existence!

Yet I exist today; I possess intelligence, a heart, senses, body, soul. Who gave me all this? Was it not God and God alone?

  1. God is, then, my Creator. And what wonderful circumstances in my creation!

God created me; and it was by a pure impulse of His love; for my existence was not necessary either to His happiness or His glory.

God created me; and the decree of my creation is eternal like Himself. During an eternity, then, He was occupied with me; He was thinking of me; He loved me who was as yet nothing.

God created me; and, in creating me, He preferred me to an infinite number of creatures equally possible, and that He will never call into existence.

God created me; and, in creating me, made me the noblest creature of the visible world. All my being bears the stamp of His divine perfections.

Finally, God created me; and He continues and renews His work in every moment of my existence. As many moments of life as I count, so many times He makes me a present of life.

Second Truth / I belong to God

  1. I come from God, therefore I belong to God. All that I am comes from Him; what I have, then, belongs to Him. To deny this consequence, would it not be to deny reason itself?

  2. What do I think of all the rights of a master over his servant, of a father over his child, of a workman over the work of his hands? Does not God possess over me, in the highest degree and by the most sacred titles, all the rights of men over creatures, since there is nothing in me that is not the fruit of His own resources, and hence His own property?

  3. Thus, God has dominion over me. Essential dominion: God will cease to be God, if, being my Creator, He ceased to be my sovereign and my Master. Supreme dominion: men have no rights over me except such as the Lord gives them; their rights, then, must be subordinate to the rights of God. Absolute dominion: God, then, can dispose of me at His pleasure; and my duty is to receive everything from His hand with submission. Eternal dominion: it will last as long as I shall. Irresistible dominion: willing or unwilling, I must glorify Him either by free submission or by inevitable chastisement.

Third Truth / I am destined for God

  1. A God infinitely wise must have proposed to Himself some end in creating me. A God infinitely perfect could only create me for His glory; that is, to know Him, love Him and serve Him.

  2. Everything, both within and without me, agrees in revealing to me this great truth. My religion—all its mysteries, all its precepts, all its promises, only recall my end, which is God. My reason shows me that the infinite perfection of God alone can be the object of a mind and a heart ever craving to know and to love. Creatures proclaim to me by their nothingness that they are too insignificant to be the end of my being. My heart seeks a happiness without alloy, without limit; that is, it requires nothing less than God Himself. My experience speaks the same language. Away from God, what have I found? Trouble, remorse, chastisements for order violated. Faithful to God, what have I found? Peace of heart, the fruit and recompense of order faithfully observed.

  3. Hence, a God to know, to love and to serve—behold my final end; and, by the same law, behold my duties, my greatness, my felicity.

SENTIMENTS

Sentiments of gratitude for a God, my Creator.

Sentiments of submission to a God, my Sovereign and Master.

Sentiments of love for a God, my last end.

Pater. Ave.

The End of Creatures

Text. All other things that are on the earth are made for man, that is, to aid him in arriving at the end for which he was created.

First Consideration / Creatures belong to God

Creatures have the same beginning as myself. They were drawn from nothing, like me, and He who drew them from nothing was God. They cannot have the same beginning as I have without having also the same master. Hence, they are from God, and belong to God. It follows from this that I ought to make use of creatures—

  1. With a spirit of dependence, according to the Divine order and will, not as a master who disposes as he pleases, but as a steward who must give an account.

  2. With a spirit of gratitude; like a poor man who has of himself no right to the use of the things of this world and who holds all from the liberality of God, to whom all belongs.

  3. With a spirit of fear; because, on one side, corrupt nature inclines us incessantly to the abuse of created things; and, on the other, God will rigorously punish this abuse, which overthrows all the economy of creation.

Is it in this spirit that I have hitherto made use of creatures?

Second Consideration / Creatures are for God by means of man

Like me, creatures have an end, which is the glory of God; for God could not create anything but for His glory. Creatures without intelligence cannot connect themselves or be brought into relation with God. They are not, then, made to glorify God in a direct manner; they are made to serve man, who, in exchange for their service, must lend them his intelligence and his heart to praise and love God, and thus refer them to the glory of their common Creator.

This, then, is the order of my connection with God and creatures: I am for God, creatures for me. Hence it follows that I cannot place my end in creatures without rendering myself guilty and miserable.

(1) Guilty: guilty toward myself—it would be to degrade myself; toward creatures—it would be to turn them from their end and do violence to their nature; toward God—it would be to usurp His dominion. (2) Miserable: miserable in eternity—I should lose at once God, from whom I should be separated forever, and creatures, who would become my torment forever; in time—what can creatures do toward my happiness? They have so limited an existence! What a void they would leave in my heart! They are so full of imperfections! What a source of disgust! So frail! What a source of regret! So inconstant! What a source of distrust!

Third Consideration / How creatures glorify God in leading man to God

I am made to know, love, serve, possess God; and creatures teach me—

  1. To know God. Thus the order of the world reveals His wisdom to me, the firmament His power.

  2. To love God. It is the bounty of God that has given creatures to me; it is His love that serves me in each one of them. What a motive for loving Him!

  3. To serve God. Consider, O my soul, how all creatures obey the will of their Creator; with what promptitude! Shall I be the only one to refuse to serve God? Shall I be the least faithful of His servants because I am the most indebted?

  4. To merit the possession of God. For there is not anything that may not be the occasion of some virtue and by the same rule the subject of some merit. There are created things the use of which is necessary, those, for example, that are destined to sustain my existence. What an occasion for practicing temperance and detachment!

There are some to the use of which we must submit and that nature shrinks from; for example, sickness and poverty. What an occasion to practice patience and humility!

There are some that of their nature lead to God, such as assistances of a supernatural order. What an occasion to practice piety and faith!

Finally, there are some that would turn me away from God. What an opportunity for sacrifice!

AFFECTIONS

Praise God in the name of His creatures. Grieve for having made so bad a use of them hitherto. Resolve to attach ourselves to God only.

Pater. Ave.

On Indifference toward Creatures

Text. We must use or abstain from created things according as they lead us to, or take us away from, God. This is why we must preserve ourselves in a state of indifference toward all creatures the use of which is left to our free-will; so that, as far as it depends on us, we would not seek health or riches in preference to sickness or poverty, but in everything seek what will lead us most surely to our end.

All creatures are given to men to conduct them to their end. How is it, then, that they so often lead us away from God? It is that our nature, degraded by original sin, seeks or rejects them according as they flatter or mortify our corrupt passions. The purpose of this meditation is to reform the disorder of our attachments and our aversions by establishing in us perfect indifference. This indifference consists in neither seeking nor rejecting of our free and deliberate will any created thing for itself but solely as it brings us nearer or removes us farther from God.

First Consideration / Motives as regards God for this indifference

  1. The sovereign dominion of God. Without this indifference, I dispose of my affections according to my own will, not according to the Divine will. Among different situations, I choose, not that which God destines for me, but that which pleases myself; I establish myself as my own arbiter and proprietor. Is this not to attack the rights of God?

  2. The sovereign perfection of God. To love God above everything and to love nothing but for Him is what the infinite perfection of God requires. And without this indifference I shall love creatures for themselves, for the pleasures they procure me; perhaps soon I shall love them above God. Is not this the great disorder of my past life? Is it not this want of indifference that has so often made charity languish, perhaps even die out in my heart?

  3. The providence of God. God, who created me for Himself, never ceases to conduct me to my final end by His providence. Shall I fear that this providence, infinitely good, wise, powerful, will not desire or will not be able to procure my greatest good? No, certainly. But without this indifference I derange all its plans. Perhaps God may take from me health, honor, fortune; perhaps He may try me by sickness, poverty or tribulation. Is it not to render myself culpable toward the providence of God, to refuse to accept what He has sent me and to leave the path He has traced out for my salvation?

Second Consideration / Motives as regards myself for this indifference

This indifference is necessary to me in order—

  1. To acquire solid virtue. What is virtue? It is in fact the spirit of sacrifice—of abnegation: “If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself” (Luke 9:23). Can there be a spirit of sacrifice where there is not indifference?

  2. To obtain peace of heart. Without this indifference, what fears, disgust, remorse! On the contrary, with this indifference, what sweet assurance! “The Lord ruleth me, and I shall want nothing” (Ps. 22:1). What joy even in the midst of tribulations! “I exceedingly abound with joy in all our tribulations” (2 Cor. 7:4). What plenitude of peace in the depths of the heart! “Hadst thou hearkened to My commandments, thy peace had been as a river, and thy justice as the waves of the sea” (Is. 48:18).

  3. To ensure my salvation. What perils threaten the salvation of my soul! Perils from the world; perils from the devil; perils from within me—my heart, imagination, memory, senses; perils from without—friendships, business, pleasures, employment, solitude, society. All these perils are reduced to one, that of making a bad use of creatures. Let me endeavor to arrive at perfect indifference; I shall have nothing more to fear and my salvation will be assured.

RULES FOR THE PRACTICE OF INDIFFERENCE

  1. In the use of creatures, only to esteem and desire what leads to God.

  2. In the use of creatures to be firmly resolved to fly from all that God forbids, that is to say, from sin and the occasions of sin.

  3. In the use of indifferent creatures—that is, such as directly lead us neither nearer to God nor farther from Him—to be indifferent toward them only according to the rule of the will of God and His good pleasure.

Pater. Ave.

First Exercise on Sin / Meditation or Exercise of the Three Powers of The soul on Three Different Sins: That of the fallen angels, That of Our First Parents and That of a Child of Adam Condemned for a Personal Sin

Preparatory prayer.

Ask of God the grace to refer to His glory and service all the powers and operations of your soul.

First prelude. Represent to yourself, during the first point, Lucifer falling from the heights of heaven to the depths of the abyss; in the second, Adam cast out of the terrestrial Paradise into this vale of tears; in the third, a lost soul in the midst of the flames of hell.

Second prelude. Ask of God feelings of shame and repentance at the sight of so many souls expiating by eternal suffering the sin you have committed so frequently.

First Point / The sin of the rebel angels

Consider—

  1. The angels before their sin. The excellence of their being; the light of their intelligence; the rectitude and innocence of their will; their dwelling, which is heaven, where, without yet seeing the Lord face to face, they have no other life than thinking of Him and loving Him; the happiness of their destiny—that is, a few moments of trial, and then the sight and possession of God for all eternity.

  2. The sin of the angels. These noble spirits were masters of their liberty, and it proved their ruin; God gave it to them that they might merit, and they abused it to destroy themselves. Lucifer, the highest of all, dared to refuse to God the obedience due to Him; and he drew a third of the angels into his rebellion. Meditate attentively on the circumstances of this sin, and see if you do not find them in great part in your own sins; a sin committed in heaven; a sin committed with great lights; a sin committed after great benefits from Divine grace; a sin of scandal.

  3. The punishment of the rebel angels. The justice of God falls on them like lightning. They are cast into the depths of hell, and in the midst of flames they suffer in an eternity of torment the sin of a moment. Meditate well on this terrible vengeance of God, which regards neither the multitude of the culprits nor the dignity of the victims; neither the rank of the angels nor the high place that they occupied in His friendship; neither the service these angels if repentant and restored to grace might render Him nor the nature of their sin; it is their first sin and the sin of a moment. “Who shall not fear Thee, O King of nations?” (Jer. 10:7). “How incomprehensible are His judgments, and how inscrutable His ways!” (Rom. 11:33).

Second Point / The sin of Adam

Consider—

  1. Adam before his sin. The excellence of his being; made in the image of God; the reign of truth in his intellect, of justice in his heart; his empire over his passions and his senses; the profound peace of his soul; the delights of the terrestrial Paradise where God had placed him.

  2. Adam’s sin. God had forbidden him to touch the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Adam did not obey. Tempted by the serpent, Eve tempts her husband, who by a fatal complaisance becomes a sinner. Meditate on the characteristics of this sin—imprudence, sensuality, cowardice, blindness, contempt of God. In the fall of our first father do you not recognize all your past falls?

  3. The punishment of Adam after his sin. The loss of original justice and grace; disorder in all his being, in his intellect, in his heart, in his senses; change in nature—inclemency of the seasons, barrenness of the earth, the revolt of the animals; tribulations of Adam during his whole life—labor, sickness, desolation at the death of Abel, all the troubles of his mind and heart; and, after 900 years of penitence, death. Finally, consider the anger of God avenging this first sin on all the descendants of the first sinner: pestilence, war, famine, desolation of the earth; so many disasters, so many violent deaths, so many tears shed, so many crimes committed, so many children forever deprived of the sight of God, so many souls cast into hell. What consequences and what chastisements for one single sin!

End by recalling your own state, and comparing Adam’s sin with your own personal sins.

On Adam’s side. One single sin, committed before the Incarnation, before he had experienced the justice of God; above all, as in which he expiated by 900 years of penitence.

On your side. Sins so numerous, committed by a nature sanctified by Jesus Christ, in face of the cross and of hell, and perhaps sins not expiated and for which you only feel but feeble repentance.

Third Point / On a particular sin

Consider that at the moment that you on earth are meditating on the malice of mortal sin, there is, perhaps, in the depths of hell a soul that God has eternally condemned for such or such a mortal sin committed one single time, or at least for sins less numerous and less serious than yours.

Represent to yourself this soul forever deprived of the sight and the possession of God, plunged into hell among demons, delivered up to remorse, to despair, to flames, for a wretched eternity.

Ask yourself what this God is who punishes a single mortal sin in this manner. He is a God infinitely wise, infinitely just, infinitely merciful—a God who has loved this soul so much as to die for it. What an evil, then, is one single mortal sin!

Finally, reflect upon yourself. How long is it since you first committed mortal sin? Why did not God strike you dead after this first sin? Why has God spared you till now, when everything demanded your condemnation? The interest of His perfections, which you outraged; of His graces, which you trampled underfoot, of the souls whose loss you caused by your scandals. If God had called you before His tribunal on such a day, at such an hour, after such a fault, where would you be at this moment, and in what state? “It is of the mercies of the Lord that we are not consumed” (Jer. 3:22).

COLLOQUY AT THE FOOT OF THE CRUCIFIX

Address yourself to Jesus Christ crucified present before you. Ask of your God why He has deigned to become incarnate, to suffer, to die for you. Ask yourself what you have done for Him up to this time that deserves mentioning; what you will do, and what you ought to do, for Him for the future. Fix your eyes upon the cross, and say to Him all that your heart suggests.

Pater. Ave.

Second Exercise on Sin / On Our Own Sins

Preparatory prayer.

First prelude. Present yourself before God in the state of a criminal who appears before His tribunal and is going to hear his sentence.

Second prelude. “I groan in Thy sight as one guilty; shame hath covered my face, because of my sin; spare me, a suppliant, O my God.”

First Point / Recall all the sins of your life

Sins of infancy, sins of early youth, sins of more mature age. Examine all your years; what day was there that had not its sin? Question the different places you have inhabited, the societies, the employments, all the scenes of your pleasures; where do you not meet with memories of sin? Ask all the laws of God; is there a single one that you have not transgressed? Ask all your past temptations; are there many before which you have not fallen? Ask all your faculties; which is there that has not been guilty? Ask all your senses; which is there that has not served as an instrument of iniquity?

Second Point / Consider the malice of all these sins in themselves

  1. What deformity! They must be ugliness itself, since they are infinitely opposed to supreme beauty, which is God.

  2. What ingratitude! You hold all from God and yet you dare to say to Him, “Go from me: withdraw Thyself from my senses, which only live by Thy power; retire from my heart, which has received feeling only to love Thee; withdraw from all my being, which I only received to serve Thee.”

  3. What audacity! You have dared to say to God, “I will not serve, I will not obey”; and you have said it to God in face of Himself, on the borders of the grave, on the brink of hell, where He holds you suspended by a slender thread called life.

  4. What folly! You have left God, God your Father, God your supreme beatitude; and for what? For a perfidious master, for a cruel tyrant, for Satan.

  5. What malice! You have sinned, and it was with so much eagerness and passion, with so much reflection and liberty, with so much show and scandal. And you have remained at rest in your sin, notwithstanding so many lights, so many solicitations of grace; notwithstanding the voice of conscience and remorse.

Third Point / Consider what you are that have thus offended God

What are all the angels before God? What are all men compared to the angels? What am I in comparison with the whole human race? What a leaf is in an immense forest, a drop of water in a stream, a grain of sand on the shores of the ocean, an atom in the immensity of the universe! And it is I, vile and worthless dust, that have not feared to declare myself a rebel against God!

Fourth Point / Consider what this God is that you have offended

Against whom, my God, have I rebelled when I committed sin? I, weakness itself rebelled against strength! I, baseness itself, rebelled against sovereign greatness! I, malice itself, rebelled against sovereign goodness! I, who am only corruption and darkness, rebelled against essential wisdom and holiness! I, a nothing, rebelled against the Being of beings!

Fifth Point / Conclude by addressing God and creatures

Be astonished that, after so many iniquities, creatures have not armed themselves against you, that they continue to serve you when you never ceased to insult their God and yours.

Be astonished that God has not withdrawn His gifts, that He has left you this fortune, this credit, these talents, this mind, this heart, this life, which you abuse to offend Him. Then ask pardon of all the perfections of God that you have offended: “Pardon, O justice of my God, for having so long braved your thunders! Pardon, O holiness of God, for having so long sullied by my crimes your purity! Pardon, O mercy of my God, for having so long forgotten your voice!”

COLLOQUY

Give thanks to the mercy of God, and protest at the feet of Jesus Christ that you will never more offend Him.

Pater. Ave.

Third Exercise on Sin / Of the Infinite Malice of Mortal Sin

Preparatory prayer. and preludes. As before.

First Consideration / God offended by man

Consider attentively—

  1. The greatness of God who has been offended. What is God? Who is like to Him in greatness, in power, in holiness, in justice, in wisdom, in goodness? Who is like to God? His age is eternity, His empire everything that exists, His palace the light, His garments beauty and glory, His subjects and ministers the angels. And this is He whom the sinner dares to offend!

  2. The nothingness of the sinner. What is man? Flesh full of pollution, dried grass ready to fall under the scythe, a leaf the sport of the winds, a vapor scarce formed and already dispersed in the air, a little dust and ashes. And it is this man who dares to say to God, “I will not obey.” “Thou hast lifted thyself up against the Lord of heaven, and said, I will not serve” (Dan. 5:23; Jer. 2:20).

  3. The matter of the sin. A law of God transgressed; a law infinitely delightful, infinitely wise, the accomplishment of which was so easy, to which were attached such consoling promises and such terrible threats.

  4. The motive of the sin. To whom have you compared Me? Says the Lord: “To whom have you likened Me?” (Is. 46:5). To a passion at which you blush; to some low interest, to a pleasure that passes so quickly: “Be astonished at this. They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living water, and have digged to themselves cisterns, broken cisterns” (Jer. 2:12, 13).

Second Consideration / God offended by man and offended in all His attributes

What is it you do when you are so unhappy as to commit mortal sin? By a single sin you outrage God in all His titles and in all His perfections. You outrage God the Father. You profane the supernatural being He gave you in holy baptism. You outrage the Word incarnate; you break the bonds that unite you to Him; you renew His passion in your heart; you render His blood and death useless. You outrage the Holy Ghost—you grieve, you resist Him, you extinguish Him within you.

You outrage God in all His titles. As Creator, in rebelling against His supreme dominion; as Legislator, as Redeemer, as your Friend, as your King, as your Father.

You outrage God in all His perfections. In His unity: you adore as many gods as you have passions. In His infinite perfection: you prefer a vile creature before Him. In His wisdom: you overthrow the order He has established, in turning creatures away from their end. In His immensity: you do not blush to sin in His presence, under His eyes. In His justice, which you brave. In His mercy, which only encourages you in your impenitence. In a word, you become guilty of deicide!

Third Consideration / God offended by man in spite of so many motives to urge him not to offend

How many motives there are that ought to engage you to remain obedient to God!

  1. Your respect for your fellow creatures. You are so numbly submissive before a sovereign, a protector, a powerful enemy. How is it that you are bold only against God, the first of sovereigns?

  2. What you exact from others. You are so tenacious of your authority, your honor, your rights, your sentiments, your will. How is it, then, that you have so little respect for the authority, the honor, the rights of God?

  3. The sacrifices you make for the world. When the world speaks, do you not obey at any price—at the price of your repose, of your pleasures, of your liberty, sometimes even of your life? Why is it that, when the Lord commands, He is not obeyed in this manner? Why is it that then alone sacrifices are painful and appear impossible?

  4. Your vows to God. You glory in respecting your pledged word; you would rather die than fail in your sworn faith. But has not God received your vows a thousand times—in baptism, at the sacred tribunal, at the holy table? Or is it that the oath that has such strength to bind man to man has none to bind man to God?

  5. The benefits received from God. You hold all from God—talents, fortune, life. You can only sin by means of His benefits. What ingratitude, then, not only to forget such a benefactor, but also to render Him evil for good! To make use of His gifts to insult Him! To force Him to act against Himself and to turn against His glory His own goodness and His own power, which preserve you!

COLLOQUY

Place yourself at the foot of the crucifix, as a rebel subject, as a perjured friend, as a parricide son; and humbly ask of Our Lord the pardon of your sins.

Anima Christi. Pater. Ave.

Fourth Exercise on Sin / On the Effects of Mortal Sin in the Soul of the Sinner

Preparatory prayer.

First prelude. Present yourself before God as a criminal loaded with chains, taken from a dungeon and led to the tribunal of his judge.

Second prelude. Beg of Our Lord that He will deign to show you the sad state of a soul that has mortally sinned.

First Consideration / Mortal sin makes us lose the friendship of God

When you were in a state of grace God dwelt in your soul; the most august bonds united you to Him; He called you His people, His friend, His child, another self. But what a change since mortal sin has entered into your soul! God has withdrawn Himself from you; the ties that united you to Him have been broken; and with His friendship what have you not lost!

Second Consideration / Mortal sin robs us of all the gifts of Grace

  1. It destroys the beauty of the soul. Before sin, this soul was so beautiful a sight that it delighted the heart of God; since its sin, it is as if disfigured by a hideous leprosy, which makes it an object of horror to the Lord and His angels.

  2. It deprives the soul of all its merit: alms, prayer, sacrifices, good works; one single mortal sin suffices to destroy all.

  3. It deprives the soul even of the power of meriting. As long as you are in a state of mortal sin, all your good works are useless for heaven. Bestow your goods in alms; embrace the most rigorous austerities; convert the universe, if possible; give your body to the flames—St. Paul assures you that all this is useless for salvation if there is a single mortal sin in your heart: “If I have not charity, I am nothing” (1 Cor. 13:2).

Third Consideration / Mortal sin enslaves our liberty

Are you in the grace of God? You are free: “Where the spirit of the Lord is there is liberty” (2 Cor. 3:17); the sweetest liberty, the most honorable, the only one that human power cannot take away. But have you had the misfortune to sin mortally? You are a slave: “Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin” ( John 8:34). All in you is enslaved—the faculties of your soul, your senses, your talents, your fortune. The devil deals with you as the centurion in the Gospel with his servants: “I say to one, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it” (Luke 7:8). He cries to you incessantly, “Bring, bring” (Prov. 30:15). Again this passion, again this sin; and always he is obeyed. What degrading slavery!

Fourth Consideration / Mortal sin deprives us of peace of heart

The sinner carries with him everywhere a trembling heart and a soul a prey to trouble and grief. Remorse is as a barbed arrow in his heart, as a gnawing worm; his conscience always pursues him; sometimes in the midst of the most serious cares, like David; sometimes in the midst of pleasure, like Baltassar; sometimes in the pains of sickness, like Antiochus; almost always in the silence of solitude, like Cain. Sometimes it reproaches him with a pleasure bought at the price of a long repentance; sometimes it recalls his ingratitude, the malice of his sin; sometimes it represents to him the sword of God’s justice suspended over his head. O sinner, how much you are to be pitied, if conscience pursues you in this manner! But how much more if it leaves you at rest! For the peace of a guilty conscience is the sure sign of the great wrath of God.

Fifth Consideration / Mortal sin kills the soul

The soul is the life of the body, and God is the life of the soul. Sin, then, kills the soul in separating it from God. And what difference is there between a corpse and a soul in mortal sin? The dead no longer see. Everything ought to strike the eyes of the sinner—the state of his soul, death that approaches, judgment, hell; and he sees nothing. The dead no longer hear. Everything speaks to the sinner—conscience, grace, events, ministers of religion; and he hears nothing. The dead are insensible. God moves heaven and earth to touch the sinner, and the sinner remains insensible. The dead exhale an infectious odor; in like manner, the sinner spreads death around him by the contagion of his scandals. O fatal death! Who will give us tears to weep over thee?

Affections at the foot of the crucifix.

Pater. Ave.

Exercise on Hell

Preparatory prayer.

First prelude. Represent to yourself in imagination the length, the width, the depth of hell.

Second prelude. Ask of God a lively fear of the pains of hell, so that if ever you have the misfortune to lose the feeling of Divine love, at least the fear of torments may deter you from sin.

CONSIDERATIONS

  1. The habitation of the damned. It is hell. But what is hell? The Holy Ghost calls it the place of torment; a region of misery and darkness, where disorder dwells; the lake of the anger of God; a burning furnace; the depths of the abyss; the winepress of the fury of the Almighty, under which God will trample and crush His enemies.

  2. The society of the damned. In hell, a triple society will form the torment of the damned soul. (1) The society of his body, which will unite to the infectious corruption of a corpse all the sensibility of a living body, and of which all the members have their torment and their pain. (2) The company of devils, whose sole occupation is to torture the damned; who, not being able to revenge themselves on God for their reprobation, revenge themselves on man, His image, and pursue Him in the condemned with all the fury that can enter the heart of a demon. (3) The society of an infinite number of reprobates like himself. Represent to yourself this assembly, so hideous that nothing like it can be found in the dungeons and galleys of human justice; represent to yourself these miserable creatures bound together like a bundle of thorns, or like a heap of tow thrown into the flames, accusing, cursing themselves, tearing one another.

  3. The torment of the damned in the powers of his soul. His imagination, which represents to him with irresistible clearness the delights of his past life on earth; the horror of his present sufferings in hell; the eternity of his future sufferings; the happiness of the elect of which he might have partaken and that he has lost forever. His memory, which recalls all his sins, all the graces he received in time, all the warnings that were given him during his life. His understanding, which incessantly shows him the deformity of sin, the greatness and beauty of God, the justice of the punishments of hell. His will, torn at the same time by regret, remorse, jealousy, desire, hatred of God and of himself.

  4. The torment of the damned in all his senses. Torment of sight: the flames, the devils, the damned, his companions in torture, the cross of Jesus Christ imprinted on the roof of hell. Torment of hearing: blasphemies, imprecations, reproaches, cries of rage calling on death and annihilation. Torment of the smell: the infection exhaled from so many bodies, which preserve in hell all the corruption of the tomb. Torment of taste: a maddening hunger, the violence of which will force the damned to devour his own flesh; a devouring thirst, and for refreshment worm-wood and gall. Torment of the touch: this fire, which surrounds the damned like a vestment, and penetrates all his members—fire lighted by the breath of God Himself; fire that preserves its victim, and at the same time every moment exhausts and renews his sensibility, so as to render his pain eternal; fire armed with all the attributes of God to avenge them on the damned; fire that identifies itself with the damned, which boils in his veins, escapes and enters at every pore, which makes his body but one burning coal in the midst of the furnaces of hell.

  5. The torment of eternity. “Always,” “Never.” Always regrets and despair, always the company of devils, always flames; never any end, never any interruption, never any remission of the pains and tortures. “Which of you can dwell with devouring fire? which of you shall dwell with everlasting burnings?” (Is. 23:14).

COLLOQUY

Address yourself to Jesus Christ; recall at His feet, that the causes for which these men are damned are either for having refused to believe in His coming or for not having obeyed His precepts. It is the crime of men damned before His coming on earth, of those who lived in His time and of those who came into the world after Him. Then attach yourself to Him forever in mind and heart, that He may save you from eternal death. Finish by returning Him the most lively thanks that He has not permitted you to fall into this terrible abyss but that He pursues you even to this day, not by His vengeance, but by His immense goodness and infinite mercy.

Pater. Ave.

First Exercise on Death

Preparatory prayer.

First prelude. Transport yourself in thought to the bedside of a dying person, or beside a grave ready to receive a coffin or into the middle of a cemetery.

Second prelude. Ask of Our Lord a salutary fear of death and the grace to be prepared for it every day.

  1. What is it to die? It is to bid adieu to everything in this world—to fortune, pleasures, friends, family; a sad adieu, heart-rendering, irrevocable. It is to leave my house, to be thrown into a deep narrow pit, without any garment but a shroud, without any society but reptiles and worms. It is to pass to the most humiliating state, the nearest to nothingness, where I shall become the prey of corruption, where I shall fall to pieces, where I shall decompose into an infectious putrefaction. It is for my soul to enter in the twinkling of an eye into an unknown region called eternity, where I shall go to hear from the mouth of God in what place I am to make that great retreat that will last forever, whether it be in heaven or in the depths of hell.

  2. Must I die? Most certainly. And what assures me of it? Reason, faith, experience. Yes; notwithstanding all precautions, all cares, all the efforts of physicians, I shall die. Where are those who preceded me in life? In the grave, in eternity. And from this grave, from this eternity, they cry to me, “Yesterday for me, and to-day for thee” (Ecclus. 38:23).

  3. Shall I die soon? Yes. Why? Because ever since my birth I have been only dying. An action continued without interruption is soon accomplished. All other actions have some cessation; business, study, pleasure, sleep—all these have intervals; death is the only action never interrupted. How can I be long dying when I have been dying ever since I was born and every moment of the day and night? Where is now that portion of my life that death has already taken from me? As death has taken the past from me, so it will take the future; with the same rapidity, with the rapidity of lightning.

  4. When shall I die? At what age? In old age? In mature age? Will it be after a long illness? Will it be from a fall, from a fire, beneath the knife of an assassin? In what place? In my own house or in a strange house? At table, at play, at the theatre, at church, in my bed, on a scaffold? What day shall I die? Will it be this year? this week? Tomorrow? Today? In what state shall I die? Will it be in a state of grace, or in that of sin? To all these questions, Jesus Christ answers me, “Watch; for ye know not the day nor the hour” (Matt. 25:13).

  5. How often shall I die? Once only; therefore, any error in this great action is irreparable. The misfortune of a bad death is an eternal misfortune. And on what does this bad death depend? On a single instant. It only requires a moment to offend the Lord mortally. It, then, only requires a moment to decide my eternity. If I had died this year, on such a day, such an hour of my life, when I was the enemy of God, where should I be now?

AFFECTIONS

Fear; desire; resolution.

COLLOQUY

Represent to yourself Our Lord dying on the cross, and recommend the hour of your death to Him.

Pater. Ave.

Second Exercise on Death

First Contemplation / Your agony

Preparatory prayer.

First and second preludes. The same as in the preceding.

APPLICATION OF THE SENSES

  1. Application of the sight. Contemplate: (1) Your apartment dimly lighted by the feeble gleam of a lamp; all the objects that surround you and seem to say, “You are leaving us, and forever.” (2) The persons who surround you—your servants, your family, the minister of Jesus Christ. (3) Yourself laid on a bed of pain, and violently struggling against death. (4) At your side, devils and holy angels, who dispute for your soul.

  2. Application of the hearing. Listen to the noise of your painfully interrupted breathing, to the stifled sobs of the assistants, to the prayers of the Church recited in the midst of tears: “From an evil death, from the pains of hell, from the snares of the devil, deliver him, O Lord.” “Depart, Christian soul, in the name of God the Father Almighty, who created thee; of Jesus Christ, who suffered for thee; of the Holy Ghost, who sanctified thee.” The holy words that the priest suggests to you: “Lord Jesus, receive my soul; Mary, mother of grace, mother of mercy,” and so on.

  3. Application of the taste. Represent to yourself all the bitterness of the agony of a dying man. For the present—what bitterness in this separation from your possessions, your family, your body; in the weariness, the fears that precede the last sigh! For the past; what bitterness in the memory of your infidelities, of your resistance to grace! For the future—what bitterness in the thought of the judgment you are about to undergo!

  4. Application of the touch. Imagine yourself holding between your hands the crucifix that the priest presents to you. Touch your own body on the point of dissolution; those icy feet, those rigid arms, that chest laboring painfully with interrupted respiration, that heart beating with an almost imperceptible movement. It is in this state that your relations and friends will see you before very long. Make now on yourself the reflections that your agony will soon inspire in those who witness it.

End by a colloquy with our dying Lord: “Into Thy hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit.”

Second Contemplation / Your state after death

Preparatory prayer.

Preludes. The same.

  1. Application of the sight. Consider, (1) Some moments after your death: your corpse wrapped in a shroud; at your side the crucifix, the holy water, relations and friends; a priest praying for you; the public officer writing in a registry of deaths the day, the hour of your decease; the servants occupied with the preparations for your funeral. (2) The day after your death: your inanimate body in the coffin, taken from your apartment, laid at the foot of the altar; then taken to its last home, the grave. (3) Sometime after your death: contemplate that stone already blackened by time and under this stone the sad state of your body; the putrefied flesh, the separated limbs, the bones consumed by the corruption of the grave.

  2. Application of the hearing. Again, go over the different scenes where you yourself are the spectacle: the dismal sound of the bells asking prayers for you, the prayers recited at the foot of your deathbed, “De profundis clamavi”; the discourse of the servants, who speak freely of you; the friends and relations, who communicate to each other their reflections on your loss; the attendants called in to arrange your funeral; the chants of the Church during the funeral ceremony: “Deliver me, O Lord, from eternal death in that dreadful day, when the heavens and the earth shall tremble; when Thou shalt come to judgment—a day of wrath, calamity and misery—that great and bitter day”; the conversation of the persons attending your funeral; what is said of you in society after your death.

  3. Application of the smell and the touch. Imagine that you respire the odor that your body exhales after your soul has abandoned it—the infection it would spread if taken from the coffin a few months after your death. Imagine that you touch the damp earth where you have been laid, the shroud in rags, the bare skull, the separated limbs, the mass of corruption enclosed in a grave, after a few months the sight alone of which is horrible.

In the presence of this sad scene, ask yourself what the world is, and what is life? “Vanity of vanities, and all is vanity” (Eccles. 1:2). End by a colloquy with Our Lord dying: “Into Thy hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit.”

Pater. Ave.

Exercise on the Particular Judgment

Preparatory prayer.

First prelude. Represent to yourself the tribunal of Jesus Christ and your soul led to the presence of its Judge to give an account of all its works.

Second prelude. “Remember, O most loving Jesu, that for me Thou didst humble Thyself to this mortal life. Let me not be lost, I beseech Thee, on that great day.”

CONSIDERATIONS

  1. The time and the place of the judgment. The time will be the moment you render your last sigh. Represent to yourself your relatives and your friends around your deathbed, examining your lips, your heart, to discover a breath, a throb, which may still betoken life. While they are yet asking whether you belong to time or to eternity, you are already before the tribunal of your Judge. And where is this tribunal? In the very place where you have just expired, beside your deathbed, in presence of those who surround your inanimate remains and who assist at this terrible scene without desiring it and probably without thinking of it.

  2. The accused. It is your soul; but your soul alone with its works; your soul suddenly enlightened on all its obligations; on all the graces it has received, on all the iniquities it has committed; your soul in presence of its God, without power to escape this formidable sight. What a situation! A worldly soul in presence of that God it has never loved—a voluptuous soul in presence of that God thrice holy, who has witnessed its disorders and who is about to punish them!

  3. The accusers. Satan, who recalls your baptismal vows so often renewed, so often broken; the holy angels; your guardian angel, who reproaches you with his inspirations that you rejected; the angels entrusted with the souls of your brethren, who reproach you with your scandals; the angels who watch over the holy altars, and who reproach you with that indifference that kept you away from the holy table; your conscience, which places before your eyes all your past life, produces all your works, which cry out, “Dost thou recognize us? We are thy works.”

  4. The Judge. It is Jesus Christ who is your judge, Jesus Christ once your father, your spouse, your friend, your brother; but who now is your judge only—a judge infinitely holy, a judge infinitely clear-sighted, a judge infinitely just, a judge without appeal, a judge all powerful. What have you not to fear from His justice! “What shall I do when God shall rise to judge?” ( Job 31:14).

  5. Your defense at the tribunal of God. If you present yourself before the tribunal of Jesus Christ in mortal sin, what will you reply to the accusations brought against you? Will you excuse yourself by your ignorance? But you had the lights of conscience and of faith; on your weakness? But you had grace; on your temptations? But you had prayer and the Sacraments; on the scandals that have led you astray? But you had so many holy examples to instruct you. Leaving excuses, will you have recourse to the inter-cession of holy Mary and of the saints? They can no longer do anything for you; to the mercy of Jesus Christ? He is henceforward the God of justice, and no longer the God of clemency: “My eyes shall not spare them, neither will I show mercy” (Ezech. 8:18).

  6. The sentence. To the just will be said: “Come, O ye blessed of My Father, and possess the kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the world” (Matt. 22:34). But to the sinner will be said: “Begone, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels” (Ibid., 41). Be gone! That is, every tie between us is broken; go far from Me, unnatural child; I am no longer thy father—go far from Me, wandering sheep, I am no longer thy pastor; thou art cursed in thy senses, which shall each have its torment—in thy understanding, in thy heart, in all thy being. Be gone into everlasting fire, to that fire where thy only dwelling shall be a furnace, thy food flames—to that fire that shall last as long as I am God; be gone to the fire prepared for Satan and his angels. I take heaven and earth to witness that it was not prepared for thee. I protest that I have done everything to save thee from this eternal fire; but since thou wouldst not profit by My grace and friendship, be gone from Me, and be gone for all eternity.

Affections. Fear; desire; resolution.

COLLOQUIES

  1. At the feet of Jesus Christ crucified: “O most just Judge, grant me, I beseech Thee, the gift of pardon before that great day of reckoning. Behold, I groan in Thy sight as a guilty sinner; shame covereth my face because of my iniquities. Spare me, O God, crying to Thee for mercy.”

  2. At the feet of an image of Mary: “O Mary, at once the Mother of God and the Mother of the sinner, Mother of the Judge and of the criminal; let not God your Son condemn your son the sinner.”

Pater. Ave.

Exercise on the Prodigal Son

Preparatory prayer.

First prelude. Represent to yourself the prodigal son returning to his father after long wanderings.

Second prelude. Ask of Our Lord the grace to imitate the repentance of the prodigal and like him to obtain pardon for the past.

PARABLE OF THE PRODIGAL

“A certain man,” and so on (Luke 15:11–24).

First Point / The wandering of the prodigal

Consider all the circumstances.

  1. He is young. The passions of youth, that is, love of pleasure, independence; these are the causes of his wandering. Have not yours arisen from the same cause?

  2. He asks of his father his portion of the inheritance. What ingratitude, what injustice, what temerity, in this conduct of the prodigal! Is not all this to be found in the steps that have led you from your God?

  3. He goes into a distant country. An image this of your wandering when you gave yourself to the world. Is it not true that you have fled as far from yourself and from God as possible, for fear that grace should find you and restore you to your heavenly Father in spite of yourself?

  4. Away from his father, the prodigal squanders all his fortune. And you, away from God, what treasures of grace have you not wasted! Recall all these losses, and weep over them with tears of blood—loss of the friendship of God, loss of your past merits, loss of your Christian education, of your inclinations so favorable to piety, of that taste for virtue, of that delicacy of conscience, of that uprightness of heart—loss of those talents prostituted to your passions—loss of reason—perhaps of faith. Oh, what a fatal use of the gifts of God!

  5. The prodigal is soon reduced to want in a country desolated by famine. Obliged to place himself in the service of a hard master; condemned to take care of filthy animals; to envy, without obtaining, their degrading food.

Behold the fruits of sin:

(1) Indulgence. The world in this country is a prey to a cruel famine. This hunger is the devouring hunger of the passions, which cry incessantly, “Bring, bring” (Prov. 30:15). And this want is the deep craving of a soul tormented by the desire of happiness, and finding in creatures only endless regrets, disgust and sorrow. (2) Slavery. Like the prodigal, the sinner is a slave, not of one master alone, but of numberless tyrants—of the devil, of the world, of his own inclinations and habits. (3) Degradation. There is no pleasure, however base, from which a soul separated from God will not seek happiness. It will even envy the most disgraceful sinners their most shameful excesses; sometimes even envy the condition of the brutes, so as to desire to have like them no law but instinct, no other destiny than the satisfaction of his senses: “Man when he was in honour did not understand; he hath been compared to senseless beasts, and made like to them” (Ps. 48:21).

Second Point / The return of the prodigal

  1. The prodigal, deserted by the world, returns to himself. He begins to reflect on his sins and his misfortunes. What subjects of reflection does he not find within himself! O God, what have I gained by forsaking Thee? What repose, what happiness, have I found in the world? Was it necessary to sacrifice Thy friendship, peace of conscience, my eternity, for pleasures so transient, so empty, so degrading?

  2. The prodigal compares his state with that of his father’s servants and envies them their happiness. Faithless soul, what a difference between your state and that of the servants of God! What peace, what joy in their hearts! In yours what troubles, what bitterness!

  3. The prodigal takes a courageous resolution. “I will arise,” said he, “and I will go to my father.” He does not stop at words and desires; he does not defer his return; he does not draw back, either before the rail-lery of the world or the sacrifice of his attachments. What an example of solid conversion!

  4. The prodigal hopes, by the acknowledgment of his faults, to regain his father’s favor. Let this be also the first step in your conversion. Cast yourself at the feet of Jesus Christ, present in the person of the priest and say to Him, “Father, I have sinned against Heaven and before Thee. I am no longer worthy to be called Thy child; too happy if Thou wilt deign to receive me among Thy servants.”

Consider the welcome the prodigal receives from his father.

  1. His father sees him afar off and is immediately moved with compassion. Thus, at the first feelings of repentance that arise in the sinner’s heart, God is moved with pity; He forgets his past ingratitude; He only sees his misfortunes and his sorrow.

  2. The father of the prodigal fell upon his neck and embraced him. Recognize in these facts the goodness of God when, abandoned by creatures, we return to Him. Did not God owe it to His glory, His holiness, His justice, to reject us? And yet he meets us; He offers us pardon; He embraces us and presses us to His sacred heart.

  3. The father of the prodigal orders him to be immediately reestablished in all the prerogatives of his rank. So the Lord treats the sinner that returns to Him. With His friendship He restores to him all he had forfeited by sin—innocence, peace, merits, right to heaven, all his dignity as a man and as a Christian.

  4. Finally, the father of the prodigal orders a splendid feast to celebrate the return of his son and invites all his household to take part in the joy of this feast. So our Heavenly Father celebrates the return of the sinner by a solemn festival, in which He gives him His own body. He invites the angels to rejoice in his spiritual resurrection. He wills that the day of his conversion should be a day of gladness and feasting for all His family, that is, the Church. After this, why do we delay returning to the arms and the heart of this good Father?

COLLOQUY

Throw yourself at the feet of Jesus Christ, like the prodigal at his father’s feet, and promise never more to forsake Him.

Anima Christi.

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