"And he [Br. Paul] received this brief rule from Master Romuald, which he was very careful to practice throughout his life:
- Sit in your cell as in paradise;
- cast all memory of the world behind you;
- cautiously watch your thoughts, as a good fisherman the fish.
- The way is via the psalms – do not leave it. If, in your beginner’s fervor, you fail to do the whole psalter, do a little here and a little there, studying each with your whole mind and spirit, and when your mind wanders during the reading - don’t quit, hurry to refocus;
- Place yourself in the presence of God with fear and trembling, as if standing before the emperor;
- destroy yourself completely;
- sit like a baby chick, content with the grace of God, who, unless its mother gives it something , knows nothing and has nothing to eat."
This short rule of St. Romuald can easily be translated for those living in the world. Here is my version for us "secular" folks:
- Make your prayer time each day your time of paradise.
- Do not dwell on your memories of your daily struggles in the world, but cast them all before the Cross.
- Cautiously watch your thoughts...darn good advice!
- Pray each day, and try to pray throughout your day. If you find yourself slipping, hurry back to prayer....don't procrastinate (for you may not have tomorrow!)
- Place yourself in the presence of God (throughout the day) with fear and tremblying, as if God were passing by you during your work day.
- Destroy yourself completely...mortify your senses and desires, offer some sacrifice and penance each day for your sins.
- Reread #7 a few times until your get it...it is priceless.
Last night, my wife and I were having one of our regular spiritual discussions. Sometimes we sit to have our quiet time of prayer, next to each other, and we end up spending an hour chatting about the spiritual life or some aspect of life. I was pondering aloud to her about the lack of knowledge of "mortification" in the modern church. It is such a foreign concept to modern Catholics; it was such a foreign concept to me until my spiritual director raised it in one of our discussions.
What brings all this up? Well, I have been reading "The True Spouse of Jesus Christ" by St. Alphonsus De Ligouri. In this work he lays out the details for religious sisters (in particular) in living out their vocation. However, this work is an insight into the way to live the spiritual life as it was seen in that day. In this 700+ page work, the saint lays out detailed guidelines for every aspect of the religious sister's vocation. As stated on the back cover, "As for the practice of Christian virtues the work will be found highly useful even for seculars." I have found in this book and amazing amount of detail, quotes and examples from the saints, and a challenge to my perspective on the life of grace.
Among other things, St. Alphonsus discusses, at length, the topic of "interior mortification". Another way to speak of this is "to conquer self-will". He uses such strong language as "combatting self-will", "beat down" the passions, , "do violence to our self-will". These militaristic terms help us to understand the need we have in this battle over our souls. One cannot simply just "want" to be holy and to obtain virtue, but one must "work" and strive after it with a courage and focus, much like a skilled soldier.
STEP #! - Conquering our worst vice.
St. Alphonsus states that we must first begin with our most habitual vice or passion and work to uproot it. "Whoever subdues his predominant passion will easily conquer all other evil inclinations." (pg 137) So we ask ourselves, what is the sin that I always seem to have to confess to the priest? Is it lust, is it lying, is it anger...whatever it is, we must begin with a firm purpose of amendment, that is, we must decide today that we will indeed conquer it through God's grace (which is never lacking). Maybe we begin by seeking spiritual direction, a good book on the subject, or an accountability partner. We must understand that we simply will not be able to combat this vice without help. May God give us the strength and courage to seek His will and work toward His ends and all times! Mary, Our Lady of Perpetual Help, ora pro nobis!
