THE FIRST DAY
The first day of the retreat is mainly devoted to whatSt.Ignatius calls “The Principle and Foundation.”
Christ bids us act like “a wise man that built his house upon a rock,—and it fell not because it was founded on a rock” (St.Matth. vii, 24). The truth now considered is the rock on which the whole structure of our spirituality is to be built. Bartoli, in his life ofSt.Ignatius, narrates that a learned Doctor of the University of Paris, Martin Olave, used to say that one single hour spent in meditating on this foundation had taught him more than long years of theological studies. Such too has been the experience of many others. Father Everard Mercurian spoke of this foundation as alone sufficient to effect the most astonishing changes in a soul, by uprooting all its earthly affections and directing its desires to God alone.
The first part of the Foundation is: “Man was created to praise, reverence and serve God our Lord, and by this means to save his soul.”
To begin any of our meditations well,St.Ignatius bids us stand, for the space of aPater Noster, one or two paces from the place at which we are to meditate,and with our mind raised on high, consider how God looks down upon us, and then adore Him with an act of reverence and self-humiliation.
Then follows thePreparatory Prayer, which is also the same for all the meditations. It is to ask our Lord for grace that all the acts of our memory, our understanding and our will may throughout the meditation tend directly to the service and praise of the Divine Majesty.
1stPrelude.Imagine your Blessed Saviour appears before you, looking lovingly on you and saying: “My son, I am now going to teach you the first truth in the spiritual life.”
2ndPrelude.Beg that you may understand this truth as the Saints have understood it.
POINTI.Consider the words, “Man was created.”
1. “Man.” What is man? Compared to God, man is a mere nothing, like a little gnat flitting in the sunshine; yet among material things man is a masterpiece, endowed with the most wonderful powers and potentialities. Man is like a musical instrument, from which the Divine Spirit can draw the most exquisite harmony, as He has done from millions of saintly souls. But if not responsive to His touch, it gives out harsh and false sounds, marring the harmony of God’s world. A man may live like an Angel, or like a demon or like a brute animal.
2. Man was “created,” that is, made out of nothing, for so was the world; now even a savage understands that the thing made belongs to the maker.Therefore I belong to God; He can do with me and require of me what He pleases.
POINTII.Consider what God requires of man. If God has made man for a purpose, He certainly requires of him to work for that purpose. But God can do nothing without a purpose, a purpose worthy of Himself; His wisdom requires that. Now He alone is worthy of Himself; therefore He directed all things to Himself, as the Book of Proverbs says: “The Lord hath made all things for Himself” (xvi, 4).
It is not that God needs any creature; for being all perfect He is self-sufficient; but right order requires that He make all His creatures tend to Him.
How then must all creatures tend to God? By glorifying Him; that is bypraising, reverencing and serving God.
1.Praising God.To praise God is to show forth and proclaim His excellence. The Psalms are full of such praises; for instance Psalm 116: “Praise the Lord, all ye nations, praise Him all ye people.” We must not live then to exalt ourselves, or to get others to praise us, but render all honor to God, to whom it all belongs.
2.Reverencing God, worshipping Him, as we do when we pray. Thus the Angels in Heaven ever do, crying out; “Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God Almighty” (Ap.iv, 8). Thus we put statues of Angels on the altar to express our reverence for the Blessed Sacrament. Thus we should express our reverence for God whenever we speak to Him in prayer. How do I pray habitually? With what reverence of bodily postureand of mental attitude? We should thus make our meditations practical.
3.Serving God.To serve another is to do his bidding; we are then created to be ever at the disposal of God, to obey Him whenever He makes known His will: “If you love me, keep my commandments,” He says.
POINTIII.Consider the further consequences of our praise, reverence and service of God; “And by these means to save his soul,” that is to attain eternal happiness.
The good God has so wisely and bountifully ordained all things that by glorifying Him we glorify ourselves and reach the fulfilment of all our desires. But by refusing to glorify Him we degrade and utterly ruin ourselves.
Now we are made free to do the one or the other. This freedom is a wonderful gift, a glorious gift in one way, making us like to God and capable of securing our own bliss forever, with God’s grace, of course: but on the other hand putting on us a terrible responsibility. No other power on earth can control a man’s liberty. WhenSt.Agnes, a mere child of 13 years, refused to do wrong, the whole power of the Roman Empire could not bend her will; on the other hand, the influence of the holiest education cannot make a child virtuous without its free co-operation.
Can a man then, by refusing to serve God, deprive the Creator of the glory that he was intended to render Him? Certainly not; but he can freely choose to glorify the goodness of God by faithful service, thussecuring at the same time perfect happiness for himself, or choose to glorify God’s justice by his eternal punishment.
Colloquywith God Almighty, my Creator, and with Christ, my Redeemer; that I may do my full duty and secure eternal bliss.
The second part of the foundation says: “And the other things upon the face of the earth were created for man, and to help him to attain the end for which he was created. Whence it follows that man must make use of them in so far as they help him to attain his end; and in the same way he ought to withdraw himself from them in so far as they hinder him from it.”
The task of the exercitant is three-fold:
1. Intellectual: he must strive to understand the truths proposed correctly, clearly and fully;
2. Practical: he must apply the truths to his own conduct;
3. Prayerful: so as to obtain aid from Heaven to succeed in both these respects.
The Preparatory Prayeris the same as in the first meditation. It is so too in all the following meditations. It will not be necessary to remind the exercitant of this in the subsequent exercises.
1stPrelude.Imagine you behold our Dear Lord before you, who says: “My son, I will now teach you the second truth of the spiritual life.”
2ndPrelude.Grant, O Dear Lord, that I may understand it fully and learn from it how to improve my conduct.
POINTI.Consider these words: “The other things upon the face of the earth are created for man:” and man for God. Here is a clear exhibition of God’s wisdom; the inanimate is for the vegetable world, the vegetable for the animal, and all for man; inferior things are for the real good of superior ones. I am not then created for material enjoyment:Ad majora natus sum, “I am born for greater things,” I must not degrade myself by the perverse gratification of my animal nature.
POINTII.Consider the words: “And in order to attain the end for which he was created.” How do the other things aid man to attain his end? In various ways.
Some things need only be considered to raise man’s heart to God and prompt him to reverence the Divine Majesty. “The heavens show forth the glory of God, and the firmament declares the work of his hands,” etc. (Ps.18).
Other creatures are for the use of man, as food, drink, clothing, etc. Others are to be endured, that he may practise submission to God’s holy will; such as excessive heat and cold, sickness, death, etc. Others are to be abstained from, as was the forbidden fruit in Paradise.
Everything thus becomes for man a stepping stone to Heaven.
POINTIII.“Whence it follows that man mustmake use of them in so far as they help him to attain his end; and in the same way he ought to withdraw himself from them in as far as they hinder him from it.”
Consider how this rule may be observed or violated. For instance,(a)In our use of food and drink. The relish attached to the use of them is good as a means to promote our health; but under its influence excess is often committed, by which health may be injured, disease contracted and life shortened. Am I always blameless in this respect?
(b)Sleep may be excessive and lead to the neglect of duty.
(c)The study of nature, of the sciences and the fine arts may greatly promote the glory of God and indirectly the good of souls, and it may be wrong to neglect it; but it may also be abused; it is only a means, and must not be made an end in itself, to the neglect of our true end.
(d)Such too is the reading of literature or of the news of the day.
(e)Such is our intercourse with superiors, our brethren and outsiders. The bee gathers honey, the spider poison from the same plant.
Colloquy, asking grace to use all things wisely.
When we consider the conduct of men generally, we see at a glance that the lives of vast numbers of themare not in conformity with the truths we have been studying; and we are reminded of the words of Christ: “Wide is the gate and broad the way that leadeth to destruction, and many there are that go in thereat. How narrow is the gate and straight the way that leadeth to life, and few there are that find it” (St.Matth.vii, 13, 14). Of course the way of salvation, owing to His preaching and His merits, is now much wider than when He spoke those words; but yet it appears to be, through men’s own fault, much narrower than it should be. What is the condition of religious in this respect? It is well worth while to examine what is the effect of our religious vocation on the most important of all our interests, the attaining of the end for which we were created. Now it is clear that the religious life offers many great advantages for that purpose.
1. We are created topraise, reverence and serveGod. Now the religious life is entirely directed to these objects. 1. We are constantly employed in the promotion of thepraiseand glory of God: all our labors are directed to it; the place we live in, the occupations assigned us and all the circumstances of them are selected with a view of this purpose.
2. Thereverenceshown to God is continually fostered by a long succession of common and private prayers, Holy Masses, recitation of the Divine Office, visits to the Blessed Sacrament, etc., from morning till night, day after day, year after year, till death.
3. Theserviceof God, the accomplishment of His holy will, is not confined to the observance of HisCommandments and those of His Church; but, by adding the rules of the Order, the will of God is made known and accomplished in all the details of life.
Thus the religious is constantly occupied with the praise, reverence and service of God. His heart is not divided between different objects of his love: “He that is without a wife,” saysSt.Paul, “is solicitous for the things that belong to the Lord, how he may please God; but he that is with a wife is solicitous for the things of the world, how he may please his wife; and he is divided” (ICor.vii, 32, 33).
The condition of mind in religious islike that of the Blessed Angels, who are busy with God and the things of God. It islike that of the Holy Familywhile it abode on earth; so that a religious house is a copy of the Holy House of Nazareth.
And all this is not to last for a little while only, but for a whole lifetime; for the religious vows give stability and permanence for all years to come.
Therefore this sacrifice is compared by theologians toa holocaust, the most perfect of the ancient sacrifices, in which, namely, the whole victim was consumed in the fire. Thus one religious is likely to do more than a number of seculars for the praise and reverence and service of God.
And by these means the religious easily saves his soul, thus attaining the second end for which he was created. The good Lord has promised this in so many words. For he said: “Every one that hath lefthouse, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, shall receive a hundred fold and shall possess life everlasting” (St.Matth.xix, 29).
The hundred fold mentioned in this promise is not to be passed over lightly. For although it constitutes no portion of the eternal life of which we are speaking, still it is intimately connected with it. For it embraces a multitude of heavenly graces: a Divine protection in dangers, a peace of soul that the world cannot give; all of which make the attainment of eternal life far more easy than it usually is outside of the religious state.
With this prospect of eternal bliss for ourselves is united the special efficiency which the good Lord deigns to bestow on religious to procure the salvation of many souls. True, the exercise of the sacred ministry, with the sacramental power, is the ordinary channel of sanctification established by Christ in His Church; but there is a special efficiency in personal virtue to bring souls nearer to God; and the direct purpose and effect of the religious life is to increase personal holiness. The archenemy of man knows well who are the most successful in saving souls, and those he opposes with all his power. The fact that religious are more fiercely hated and opposed by the enemies of God, clearly shows that they produce more fruit in souls.
Of course the religious life has its hardships, it isa life of sacrifice; but that is its honor and its recommendationto a noble soul: “The kingdom of Heaven suffereth violence, and the violent bear it away” (St.Matth.xi, 12). All the Saints have led lives of sacrifice, like their Divine Master: “Jesus said to His disciples: If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me” (Ib.xvi, 24).
To aid us in carrying the cross of the religious life cheerfully, let us reflect whatmagnificent prizesare held out to us.
1. There is the brightcrown of virginity, with the distinguished privilege of more intimate union with Jesus in Heaven. “These are they who were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth” (Apoc.xiv, 4).
2. There is also the glory of being seated, with Christ, on thejudgment seat, when He will come in His Majesty on the clouds of heaven: they are to judge the world, rather than to be judged. Thus at least the Venerable Bede explains the promise made by Christ to His Apostles, which for a parity of reason, he extends to religious: “Amen I say to you that you who have followed me, in the regeneration, when the Son of Man shall sit on the seat of His Majesty, you also shall sit on twelve seats judging the twelve tribes of Israel” (St.Matth.xix, 28).
3. Another most valuable advantage of the religious life lies in theprotectionit affords against dangerous temptations to sin. True, as long as we live upon earth we may fall from grace, and forfeit, through our own grievous fault, the rich store of merit so faraccumulated and our right to eternal bliss: “He that thinketh himself to stand, let him take heed lest he fall,” writes the Apostle (ICor.x, 12). The best a man can do is to surround himself with such securities as lessen the assaults from without and strengthen the will within him. And such is undoubtedly the religious life. Its vows of poverty, chastity and obedience cut off the fiercest assaults of man’s triple enemy, the world, the Devil and the flesh; and its constant practices of piety and mortification provide a copious supply of Heavenly assistance to resist temptations.
ThereforeSt.Bernard draws this consoling pictureof religion: “It is a state,” he says, “in which man lives with more purity, falls more rarely, rises more promptly, walks more securely, is more frequently bedewed with celestial graces, sleeps more peaceably, dies with more assurance, passes more quickly through Purgatory, and is more richly rewarded.”
However, we must bear in mind that membership of a religious Order does not necessarily secure all those advantages, and that in the same Order they areobtained by different persons in very different degrees. The chief requisite to obtain them is to be a fervent religious. The more generous one shall show himself to God, saysSt.Ignatius, the more generous he shall find God towards him, and the more fit shall he daily be to receive in greater abundance His graces and spiritual gifts. The rapidity of our spiritual progress is not like that of travellers in a ship on thesea, all of whom advance at the same rate, whether they are walking or sitting or lying down; but our progress is like that of men travelling on a highroad, each of whom has his own rate of advancement according to his own efforts.
ThusSt.Aloysius,St.Stanislaus andSt.John Berchmans advanced further in a few months than most religious do in many years.
While we have perhaps broken strong bonds in tearing ourselves away from home and kindred, let us not be attached to little things; a slender silken thread is enough to keep a bird from gaining its liberty, and thus a little trifle may prevent us from soaring aloft to higher regions of sanctity. God fully deserves the love of our whole hearts, which are too small to be divided between Him and the things of earth.
Let us examine ourselves during this retreat, and see whether we are drawing all the profit we should from the rich treasury of our religious vocation.
The third part of the Foundation: “It is therefore necessary that we should make ourselves indifferent to all created things, in so far as it is left to the liberty of our free will to do so, and is not forbidden; in such sort that we do not for our part wish for health rather than sickness, for wealth instead of poverty, for honor rather than dishonor, for a long life rather than a short one, and so in all other things, desiring andchoosing only that which most leads us to the end for which we were created.”
1stPrelude.Imagine you see bright Angels standing before the throne of God, waiting to be assigned as guardians to new-born infants; they are perfectly indifferent to take charge of rich or poor children in any part of the world.
2ndPrelude.Ask for a like spirit of perfect indifference to all creatures, caring for God alone and His holy will.
POINTI.Let me ask myself sincerely: am I now fully convinced that I am in this world for no other end than to praise, reverence and serve God, and thereby to save my soul? that I must use creatures only in as far as they conduce to this end? This is right and just, it is highly useful for me; it is necessary, the one thing necessary;—all else is vanity; it passes away in a short time.
“The world’s a stage, and men are only players,They have their exits and their entrances.”
“The world’s a stage, and men are only players,They have their exits and their entrances.”
“The world’s a stage, and men are only players,They have their exits and their entrances.”
“The world’s a stage, and men are only players,
They have their exits and their entrances.”
POINTII.What prevents me from always living up to that conviction? The reason is that I allow myself to be influenced by various predilections and aversions, by my likes and dislikes for certain things. If I were perfectly indifferent, as the Angels are, whose will has perfect control over all their affections, then I would choose on all occasions only what God wills, as far as His will would be known to me. Can I acquire such an indifference? I cannot help feeling an inclination to like or dislike certain things; for it isan effect of the fall of man that our passions often rebel against the spirit. But I can control these promptings to a great extent, and with God’s grace, acquire considerable power over their movements.
To strengthen this habit of control over my various inclinations is the purpose of the present meditation: that is meant by making myself indifferent to all created things.
And stillSt.Ignatius wisely adds: “In as far as they are allowed me and not forbidden”; lest the uninstructed might imagine that they might lawfully allow disorderly sentiments to arise within them without at once driving them away.
How can I make myself indifferent? By considering the evils connected with the things to which I am inclined, and the good to be derived from those disliked.
POINTIII.Let me consider in detail some principal objects to which a man is not naturally indifferent, but he may with God’s grace make himself so.
1.A long life or a short life.For all I know, my eternal salvation may be much better secured if I should die soon than if I live yet many years. It was so with many persons, who were holy in their youth and were afterwards perverted. Therefore the Book of Wisdom says: “He pleased God and was beloved, and living among sinners he was translated. He was taken away lest wickedness should alter his understanding and deceit beguile his soul” (iv, 10, 11). What a blessing it would have been for a Luther or a HenryVIIIto have died young. As I do not know what isbest for me, I ought in all reason to leave it all to God’s disposal, and make myself indifferent to a long life or a short life.
2.Health or sickness.In comparison with the salvation of my soul the enjoyment of health during this life is of slight importance; and common sense would bid me readily to resign the latter to secure the former. Now God alone knows when this is necessary. We read of a virtuous man in England, who made a pilgrimage to the tomb ofSt.Thomas a’ Becket to be cured from blindness. He was heard, and returned rejoicing to his home. But he found soon after that the free use of his sight led him into many new temptations. So he returned to the same shrine and begged the Saint that, if it were for his greater spiritual good to be deprived of sight, this might be done rather than that he should fall into mortal sin. The Lord worked this second miracle to show what was really best for him.
3.Riches or poverty.The young man whom the Saviour invited to sell all and give to the poor and then follow Him had not the courage to answer the call, because he was very rich. And Jesus remarked it was difficult for a rich man to save his soul. It is then very wise not to care for riches, but to make one’s self indifferent on this point.
4.Honor rather than dishonor.History is full of examples of men who were virtuous while in an humble station, and who, after being raised to honors, became proud; now a proud man is odious in the sight of God.
5.And so of all other things.Let me ask myself whether there is any point on which I am not indifferent, and then consider how I may bend my mind in the opposite direction; then pray earnestly to our Lord and His Holy Mother to gain indifference to all created things.
POINTIV.Let me consider what will be the good effects of attaining such indifference. They will be:
1. Considerable increase in virtue; for thus my will becomes conformable to the will of God: I thus practise faith in His providence, and confidence in His paternal care of me.
2. Security from many dangers of sin, to which I should have been exposed if I had persisted in controlling my own fortunes.
3. Quiet of mind in the happy thought that God, to whom I abandon myself entirely, will dispose all for the best: “For we know that to them that love God all things work together unto good” (Rom.viii, 28). “Cast thy care upon the Lord, and He shall sustain thee” (Ps.54). “My children, behold the generations of men, and know ye that no one hath hoped in the Lord, and hath been confounded” (Ecclus.ii, 11).
On the other hand those who are not indifferent to the things of earth live in constant agitation of mind, restless in the pursuit of fancied blessings, and disappointed when they fail to obtain them; and, what is still worse, frequently exposed to the danger of sin, sometimes of grievous sin, in their eagerness to obtain their desires, or in their reluctance to do their duty.
Colloquy.Pray earnestly, both during the meditation,when proper desires are aroused in your heart, and especially at the conclusion of the meditation, that you may totally detach your affections from all things created, and obtain the grace of indifference to all creatures.