| A Continual War Against Our Bad Inclinations |
For Sunday’s Living Jesus chat we will read again an article from a book by St. Francis de Sales called Of Devotion, and of the Principal Exercises of Piety. It explores the importance of quality of our devotion.___________________________________________To prepare for our chat, please read the article, which is reproduced below, and review the questions at the end.Click for Living Jesus Chatroom  Photo by Ben White on UnsplashIt is necessary to make it a particular object, to nourish in our heart an intimate and strong devotion. I say intimate, in such a way as to have our will conformed to the good actions we do outwardly, whether little or great; to do nothing from custom, but by choice and application of the will; and if sometimes the outward affection anticipates the interior affection in consequence of habit, at least let the latter closely follow it.If before bowing to my inferior, I have not made the interior inclination by a humble act of election to be subject to him, at least let this election accompany or closely follow the outward act of homage.It is also necessary that this devotion be strong:To support [to endure bravely or quietly] temptations, which rarely fail those who wish in good earnest to serve God.Strong, to support the variety of tempers amidst which we have to live, which is a temptation as great as can be met with for feeble souls.Strong, to support our own imperfections, so as not to disquiet ourselves at seeing ourselves subject to them; for as it is necessary to have a strong humility, not to lose courage, but to raise our confidence in God in the midst of our weaknesses, so ought we to have a powerful courage to take in hand the task of correcting ourselves, and bringing about a perfect reformation of our souls.Strong, to combat our imperfections.Strong, to despise the words and judgments of the world, which never fails to attempt to control those who give themselves up to devotion, especially at the commencement.Strong, to keep ourselves independent of particular affections, friendships, or inclinations, so as not to live according to our inclinations, but according to the light of true piety.Strong, to keep ourselves independent of the tendernesses, sweetnesses, and consolations which come to us as well from God as from creatures, so as not to surrender ourselves to them.Strong, to carry on a continual war against our bad inclinations, humours, habits, and propensities. Reflections: If we are supposed to have “strong” devotion, what does that mean?What is the difference between a strong devotion and being arrogant?How does devotion help combat our imperfections?If consolations are good, why is it important for us to not surrender ourselves to them?Why is important to understand devotion as a continual process/battle instead of an end goal?Can our interior inclinations be “helped” by our outward virtuous behavior? How can we practice outward acts of homage so that our hearts are moved to conform to our actions?How can we have better control over our dark and painful thoughts and temptations using the wisdom of St. Francis? Sign up for our Living Jesus Chat Room:Come to our Living Jesus Chat Room, 7:30 PM to 8:30 PM Eastern Time U.S. |