The Spiritual Basics
I have always like to keep things simple and boil them down to the main bullet points. Here I have created a list of the basics of the spiritual life that I have sifted from the Church and the Saints. I often comment on these and put a little flesh on them in the Devout Life Blog.
For each item listed below, try to imagine a Saint the exemplified that item, example for "Penance" I think of St. Francis and St. Ignatius of Loyola as model penitents. For "Holy Desire" I think of St. Therese the Little Flower. Once we examine the lives of the Saints we must begin to imitate them and follow through on these "basics".
Here they are:
1. Holy Desire / Conversion
2. Penance
3. Humiliation / Mortification
4. Obedience
5. Silence
6. Consecration / Commitment
7. Meditative Prayer / The Cross
8. Abandonment to Divine Providence / Surrender
9. Poverty
10. Chastity
11. Order / Structure
12. Contemplative Prayer
For each item listed below, try to imagine a Saint the exemplified that item, example for "Penance" I think of St. Francis and St. Ignatius of Loyola as model penitents. For "Holy Desire" I think of St. Therese the Little Flower. Once we examine the lives of the Saints we must begin to imitate them and follow through on these "basics".
Here they are:
1. Holy Desire / Conversion
2. Penance
3. Humiliation / Mortification
4. Obedience
5. Silence
6. Consecration / Commitment
7. Meditative Prayer / The Cross
8. Abandonment to Divine Providence / Surrender
9. Poverty
10. Chastity
11. Order / Structure
12. Contemplative Prayer
Lectio Divina - a primer
So you have a good spiritual book, you have some quiet time set aside - now what?!
To keep it simple (in order to give you more time to pray), Lectio Divina is the practice of prayerful reading.
Here are the basics:
The Sacred Scriptures
The Imitation of Christ - Thomas a Kempis
Imitation of Mary - Alexander de Rouville
True Spouse of Jesus Christ - St. Alphonsus Ligouri
Preparation for Total Consecration according to St. Louis Marie de Monfort
The Joy of Full Surrender - Caussade
Story of a Soul - St. Therese of Liseux
Saints of the American Wilderness - John O'Brien
How To Pray Always - Raoul Plus, S.J.
Fire Within - Thomas Dubay, S.M.
The Way - Writings of St. Josemaria Escriva
Little Flowers of St. Francis
Introduction to the Devout Life - St. Francis de Sales
I Believe in Love - Fr. d'Elbee
True Devotion to Mary - St. Louis de Monfort
Interior Castle - St. Theresa of Avila
Seven Story Mountain - St. John of the Cross
Rule of St. Benedict - St. Benedict (modern translation)
Lives of the Saints
Fictional books by Michael O'Brien
of course...this is just a start!
Click here to shop our Bookstore of hand-picked spiritual works.
To keep it simple (in order to give you more time to pray), Lectio Divina is the practice of prayerful reading.
Here are the basics:
- Set aside 15-30 minutes of quiet time
- Silence should be kept and interruptions avoided
- Start by placing yourself in God's presence (how to do that is another lesson) Ask the Holy Ghost to come and inspire you.
- Slowly and prayerfully read a short passage from a good book like The Imitation of Christ (one chapter is about right...no more than a couple of paragraphs)
- When something (I call it a speed bump) slows you down or sticks with you...stop reading and close your eyes for some quiet reflection.
- Steep! Tea bags need to soak in the hot water for a few minutes to make tea...so too, do we need to sit with the reflection and let it seep in.
- Near the end of your prayer time, reread a short portion of the reading to recall your "speedbump" and make a resolution to put into action the results of your reflection.
The Sacred Scriptures
The Imitation of Christ - Thomas a Kempis
Imitation of Mary - Alexander de Rouville
True Spouse of Jesus Christ - St. Alphonsus Ligouri
Preparation for Total Consecration according to St. Louis Marie de Monfort
The Joy of Full Surrender - Caussade
Story of a Soul - St. Therese of Liseux
Saints of the American Wilderness - John O'Brien
How To Pray Always - Raoul Plus, S.J.
Fire Within - Thomas Dubay, S.M.
The Way - Writings of St. Josemaria Escriva
Little Flowers of St. Francis
Introduction to the Devout Life - St. Francis de Sales
I Believe in Love - Fr. d'Elbee
True Devotion to Mary - St. Louis de Monfort
Interior Castle - St. Theresa of Avila
Seven Story Mountain - St. John of the Cross
Rule of St. Benedict - St. Benedict (modern translation)
Lives of the Saints
Fictional books by Michael O'Brien
of course...this is just a start!
Click here to shop our Bookstore of hand-picked spiritual works.
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Roman Catholic Church, in each and every soul.
Roman Catholic Church, in each and every soul.
