Lectio et Oratio

Episode 60 -- Spiritual Combat c36 -- Continual Progress is Necessary

In my spiritual life, is it possible to take a break, stand still, and stop progressing?\

Fr. Scupoli does not think it is possible in our spiritual journey to heaven to stand still. He thinks that we are either making progress or falling back. In this episode he explains why this is the case. It has to do with the inclinations, the desires, of fallen human beings. We will also see that Fr. Scupoli thinks there is a series of stages that we pass through in the spiritual life. The challenges and revulsions we feel now are not forever!

Last episode, Fr. Scupoli encouraged us to desire a whole number of things! In particular, chapter 35 suggests the following list of things we should pray to have!

1. Undaunted courage
2. Resolute will to follow Christ
3. Fondness for the particular virtue we need right now in our lives
4. Frequent reflecting on God’s being pleased with that virtue
5. Early morning resolution to practice that particular virtue
6. Examining ourselves during the day on our faithfulness to that virtue
7. Using our spiritual reading about the Saints and our meditations on the life of Christ to grow in that virtue
8. Knowing certain lines of Scripture that deal with that virtue
9. Daily little Aspirations, ARROW prayers, darts to heaven, when we are tempted to quit.
10. A conviction that God likes to see us LABOUR!
11. An earnest desire to make progress.

Let us ask the Lord for these desires and practice. We need to ask for a new heart and a new mind. We need to do little things each day towards a particular virtue that is contrary to our current attractions to sin.

If I am aiming at patience, what ASPIRATIONS prayers can I say each day?

• —> “O Lord when shall I be armed with patient as a shield against the weapon of my enemy?"
• —> “When shall I love Thee so as to receive with joy all the afflictions You are pleased to send me?"
• —> “O Life of of my soul, shall I never begin to live for Thy glory alone, perfectly resigned to all sufferings."
• —> “O how happy shall I be, if in the fiery trial of tribulation, I burn with a desire of being consumed for Thy service.”

Episode 59 -- Spiritual Combat c35 -- Daily Advice, Scriptures, Arrow Prayers for a Virtue

What is the best way to acquire a particular virtue?

In this episode we turn to chapter 35 in which Fr. Scupoli exhorts us to be courageous in seeking after virtue. He provides some very helpful means of acquiring virtues. He suggests things to do early in the morning, throughout the day, and for times of trials.

We saw last episode that acquired virtues require time and are obtained by degrees. We saw how virtues are connected and united. Our goal is to be perfect as our Heavenly Father is perfect. Our desire is to be a true servant of Jesus Christ. To this end, we must seek the grace of the Holy Spirit, the Source of all grace.

Episode 58 -- Spiritual Combat c34 -- Growing in Virtue one by one with Degrees

How quickly should I expect to obtain a certain virtue?

In chapter 33, Fr. Scupoli gave us six pieces of advice for the beginning of our spiritual life. He told us to focus on one virtue at a time. He did not want us to have a different virtue for each day of the week. Focus on the area that most needs growth. In chapter 34, Fr. Scupoli digs deeper into this piece of advice. He explains why this “ONE VIRTUE” at a time approach is so wise. What he adds in chapter 34 is our need to make progress by degrees. “Rome is not built in a day,” the saying goes. And the Second Apostle of Rome liked to say, “Saints are not made in four days.”

In other words, we must manage our expectations of how quickly we make progress. The key is to keep going. The key is to persevere.

 

Episode 57 -- Spiritual Combat c33.2 -- More Advice on Conquering Predominant Passion

Besides focusing on practicing the contrary virtue of my predominant passion and being open to struggle for as long as it takes, what other crucial steps do I need to take to set my life towards God?

Fr. Scupoli gives us four more really good pieces of advice tonight about turning our life towards God. Last episode he told us to avoid spreading ourselves too thin. Pick one virtue and really work on that each day. Which virtue? The one that is most opposed to the attraction to sin that most weighs us down (=predominant passion).

1. Lust? —> practice chastity/self-control/prudence
2. Greed? —> give things away, practice liberality
3. Longing for rest? —> practice diligence
4. Admiration —> be magnanimous, hold your tongue
5. Food and drink? —> self-control in all areas, BE generous with others
6. Envy at others? —> do something good for others, pray for them
7. Anger? —>

Episode 56 -- Spiritual Combat c33.1 -- Critical Instructions for Predominant Passions

Now that I am aware of my predominate passion (or attraction to sin), what should I do?

Having spent several chapters on the devil’s tactics, Fr Scupoli wants to remind us that our main spiritual warfare is fought on the battlefield of our own hearts. The enemies within are

1. our pride,
2. our egoism (bad self-love),
3. our predominant passion.

If we have stuck with The Spiritual Combat this long, then we are convinced that we need some kind of method to gain the victory over our false self, our false view of what we should be. There is a certain pattern to our sins and bad self-love. In chapter 33, Fr Scupoli gives some important instructions on what to do next.

OBJECTION. We saw last episode that humility depends “getting rid of self-esteem.” To modern ears, that sounds wrong! In the 400 years since he wrote Spiritual Combat, new ways of using the words self-esteem have been developed. Why does Fr Scupoli say that we need to get rid of SELF-ESTEEM? He really means getting rid of what we now call: Bad and false self-esteem.

• Bad and false/excessive self-esteem
  • I am something special apart from God.
  • I can be what I want to be without God.
  • I can decide the meaning of my life.
  • I am superior to other people because of all my talents.
  • How lucky other people are to have me around!
• True and good self esteem
  • God created me to share in his Divine Life forever.
  • I am a child of God the Father.
  • I am redeemed by Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
  • I share in the divine life by the gift of the Holy Spirit in my heart.
  • I am willed by God and a living, necessary member of his Church, the mystical Body of Christ.
  • With Mary, Joseph, and all the saints, I have a part to play in His plans, like every part of a human body.
  • I am loved into existence by God. Apart from his loving decision to make me, I have no being. His love holds me up and sustains me.
  • In my mother’s womb, he created my soul from nothing.
  • My life is connected to many other lives in this great body of Christ, this web of grace.

In other words, we have to get rid of all the ways we THINK ABOUT OURSELVES without referring to God. My true SELF is found in God!

When we forget God, we develop the false SELF esteem based on an imperfect view of ourselves. Since Scupoli wrote his book, people have so forgotten God that a new problem has arisen on the other extreme: NO SELF-ESTEEM leading to BAD SELF-HATRED. Looking at ourselves in our weakness and loneliness, being ignorant of the eternal life and love of the Trinity, we are tempted to think they are not worth living. Some people feel their life is pointless.

If the devil cannot make us proud and full of bad self-esteem, he tries to convince people of their absolute ugliness. The devil tries to make us PRESUMPTUOUS or DESPAIRING. And so we need to find the BALANCE!

What is the balance? Loving Jesus and being loved by Him. Knowing that we are part of HIS CHURCH. CONFIDENCE in GOD! TRUST! Living in the Truth of God’s existence and God’s LOVE. In Jesus Christ, my life, in all its weakness, has meaning!

The battle plans we will discuss in this episode must be seen in the light of God’s love for us. Even our efforts are rooted in His gifts. We want to become loving persons because He first loved us.

Episode 55 -- Spiritual Combat c32.2 -- Reasons for Humility

Why should I want to be humble rather than vain?

In the final section on how to overcome the devil’s tactics, Fr Scupoli does not even mention the devil. Why? The devil is a haughty spirit. He fell through pride. Fr Scupoli ignores the devil and focuses on the virtue of humility. Humility is opposed to PRIDE, the root of vainglory.

In this episode we will read about various reasons we should want to be humble. We want to be like Christ; we want to build a deep foundation for our spiritual life; we want to honour God.

Fr Scupoli told us last episode what kinds of things we should be thinking about in undermining our vainglory.

1. What is our opinion of ourselves and what is owed us?
2. How do I react when other people despise me or show me contempt?
3. Do we wonder about the motive of the person praising us?
4. When I do something good do I remember that God is the ultimate author?
5. Do I realize there is a gap between the amount of grace given and my actual good deed?
6. Do I ever think about how the saints really acted and how Christ acted on Calvary?
7. How does the greatness of my good deed compare to the infinite greatness of God?

Episode 54 -- Spiritual Combat c32.2 -- Resisting Vain Glory

In the times of temptation to vainglory, what can be done to conquer?

In this episode will be looking at Fr. Scupoli’s advice in combatting vanity or vainglory. Last episode we read about the general things we need to avoid this pitfall. We need true self-knowledge and mindfulness of our need for God. But in the actual times of temptations, what kinds of spiritual exercises can we do?

Episode 53 -- Spiritual Combat c32.1 -- Devil Tries to Use Virtue Against Us

What does the devil do when he cannot lead us away from doing what is truly good?

In this episode we begin the last chapter about the devil’s principal tactics in leading human beings to eternal ruin. When all else fails, the devil will try to make us proud and vain about the progress we are making. In a word, the devil tries to use the good we are doing to make us forget how much we depend on God.

We saw last episode how the devil can easily tempt us because of the bad self-love that dwells in our hearts. We want to be something great. We want to do certain things. We tell ourselves it is for the Lord, but secretly pride and egoism infect our attitudes. Instead of patience and resignation, and loving acceptance of God’s plan, we try to rework things according to our own plans. Lord, open our hearts by the Holy Spirit to true self-knowledge. Come Holy Spirit! Help us accept God’s will.

Let us take heart! April 30th is the feast day of “the spiritual mother of the Americas,” the first nun in Canada, the “St Teresa of the new world”: St Marie of the Incarnation. How the Lord taught her patience. How He formed her through trials and disappointments. She was a wife, a mother, a widow, a business owner, a nun, a missionary, a mystic, a builder, a pioneer, a superior, a great letter writer, and a friend of those who suffer mental distress. St Marie pray for us to be courageous against the devil as you were!

Episode 52 -- Spiritual Combat c31.3 -- Caution against Suggestions of Self-Love

Would I be better if I copied the saints exactly? No!

In this longish chapter on the devil’s fourth tactic, ill-timed resolutions, we have seen that the devil tries to drag people down who are following God by making them want things at the wrong time, even holy things. Instead of patient acceptance of God’s plan, God’s timing, God’s arrangement, we are like Eve in the Garden. We reach out and take what looks good to us! She wanted to be like God — a good thing. But she did not accept it as a gift. She tried to be like God on her own.

Fr Scupoli tells us in this episode that we cannot simply copy the saints. We need caution in reading their lives. The followed the PATH God marked out for THEM. We have to find the PATH God has marked for us. We should imitate the saints in their Love for God, but not necessarily in all the MEANS they were inspired to use to get to heaven.

We saw last episode that God sometimes even allows us to be unable to receive Holy Communion. 1) As a way to make up for our sins. 2) As part of his mysterious arrangement of our lives so as to teach us some other lesson.

That example is one example of having to conform our will to God’s will. In this episode Fr Scupoli will stress the need for RESIGNATION, PATIENT ACCEPTANCE, ABANDONMENT.

Episode 51 -- Spiritual Combat c31.2 -- Trial of Being Without Communion

Why would God allow me to go a long time without receiving Holy Communion?

In this episode we will look at a unique trial of patience: being unable to receive Communion. Last episode we saw how the devil likes to make us impatient under trials and miss out on what God is teaching us!

Episode 50 -- Spiritual Combat c31.1 -- Devil Tries to Derail Those Progressing

What will the devil do to make us at least give up on this virtuous life?

The devil is very crafty. In this episode we look at his fourth general tactic: ill timed resolutions.

We saw last episode how he tries to make those following God to lose sight of their real defects and passions. He tries to create illusions of spiritual grandeur.

Fr Scupoli advised us to withstand the devil by the following:

1. Focus on real spiritual enemies.
2. Remember that resolutions are not the same as VICTORIES.
3. Think about our inherent weakness.
4. Big time confidence in God!
5. Pray: Lord, help me; shield me.

On the feast of “Holy Zita,” St Zita of Lucca, the patron saint of domestic workers, cleaners, peacemakers, may we be given the grace to embrace our real path to holiness. Our path may not be what we dreamed it would be. But the Lord has a plan that surpasses anything we could have come up with or imagined!

Episode 49 -- Spiritual Combat c30 -- Devil's Delusions Aimed at those making Progress

How can the devil bring us back into slavery once we have escaped?

The devil wants our spiritual ruin. He does not give up easily. Once he sees that someone is making progress in following God, he tries to make the person believe a lie. He tries to persuade us that we are far more advanced than we are. He wants to lead us astray by a secret spiritual pride. In this  episode we will read about this third tactic, how he attacks those in a state of grace.

Last episode we finished discussing the devil’s second tactic. Once he sees that grace is moving the person towards God, the devil tries to short circuit the process. Good desires are important. Good resolutions are essential. But Fr Scupoli insists that they are not sufficient for getting out of sin. Remember, last chapter was focused on those in a state of sin. The devil wants those in that state to stay at the level of good desires without doing anything to bring them to completion. When are good desires and good resolutions helpful?

1. When they have as their foundation distrust of our own ability and trust in God.

2. When they are prudently formed in light of potential obstacles.

3. When we form them in light of God’s will and not just our own benefit.

When these three foundations are in place, good desires and resolutions will lead us out of sin into God’s friendship. We will begin to run the race set before us. What will the devil think of next? In this episode, we will go on to the devil’s third tactic to lead us astray. 

Episode 48 -- Spiritual Combat c29.2 -- Good Desires and Resolutions are Not Enough

To escape from the devil’s traps, why do we need more than just good desires and resolutions?

When we have realized the terrible state of being in mortal sin, simply wanting to get better and even forming a resolution to do better is not enough. In this episode's reading we will see the three reasons Fr Scupoli gives for needing to put our good desires and resolutions into effect. Staying at the level of desire often puffs us up, makes us miss real obstacles, and makes us too focused on ourselves.

We saw last episode that the devil takes a different tactic with those who begin to want to get out of sin. In summary, the devil will try two methods:

1. Don’t rush. You have a long life left!

2. Before starting a spiritual life, you need to get some other things figured out...you must do A…then B…then C… then you can think about following God…

The answer to these tricks of the devil is as follows:

1. Now! Now! Not tomorrow. There may be no tomorrow.

2. Seek first the kingdom of God. If I get myself in a state of grace and begin a spiritual life, all these others things will fall into place.

Episode 47 -- Spiritual Combat c29.1 -- Devil's Delay Tactics

When we are sunk in sin, how do we escape?

In this episode we take a look at the next tactic of the devil to keep people in their sins. When someone begins to see what they are in a spiritually bad state and want to do something, the devil tries various delay tactics. You have time! Tomorrow! First get rid of that other problem… We will read about these in this episode! We will also read about how to counteract these demonic tactics.

Last episode we saw the method to overcome the devil when we are really sunk in sin and going from bad to worse.

1. Accept Divine Helps when they appear!

2. Say little prayers: Lord help me! Lord make haste! Do not leave me here!

3. Get advice from your confessor….if that is not possible,

   1. Kneel before a Crucifix …

   2. or turn to Mary…and ask for assistance and compassion.

   Never was it known that anyone who fled to Her protection or sought her intercession was left unaided…

Episode 46 -- Spiritual Combat c28 -- The Path From The Depths of Sin

When we are sunk in sin, how do we escape?

In this episode’s reading we discuss the various ways the devil tries to lead a soul in mortal sin into deeper and deeper sin. At the same time, Fr Scupoli offers suggestions for those in this state of slavery to escape.

We saw last episode how Fr Scupoli divides the devil’s tactics into four, according to four different spiritual states of human beings:

1. Those enslaved to sin, but not aware of how bad things are.

2. Those enslaved to sin, but who do nothing to escape, even though they are aware of the disease.

3. Those who are free of serious sin, but are overconfident of their ability to avoid sin.

4. Those who are progressing and distrust their own powers.

The devil treats these four groups differently. Fr Scupoli unmasks the devil’s practices and provides advice for resisting the works of the evil one.

Episode 45 -- Spiritual Combat c27 -- Summary of the Groups the Devil Attacks

Having learned how to have peace of heart, do we need to be concerned about any other enemies? Yes!

One of the key lessons of the Spiritual Combat concerns our main spiritual enemy. Our main enemy, from one perspective, is ourselves, that fallen part of ourselves that keeps trying to rely on its own strength. When Our Lord tells us to pick up our cross daily and follow him (Luke 9:23), he is talking about our being a fallen child of Eve. I, in my weakness and tendency to all evil, am my own cross! But the Lord is with us. He alone can enable us to pick up our cross and follow Him.

At the same time, however, we must remember our other spiritual enemy, the devil. In this episode's reading, chapter 27, Fr Scupoli very briefly introduces us to the 4-5 main ways the devil attacks different groups of people depending on their spiritual stature. The chapter is short, but important for what follows.

—> Did you find the last chapter helpful? Here is a summary of last night’s reading in terms of Q & A.

1. Should the number of times we fall make us lose confidence in God? NO!
2. Will the devil be happy that we practice Fr Scupoli’s method of humble confidence after sinning? NO!
3. Is a single performance of his method sufficient? NO!
4. If I have lost peace of soul after sinning, should I raise my mind to heaven? YES!
5. Does Fr Scupoli ignore the need for confession after we have regained our peace of soul? NO!

How beautiful this chapter is. How wise Fr Scupoli is to tell us how to regain peace of soul: forget for a moment your sin and concentrate on God’s goodness and his mercy and his desire for your salvation. Then, with peacefulness, return to your sin and go to confession!

For a longer treatment of this spiritual secret, read the last chapters of the very short, Treatise on the Peace of Soul (chapters 14-15).

Episode 44 -- Spiritual Combat 26.2 -- Reacting to Our own Sins

How often should I practice Fr Scupoli’s method of reacting to my own sins?

What if we sin many times a day? Should I keep repeating Fr Scupoli’s method of loving trust in God? Yes! Tonight we will be reading about why Fr Scupoli’s method of reacting to our own sins must be repeated over and over again and why it helps us so much against the devil and our own self love.

Last episode we read about his advice regarding our reactions to sin, even terrible sins. No panicking. No loss of courage. Instead, he wants us to practice the following steps after we commit a sin. We say to God:

1. “See what I do when I rely on myself….”

2. “Lord I would not have stopped if you had not restrained me….”

3. “Thank you for your love.”

4. “O Master show forth thy divinity and pardon me… Never permit me to be separated from Thee; never permit me to offend you again.”

5. Lord, help me to go on now with my normal duties….

Do not waste time wondering about his forgiveness…as though nothing has happened!

May you reread this chapter 26 and make notes for yourself. Find a way to remember these steps. Fr Scupoli returns to this crucial spiritual lesson in his little book, Treatise on the Peace of Soul (chapters 14-15).

Episode 43 -- Spiritual Combat c26.1 -- How to React after Sinning

What should my reaction be after I sin?

In trying to disturb our peace of soul, the devil likes to suggest not only evil desires, but also misguided good desires. How so? Good actions must be done at the right time and in the right way to be truly good. “It is not enough,” St Philip used to say, “that some action be good. But does the Lord want it done by me? at this time? in this way?”

The devil presents apparently good things to us. He then tries to make us over eager to fulfill them. Fr Scupoli tells us to make use of spiritual director in these times. Act under obedience. Get advice. And wait! Let the impulsiveness pass.

Our bad self-love likes to encourage us to do things that are self-aggrandizing. One of the dangers of the spiritual combat and all the acts of self-discipline that we practice is that our self-love gets inflated. We do things to grow in holiness that we think up and choose. In this way the spiritual combat can make us proud. Our ego gets inflated at all we are doing.

Thus, the Lord allows us to undergo trials. One use of trials is to weaken our self-love by showing us how limited and finite we are.

In this episode we read about a special trial. The trial of our our own sinfulness. What should we do after we sin? How can we keep peace of heart after being spiritually wounded?

Episode 42 -- Spiritual Combat c25.2 -- How the Devil Tries to Rob our Peace

What are some the devils tactics for causing us to lose our peace of soul?

In reading about the importance of peace of soul, we saw that Fr Scupoli listed many trials that come upon human beings:

1. sickness
2. wounds
3. death
4. loss of friends and relatives
5. plagues
6. wars
7. fire
8. etc.

Fr Scupoli is thinking of the more common effects of original sin by giving us this list. He mentions things that have come upon the world through the disobedience of our first parents. God’s grace can enable us to accept these trials as permitted by God.

Fr Scupoli does not mention persecution, physical or emotional or sexual abuse, or various forms of mental illness. I think his advice about how to deal with the trials that he mentions does not apply in the same way to intense traumatic events.

In particular, his discussion gives three reasons why God allows trials,

1. for sinners to do penance,
2. for the just to grow in virtue an, heavenly reward, 
3. and other reasons known to God

He is not saying that these three are at work in every trial. He means that we are sometimes sent trials as a way of returning to God. If we are already close to God, trials can allow us to grow closer. Furthermore, God has many other reasons that he alone knows.

These three reasons need to be supplemented with other discussions and remedies for those who have been through trauma. What Fr Scupoli says will still have some application, but he was not primarily thinking of trials through human cruelty and violence. We can get ourselves in trouble if we think that our suffering such cruelty is our fault.

At the same time, we cannot forget the mystery of the Cross and Resurrection. Our Lord endured human cruelty and terrible persecution. He transformed what people did to him into an act of love and forgiveness. May the Lord open up the mysteries of his grace and love to all of us.

The Lord is the Good Shepherd. He defends us from he devil who wants to cause us to lose our peace of soul. In this episode we will read about some of his tactics.

Episode 41 -- Spiritual Combat c25.1 -- Why Peace in the Midst of Trials is Important

How can I keep my soul in peace even when mighty trials afflict me?

Why does God allow such trials to come upon the world and upon souls? In this episode's reading, Fr Scupoli gives two main reasons. His purpose in writing chapter 25, however, is to show us how we are to keep our souls in peace even when terrible things happen to us. Why does peace of soul matter so much? Why does the devil so try to disturb our peace?

Last episode, we looked at one of the powers in the human person that must be guarded if we want peace of soul: our power of speech.

• Fr Scupoli thinks there is a time to talk and a time to be silent.

• Talking just to talk leads to many other sins.

• One of the worst things that can happen when we talk too much is that we talk about ourselves in the wrong way. Like Fr Scupoli, St Philip urged people not to make a display of self without good reason. “The words, ‘I said,’ and ‘I did’ should rarely be in our mouth,” St Philip used to say.

• Let us ask the Lord, “what would you have me to say?”

• Fr Scupoli wants us to value silence, stillness, being with God. He wants to practice frequent speaking with the angels and saints. Let us ask our favourite saints to help us learn how to use the great gift of speech.

• We do not want to talk in loud and dictatorial tones; we do not want to bore people; we do not want to waste valuable time.