We’ve all heard of people that are described as “opinionated”, but in fact all people hold some kind of private opinion or judgement. How does this reality affect our spirituality and interior growth?
St. Francis de Sales was asked this question and he responded with his usual practical, and common sense.
He replied, “The first question is whether to be governed by one’s own private opinion is absolutely contrary to perfection or not. To that I reply that to have one’s own private opinions, or not to have them, is in itself neither good or bad, since either state of things is perfectly natural. Everyone indeed has, speaking generally, his own opinion; but provided that he does not love too fondly and cling too closely to them, that is no hindrance to perfection.
It is the too close attachment to them which is the obstacle to our attainment to perfection. The love of our own private judgement and the high esteem in which we hold it, is really the cause of there being so few perfect souls among us.
It is indeed most certain that the love of one’s own opinion does degenerate into obstinacy if it is not steadily mortified and restrained.”
Source: Spiritual Conferences of St. Francis de Sales, Conference XIV