INTRODUCTION TO THE DEVOUT LIFE
Francis de Sales’s counsels to Philothea: SUMMARY of PART I
English-Speaking Group: Francesco, Nathan and Albert
4 November 2013
COUNSELS AND PRACTICES SUITABLE FOR THE SOUL’S GUIDANCE FROM THE FIRST ASPIRATION AFTER A DEVOUT LIFE TO THE POINT WHEN IT ATTAINS A CONFIRMED RESOLUTION TO FOLLOW THE SAME
Chapter I: WHAT TRUE DEVOTION IS.
- The true devotion is a spiritual activity and liveliness by means of which Divine Love works in us, and causes us to work briskly and lovingly; and just as charity leads us to a general practice of all God’s Commandments, so devotion leads us to practice them readily and diligently. For this a man need to be filled with love.
- A devout life, is most acceptable to God’s Divine Majesty.
- We often have colour devotion, according to our own likings and dispositions.
(our exterior acts must correspond with interior dispositions): For example, One man sets great value on fasting, and believes himself to be leading a very devout life, so long as he fasts rigorously, although the while his heart is full of bitterness. Meanwhile all these people are conventionally called religious, but nevertheless they are on no true sense really devout. Many people dress up an exterior with the visible acts expressive of earnest devotion, and the world supposes them to be really devout and spiritual minded, while all the time they are mere lay figures, mere phantasms of devotion.
- All true and living devotion presupposes the love of God, a very real love of God,
- The difference between love and devotion is just that which exists between fire and flame; love being a spiritual fire which becomes devotion when it is fanned into a flame; and what devotion adds to the fire of love is that flame which makes it eager, energetic and diligent, not merely in obeying God’s Commandments, but in fulfilling His Divine Counsels and inspirations.
CHAPTER II: THE NATURE AND EXCELLENCE OF DEVOTION
- The holy Spirit tells us through His Saints, and our Lord has told us with His own lips, that a devout life is very sweet, very happy and very loveable.
- But the world sees nothing of that inward, heartfelt devotion which makes all the good actions pleasant and easy.
- Devotion is the real spiritual sweetness which takes away all bitterness from mortifications;
- Like a bee who gathers the juices which are bitter and turns them all to honey so the devout soul finds bitter herbs along its path of devotion, they are all turned to sweetness and pleasantness as it treads.
CHAPTER III: DEVOTION IS SUITABLE TO EVERY VOCATION AND PROFESSION.
- Each Christian has the duty to bring forth fruits of devotion according to his capacity and vocation.
- The true devotion adorns and beautifies the call.
- Both the heroes and heroines of the Old Testament and the New Testament (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, Job, Sarah… St. Joseph, Crispus, Lydia) are giving us the best example of Devout life.
CHAPTER IV: THE NEED OF A GUIDE FOR THOSE WHO WOULD ENTER UPON AND ADVANCE IN THE DEVOUT LIFE.
- Important to have a faithful friend who can guide us in our spiritual journey.
- “A faithful friend is the medicine of life, a storehouse of wisdom to us in our sorrows, trials and falls, a healing balm to stay and soothe our heart in the time of spiritual sickness, shield us from evil.
- Essential to have a hearty confidence mingled with sacred reverence.
CHAPTER V: THE FIRST STEP MUST BE PURIFYING THE SOUL.
- Need to remove all dead and superfluous works from our conscience.
- Need to put off the old man and put on the new man. Eg. St. Paul, S. Magdalene, S. Catherine of Genoa etc.
- Important to watch well that they do not imperil our courage. Like David we have to ask God continually to strengthen our heart against cowardice and discouragement.
CHAPTER VI:THE FIRST PURIFICATION, NAMELY, FROM MORTAL SIN.
- The Sacrament of penance.
- choose the best confessor – examination of conscience.
- general confession is required to steady and fix the soul, helps us to clearer selfknowledge, kindles a wholesome shame for our past life, and rouses gratitude for God’s Mercy.
CHAPTER VII: THE SECOND PURIFICATION, FROM ALL SINFUL AFFECTION.
- To live a devout life, we must clean our heart from all affections pertaining to sin.
CHAPTER VIII: HOW TO EFFECT THIS SECOND PURIFICATION.
- By acquiring a deep and hearty contrition and repentance.
- Sacraments.
CHAPTER IX: FIRST MEDITATION (Of Creation)
- It is very rare that one asks himself about his own existence: how I was created and what is the purpose of my life.
- If there is someone who created me, what am I going to do?- confession of sin and change one’s life.
- Experience of being from nothingness to be, and from to be to eternity. This is the mysterious aspect that helps one to have attitude of gratefulness, of being loved and cared for.
CHAPTER X: SECOND MEDITATION
The Second meditation is on the purpose for which we were created.
- Experience of being created from nothing, not because God needs us but because out of God’s faithfulness, and goodness, in order to share his love in this life and the life after death.
- All the human faculties are created only by God: like memory, will, sigh, imagination, speech and understanding.
- Only those experienced of God’s love can respond to Him in a way that God wants.
CHAPTER XI: THIRD MEDITATION: OF THE GIFTS
- The Third Meditation is on the gift of God. God has bestowed us the material gifts, mental gifts and the spiritual gifts in order to know Himself from our youth. Being the child of the Church Spiritual gifts are given through the sacraments.
CHAPTER XII: FOUTH MEDITATION: ON SIN
- The importance of the examination of conscience: what is our relationship with God, with oneself and with neighbors.
- How we make use of all the gifts that the Creator has given us, and how ingratitude attitude and negligent we are to those gifts. We took everything for granted.
CHAPTER XIII: ON DEATH (Prayer for the happy death?)
- This chapter reminds us that we need to keep always awake for the second coming of our Lord. - Consideration: we don’t know when, where, why and how we will die. Are we ready for these things?
- The world outside us when we are at the moment of death. At this moment, all devotion and good works will seem so precious and so sweet.
- How the people around us will think of us when we are already gone?
CHAPTER XVI: ON JUDGMENT.
-This chapter makes us to reflect on the Judgment Day. We need to consider the sentence of the good and of the bad: the blessed and the evil doers.
- Examine and judge ourselves so that we will not be examined and judged.
CHAPTER XV: OF HELL
- The greatest pain is the loss of the vision of God’s glory besides the pain of all the faculties of the body.
- The terrible and the endless night of eternity.
CHAPTER XVI: ON PARADISE
- Look at the creation on the sky: stars, moon, sun rises and sun set and yet it is still incomparable to the heaven- the bliss unspeakable, and unchangeable delights.
- It is to consider how the righteousness rejoice with a perpetual joy and unchangeable delights in the presence of God.
- They are like happy birds, hovering and singing for ever within the atmosphere of divinity, which fills them with inconceivable pleasures.
CHAPTER XVII: ON THE CHOICE UPON TO YOU BETWEEN HEAVEN AND HELL.
- Hell and heaven, both will open to receive us according to our choices.
- Consider that the choice we make in this life will last forever in the next. Any single choice, there will be always the consequences.
- Need to ponder and imitate the wonderful examples of the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the saints.
CHAPTER XVIII: HOW THE SOUL CHOOSES THE DEVOUT LIFE.
-Make use of the capacity of imagination to reflect that you are in between Devil and Jesus, try to see what are with the devil (all the most terrible things) and what are with Jesus (all the most beautiful things).
CHAPTER XIX: HOW TO MAKE A GENERAL CONFESSION
- First of all there should not be any fear because contrition and confession are in themselves so lovely and sweet-savoured, that they efface the ugliness and disperse the ill savour of sin. By doing this practice sincerely and humbly, we honour God.
- When we open up our heart fully and confess our sins, the Passion of Christ come in and fill us with blessings.
- Precious Blood is dropping freely to clean us from all our sins as we kneel in confession.
CHAPTER XX: A HEARTY PROTEST MADE WITH THE OBJECT OF CONFIRMING THE SOUL’S RESOLUTION TO SERVE GOD, AS A CONCLUSION TO ITS ACTS OF PENITENCE.
CHAPTER XXI: CONCLUSION OF THIS FIRST PURIFICATION
- The happiness of God and the joys of the saints and all the Angels.
- However, these affections are easily rekindled, thanks to our infirmity and concupiscence (which maybe mortified, but which can never be altogether extinguished while we live.)
CHAPTER XXII: THE NECESSITY OF PURGING AWAY ALL TENDENCY TO VENIAL SINS.
- The light of the Holy Spirit enlightens our conscience.
- We can never be altogether free from venial sin. Therefore, we must purify our soul from all inclination to venial sin because they are displeasing to God.
CHAPTER XXIII: IT IS NEEDFUL TO PUT AWAY ALL INCLINATION FOR USELESS AND DANGEROUS THINGS.
- We should not get addicted to the worldly things which will hinder our devotion.
- Need to clean our hearts in order to avoid worldly tastes.
CHAPTER XXIV: ALL EVIL INCLINATIONS MUST BE PURGED AWAY.
- By strengthening oneself more and more against mortal sin we can purge away all evil inclinations.
Summary by Albert Sangma
Photos by Joe
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