Episode 6 -- Treatise on Peace of Soul c6 -- Prudence, Serenity of Soul, Helping Others

How does one combine helping our neighbour and maintaining peace of soul?

We saw in chapter five that heavenly peace requires our desires to be conformed to God’s will. Peace is the fruit of being aligned with God. When we desire things outside of his will, our souls cannot have peace. The question then arises: how zealous should we be for helping our neighbour? Very zealous. We cannot love God and be one with Him without loving those he created and shed his blood for. At the same time, however, helping our neighbour has special challenges. Unless we are guided by prudence, practical wisdom, we will end up hurting our own souls. Chapter six helps us avoid those dangers.

Fr Scupoli does not hide from us what ultimate union with God will demand. He showed us last episode in chapter 5 that our desires are like chains. Our desires can enslave us. These chains will keep us from running after, flying up to, the Lord in freedom. At the end of the chapter, Fr Scupoli says that we have to pray, pray for the Lord to give us wings to fly. We must want what He wants for us and in the manner he wants. Our Lord said, “I did not come to do my own will, but the will of Him who sent me.” But we cannot force our hearts to this conformity to His will. We have to gradually accustom ourselves to preferring His will. One of the best helps is to seek a spiritual father and learn to obey.