The principles of the religious life: or, an expllcation of the catechism of the vows

Introduction

It is not hard to show that all the principles of the religious life are connected with the profession of the vows that are made therein ; because these vows already include its chief obligations; and any explanation of them, done as it should be, even though brief, inevitably touches all the others.

Xow, in the little treatise which we published under the title, u The Catechism of the Vows,'* our purpose was only to state very briefly these principles and these obligations of the religious life. It was simply an elementary work which we designed for all persons who live in the religious state, and we hoped that its usefulness would be all the more general, for the reason that its very brevity would make it easy to learn and to remember. And, as it turned out, we have had the consolation to see the little book find its way, in the course of a few years, into a large number of religious communities.

But a Catechism usually makes necessary an explication. On the other hand, it cannot tell everything to the teachers of it, who, nevertheless, have need, in order to expound an abridgment with more confidence and profit, to know beyond what it contains. Accordingly, a number of persons, whose duty it is to explain to others u The Catechism of the Vows," have expressed to us their regret that questions of such importance were presented by it with such conciseness. At least they would be glad to find elsewhere the same subjects with developments apt to elucidate them.

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We have tried to meet their need by the publication of this new volume. Instead of confining ourselves to the plan of indicating the distinguished writers who treat of these matters, and of letting every one have the trouble of hunting here and there for the quotations which they want, we have, as it were, placed these in their hands, in the same order in which they were referred to in the Catechism itself; and without repeating the points, which, in our judgment, are there sufficiently set forth, we have here added whatever has seemed to us to be required for an understanding of the others.

Among the authorities whom we summon to the support of our statements, the Angel of the Schools, Saint Thomas, is the one that we cite most often and most gladly, because, in religious questions, no teaching is more sure, more lucid, or more full than his. It is true that, because of this reliance on the Angelic Doctor, there results a teaching whose gravity is not equally accessible to all persons ; but those for whom we intend it principally will know how to accommodate it to the intelligence of those whom they are instructing in it.

TRANSLATOR'S PREFACE.

The number of persons in this country following the evangelical counsels has marvelously increased within the past decade by reason of the recent introduction of Congregations from abroad, and by the spread of the Orders that have long been here. And lately, too, a notable fertility of vocations has crowded novitiates with postulants prospecting the way of perfection, and eager to mount to its loftiest heights. Therefore the publication of this treatise is most opportune. For every person in religion — novice or professed, subject or superior — needs to know precisely how far the conscience is bound by the vows of that holy state, the means of spiritual progress that it offers, the obligations and the privileges of the celestial call to it, and the other principles of the religious life. This information is all here, and is set forth with luminous simplicity.

Other authors have treated this same subject, but the works of only a few of them are accessible to American readers, nor have they all the clearness, the accuracy and brevity that distinguish the production of the Eev. Father Cotel. These qualities have made his book so popular in France that it has passed through several editions and won for it unstinted praise from most competent judges.

That this English version may approach the usefulness of the original, is the heartfelt wish of

THE TRANSLATOR.

Hanover, Md., March 25, 1894.

The Principles of the Religious Life;

OR, THE EXPLANATION OF THE

CATECHISM OF THE TOWS.

Part First. On The Vows Of Religion In General

The object of this first part is to explain the most fundamental principles of the religious life. The little "Catechism of the Vows" could, as it were, only point out these principles; we shall now endeavor to give them all the light which their importance requires.

CHAPTEE I.

GENERAL IDEA OF THE VOW, CONSIDERED IN THE VOWS OF RELIGION.

ARTICLE I.

DEFINITION OF THE VOW.

A vow is defined as a deliberate promise made to God of an act better than its opposite.

Let us consider the great practical lessons that spring from this definition. 1

Section I. — The Void is a Promise

Among the promises which men are wont, to make among themselves, three kinds may be distinguished; the simple promise, the promise of honor, and the promise of contract. In the first, a man binds himself but with this mental reservation: "If I can do so easily, if no obstacle arise/' In the second, the word given involved the man's honor; a serious impediment would be required for him to believe himself and for him to be considered by others free from this engagement. But the third promise, once legitimately made and accepted, constitutes a formal claim of justice; failure to keep it renders a person liable to be cited to court.

Very nearly the same may be said of the promises we make to the Lord. It may be a simple promise, as for example, to undertake in order to please Him some supererogatory work of piety. The same reservation is implied, namely: "If nothing hinders me/' or, at least I have no intention to bind myself under pain of sin.

We often make to God the promise of fulfilling towards Him an already existing obligation. It is a resolution we thus formulate in His presence, for the purpose of exciting ourselves to do our duty; it is no new obligation that we intend to impose upon ourselves.

Sometimes adding solemnity to this acknowledgment of an engagement already contracted, we protest before witnesses that our will is to fulfill it: it then becomes like a promise of honor, the effect of which is to tighten the bond of conscience, but not to double it ; such are the promises of baptism, improperly called vows ; such is especially the public renewal of them made in certain circumstances of life ;

such also is the ceremonv of the renovation of

1/

vows when they have not ceased to exist. No new obligation is imposed thereby on the conscience.

A promise made to God that may properly be called the promise of honor, is for example., the act of consecration made on entering into some pious association ; for, although certain promises are made then, even with some solemnity, the conscience is not bound thereby, and no obligation under pain of sin is contracted.

I speak of simple associations of piety; for there are in the Church some associations constituted bv it, such as the Congregation of St. Sulpice, of the Oratory, etc., in which without any vows being made, it could happen that a promise of stability, would become an affair of conscience, because a person would thereby have bound himself to that extent to the boclv of men with whom he desired to be associated.

But there is also towards God the promise of contract, and that is the vow, which comes then, as such, to impose by itself a new r bond on the conscience. We shall soon appreciate the gravity of this promise made to God Himself. Let us say here only this that if there is no intention of binding oneself under pain of sin, there is no vow; and, indeed, if you be not certain of your intention in promising, your conscience is not bound by a doubtful obligation.

Section II.— The Vow is a deliberate promise

By a deliberate act is understood one that presents these three essential conditions: knowledge of what we are doing, determination of the will, and the power to do otherwise, if we so desired. It therefore belongs to the essence of the vow that it should be an act entirely deliberate, for otherwise it would not exist.

I. — A vow requires the sufficient knowledge of what is promised to God. It even calls for mature consideration by the mind and a suitable appreciation; for as St. Thomas observes: "It is an act of reason, to which belongs the right to act with order." (1) This is why discretion is so necessary therein, that oftentimes the advice of prudent persons should be sought beforehand, because in treating with God levity and blundering are equally out of place. Unfortunately this is not always thought of by those who make vows.

But this condition becomes much more indispensable to the vows of religion, which are so great an act of the free will and an engagement for the entire life. It is especially for those vows that a clear and precise knowledge

(1) Votum est actus rationis, ad quam pertinet ordinare. 2a, 2ae, q. 88, a. 1.

of what is promised is required. Hence, it is the duty of superiors and masters of novices to fully instruct the aspirant to the religious life concerning it, to disguise nothing therein to him, not to seek to surprise him ; an affair of this nature should not be treated of by stealth, through calculation of temporal interest or through human or earthly prudence; hence also it is the duty of the postulant and the novice to examine into the requirements of that state of life, to interrogate in his doubts, and to clearly know how things are.

If the person who makes the vows were ignorant of some point belonging to their substance or of some circumstance of such a nature, that if known to him, it would change his determination, his vows would be null through want of knowledge.

II. — The consent of the will is necessary for any vow^ and for the vows of religion a very special consent is necessary, and this consent should be preceded by a trial of one's strength during at least one whole year. Not only is this a prescription of the Church, but even a condition made by it, without which the vows of religion would not be valid. (1)

This consent rests on & first and a second probation. The first probation, whether consisting of a certain number of days forming a part of the novitiate, or preceding it under the name of postulate, has for its object to make a first

(1) Council of Trent, Sess. 25, On Reform, c. 15. 1* examination, in order to know the vocation of God and to sound one's own heart. Therein one deliberates with oneself and with the superiors of the Order or of the Congregation; and the candidate should notice well that he must do his part in this deliberation, just as the Order is bound to do its.

The part of the candidate consists only in seeing if he tvills, according to these words of Our Lord to the young man of the Gospel: "If thou wilt be perfect." (Matt, xix, 21), still as it is a question also of a vocation on the part of God, and as Our Lord also said: "You have not chosen me: but I have chosen you," (John xv, 16), the candidate for the religious life sounds his will to discover if God wills conjointly with himself and consequently if he himself wills rightly, that is by the impulse of God, Who is the principal cause of Man's good will. (*) The ordinary means for him to verify this capital point if by examining two things: the first, if he wills according to right reason, that is, without his purpose being a passing whim or a simple flight of the imagiation, and without his overlooking some obligation of a nature to detain him by rights elsewhere; the second, if he wills purely and truly for God, not allowing himself to be influenced by human or defective motives.

Such should be the part of the candidate in which a director or superiors may be necessary

* For it is God who worketh in you, both to will and to accomplish, according to His good will. Philippians, ii, 13.

in order to help him by their lights and to keep illusions from him, but in which no one can supply the indecision of his will.

The part of the Order is to judge whether this same candidate is fitted to this vocation, and to pronounce definitively whether or not there is a true call from God: for, finally, grace could inspire a good desire, without always willing its execution, since the good desire is already a meritorious act and may become profitable to the soul in more than one respect. The superiors of the Order therefore examine the aptitudes of the subject relatively to their own institute: aptitudes of body as to health, strength, etc.; aptitudes of the mind as to uprightness and solidity, as to accomplishments acquired or dispositions to acquire them; aptitudes of the heart as to inclinations, habits and character. The candidate must understand that here the role of judge no longer belongs to him, because in wishing to render the verdict himself, he could fall into error, through ignorance or presumption or even through excess of diffidence. His only duty is to answer with candor the questions put to him, and honestly to make himself known.

The second probation, or the novitiate, by putting the candidate to the trial of the religious life and its difficulties, according to the institute, has as its end to confirm the choice of that state of life, the admission into the Order and the vocation as a whole. And in fact, this trial, provided that the novice gives himself to it with fidelity, will furnish a demonstration leaving no doubts; to the point that even had something been wanting to the work of the first probation, if the second proceed as it should, vainly shall the tempter come later on to strive to trouble the soul; rightfully, then, can the novice be told, whatever mav have been the first deliberation: "Now you have knowingly persevered in this vocation when better known; you have sought therein God and your perfection ; there, has been then, not only a ratification of the first act, but also a supplement to any defect therein to be found. The novice must remark that, his first probation once ended, it is his duty no longer to deliberate, as . if he had always to fix his choice, since this indecision would paralyze all the effort of his will, but rather to undergo with courage the trials of the novitiate and to acquire the virtues and habits of the religious life, according to the institute to which God calls him.

III. — The act of the vow must be free and exempt from all constraint; but it is above all for the vows of religion that the most entire liberty is essential to him who pronounces them; otherwise the Church does not accept them and they remain without value. Not only would all pressure from without, such as threats, violence or dread cause the nullity of the act, but the same would be true of that fear which is called reverential, if it really hindered the liberty of the subject. The

Church watches over this point especially for the benefit of the timid sex and it has ordained that the Bishop shall ascertain by an examination the fullness of this liberty. (1)

Section III. — The Vow is a 'promise made to God

" I will pay my vows to the Lord." (2) This is a very serious thought with which it is important to be well penetrated before making a vow, and no less important not to forget after having made it: the vow is a promise made to God Himself.

But assuredly when the vows of religion are concerned, this thought deserves the fullest consideration. Let us show that if it weighs on the soul, it also is apt to dilate it.

The vows of religion are, then, a strict engagement which, man makes, and for life, towards God Himself; but we must acid that reciprocal promises are made therein and that God on His side condescends to engage Himself towards men,, so that the profession of these vows may be called a synallagmatic contract made between God and man. Therefore the religious may and should say to himself:

iC I have made a contract with God, thence come my obligation, but God has also deigned to make a contract with me; hence my advantages."

I. — I have made a contract with God, I have made a promise to God Himself and not to

(1) Council of Trent, Sess. 25, On Reform, c. 17.

(2) I will pay my vows to the Lord. Psalm exv.

men. Whence I must draw this first consequence; the accomplishment of myipromise, therefore, may in no wise depend upon the conduct of men towards me. In vain would I seek to give such efficacy to a wrong inflicted on me by my superior, equals, or any one else, as to believe myself dispensed from my promise made to God; the consideration of any other than Himself can serve as no excuse and be of no value.

I have made a promise to God and it is the Almighty Who has taken notice of my obligation; He has entered it in His book, and no one can efface it. He keeps it to produce it some day, on that day on which He will make me render an account of its execution. (1)

I have made a promise to God and He is the All Seeing. He penetrates the darkness and the depths of hearts: He sees the failings successfully hidden from the eyes of men; He knows the whitened sepulchres which enclose rottenness. Nothing can escape His eye, neither the most secret recesses of the soul, nor the least offences of unfaithfulness ; and He calls Himself the jealous God, Who exacts all that has been promised to Him, and who hates rapine in the holocaust.

I have made a promise to God and He is the Immutable Being. Ah ! this is the point to be insisted on, for man is so inconstant. He is as the leaf carried off by the wind, and what he wills to-day, too often he wills it not to-

(1) Vow ye and pay to the Lord. Psalm lxxv.

morrow; and this inconstancy appears more common now than ever. Nevertheless when a promise has been made to God, it must be kept, and once engaged towards Him, it is done, the religious cannot retract. Apostasy! What a word ! yet it is the correct word, the expression of the Church. Alas! some minds will yet goon imagining that they may change in this almost as one changes one's garments. You who have made a promise to God, you wish, because some unpleasantness has occurred, to go back. You have become disgusted with your holy state ; at the least inconvenience yoa are heard to say: '"If it is thus I shall get out." Hearken to Him Who has received your promise: "I am the Lord and I change not." (1) Hear the Prince of the Apostles : " Why hath Satan tempted thy heart, that thou shouldst lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back what no longer belongs to thee? Before engaging thyself, wast thou not free? Why hast thou conceived this thing in thy heart? Thou hast lied not to men but to God." (2) And we know what was the chastisement of Ananias and Sapphira.

(1) For I am the Lord and I change not. Malachias, iii, 6.

(2) Why hath Satan tempted thy heart that thou shouldst lie to the Holy Ghost and by fraud keep part of the price of the land ? Whilst it remained did it not remain to thee ? And after it was sold, was it not in thy power ? Why hast thou conceived this thing in thy heart ? Thou hast not lied to men but to God. And Ananias hearing these words fell down and gave up the ghost. Acts, v, 3, 4, 5.

However we do not speak here of what would be altogether a suggestion of the tempter: or, if we must speak of it, it is only to warn the religious of two things : The first of these is that in view of the gravity of this temptation it requires to be repulsed at its first onset, and that, if possible it should not even be listened to. The second of these is that the utmost care should be taken not to give rise through one's own fault to this temptation or to foment it by sadness, by wilful disgust, by susceptibilities or dislikes, by resistance to authority, by habitual violation of holy Rule. It is a most grievous thing wilfully to expose one's own fidelity, and among all the temptations that attack a religious none is more dangerous since none can cause him so great a harm.

Therefore no matter how short a time this temptation lasts, the religious is under obligation to make it known to whoever has the right to his confidences; this is often the only remedy for the evil and the most efficacious. Disclosing it to one's brethren is rigorously forbidden by charity: it would be a most blameworthy scandal as it would be like inoculating them with poison. Let us add further, that such confidences made to equals, even without an evil intention, almost always becomes hurtful to them ; and besides, generally speaking, none of them has the grace to cure wounds of this kind. Finally, there is a serious duty of charity, for whosoever sees his brother in this peril — to notify the superior in order that he may hasten to his help.

Since we are considering so important a point, it behooves us to indicate the remedies to be resorted to by the persons themselves that, are urged to unfaithfulness to their vocation by disgust of their state of life, by relaxation, or by the temptation of the enemy.

The first remedy is seriously to return to the consideration of God's fright: U I have given myself, it is done, and hesitation is no longer lawful. To the repugnances of my evil nature, to the impulses of him who seeks to ruin me, I will reply by the energy of my will. I have, it is true, through my fault, allowed that energy to become weakened; but I am still free and master of myself, with God's help. Far from losing heart, as if it had become impossible for me to will now what I willed formerly, I shall rest on the infallible certitude of this double truth, that when God commands anything from me it is possible for me, and that He Himself Who imposes the duty is certainly present with His grace, if I only ask it, to help me to fulfill the obligation. (1)

A second remedy is the consideration of the chastisement which, ordinarily, even in this life, befalls the soul faithless to its promise. You feel the present suffering and your imagi-

(1) For God does not demand what is impossible, but when ordering warns you to do what you can and to seek what you cannot, and He will aid you in order that you can. Council of Trent, Sess. G., Ca. 10. 2 nation fails not still more to exaggerate it. Pray, I might first say to you, only compare it with the sufferings far heavier otherwise to which the world condemns its own in positions from which there is no escape. And, finally, whatever may be your actual situation, are you quite certain that your lot will be bettered by unfaithfulness? Do you not know, on the contrary, what is almost always shown by experience? And instead of profiting yourself by these sad lessons, would you wish to add one more example to them?

A third remedy, the sweetness of which will be more efficacious, is the consideration of the reciprocal promises made to you by God. But, first, I wish to impart to you a precious secret as a help, in general, in the difficulties to be met in the service of God. This secret consists in never looking at things except on their bright side. For every object in all the requirements of duty or virtue, presents two aspects and, as it were, two faces. One frightens our will, the other attracts it. Here, for example, you experience repugnance, because you look at the painful side, which presents the obligation or the difficulty; but rather make efforts to see the agreeable aspect which shows you a signal benefit of God, and your heart will be strengthened thereby; esteem and gratitude will be powerful aids in restoring the love of vocation; prayer will do the rest.

II. — God has deigned to make a contract with me.

In the promise given we have seen the obligation; but there is also the promise received; it is equally just to consider its profits and advantages. For to wish to consider in this contract only what weighs on us would be a pusillanimity both unreasonable, hurtful to us and offensive to God. Yes, doubtless, every honor obliges, every lucrative position or onerous contract imposes charges. But let us cast our eyes on worldlings themselves; do they obtain anything for nothing? Is it not true that they that pursue fortune or glory look more to the gain than the pain? "And for them/' says the Apostle, "it is question only of a passing interest, whilst for us eternity is at stake." (1)

It is then true, that at the moment that I pledged my word to the Lord, He simultaneously engaged Himself to me.

God has made a contract with me : shall I ever be able to sufficiently understand the honor granted me thereby by the King of kings? Whilst so many others are only common servants, He has admitted me into His house that I might be in the ranks of His familiars; He has appointed me one of the officers of His palace; still more by this contract He has raised my soul to the dignity of spouse ! Could it be possible for me to cease,

(1 ) And they indeed strive for the mastery that they may receive a corruptible crown ; but we an incorruptible one. I Cor. ix, 25.

for a single day, to appreciate this honor and wish to correspond to it?

God, sovereignly faithful to His promises, has made a contract with me ; whatever may be my weakness, I can count upon Him for the strength I need in my vocation. Whatever the difficulties; He shall always be at hand ready to sustain me; He Himself assures me of this by the mouth of an Apostle. (1)

God, the Almighty, has made a contract with me, and I have become His especial property by the complete gift that I have made to Him of my whole self. Now, when this Great God owns anything, He guards it, and there is no one strong enough to snatch it away from His Hands. (2)

God, the All-seeing, has made a contract with me; none of the least of my services will escape His notice, and all shall be faithfully, minutely counted. No good action, however small, no good intention, no good movement of my heart, no good desire even will be either forgotten or of no value in His sight.

God, the Immutable, has made a contract with me. Ah! this is the great cause of my confidence ! For I need only to keep myself firmly attached to Him, and I thereby lose my natural instability. This was strongly felt by St. Paul, the Apostle: "I am sure/' exclaimed he, with a marvellous assurance, "that

(1) God is faithful, by whom you are called. I Cor. i, 9.

(2) No man can snatch out of the hands of my Father. John, x, 29.

nothing can separate me from the love of my God." (1) And is this not for me too, wretched though I am, a truth proved by experience? This cupidity, this sensuality, this idolatry of one's own will, which so easily draw into disorders the poor souls who stay in the midst of the world and which have, perhaps, also formerly carried me away very far, what can they do against my heart now since it has attached itself to God and bound itself by this holy promise? This heart feels that it is free, it is steadfast notwithstanding its natural weakness, it struggles easily against inclinations thought to be indomitable by others, it contemns without effort or regret the goods, the honors, and the delights of the world; finally it is so faithful to duty that entire years often pass by without a single fault of any gravity to deplore. Whence these prodigies ! It is God who with His mighty Hand upholds His frail creature. "He has promised it, he has done it says the prophet. " (2) For this reason, rightly can I ever exclaim with David: "Yes, truly it is good for me to stick close to my God." (3)

(1) For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor might, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God. Romans, viii, 38, 39.