Introduction

CHAPTER 3: Devotion Is Suitable To Every Kind Of Life-Situation And Occupation 62

CHAPTER 4: The Necessity Of A Guide To Begin And To Make Progress In Devotion 64

CHAPTER 20: A Firm Resolution To Impress Upon Oneself The Decision To Serve God, As A Conclusion To The Acts Of Repentance 98

CHAPTER 23: We Must Purify Ourselves From Attachment To Useless And Dangerous Things 104

CHAPTER 2: A Short Method For Mental Prayer - First Point Of The Preparation: Recalling The Presence Of God 111

CHAPTER 3: Second Point Of The Preparation: The Invocation Or Asking God's Help 113

CHAPTER 6: The Third Part Of Meditation: Good Movements Of The Will Leading To Deliberate Decisions 116

CHAPTER 11: Second: The Evening Exercise - And Third: The Examination Of Conscience 126

CHAPTER 13: Fifth Exercise: Longing For God - Ejaculatory Prayers And Good Thoughts 130

CHAPTER 10: Managing Our Affairs with Great Care But Without Eagerness Or Anxiety 195

CHAPTER 3: The Nature Of Temptation: The Difference Between Feeling Temptation And Yielding To It 299

CHAPTER 13: Spiritual And Sensible Consolations And Our Conduct With Regard To Them 318

CHAPTER 2: Consideration On The Favour Which God Show Us In Calling Us To His Service According To The Firm Resolution 339

CHAPTER 15: General Good Movements Of The Will Resulting >From The Preceding Reflections And Conclusion Of The Exercise 355

CHAPTER 17: Reply To Two Objections Which May Be Made Against This Introduction 357

This short biographical note is meant for those who have not yet come into contact with the life and writings of St. Francis de Sales. (4)

St. Francis de Sales was born on 21st August 1567 at Thorens, not far from Geneva in Switzerland and Annecy in the France. Thorens then belonged to the Duke of Savoy. Later Savoy became a part of France through a referendum. (5)

The parents of Francis were Francis de Sales, generally known as M. de Boisy and Francoise de Sionnaz commonly known as Madame de Boisy.

M. de. Boisy, by his life, example and firm guidance taught Francis to be an honest, sincere, frank, straightforward and courageous boy with a great sense of justice, kindness, generosity and integrity. >From his father, he learned a manly devotion while from his mother, he inherited a kind, compassionate and affectionate heart and tender devotion.

On 20th September 1578 Francis received tonsure as he desired to become a priest and belong to the church entirely. To receive tonsure at an early age was a custom followed in those days to which his father reluctantly consented.

In September 1578, M. de Boisy sent Francis and his cousins to Paris for higher education. He procured the services of a diocesan priest, Fr. Deage, to accompany them, stay with them and be their tutor during their studies. Francis joined the college of Clermont run by the Jesuits.

There he studied literature, philosophy and learned arts befitting nobles like fencing, riding, dance etc. This he did to fulfil the wishes of his father. He followed courses in theology for his own satisfaction.

From December 1586 to January 1587, Francis underwent a terrible crisis, a temptation, a trial. There were several causes: his natural tendency to anxiety and the problem of predestination, keenly discussed in theological circles in those days. Above all, there was a mystical dimension to the trial: an unselfish, pure love of God and total surrender to him in which lay the answer to his problems as he was being tempted to despair of his salvation.

One day in January 1587, Francis went into the church of St. Elienne des Grès. He went to the chapel of our Lady and knelt down in front of the statue. He was inspired to make an unconditional surrender of his salvation to God, using the words; ³O God, Just Judge and Merciful Father, at least in this life will I love You, if it is not given to me to love You in life everlasting". Then he saw there a card with the prayer Memorare: ³Remember, O Most Gracious Virgin Mary ..." He took it and earnestly prayed it. He was instantly healed. The temptation vanshed. Strength and confidence retund to him.

On 26th December 1588, he was sent to Padua, to pursue his studies further. He had only a short stay at home. In Padua, he studied civil and ecclesiastical law. He also followed courses in theology. Fr. Possevin s.j. (1534-1611) was chosen by him as his spiritual director.

In January 1591, Francis became very seriously ill and received viaticum. There was scarcely any hope of recovery. All the same, he was healed.

On 5th September 1591, he completed his legal studies for a Doctorate in law and passed the examination with such great success that he won the admiration of his own professors and of all present. Then he went on pilgrimage to Loretto and on an educational tour to some towns in Italy.

In February 1592, Francis returned to Savoy. He wanted to become a priest. His father was strongly opposed to it.

On 24th November 1592, not to displease his father, he enrolled himself as an advocate at the Bar of Chambery.

It was while returning from Chambery on horseback that his belt got unbuckled and his sword fell to the ground. His sword came out of the scabbard with its point directed towards him. Francis understood this to be a clear sign that God wanted him to put aside the sword in order to become a Priest.

On 7th March 1593, the document appointing Francis as Provost (6) was signed by Roman authorities, through the mediation of Louis de Sales, his cousin and supported by his own Bishop, Mgr. de Granier.

On 7th May, the document was brought to Annecy by Louis de Sales. Then Louis de Sales together with Francis approached M. de Boisy to seek his permission. Finally, the great old man gave in to the persuasion of Louis de Sales and others and granted his son permission to follow his vocation to the priesthood.

On 18th September 1593, Francis was ordained deacon, and on 18th December 1593, he was ordained priest by his own Bishop Mgr. de Granier, and after three day's recollection, on 21st December, he celebrated his first mass. After Christmas, he was installed as Provost.

As a priest he devoted himself to the spiritual renewal of Annecy. He preached in a simple style, taught catechism and tried to form a dedicated and devoted laity. The ideal of a priest as a man of God, a man of the church and a man of the people blended harmoniously in his life and activity. This ideal was soon to be put to the test.

The district of Chablais in Savoy under the Duke of Savoy had embraced Calvinism. The Duke requested the Bishop to send missionaries to Chablais to win the people back to the Catholic faith. Bishop de Granier entrusted this mission to Francis. Louis de Sales volunteered to work with him.

On 14th September 1594, both Francis and Louis left for Chablais and reached the castle of Les Allinges. Thonon was the headquarters of the district, a few kilometers away from the castle of Les Allinges perched on a small hill. Thonon was not safe for the missionaries as the Calvinists were in no mood to tolerate the presence of catholic missionaries. So they had to stay in the castle with the soldiers and go daily to Thonon in the morning and come back in the evening.

The initial work was extremely hard. They regularly visited the few catholics in the town of Thonon and began instructing them. Francis also began to contact the Calvinists. The Calvinist ministers forbade the people to receive the catholic priests and even to listen to them. Calumnies against Francis were circulated. There was constant threat to his life. No one came to listen to him. Every door was closed to him.

Then Francis took a new initiative. He began to write short notices explaining catholic teaching and left them at the door of the houses of the Protestants.

From January 1595 to January 1596, he wrote these articles which was later published as a book, the Controversies. This was one of the most trying periods of his live. He prayed, fasted and did penance, perhaps a little more than his body could support. He was very much disappointed by the uselessness of his work as no effects were seen. There was utter poverty, no money. His bishop was too poor and continued to encourage him. The Duke gave him no financial support. M. de Boisy had disapproved his taking up the mission and did his best to persuade him to come back. So he did not help him in any way. Antoine Favre, an intimate friend of Francis, continued to encourage him. Finally, the perseverance and hard and courageous work of Francis began to bear fruit.

Slowly a change for the better began. People began to discuss with him. They flocked to his sermons. Conversions followed. Within few years, the whole district returned to the catholic fold.

On 1st October 1596, Pope Clement VIII, asked Francis to meet Theodore de Beze, the successor of Calvin in Geneva, and try to bring about his conversion. Francis met de Beze in Geneva three times during the year 1597 but these meetings met with no success.

From 1594, Bishop de Granier was thinking of making Francis his Co-adjutor Bishop, and from 1596, the Duke too wanted the same. It was time for ad limina visit to Rome. Bishop de Granier did not enjoy good health. So he decided to send Francis to Rome.

In November 1597, Francis was to leave for Rome but he fell very seriously sick. Only by the end of January 1598, he regained health. The journey was postponed. There were works to be immediately attended to.

So only in November 1598, Francis could leave for Rome. After Christmas, the Pope Clement VIII gave him audience.

On 22nd March 1599, Francis, passed brilliantly the examination in the presence of the Pope for nomination to a bishopric. Among the examiners were the great and learned men of the day, the Cardinals Frederic Borromeo, Bellarmin (later declared saint and doctor of the church), Baronius and Borghese. At the end of the examination the Pope, so much impressed by Francis' answers, came down and embraced him. (7)

On 25th March, the same year, Francis was admitted to assist at the mass of the Pope. He had a deep mystical experience of the mystery of the incarnation during the eucharistic celebration especially after his holy communion. (8)

In 1602, Francis was sent to Paris to meet King Henry IV to treat with him some ecclesiastical affairs.

He had several interviews with the king. Francis made a profound impression on the king and the court. But his mission was not a success. Later Francis was accused of conspiracy against the king. He met the king and cleared up all suspicion. In September of the same year, he left Paris for Annecy. On the way, he learned that Mgr. de Granier had passed away.

In the beginning of November 1602, Francis received the papal bulls of his nomination as Bishop, which due to poverty, he had not asked for earlier.

On 8th December 1602, Francis was consecrated Bishop of Geneva in the Church of Thorens. The time of the consecration was for Francis, a time of deep spiritual experience of the Holy Trinity.

The Bishop of Geneva was chased away from the see of Geneva during the Protestant Reformation. In 1536, the citizens of Geneva embraced the Reformation. Geneva became a republic. From that time, the Bishops appointed to the see of Geneva stayed in Annecy with the hope of returning to the centre of the diocese when the situation changed. They kept the title of Bishop of Geneva. (9)

Francis was rather unlike many of the Bishops of his own days as well as our own. He was easily accessible to everyone. He devoted his whole attention to pastoral work without at the same time neglecting administrative affairs. He taught catechism to children and adults, preached as often as occasions arose. He heard confessions regularly and gave spiritual direction to numerous persons, men and women of various ranks living in different life-situations, and wrote numerous letters of direction. At the same time, he was equally available to princes, dukes, Bishops, clergy, religious both men and women and to the people at large especially the poor and the sick.

Due to the poverty of the diocese, he was not able to establish a major seminary which he had planned to. A project at Thonon which he envisaged as an institution of higher education with a kind of technical school to impart skills in trades could not function well due to financial problems and lack of personnel and other causes which complicated the project. Perhaps he was ahead of time and the church had to wait for St. John Bosco.

Amidst all these activities, he led a life of prayer and contemplation. It is impossible to describe the varieties of activities in which Francis was engaged and the numerous problems and issues he had to tackle in a short biographical sketch. A detailed description will be found in E.J. Lajeunie, St. Francis de Sales, The Man, The Thinker, His Influence, Vol. 1 and 2.

Such a life and activity told on his health. While returning from Avignon in France, where he had gone at the invitation of the Duke of Savoy, he stopped at Lyons. The royal court of France and that of the Duke of Savoy were meeting there. Francis stayed with the Visitation sisters, of the Order he had founded.

On 27th December 1622, Francis had an attack of apoplexy and he passed away on 28th December, the feast of Holy Innocents about 8 O' clock in the evening.

There are several striking aspects of his life which make him a man for our times.

Francis knew that growth in genuine spiritual life and virtues depended not only on the grace of God but also on studies. Amidst his intense activity as Bishop and Pastor, he spent long hours in study. He wrote in his personal rule: ³As to inner life and especially to studies, a Bishop, shall endeavour everyday to learn something useful and appropriate to his profession". (10) What he learned he shared through his evangelizing activity.

As an evangelizer, Francis used his vast knowledge gained through an intense life of prayer and study to explain the faith of the Church and enlighten the people. In this regard he took various initiatives like writing pamphlets, organizing conferences and above all preaching.

There was perfect harmony between the preaching of St. Francis and his life and activity. St. Vincent de Paul who knew him personally and listened to him said: ³All his actions were as many sermons". (11) St. Francis preached with love and charity and reacted against artificiality: ³All you have to do...is just speak with feeling and sympathy, with simplicity, frankness and confidence. Be in love with the doctrine you are teaching and conveying to your listeners. The supreme art is to have no art". (12)

Preaching leads to change of heart. Spiritual direction follows up the change of heart and leads to change of life and growth.

St. Francis believed and taught that a spiritual director was necessary to guide people to the perfection of love without going astray, wasting time and strength. St. Jane de Chantal who followed his spiritual direction says: ³I know that several priests, abbots, religious, ecclesiastics, gentlemen and lawyers, princes and princesses, and persons of every rank rich and poor from different provinces have sought him out for that purpose". (13)

The letters of spiritual direction written by him to his directees are a mine of wisdom and spiritual and psychological insights.

An important aspect of his spiritual direction was his close friendship with his directees. This friendship earned him their confidence. It made the sacrifices he demanded from them less hard.

Though he was firm and strict with his directees, he wanted a holy freedom and frankness to reign every where. We must have no other law or constraint except that of love, the law of charity. (14)

Giving spiritual direction necessitated giving something in writing for the reference, guidance and constant use of his directees.

The most popular book of St. Francis and the best seller of his times was the Introduction to the Devout Life.

In 1608 it was published by him to help both his directees and christians to lead an authentic Christian life. (For more details see pages 42-43). While the Introduction laid a very good foundation for christian life, it did not explain in detail the growth and experience of divine love.

From 1609 to 1616, Francis, used all the free moments available to the writing of the Treatise on the Love of God. In August 1616, it was published.

The experience of St. Francis himself and that of St. Jane de Chantal and the First Sisters of the Visitation Order he founded form the background of his book, Treatise on the Love of God.

His numerous sermons, letters, booklets etc., have been published. The Spiritual Conferences are the notes of his familiar instruction and talk taken down by the Visitation Sisters. All these together form 26 volumes, published by the Visitation Sisters of Annecy, the Order founded by him, The Index prepared by Alphonse Denis, a monk, is the 27th.

The objectives of St. Francis in founding the congregation of the Visitation of Holy Mary was to offer the possibility of leading a religious life to humble weak women who because of their age or some physical weakness, cannot have access to austere reformed monasteries. They are offered this opportunity provided they are healthy in mind and willing to live a life of humility, obedience, simplicity, gentleness and resignation. Thus he did not neglect the cripples, the one-eyed, the hunchbacks, the lame in body or the lame in the soul. They must strive to achieve a strong love. (15) The co-foundress was Madame de Chantal, a widow who later became St. Jane de Chantal.

The Visitation of the Holy Mary was founded on 6th June 1610. Originally, the Visitation as intended by the Founders was not be a cloistered Order. The care of the sick was undertaken. Due to the objections of Mgr. Denis-Simon de Marquemont (1572-1626), Archbishop of Lyons, (16) St. Francis agreed to make the Visitation a formal religious order.

St. Francis' activity extended to every field of human life. He brought peace and harmony in conflicting situations.

St. Francis listened to the contenders with patience and impartiality. His gentleness and kindness brought calm to the angry, made them see reason and accept his decisions.

He brought peace not only to individuals and families but also among quarrelling schools of theology. He encouraged theologians to discuss frankly and charitably (17) and discouraged the Pope from settling theological questions simply by the use of his authority.

The few aspects of the person St. Francis de Sales mentioned above give an insight into his rich personality, which cannot be exhausted in a short sketch like this. In conclusion another very relevant characteristic of his may be mentioned.

St. Francis achieved a wonderful harmony in his own life and thought. Philosophy, theology and mysticism blended harmoniously in him. The very first sentence of the first chapter of the first book of the Treatise on the Love of God expresses his concern for synthesis and harmony, and that is our conclusion of this short biographical note:

³Introduce unity into diversity, and you create order; order yields harmony, proportion; harmony where you have perfect integrity begets beauty. There is beauty in music when voices, which are true, clear, distinct, blend to produce perfect consonance, perfect harmony". (18)

1. Oeuvres de St. Francois de Sales, Edition complète, publiée par les soins des Religieuses de la Visitation du 1er Monastère d'Annecy, Vol. I-26, Annecy, 1892 - 1932.

2. Introduction á la vie dévote, in Saint Francis de Sales, Oeuvres, Preface et chronologie par André Ravier avec la collaboration de Roger Devos, Gallimard, 1969, pp. 1 - 317.

3. E.J.Lajeunie, Saint Francis de Sales, The Man, The Thinker, His Influence, Tr. Rory O'Sullivan, Vol.1, SFS Publications, Bangalore, 1986; Vol. 2, SFS Publications, Bangalore, 1987.

4. Saint Francis de Sales, The Love of God, A Treatise, Tr. abridged and introduction by Vincent Kerns, SFS Publications, Bangalore, 1982.

5. Pulpit And Pew, A Study in Salesian Preaching, Presented by Vincent Kerns, SFS Publications, Bangalore, 1976.

Dear St.Francis de Sales by your life and in your writings you teach us to follow Christ by loving God, our Father, and all other persons, our brothers and sisters. Obtain for us the grace to be led by the Holy Spirit, so that we show our love for God by fidelity to prayer, by diligence in our work, by our cheerful service of others.

Teach us to be patient and forgiving, kind and helpful to all. Help us to face the difficulties and sufferings of life with a heart full of trust in God, our ever-loving Father.

Dear St.Francis, while on earth you were always ready to help those in need. Come to my aid and obtain for me from God through the intercession of Our Lady, the special grace for which I now pray.

O Gentle St.Francis, bless our home with your presence. May our hearts glow with love for God and a sincere concern for others, so that our lives may show in word and deed the blessings of your patronage, Amen.

St.Francis de Sales is certainly one of the few truly great teachers of the spiritual life. The very practical guidance he gives about Christian living is as relevant to us today as it was to the people of his time. In fact, as Pope Paul VI pointed out, ³St.Francis de Sales appears as a new Doctor of the spiritual life, and one who is very well suited to the present times". (19)

Like a sunflower ever turned towards the sun, Francis de Sales was drawn to God from his earliest years. During his childhood the principal influence in his life was his mother. She was not merely religious but also kind and compassionate to the needy and the suffering. As a schoolboy at La Roche and at Annecy, as a teenager at the Jesuit College in Paris, and as a young man at the University of Padua, he responded to God's grace and experienced in agony and ecstacy what it means to live in complete love for God and neighbour. He joyfully welcomed all that genuine humanism had to offer, while firmly rejecting whatever was evil and debasing.

At the age of 25, Francis was an accomplished young nobleman who had completed his Doctorate, in civil law and church law, with extraordinary brilliance. As the eldest son, he could easily have agreed to follow his father's plans for him: he could have become a renowned lawyer and diplomat. But he had already made up his mind to give himself to the service of God and his people as a priest. And this he realized in spite of strong initial opposition from his father.

In the late sixteenth century and the early seventeenth century, the Church in Europe was being renewed after the Council of Trent which concluded in 1563. In this renewal, St.Francis de Sales had a very important part to play. As a recently ordained priest, Francis generously accepted the difficult task of trying to contact the hostile Calvinists of the Chablais. Here,during the three years of his ministry, the crucified Saviour put the finishing touches to the preparation of Francis. Here, in his late twenties, in rejection and loneliness and suffering, he was made ready for the special mission to be entrusted to him. And it was in the Chablais that Francis became an expert at communicating in writing the truths of the Faith with clarity and attractiveness. Since the people to whom he was sent refused to listen to him, he got their attention through short articles written on loose sheets and quietly distributed to them. (20)

For many years, Francis had made Jesus the centre of his life, and lived the Gospel in total fidelity and trust. He was now ready to draw all to the God of Love made known in Christ Jesus. He understood that this was his primary responsibility to Christ's faithful when he was consecrated Bishop at 35 years of age.

It is very difficult indeed to describe the enormous amount of pastoral work that young Bishop Francis de Sales took up with joyful courage and untiring zeal: preaching, hearing confessions, teaching Catechism to children, forming his priests, giving spiritual direction to individual persons in all walks of life, regularly visiting his people even though it meant fatiguing journeys up steep mountain paths, reforming monasteries,undertaking tedious diplomatic missions at the request of his rulers, settling disputes out of court after listening at length to both parties, founding the new contemplative order of the Visitation and giving special guidance to these Sisters. (21)

St.Francis de Sales began the spiritual direction of individual persons as a result of the contacts made at the time of the Lenten sermons he preached as Bishop, in Paris in 1602 and in subsequent years in different important towns in Savoy and in France. After the Lenten sermons at Dijon, in 1604, Madame de Chantal placed herself under his direction along with some others. And after the Lenten sermons at Annecy, in 1607, Madame de Charmoisy chose him as her director.

In order to help Madame de Chantal, Madame de Charmoisy and others, women as well as men, Bishop Francis de Sales began writing to them personal letters of spiritual direction. (22) Later, due to pressure of work, he prepared short articles or ³essays" about different aspects of the spiritual life. These he got circulated among some of those whom he directed. It was from such short ³essays" that the Introduction was born in 1608.

In his Preface to the Introduction, St.Francis refers to the origin of the book. (23) He does not mention the name of the ³very respectable and virtuous person" to whom he gave ³written notes" about various spiritual exercises. She has been identified as Madame Louise de Charmoisy, the wife of one of his cousins. As a matter of fact, Madame de Charmoisy gave the following testimony at the Process of Canonization of St.Francis de Sales.

Soon after I had placed myself under the direction of the said Servant of God, I was obliged to return to Court. I felt very uneasy about this. So I went to consult the said Servant of God and told him of my fears. His answer was: ³Take courage, my child. Do not be afraid that you will fall back because of this. If you are faithful to God he will never fail you. He will give you enough time to make your spiritual exercises, as well as to do everything else that you have to do, even if he has to stop the sun and the moon." Because of this, he decided to give me some written instructions about this matter. I showed these to a Jesuit Father. He found them so very good and useful that he requested the Servant of God to have them published. That is why he prepared the Introduction to the Devout Life of which they became a part. (24)

The ³Jesuit Father" mentioned by Madame de Charmoisy, whom St.Francis in his Preface calls ³an important, learned and devout religious", is identified in one of St.Francis' letters as Fr.John Fourier, then Rector of the Jesuit College at Chambery. (25) Francis had chosen him as his spiritual director. In a letter, dated 25th March 1608, Fr.Fourier writes to Bishop Francis as follows:

How shall we go about preparing for publication the treasure of devotion with Madame de Charmoisy? It seems to me that the whole matter must be revised, arranged with titles, and have a Preface as well as the author's name. In this way the good will be more secure and more widespread; all for the glory of God. (26)

The first edition of the Introduction was published towards the end of 1608. It was immediately sold out. In mid-February 1609, Francis wrote to Madame de Chantal asking her to bring all the letters and ³essays" she had received from him. (27) He completely revised the book, adding new chapters as well as new matter. The second edition appeared in September 1609. As there were many printing mistakes, Francis carefully prepared a third edition which was published in 1610. (28) But the printing mistakes remained; and even in the fourth edition of 1616. From October 1618, St.Francis was forced to spend many months in Paris on a diplomatic mission. He used this opportunity to make one more revision. This fifth edition was published in 1619. It is the text of this fifth edition which has been retained as the definitive text in the Annecy Edition of the Introduction. It is from this text that the present translation is made. The Introduction was so well appreciated that during the lifetime of St.Francis it was translated into Italian, Latin, English, Flemish and Spanish.

In the course of the centuries, the Introduction has remained one of the few spiritual classics that has a special appeal to all of Christ's faithful. St.Francis wrote it specially for the laity. May the desire of Pope Pius XI be realized ³that this book, as at one time it was in the hands of all, may now also be read by all. In this way Christian piety will flourish everywhere, and the Church of God will rejoice at seeing sanctity common among her children." (29)

Fr. Armind Nazareth, msfs.

I charge you with authority of love, whoever reads this book ... be sure to read it all - straight through. It may be that there is something in the beginning or in the middle which depends upon full exposition later. If you were to examine one part while neglecting the other, you could easily be led astray.

- from The Cloud of Unknowing, a 14th century spiritual classic by anonymous English author.

St.Francis de Sales illustrates his teaching with incidents taken from the Bible or the biographies of Saints. He also makes use of stories and natural science information from ancient writings like ³History of Animals" by the Greek philosopher, Aristotle (B.C. 384-322), and especially from the ³Natural History", an encyclopedia in 37 ³Books" compiled by the Roman author, Pliny the Elder (A.D. 23-79). It is obvious that the natural science information used by St.Francis is not scientific in the modern sense. But the unusual and fantastic ³facts" he presents as the basis for his illustrations make the ³Introduction" pleasant to read.

No references were given by St.Francis, not even biblical. The Sisters of the First Monastery of the Visitation, Annecy, France, who are responsible for the definitive edition in French of St.Francis' Complete Works (called the Annecy Edition), have traced the references and indicated them along side the text published by them.

The Latin Vulgate edition of the Bible was familiar to St.Francis, as it was the official version then used in the Church. So it is sometimes difficult to find the exact text of his biblical quotations, especially from the Psalms, in some of our modern Bibles.

St.Francis gives the reason for omitting all references, and speaks of his special use of Bible texts, in his brief notice to the Reader which he published in the third edition of the ³Introduction" in 1610. In the present edition, this notice is placed immediately after the Preface by St.Francis de Sales. (30)

However, as a help to our present-day readers, we have incorporated the biblical references in the text. We have also indicated the source of St.Francis' secular information by giving the name of the author; other details can be found in Volume 3 of the Annecy Edition. We have added footnotes of our own, wherever required for greater clarity.

The flower seller, Glycera, had such great skill in arranging flowers, that with the same sort of flowers she would make a great variety of bouquets. In fact, the painter Pausias wanting to make drawings of Glycera's different bouquets was unable to do so, as he could not match his skill in painting to the profusion of bouquets she had prepared. (31) In the same way, the Holy Spirit inspires and sets out the teaching on devotion in such a great variety, presenting it through the words and writings of his servants. While the doctrine is always one and the same, yet the compositions in which it is set out are very different according to the variety of ways used in putting them together.

Certainly, I cannot write, nor do I want to write, nor should I write in this Introduction anything else than what has been published already on this subject by our predecessors. My dear Reader, I offer you the same flowers but the bouquet that I have made is different from theirs, because the arrangement is not the same.

Those who have written about devotion have nearly all had in mind the instruction of persons completely separated from life in the world. At least, they have taught a kind of devotion leading to such a complete separation. My purpose is to instruct people living in towns, the married, and those at princely courts. These are obliged by their state of life to lead an ordinary life to all outward appearances. Very often such persons do not want even to think of venturing on the devout life, finding an excuse in the false claim that it is impossible.

These people are of the opinion that just as no animal dares to taste of the seed of the plant called ³palm of Christ" so no one caught up in the rush of living in the world should reach out for the palm of Christian devotion. But I want to make them understand that, just as the pearl oysters live in the sea without letting a single drop of salt water enter (32), and that there are springs of fresh water in the sea close to the Chelidonian islands (33), and that a certain insect can fly about in the fire without burning its wings (34), so anyone with courage and determination can live in the world without being tainted by its spirit, finding springs of the fresh water of devotion in the world's salty waves and able to fly amid the flames of the temptations of the world without losing the wings of the holy desires of a devout life.

This task is difficult, it is true, and that is why I should like many to give it their attention with greater earnestness than has been shown till now. In spite of my great imperfection, I am trying to provide by means of this book, some help to those who will take up this worthy task with a generous heart.

However, it is not through my own choice or desire that this Introduction is being published. A very respectable and virtuous person who, some time back, had received from God the grace to want to seek the devout life asked me for special help in this regard. (35) As I was indebted to her in many ways, and as I had noted long before that she was very well disposed for the devout life, I took great care to instruct her thoroughly. So I led her through various spiritual exercises suited to her purpose and her condition in life. About these I gave her written notes so that she could refer to them when needed. Later, she showed these notes to an important, learned and devout religious. (36) He made an earnest request that I get them published, as he was of the opinion that many would find them very helpful. He easily convinced me about this, since I was very much influenced by his friendship and had a great respect for his judgement.

In order to make the whole work more useful, as well as easy to read, I have revised the notes to ensure some kind of continuity, adding a number of counsels and instructions relevant to my purpose. But I have done all this with hardly any leisure. So this is not a thorough presentation but rather a collection of instructions (37) given in all sincerity and presented in simple and clear words, at least that is what I have had in mind. And I decided not even to think about other aspects that make language appealing as I had so many things to attend to.

My words are directed to ³Philothea". In fact, I want to present for the general benefit of many persons what I had written in the first place for only one. So I use a name which can be given to anyone who wants to lead a devout life. ³Philothea" means ³one who loves God" or ³one who is in love with God."

In all this my concern is for anyone who desires to be devout and so seeks to love God. Hence I have arranged this Introduction in five parts:

In the First Part, I make use of various counsels and exercises to change one's simple desire for the devout life into a total commitment. One does this by concluding with a firm resolution after a general confession. Holy Communion follows when, entrusting oneself to the Saviour and welcoming him, one enters joyfully into his holy love.

After this, to help in advancing further, I give instruction about the two great means of uniting oneself ever more closely to God: the Sacraments, by which God comes to us, and Prayer by which he draws us to himself. In this consists the Second Part.

In the Third Part, I explain the practice of various virtues which are specially suitable for one's progress, giving more attention to some specific counsels which one would not get easily from elsewhere or discover by oneself.

In the Fourth Part, I help to find out certain snares of the enemies and show how one can escape them and continue on one's way.

Finally, in the Fifth Part, I teach how to withdraw for a while in order to refresh oneself, recover breath and renew one's strength and so afterwards be able to gain ground with greater joy and so make further progress in the devout life.

As this age is very peculiar, I expect that many will say that only members of religious orders and persons concerned with devotion should give such special guidance regarding the devout life; that this work requires more leisure than is at the disposal of a Bishop who is entrusted with a diocese as burdensome as mine; that it is too great a distraction for the mind which should be used for important matters. My dear Reader, I tell you with St. Denis that guiding people to perfection is the task mainly of Bishops, all the more so since their order is the highest among men as that of the Seraphim is among the Angels, and so their leisure cannot be put to better use than this.

The Bishops of ancient times and the Fathers of the Church had at least as much concern for their responsibilities as we have. Even so, as can be gathered from their letters, they did not neglect taking care to give individual guidance to many persons who came to them for help. In this they imitated the Apostles who, while gathering the harvest in the whole world, picked up nevertheless with a special and particular affection certain outstanding ears of corn. Everyone knows that St. Paul had Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Onesiumus, St. Tecla and Appia as his special disciples, just as St. Peter had St. Mark and St. Petronilla. St. Petronilla was not in fact St. Peter's own child but only his spiritual daughter, as Baronius and Galonius have learnedly proved. And St. John wrote one of his epistles to the devout woman named Electa. (38) (2 Jn. 1:1)

The guidance of persons individually is a difficult task, I admit, but one which brings comfort as in the case of people gathering crops or picking grapes, who are happiest when they have plenty of work to do and heavy burdens to carry. It is a task that refreshes and enlivens the heart by the delight it brings to those who take it up, just as in Arabia those who carry cinnamon are refreshed.

A tigress, it is said, (39) on finding one of her cubs which the hunter has left behind to distract her attention while he carries away the others, places it on her back even if it is big. Rather than feeling its weight she finds it very light as she runs off to keep it safe in her den, because her natural love makes her burden less heavy. Much more gladly will someone with a fatherly heart take charge of a person, whom he finds with a desire for holiness, showing tender love for such a one like a mother carrying her little child in her bosom without being weary of this burden which she loves so well. But definitely the fatherly heart has to be there. Hence, the Apostles, and those like them, call their disciples not just ³children" but even more lovingly ³little children". (1 Jn. 2:1 and 12 RSV)

My dear Reader, in spite of all that I have said, it is true that I am writing about the devout life without being devout myself. But I certainly want to be devout and it is this very desire that encourages me to give you instruction. In fact, to quote a great and learned man, (40) ³A good way to learn is to study; a better way is to listen, and the best is to teach." St. Augustine writing to Florentina, one of his disciples, says, ³It often happens that giving to others prepares us to receive." The work of teaching is the foundation for learning.

Alexander loved very much Campaspe and he asked the great painter Apelles to draw a picture of her. Apelles was compelled to look a long time at Campaspe, and as he drew her features in his painting, love for her was impressed on his heart. He became so enamoured of her that Alexander, realising it and taking pity on him, let him marry her. For love of Apelles, he gave up the woman he loved most, and as Pliny notes, ³By this he showed the greatness of his heart, as much as he would have done by a very great military victory."

Now my dear Reader, I am of the opinion that as Bishop it is God's will that I should paint on the hearts of people not only the ordinary virtues but also His most dear and greatly loved devotion. And I take up this work gladly, as much to obey and fulfil my duty as in the hope that while engraving devotion on the minds of others, my own would become filled with a holy love for it. And if God ever sees me enamoured of devotion, he will give her to me in an everlasting marriage.

The beautiful and chaste Rebecca, watering Isaac's camels, was chosen to be his wife and received from him earrings and golden bracelets (Gen. 24:20-22). In the same way, I await from the infinite goodness of God that while I lead his sheep to the saving waters of devotion, he will make me wholly his own. He will put in my ears the golden words of his holy love and in my arms the strength to practise them well, for in this consists the essence of true devotion. I humbly ask God to grant this devotion to me and to all the children of his Church.And to this Church I want to submit always my writings, my actions, my words, my desires and my thoughts.

Annecy, 8 August 1608

Francis de Sales, Bishop of Geneva

When publishing the Third Edition of the ³Introduction" in 1610, St.Francis de Sales added the following notice:

This little book left my hands in the year 1608. In its second edition, several new chapters were added to it. But three chapters which were in the first edition were left out by mistake. Since then, it has been printed without my knowledge many times. With each printing, the mistakes have increased.

Here it is now, corrected anew, and with all the chapters. It is still without references, since the learned do not need them and the others are not concerned about them. (41)

When I make use of the words of Scripture, it is not always to explain them. As they are more worthy of love and veneration, it is rather to explain what I mean through them.

If God hears my prayer, you will benefit greatly from this book and receive many blessings.

You seek devotion, dearest Philothea, because as a Christian you know that it is a virtue very pleasing to God. Small mistakes made at the beginning of any project grow infinitely great as it progresses, and in the end are almost impossible to correct. Hence you should know, before everything else, what is the virtue of devotion.

There is only one true devotion while there is a very large number of false and meaningless ones. So if you cannot recognize true devotion, you could be deceived and waste time in following some devotion that is irrelevant and irrational.

Aurelius used to draw all the faces in the pictures he painted with the expressions and appearance of the women he loved. (42) So, each one represents devotion according to his liking and imagination. He who is in the habit of fasting will think that because he fasts he is very devout, even though his heart is filled with hatred. He will not take a sip of wine, or even of water, anxious about sobriety but he has no scruples to sip the blood of his neighbour by speaking ill or by false statements. (43) Another considers himself devout because of the very great number of prayers he recites every day, even though soon after this he speaks words that are annoying, full of pride and hurtful to those in his house and to his neighbours. Another very gladly opens his purse to give alms to the poor but cannot take any gentleness from his heart to forgive his enemies. Yet another will forgive his enemies but will not pay what he owes unless he is legally forced to do so. All such persons are generally looked upon as devout whereas in fact they are not.

When Saul's soldiers came looking for David in his house, Michal placed a statue on a bed and covered it with David's clothes and so made them believe that it was David himself asleep due to illness (1 Samuel 19:11-16). In the same way, many people cover themselves with various external actions related to holy devotion. The world takes them for people who are truly devout and spiritual, whereas in reality they are nothing more than statues and illusions of devotion.

Dear Philothea, devotion that is true and living presupposes the love of God, rather it is nothing else than a true love of God. It is not, however, love as such. In so far as divine love enriches us it is called grace, which makes us pleasing to God. In so far as it gives us the strength to do good, it is called charity. But when it grows to such a degree of perfection that it makes us not only to do good but rather moves us to do it carefully, frequently and promptly, it is called devotion. Ostriches never fly, hens fly only awkwardly, quite low and rarely; but eagles, doves and swallows fly often, swiftly and very high. In the same way, sinners do not fly towards God but rather all their movements are on the earth and for the things of the earth. People who are good, but have not yet progressed to devotion, fly towards God by their good deeds but rarely, slowly and with difficulty. Persons who are devout fly to God frequently, promptly and freely.

In short, devotion is nothing else than a spiritual agility and liveliness by means of which charity realizes its actions in us, or we do so by charity, promptly and lovingly.

Just as it is the work of charity to make us keep all the commandments of God in general and without any exception, so it is the work of devotion to make us do so promptly and earnestly. Therefore, whoever does not keep all of God's commandments cannot be considered either good or devout, because to be good one must have charity. To be devout one must not only have charity but a great liveliness and promptness in doing charitable actions.

Since devotion is to be found at a certain level of charity that is extraordinary it makes us prompt, active and earnest in keeping all of God's commandments. But, more than this, it rouses us to do as many good works as we can, promptly and lovingly, even though they are in no way commanded but rather only counselled or inspired.

A man, who has recently recovered from some illness, walks only as much as he needs to, but slowly and with difficulty. So also, a sinner healed of his sinfulness moves ahead to the extent that God commands him, and that too slowly and with difficulty until he acquires devotion. After that, like a man in good health he not only walks but runs joyfully in the way of God's commandments (Ps. 118:32). Even more, he moves ahead and runs in the paths of God's counsels and inspirations.

In conclusion, charity and devotion are not more different from each other than the flame from the fire, all the more so because charity is a spiritual fire which when it burns with intense flames is called devotiion. In fact, devotion adds to the fire of charity only the flame which makes charity prompt, active and diligent not only to keep God's commandments but also to put into practise his counsels and inspiratioins.

To discourage the Israelites from entering the Promised Land, they were told that it was a country that devoured its inhabitants. It was implied that its climate was so unhealthy that no one would be able to live there for long, and further that the people there were monsters who devoured other men like locusts(Numbers 13:33-34). In the same way, my dear Philothea, the world defames holy devotion as much as it can. It represents devout persons with faces that are dissatisfied, sad and sulky. It proclaims that devotion makes people depressed and unbearable.

But Joshua and Caleb insisted that the Promised Land was good and beautiful, and also that possessing it would be delightful and pleasant (Numbers 14:7-8). So also the Holy Spirit assures us, through the words of all the Saints, and our Lord by his own teaching (Matt. 11:28-30), that the devout life is pleasant, happy and lovable.

The world sees that devout persons fast, pray, put up with insults, serve the sick, give to the poor, keep awake to pray, control their anger, stifle and smother their passions, deny themselves sensual pleasures. They do these as well as other kinds of actions which, in themselves and of their very nature and character, are difficult and austere. But the world does not see the interior and wholehearted devotion which makes all these actions pleasant, delightful and easy.

Look at the bees on the thyme. They find there a very bitter juice, but as they suck it they change it into honey since that is their nature. Worldly people! it is true that the devout find much bitterness in their exercises of mortification, but in doing them they change them into the most delightful sweetness. The fires, the flames, the wheels and the swords were like flowers and perfumes to the Martyrs because they were devout. If the most cruel torments, and even death itself, are made delightful by devotion, what will it not do for the practice of virtue?

Sugar sweetens fruits that are not quite ripe and puts right anything unpleasant or harmful in those that are fully ripe. Indeed, devotion is the true spiritual sugar, removing unplesantness from mortificatioans, and what may be hurtful from consolations. Devotion takes away discontent from the poor and anxiety from the rich, despair from the oppressed and arrogance from the powerful, sadness from the lonely and dissipation from one who is with others. Devotion serves as fire in winter and dew in summer. It is able to live in prosperity and suffer need. It draws equal profit from honour and contempt. It receives pleasure and pain with a heart that hardly changes and fills us with a wonderful delight.

Look carefully at Jacob's ladder (Genesis. 28:10ff) since it is a true image of the devout life. The two sides, between which we go up, and to which the rungs are fixed, represent prayer which asks for and receives the love of God and the Sacraments which give it. The rungs are the various degrees of charity by which we move from virtue to virtue, either coming down by action to help and support our neighbour or going up by contemplation to loving union with God.

Now consider those on the ladder: they are either men with angelic hearts or Angels with human bodies. They are not young but seem so since they are full of vigour and spiritual agility. They have wings to fly and they soar up to God in holy prayer. But they also have feet to walk along with men by a life of holiness and love. Their faces are beautiful and cheerful because they receive everythging with delight and contentment. Their legs, arms and heads are completely uncovered because their thoughts, desires and actions have no other intention or purpose but that of pleasing God. The rest of their body is covered, but with a beautiful and light garment, because while they do make use of the world, and of the things of the world, they do so with complete sincerity and detachment. They take with moderation what is needed for their state in life. Such are devout people.

I assure you, dear Philothea, devotion is the delight of delights and the queen of virtues, since it is the perfection of charity. If charity is milk, devotion is its cream; if it is a plant, devotion is its flower; if it is a jewel, devotion is its lustre; if it is a precious balm, devotion is its perfume, a delightful perfume that gives comfort to men and makes the Angels rejoice.

God commanded the plants, at the creation, to bear fruit each according to its kind (Genesis. 1:11). Similarly, he commands Christians, the living plants of his Church, to produce the fruits of devotion, according to each one's ability and occupation.

Devotion is to be practised differently by the nobleman, the workman, the servant, the prince, the widow, the young girl, the wife. Even more than this, the practice of devotion has to be adapted to the strength, life-situation and duties of each individual.

Do you think, dear Philothea, that it is suitable for a Bishop to desire to live the life of a hermit like a Carthusian monk? If people with a family were to want to be like the Capuchins not acquiring any property, if a workman spent a great deal of time in church like the member of a religious order, and if a religious was always subject to being disturbed in all sorts of ways for the service of his neighbour like a Bishop, would not such devotion be ridiculous, disorderly and intolerable? However, this sort of fault is very common. The world, which does not distinguish or does not want to distinguish between devotion and the indiscretion of those who consider themselves devout, complains and finds fault with devotion which is in no way responsible for such disorders.

Indeed, Philothea, devotion in no way spoils anything if it be true, rather it makes everything perfect. When it conflicts with any person's legitimate occupation, it is without doubt false. ³The bee," says Aristotle, ³sucks honey from flowers without damaging them," leaving them as whole and fresh as it found them. But true devotion does even better. Not only does it not spoil any sort of life-situation or occupation, but on the contrary enriches it and makes it attractive. All sorts of precious stones when immersed in honey have a greater brilliance, each according to its colour. Similarly, everyone becomes more pleasant in one's state of life by joining it with devotion. Devotion makes the care of the family peaceful, the love of husband and wife more sincere, the service of the ruler more loyal, and every sort of occupation more pleasant and more loveable.

It is an error, or rather, a heresy, to try to exclude the devout life from the soldiers' regiment, the workmen's shop, the court of rulers or the home of the married. It is true, Philothea, that a devotion which is purely contemplative, monastic and religious cannot be practised in such occupations. However, besides these three sorts of devotion, there are many others suitable for leading to perfection those who live their lives in the world. This is attested in the Old Testament by Abraham,Isaac and Jacob, David, Job, Tobias, Sara, Rebecca and Judith.

In the New Testament, St. Joseph, Lydia (Acts 16:14-15) and St. Crispin lived perfectly devout lives in their workshop, St. Anne, St. Martha, St. Monica, Aquila and Priscilla (Acts 18:1-4) in their family; Cornelius (Acts 10), St. Sebastian, St. Maurice in the army; Constantine, Helen, St. Louis, (44) Blessed Amadeus (45) and St. Edward (46) on the throne. It has even happened that many have lost perfection while in solitude, even though it is so favourable for perfection. Others have retained it amidst the multitude which seems of such little help for perfection. As St. Gregory mentions, Lot who was chaste while living in the city, was defiled while in the desert. No matter where we are, we can and we should seek a life of perfection.

When young Tobias was told to go to Rages, he said, I do not know the way at all. His father replied, Well, go and find someone to be your guide. (Tobit 5:2,4) Similarly, I say to you, dear Philothea: If you want to set out earnestly on the path of devotion, find some good person to guide and direct you. This is the most important advice. The devout Avila writes that in whatever way you search ³You will never find the will of God with such certainty than by following the path of this humble obedience so much recommended and practised by all the devout persons of the past."

Blessed (48) Mother Teresa knowing that a certain lady, Catherine of Cardona, did severe acts of penance, was eager to imitate her in this, against the advice of her confessor who had forbidden her to do so. Being tempted to disobey him on this point, God said to her:"My daughter, you are in a way that is good and safe. Do you see the penance she is doing? But I value more your obedience." So she loved this virtue so much that, besides the obedience owed to her superiors, she vowed a special obedience to a very good man (49), and bound herself to follow his direction and guidance by which she was very greatly consoled.

Similarly, before her and after, many good people in order to better subject themselves to God have submitted their will to that of His servants, and this is very greatly praised by St. Catherine of Siena in her ³Dialogues". The devout princess, St. Elizabeth, submitted herself in absolute obedience to the learned Master Conrad. The great St. Louis, before his death, gave his son this counsel: ³Make your confession frequently, choose a confessor," a suitable one, who is ³a prudent man who can teach you with certainty" to do the things you need to do.

A faithful friend, says Holy Scripture (Sirach 6:14,16), is a strong defence: whoever has found one has found a treasure. A faithful friend is the medicine of life and of immortality: those who fear the Lord will find one. These divine words, you will note, refer principally to immortality, for which it is necessary to have, more than anything else, this faithful friend to guide our actions by his advice and counsel and so keep us safe from the snares and deceits of the evil one. He will be like a treasure of wisdom to us in our difficulties, sorrows and failures. He will serve as a medicine to soothe and comfort our hearts in our spiritual illnesses. He will protect us from evil and help to improve our good. When spiritually ill, he will prevent it leading to death since he will help us to recover.

But who will find such a friend? The Wise Man answers: those who fear the Lord (Sirach 6:16), that is, the humble who earnestly desire their spiritual progress. Since it is so very important for you, Philothea, that on this holy journey of devotion you travel with a good guide, pray very earnestly to God to give you one after his own heart, and do not doubt. Even if it is necessary to send an Angel from heaven, as he did for young Tobias, he will give you a guide who is good and faithful.

Always look upon this guide as an Angel, that is, once you find him do not consider him as an ordinary man. And do not put your trust in him or in his human knowledge but in God. God will give you grace, and speak to you through this man, putting in his heart and in his mouth whatever is needed for your happiness. So much so that you should listen to him as to an Angel come down from heaven to take you there. In your dealings with him open your heart, with complete sincerity and fidelity, clearly disclosing to him the good and the bad in you without pretending or concealing. In this way, the good in you will be assessed and made more secure, and the bad will be set right and cured. So you will be given relief and strength in your troubles, and moderation and control in your joys. Have very great confidence in him along with a holy reverence, in such a way that reverence may not lessen confidence nor confidence hinder reverence. Entrust yourself to him with the respect of a daughter for her father, and respect him with the confidence of a son in his mother. In short, this friendship should be strong and gentle, entirely holy, entirely sacred, entirely divine and entirely spiritual.

And that it may be so, choose one from a thousand, writes John of Avila. And I insist, choose one from ten thousand, for those who are fit for such a task are very few indeed. He must be full of charity, of knowledge and of prudence. If he lacks any one of these three qualities, there is danger.

But I tell you once again, ask God to give you such a person and when you find one give thanks to God. Be faithful and do not look for others. Rather, move on with simplicity, humility and confidence, for your journey will be full of happiness.

The flowers, says the sacred Spouse (Song 2:12), have begun to blossom in our land, pruning time has come. What are the flowers of our heart, Philothea? Our Good desires, certainly. As soon as they appear, we should get hold of a pruning knife to cut off from our conscience every deed that is useless and irrelevant. In order to marry an Israelite, a girl who was a foreigner had to take off the garment she was wearing as a captive, trim her nails and shave her head (Deuteronomy 21:12,13). So whoever seeks the honour of being a spouse of Christ has to strip off the old self and be clothed in the new (Eph. 4:12,24), giving up sin and then trimming and cutting away all sorts of obstructions which lead away from the love of God. The first step of our spiritual health is to be purified from our sinful dispositions.

St. Paul was cleansed in a moment becoming perfectly purified, as were also St. Catherine of Genoa, St. Mary Magdalene, St. Pelagia and some others. But this sort of purification is entirely miraculous and extraordinary in the order of grace, as the resurrection of the dead is in the order of nature, and so we should not claim it. The usual purification and healing, of the body as well as of the spirit, takes place only little by little, by gradual progress, by constant improvement, with effort and over a period of time.

The Angels on Jacob's ladder, even though they have wings, do not fly but rather go up and come down step by step in an orderly manner. One who rises from sin to devotion is compared to the dawn (Proverbs 4:18) which when it breaks does not drive away the darkness suddenly but little by little. As the saying goes, the cure which takes place slowly is always more sure. The illnesses of the heart, like those of the body, come on horseback very fast, but they go away on foot, slowly.

Therefore, one has to be courageous and patient, Philothea, in this venture. Alas! it is sad indeed to see people who finding they are subject to many imperfections, after practising devotion a few times, begin to become anxious, upset and discouraged. They almost let their heart be carried away by the temptation to give up everything and go back to life as before. But on the other hand they also are in extreme danger who, by a temptation that is contrary, are led to believe they are freed from their imperfections on the first day of their purification. These consider themselves perfect when hardly formed and try to fly without wings. Philothea, they are in great danger of a relapse, having taken themselves too soon out of the doctor's hands. Do not rise before the light is come, says the Prophet, rise after you have been seated. (Ps. 127:2 RSV). He himself puts this advice into practice and, though he is washed and clean, he prays that he should be purified even more (Ps. 51:2).

The practice of self-purification cannot and should not come to an end as long as we live. Therefore, let us not be disturbed by our imperfections, because our perfection consists in fighting them. And we cannot fight them unless we see them, nor can we overcome them if we do not come across them. Our victory is not in not being aware of them but in not consenting to them. And to be bothered by them is not the same as consenting to them.

In this spiritual struggle, we have to be wounded sometimes in order that we may practise humility, but we shall never suffer defeat unless we lose either life or courage. As imperfections and venial sins cannot take away our spiritual life, which is lost only by mortal sin, the only thing that matters is that they should not make us lose courage. Save me, Lord, David said, from cowardice and discouragement (Ps. 55:5). We have a happy condition in this warfare that we shall always be victorious as long as we want to fight.

We must begin by making a purification from mortal sin and the means to realize it is the holy sacrament of Penance. Look for the best confessor you can find. Get hold of one of the booklets which have been composed to help people to make a good confession. (50) Read it carefully, and note point by point what are your offenses, beginning from the time you came to the use of reason up to the present. In case you cannot rely on your memory, write down what you observe. Having in this way got ready and gathered up your sinful dispositions, detest them and renounce them with all the contrition and regret that your heart is capable of. Keep in mind those four points: that by sin you have lost God's grace, given up your place in Heaven, taken upon yourself the everlasting suffering of hell and renounced God's everlasting love.

You understand, Philothea, that I refer to a general confession of your whole life. Of course, I admit that it is not always absolutely necessary. But I am sure that it will be of very great help to you, now in the beginning. Therefore, I strongly recommend it to you.

It often happens that the usual confessions of those who live a common and ordinary life are full of great defects. Generally they make little or no preparation, and they do not have sufficient contrition. In fact, it frequently happens that they go to confession with the implicit determination of returning to sin, since they are not willing to avoid the occasions of sin or to make use of the measures required to amend their life. In all such cases a general confession is indispensable to inspire confidence.

Besides this, a general confession invites us to a knowledge of ourselves. It arouses us to a healthy embarrassment for our past life. It makes us marvel at the mercy of God and his waiting for us with patience. It brings peace to our heart, refreshes our mind, and urges us to good resolutions. It provides our spiritual director with opportunity to give us advice that is more suitable to our condition. It opens our heart so that we can express ourselves with confidence at our subsequent confessions.

Since I am advising you about a general renewal of heart and a complete conversion to God, by committing yourself to the devout life, I think I have every reason to advise you to make this general confession.

All the Israelites did in fact leave the land of Egypt, but they did not all leave in so far as attachment to it was concerned. That is why, in the desert, many of them were sad that they did not have the onions and the meat of Egypt (Numbers 11: 4-5). In the same way, there are penitents who in fact leave sin but do not leave their attachment to it. In other words, they intend not to sin again but they give up and deny themselves the unhappy pleasures of sin with a certain reluctance. Though their heart turns away from sin and leaves it behind, yet it does not stop looking back again and again in that direction as Lot's wife did towards Sodom (Genesis 19:26).

They give up sin the way the sick give up melons. The sick do not eat melons because of the doctor's warning that eating them would mean death. But they are disturbed at having to do without them. They talk of them and try to bargain if they could possibly have them. They want at least to smell them, and consider those who can eat them to be very happy. Similarly, penitents who are weak and lack courage give up sin for some time but with sadness. They would like very much if they could sin and not be damned. They speak of sin with delight and appreciation, and regard as happy those who sin.

A man determined to take revenge will change his mind in confession, but soon afterwards he will join his friends and enjoy speaking about his quarrel. He will say that but for the fear of God, he would have done this or that; that the divine law with regard to forgiveness is hard; that, God willing, taking revenge should be allowed. Yes, it is quite clear that, though this man has given up sin, he is greatly burdened with attachment to sin. He is in fact out of Egypt, but in desire he is still there, longing for the garlic and onions which he enjoyed eating there. He is like the woman who has put a stop to her love affairs, but still takes delight in being courted and surrounded by admirers. Alas! such persons are certainly in great danger.

Dear Philothea, as you desire to commit yourself to the devout life, you must not only turn away from sin but you must completely cut away from your heart every attachment connected with sin. Otherwise, there is first of all the danger of falling back to sin. Besides, these unhappy attachments will constantly weaken your spirit, and make it sluggish, so that you will not be able to do good works promptly, carefully, and frequently, for it is in this that the true essence of devotion consists.

Those who have given up sin but still have these attachments and weaknesses are, in my opinion, like anaemic girls. These girls are not sick but all their actions are lifeless: they eat without enjoyment, sleep without rest, laugh without joy, and drag themselves rather than walk. In the same way, these persons do good with such a great spiritual weariness that their good exercises, which are few in number and have little effect, are entirely lacking in worth.

The first motive for carrying out this second purification is a clear and forceful realization of the great harm that sin causes us. By this means, we are led to a heartfelt and earnest contrition. Contrition, as long as it is sincere, even if it is weak, cleanses us sufficiently from sin, especially when joined to the power of the Sacraments. So, when it is strong and earnest, it cleanses us from all the attachments connected with sin.

A slight and weak hatred or ill feeling gives us a dislike for the person we hate and makes us avoid him. But if it is a hatred that is deadly and violent, we not only avoid and detest the one we hate but we hold in disgust and cannot bear the conversation of his family, relatives and friends and even the sight of his picture or anything that belongs to him. In the same way, when the penitent hates sin with a contrition that is sincere but weak he is truly determined not to sin any more. But when he hates sin with a contrition that is powerful and vigorous, he not only detests sins but also all the attachments to sin, as well as everything that results from sin or leads to it.

Hence it is necessary, Philothea, to increase our contrition and repentance as far as we can, so that it extends even to the smallest things connected with sin. Thus Magdalen, when she was converted, lost all desire for her sins and the pleasures taken in them so that she never thought of them again. (51) And David declared that he detested not only sin but also all the paths and ways leading to it (Ps.119:104,128). Through such conversion is a person made quite young again. The same Prophet compares it to the renewal of the eagle (Ps. 103:5).

In order to acquire such a realization and contrition, you must carefully make the following meditations. If you do them well, they will root out from your heart, with the help of God's grace, both sin as well as the principal attachments to sin. This was precisely my purpose in composing them.

Make the meditations one after the other in the order in which I have put them. Take only one each day, and as far as possible in the morning, which is the most suitable time for spiritual activities. Reflect on it during the rest of the day. If you have not yet been taught to make meditation, read what is said about it in the Second Part of this book.

1. Consider that a few years ago you were not in the world, and that you were just nothing. Where was I then? The world was already existing a long time but there was no news of me.

2. God has given you existence from this nothingness. He has made you what you are, without having need of you and only because of his goodness.

3. Consider the kind of being God has made you: the first in the visible world, capable of everlasting life and of perfect union with himself.

1. Humble yourself profoundly before God: Say from your heart with the Psalmist: O Lord, I am truly nothing before you (Ps. 39:5). How did you have remembrance of me (Ps. 8:4) to create me? Alas! I was plunged in that ageless nothingness, and I would still be there now if you had not drawn me out. And what would I do in that nothingness?

2. Give thanks to God: O my Creator, powerful and good, how much do I owe you, since you have taken me in my nothingness, to make me in your mercy what I am. What shall I do always worthily to praise your holy Name, and to give thanks for your immeasurable goodness?

3. Be filled with confusion: Alas! my Creator, instead of uniting myself to you by love and service, I have made myself a rebel by my disorderly attachments. I have separated myself from you and gone away in order to take hold of sin. I have not honoured your goodness, as if you were not my Creator.

4. Cast yourself down before God: Know that the Lord is your God. It is he who has made you, and you have not made yourself (Ps. 100:3). O God, I am the work of your hands (Ps.138:8).

5. From now on, I will no more be pleased with myself, since of myself I am nothing. In what can I find glory, I who am dust and ashes (Sirach 10:9), or rather, true nothingness? What have I to be proud of?

In order to humble myself, I resolve to do such or such a thing, bear such or such humiliations. I am determined to change my life and to follow my Creator from now on. I shall honour the kind of being he has given me, making use of it entirely in obedience to his will. For this I will take the means taught me, and which I shall find out from my spiritual director.

1. Thank God. Bless your God, my soul, and all my being praise his holy Name (Ps. 103:1), for his goodness has drawn me from nothingness, and his mercy has created me.

2. Offer. My God, I offer you with all my heart the being you have given me. I dedicate and consecrate it to you.

3. Pray. My God, strengthen me in these loving desires and resolutions. Holy Virgin Mary, recommend them to the mercy of your Son, along with all for whom I have to pray, and so on.

At the end of your prayer, walk about for a while and gather a little bouquet of devotion, from your considerations, and inhale its fragrance all through the day.

1. God has placed you in this world not because he has some need of you, for you are completely useless to him. It was only to use his goodness for you, by giving you his grace and his glory. For this he has given you the understanding to know him, the memory to remember him, the will to love him, the imagination to represent to yourself his blessings, the eyes to see the wonders of his work, the tongue to praise him ... and so for your other faculties.

2. Since you have been created and placed in this world for this purpose, all actions contrary to it must be rejected and avoided. Actions which do not help this purpose in any way must be despised as useless and irrelevant.

3. Think of the unhappiness of worldly people who pay no attention to all this, but live as if they are convinced that they are created only to build houses, plant trees, store up wealth and be occupied with trifles.

1. Be filled with shame and rebuke yourself for your wretchedness which has been so great in the past that you have seldom or never thought of all this. Alas, you will say, what was I thinking about, my God, when I was not thinking of you? What was I remembering, when I was forgetful of you? What did I love, when I was not loving you? Alas, I ought to have nourished myself on truth, but I was filling myself with vanity. I was serving the world which is made only to serve me.

2. Detest your past life. I turn away from you, vain thoughts and useless reasonings. I reject you, hateful and foolish memories. I give you up, false and disloyal friendships, wasted and wretched occupations, unprofitable pleasures and burdensome satisfactions.

3. Turn yourself back to God. You, my God and my Saviour, from now on you will be the only object of my thoughts. No more will I turn my mind to thoughts displeasing to you. My memory will be filled, each day of my life, with the greatness of your loving-kindness so tenderly shown to me. You will be the joy of my heart and the delight of my affections.

From now on, I will hold in horror such and such trash and trifles to which I have been devoted , such and such silly actions for which I have used my days, such and such affection with which I have filled my heart. With this in mind I will make use of such and such means.

1. Thank God who has made you for such an excellent purpose. You have made me, O Lord, for yourself, that I may enjoy forever the immensity of your glory. When shall I be worthy of this? When shall I bless you as I ought?

2. Offer. Loving Creator, I offer you these good movements of the will and these deliberate decisions, with all my heart and mind.

3. Pray. My God, I humbly ask you, to accept my desires and my resolutions, and to give me your blessing, that I may be able to realize them by the merits of the blood of your Son shed upon the Cross, and so on.

1. Think of the bodily gifts which God has given you: your body, the many conveniences for its care, your health, all the lawful comforts, your friends, so much that is helpful. While considering all these, compare yourself to so many other persons who are more deserving than you but who have not been given these blessings: some have defective bodies or lack of health or limbs, others are subject to rebuke, disrespect and dishonour, still others are weighed down with poverty. But God has not allowed that you should suffer such miseries.

2. Think of your gifts of the mind. Many people in this world are stupid, insane and foolish. But your are not one of these. God has shown you favour. Many others have grown up without manners and in complete ignorance. By God's Providence you have been given a good education.

3. Think of your spiritual gifts. Philothea, you are a child of the Church. From the days of your youth God has taught you about himself. How often has he given you his Sacraments? How many times inspirations, interior lights, and warnings to correct you? How often has he forgiven you your sins? How many times has he saved you when you were exposed to spiritual ruin? Have not these past years been time and opportunity for you to grow in goodness? Consider for a short while, in detail, how gentle and loving God has been to you.

1. Admire God's goodness: How good is my God to me. He is good indeed. Lord, your heart is rich in mercy and full of loving-kindness (Ps. 86:5). I will proclaim forever his numerous graces to me.

2. Wonder at your ingratitude: What am I, Lord, that you are mindful of me? (Ps. 8:4). I am most unworthy indeed. Alas, I have trodden underfoot your blessings. I have dishonoured your gifts, turning them into insult and contempt of your sovereign goodness. I have opposed the abyss of my ingratitude to the abyss of your grace and goodness.

3. Stir yourself up to gratitude: My heart, be no more unfaithful, ungrateful and disloyal to this great Benefactor. Shall not my soul henceforth, be subject to God (Ps. 62:1) who has worked so many wonders and graces in me and for me?

4. Philothea, hold back your body from such and such sensual pleasures and make it subject to the service of God who has done so much for it. Make use of your spirit to know him and acknowledge him by such and such exercises necessary for this purpose. Use carefully the means the Church offers to save yourself and to love God.

Yes I will pray regularly and receive the Sacraments frequently. I will listen to the word of God and put into practice his inspirations and counsels.

1. Thank God for the knowledge he has now given you of your duty, and for all the blessings received till now.

3. Pray to him for strength to practise them faithfully through the merits of his Son's death. Pray to our Lady and the Saints to intercede for you.

1. Try to remember when you began to sin. Note that from this first beginning sins have greatly multiplied in your heart. Day by day your sins have increased, against God, against yourself, against your neighbour, by deed, by word, by desire and thought.

2. Think of your evil inclinations, and to what extent you have followed them. From these two points you will realize that your sins are greater in number than the hairs of your head (Ps.40:12), indeed more than the sand of the sea.

3. Consider by itself the sin of ingratitude to God. It is a general sin spreading itself to all the others and making them much more serious. Look at the numerous benefits God has given you which you have all misused against the Giver. Remember especially the many inspirations to which you have paid no attention, and the many good movements you made useless. Above all, you have received the Sacraments many times but where are the fruits? The precious jewels with which your dear Spouse adorned you are all buried beneath your sins. What preparation did you make to receive the Sacraments? Reflect on this ingratitude, that while God was running after you constantly to save you, you were always running away from him to ruin yourself.

1. Be filled with shame at your wretchedness: My God, how dare I come in your presence? Alas, I am only the filth of the world and a sewer of ingratitude and wrongdoing. How thoroughly disloyal I have been. There is not a single one of my senses or the powers of my spirit which I have not spoilt, misused or soiled. Not a single day of my life has passed on which I have not done much evil. What a return I have made for the blessings of my Creator and for the blood of my Saviour.

2. Ask pardon: Throw yourself at our Lord's feet like a prodigal child (Lk. 15:18-21), like a sinful woman (Lk.7:37-38), like a wife who has been most unfaithful to her husband. Lord, show mercy to me a sinner. Living fountain of compassion, have pity on me so full of misery.

3. Be determined to live a better life: No Lord, never again, with the help of your grace. No, never again will I give myself up to sin.

Alas, I have loved it very greatly. I despise it and hold on to you, merciful Father. In you I want to live and die.

4. I will confess my past sins with courage so that they will be wiped away. Every one of them I will drive out.

5. I will completely root out sin from my heart, doing all I can for this, especially such and such that are most troublesome.

6. I will constantly use the means recommended to me in order to realize all the above. I will never think that I have done enough to make up for such serious faults.

1. Thank God who has waited for you till this very hour, and has given you these good desires.

3. Imagine yourself to be seriously ill, lying on your death-bed, with no hope of recovery.

1. Be aware that the day of your death is uncertain. One day my spirit will leave my body. When will it be? In winter or in summer? In town or in the country? During the day or at night? Will you have time to make your confession or not? Will your confessor or spiritual father be present to help you? Alas, we know nothing at all about any of these things. Only one thing is certain, that we shall die sooner than we expect.

2. Realize that then the world will come to an end, as far as you are concerned. It will be no more for you. It will turn upside down before your eyes. Yes, because then pleasures, trifles, worldly joys and foolish affections will be seen as shadows and clouds. How foolish have I been to offend my God for such trifles and illusions.

You will see that you have turned away from God for nothing. On the contrary, devotion and good works will then seem to you so desirable and pleasant. Why did I not follow this beautiful and delightful path? Then sins that seemed very small will appear as big as mountains, and your devotion very small.

3. Think of your final farewell to this poor world made with much reluctance: you will say goodbye to riches, to trifles and useless company, to pleasures, to friends and neighbours, to relations, to children, to husband, to wife, in short to every creature. Last of all, to your body which will be left pale, haggard, emaciated, frightful and foul-smelling.

4. See that with haste your body will be carried away and hidden in the earth. After this, the world will seldom think of you. You will not be remembered any more, just as you have scarcely thought of others. They will say, ³God grant him peace." That will be all. Death, you are powerful and you are without pity.

5. Consider that the spirit, on leaving the body, makes its way to the right or to the left. Alas, where will you go? Which way will you follow? None other than the one you have begun in this world.

1. Pray to God: Throw yourself into his arms. Alas, Lord, take me into your protection on that day of terror. Make that hour happy and favourable for me. Rather, may all the other hours of my life be sad and troubled.

2. Despise the world: O World, since I do not know the hour when I must leave you, I will not be attached to you. My dear friends, my dear relatives, I shall not love you except with a holy friendship that will last forever. Why should I love you with a love that has to be ended?

3. I want to be ready for that hour: I shall take all the necessary care to make this journey happily. I will do my best to have a clear conscience. I will correct such and such shortcomings.