Volume I, Treatise II, Chapter VIII

Of How Great Importance It Is to a Religious not to Relax in the Way of Virtue

By all we have said, it is easy to comprehend of how great consequence to a religious it is to walk always with fervour in, the exercise of religion, and never to slacken or relent therein: because afterwards it will be very hard for him to resume his first perfection; and to effect it, he will even stand in need of a sort of miracle. St. Bernard treats this point perfectly well, writing to Richard the abbot of Fontaines and his religious, in whom God had wrought this wonder, that having led a very tepid and loose sort of life, they afterwards embraced a fervent and most perfect one; so that the saint seems astonished and rejoices very much at their change, and congratulating with them on it, he says: “Here is truly the finger of God. Who will make way for me to come to you, to behold, like another Moses, this great and wonderful vision? For in fine, this is no less surprising, and no less pleasing than that of the burning bush. There is nothing more rare and unusual in the world than to see a religious raise himself ever so little above that degree in religion whence by tepidity he had fallen; and it is far easier to find many seculars who are entirely converted to God, after having led an irregular life, than to meet a religious that from a languishing and negligent state passes to an ardent and zealous way of living.” (Ep. 96.) The reason of this is, because seculars have not the remedies, either so present or so frequent as religious have; so that when seculars hear an affecting sermon, or when they behold one of their relations or friends die a sudden or unhappy death, this being a novelty to them strikes them the more, and the more easily rouses them to conversion, and to an entire change of life. But a religious who has such helps and remedies always present—who so often frequents the sacraments, so frequently hears spiritual exhortations, who exercises himself continually in meditating upon God and pious subjects—thinking upon death, judgment, hell, and heaven; if with all this he lives loosely and tepidly, what hopes can there be that he will ever amend his life, since he is so insensible as to hear these things, without being at all moved by them; so that what ought to rouse him, and what most affects others, makes no impression at all upon him? It is this that gave occasion to St. Austin, to pronounce this celebrated sentence:—<“Since I began to serve God,” says he, “as I have seldom seen better Christians than those who have perfected themselves in monasteries, so I have scarce found worse, than those religious who have fallen.” (Ep. ad Pleb. Hipp.) St. Bernard says, that there are very few of them who re-ascend to the same degree whence they had fallen. And it is over such as these that the prophet Jeremy weeps and laments, when he says:—“How is the gold obscured? How has it lost its colour and brightness? They who were brought up and nourished in purple, are plunged in filth and ordure.” (Lamen. iv. 1, 5.) Those upon whom God bestowed so many graces, who so frequently entertained themselves with him, whose chief desires were in heaven, have defiled themselves with the dung and filth of the earth.

There is then, commonly speaking, very little hope left for a religious, who has begun to deviate from the right way. Now this ought to make all of us tremble; because according to what I have said, what can be expected from such a one, since he grows worse by the use of such remedies as cure others? When physic works no effect upon the sick person, but on the contrary augments his disease, we look upon his condition as desperate. When a physician sees a sickly person in a fainting it, or finds a great weakness in his pulse, he is no ways alarmed, because it is not extraordinary for such things to happen to one that is weak and infirm. But when he perceives the like symptoms in a healthy and strong man, he looks upon them as very dangerous; since such an accident as this cannot proceed but from a revolution of malignant and predominant humours, which infallibly either prognosticate an approaching death, or a great and very dangerous sickness, Ifa secular falls into sin, it is not much to be wondered at, as it corresponds to the life of such a one, who perhaps confesses only once a-year, and who is continually amidst such occasions as urge him to irregularities. But when a religious, supported by the frequent use of the sacraments, by prayer and other spiritual exercises, notwithstanding all this, happens to all, it is a sign that some dangerous change and revolution have happened in his soul, that some malignant disease has attacked and even shaken the very foundation of his spiritual life, and that he has great reason to fear. I do not say, says St. Bernard, that this always happens, because I would by no means discourage you, especially if you will endeavour to rise as soon as you have fallen; for the longer you defer to do so, the greater difficulty you will feelin rising. But I say this, to the end you may not sin at all, and that you do no ways relent in your fervour. “But if any one sins, we have Jesus Christ the just, for advocate to the eternal Father.” (1 John 2:1) Wherefore let not any one lose courage, for whosoever returns truly to God with his Whole heart without doubt will oBtain mercy. If the prince of the apostles, after he had for so long a time frequented the school of Jesus Christ, and received so many favours from him, fell notwithstanding in so foul a manner as he did; and if after a sin so enormous, if after having renounced his Master and God, he was restored to so eminent a state of grace, who is there that can despair of his pardon? Have you, as St. Bernard adds, com- Mitted greater sins in the world than St, Paul, or in religion than St. Peter? If the one and the other by their repentance and penance not only merited that God should pardon them, but afterwards raise them to so sublime a degree of sanctity and glory, do you also imitate them in their penance, and thereby you will be able not only to re-ascend to the height you were on before your fall, but also to ascend to a still higher and a more complete Perfection.

About ReligiousBookshelf.com · A Supernerd Media project