Volume III, Treatise VII, Chapter III

To Lay Open Our Hearts to Our Superior or Ghostly Father, Ts A@ Most Excellent Remedy Against Temptations

I HAVE already said that it was the general opinion of all the saints, and a sort of first principle amongst the ancient fathers, that all temptations ought to be discovered to superiors, and St. Ignatius recommends it to us in his constitutions. But that this truth may be more deeply imprinted in our heart, let us reflect a moment on the reason why all so strongly insist upon this point. ‘The reason, says Cassian, is, that the Devil cannot deceive you by his craft as he does an ignorant man, if you know how to have recourse to the experience and wisdom of your spiritual father, and if you guide yourself by his knowledge. For then he.will not have to contend with a new and inexperienced, but with an old soldier, who has been brought up all his life in this spiritual warfare; because, whatever experience or abilities your spiritual father has, he communicates to you as soon as you entirely subject yourself to his direction. And it is after this manner, says he, that we gain the true spirit of discretion and prudence, on which St. Anthony set so high value. For one day, says ‘Cassian, when this great saint was in conference with other holy fathers of the desert, they disputed which virtue was most conducive to perfection. One said it was chastity, because it kept sensuality subject to reason; another said it was justice; and, ina word, every one gave his opinion of what he thought best. When St. Anthony had heard them all, he decided the question, telling them that the most necessary virtues to acquire perfection, and which contributed most to it, were discretion and prudence; because, if these two do not regulate all the actions of virtue we perform, they are not properly acts of virtue, nor can they be pleasing to God. Now, would you know, adds Cassian, a short and easy means to acquire this virtue? Communicate all your thoughts to your superior, and guide yourself in 3 things by his advice, and by this means all the prudence of your superior will pass into yourself. St. Bernard affirms this in express terms:, ‘“‘ Because the spirit of discretion”, says he, “is a thing rare found in the world, therefore make obedience supply the defect of this virtue in you; so that you do nothing, either small or great, but what is commanded you, nor after any other manner than you are commanded to perform it, and you will supply the defect of that experience you stand so much in need of”—Serm. iv. de Circumcis.

It is upon this account that the saints earnestly recommend unto us presently to discover our temptations, and it is for the same reason that the Devil, who desires nothing more than to destroy us, hinders us as much as he can from declaring them. St. Dorotheus says, that nothing pleases the Devil more than to meet with one that will not discover his temptations; for then, since he fights with him hand to hand, he is sure of the victory, according to the words of Scripture, “‘ Wo to him who is alone; because, if he comes to fall, there is no one to help him up”— Ecel., iv. 10. On the contrary, adds the saint, there is nothing — the Devil fears so much, and which gives him so much pain, as to see himself discovered. For then he loses all courage and hopes of gaining the victory, and therefore betakes himself to flight. St. Ignatius, the better to elucidate this matter, makes use of the following comparison: he says, that when the Devil tempts us, he deals with us as a man does who solicits to evil a young woman who has prudent parents, or a married woman who has an honest man to her husband. The first thing this young man does is to hinder the young woman from saying anything to her father or mother, or the wife to her husband, and fears nothing more than to be discovered, because then all hopes of effecting his wicked designs are lost; whereas, so long as they keep it secret, he thinks he has still ground to hope. It is thus, continues our holy founder, that when the Devil would deceive any one, the first thing he does is to hinder him from discovering his temptations to any body; because, as long as they are concealed, he is as it were sure to overcome and to obtain what he desires. But, on the contrary, what he apprehends most from those he tempts is their going presently and discovering the temptations to their superior or confessor. For since it is rather by craft than force that he defeats us, he looks upon himself as overcome as soon as he sees his craft discovered. “Whosoever does ill”, says the evangelist, “hates the light” (John 3:20) And, moreover, it is proper to those who make it their business to deceive others to dread the light more than anything else, and to avoid it as much as they can.

St. Dorotheus relates (tn Vitis Patr. de S. Mach. 26) on this head what happened to St. Macarius, and which helps much to our purpose. He says, that this saint, who had been a disciple of the great St. Anthony, and to whom God had given a great power over the spirits of darkness, asked a Devil one day what success he had with the hermits. The Devil answered that he succeeded very ill, because he could suggest nothing to them but they presently discovered to their superior. ‘ But there is, notwithstanding, one of your brethren”, adds he, “who is very much my friend, and whom I turn like a top which way I please”; and being hereupon constrained to it by the power of God, he declared the hermit’s name. St. Macarius went presently to find him out; and, understanding by the conversation he had with him, that he discovered not his temptations to his ghostly father, and that he conducted himself only by his own lights, he exhorted him to dv so no more for the future, nor to confide hereafter to his own judgment. The hermit received this advice with very great submission, and profited so well by it, that a little while after, the saint asking the Devil how it went with his friend the hermit, he is no more my friend, says he, in a rage and despair, he is become my mortal enemy. And here it is to be observed, says St. Dorotheus, that all the hermits who lived under St. Macarius were tempted; but because they took care to give an account of all their temptations to their spiritual father, and governed themselves by his advice, the Devil tempted them in vain; for he could effect nothing against any of them, but only against him who, relying upon his own judgment, would not discover his interior to his ghostly father, and yet, as soon as he did so, the Devil had no more power over him. Cassian says, that he who is not reserved with his ghostly father is entirely secure from all the snares and surprises of the Devil; and he applies to this subject these words of the wise man: “If thou discoverest his secrets, thou wilt no longer follow him” (Ecclesiasticus 27:19); and these others also, “if the serpent bites thee without noise”—Lccl., x. 11. God preserve you, says he, from being bitten by a silent serpent; for, whilst he hisses and makes a noise so that the enchanter can hear him, there is some remedy to be hoped for; but God grant the old serpent, the Devil, does not silently bite you, for so long as your ghostly father hears him, he will be able to enchant him with the words of holy Scripture, and thereby preserve you from every danger.

But there is still another advantage, which is, that this re- -course to our ghostly father in time of temptations is so pleasing to God, that oftentimes by this submission alone and by this sign only of humility, without even receiving any counsel or answer from him to whom we address ourselves, we shall free ourselves from the temptation that molests us. This is the opinion of Cassian, who says, “the suggestions of the Devil are no longer hurtful to us than whilst we hide them; for az soon as we come to discover them they lose all their force, and before the prudence of our superior has decided anything, the infernal serpent is constrained, by virtue of this humility and sincerity, to quit the obscurity in which he had hid himself, and to retire with shame. Just as when there is a serpent or adder under a stone, you make him fly as soon as you lift the stone up; so the Devil, who is the father of darkness and cannot endure light, flies away as soon as you expose him to the sight of others”— Collot. ii. Ab. Moys., c. 10. Add to this, that as he is the father of pride, he cannot bear to have his weakness and want of power known; and, therefore, as soon as he is discovered, he shamefully flies away.

Moreover, we may here make a reflection that is very appli« cable to our subject.: If the diseases of the body could be cured by barely discovering them to the physician, what care should we not take to give him an account even of the least infirmity we suffer! But this, which cannot happen in corporal diseases, happens and is daily experienced in those of the soul; because, as I have already said, as soon as we discover them to our superior, and even before he has said anything about what we propose to him, we are delivered from the temptation. Nay, give me leave to say yet more, we often find this effect even by the resolution only of discovering it to our ghostly father. For, going to give him an account of it even before you can get to his chamber door, you will find that God has dispersed the cloud, delivered. you from the temptation, and restored peace and tranquillity to your soul.

We have an example of this in the lives of the fathers of the desert. An hermit had fasted above a year together to obtain light and direction from God about a doubt he had, and offered continually his prayers to God for this end; but at last perceiving that he received no light at all herein, he resolved to go and consult another hermit that lived in theé same desert. He was scarce gone out of his cell to execute his design, but an | angel appeared to him and clearly solved his difficulty, and added that he had merited this grace rather by his humility and submission, than by his fasts and prayers. The gospel also furnishes us with an example of the same nature, in the person of the ten lepers who came to Jesus Christ, crying out, “Master, have mercy upon us! Go”, says our Saviour, “and show yourself to the priest, and it happened”, says the evangelist,. “that whilst they were upon their way they were all cured” (Luke 17:13) God is so satisfied with our submission to those who hold his place, that he even declares it by miracles. It way likewise happen, that even by threatening the Devil that you will discover those temptations he torments you with, you may make him afraid, and oblige him to leave you in peace; so that it is always very good in these occasions to act like little children, who, when you do them any hurt, threaten to tell their father.

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