Introduction to the Devout Life

O YE virgins, I have but a word to say to you. If you look to married life in this life, guard your first love jealously for your husband. It seems to me a miserable fraud to give a husband a worn-out heart, whose love has been frittered away and despoiled of its first bloom instead of a true, whole-hearted love. But if you are happily called to be the chaste and holy bride of spiritual nuptials, and purpose to live a life of virginity, then in Christ’s Name I bid you keep all your purest, most sensitive love for your Heavenly Bridegroom, Who, being Very Purity Himself, has a special love for purity; Him to Whom the first-fruits of all good things are due, above all those of love.

S. Jerome’s Epistles will supply you with the needful counsels; and inasmuch as your state of life requires obedience, seek out a guide under whose direction you may wholly dedicate yourself, body and soul, to His Divine Majesty.

⁵⁰ Ps. i. 3. ⁵¹ Rom. xii. 15. ⁵² Acts vi. 2. ⁵³ The Preaching Friars. ⁵⁴ Psalm 5. 13, 14. “En son beau vestement de drap d’or recame, Et d’ouvrages divers a l’aiguile seme.” ⁵⁵ S. Francis evidently alludes here to the mention made of Rahab by S. Paul. Heb. xi. 31. ⁵⁶ Ecclus. vi. 2, 32, 36. ⁵⁷ 1 Sam. ix. ⁵⁸ Gen. xxiv. ⁵⁹ Ruth ii. iii. ⁶⁰ Heb. x. 36. ⁶¹ S. Luke xxi. 19. ⁶² “Qui se plaint, peche.” ⁶³ Rom. iv. 2. ⁶⁴ S. John xvi. 21. ⁶⁵ 2 Kings iv. 3, 4. ⁶⁶ 1 Cor. iv. 7. ⁶⁷ S. Luke i. 46-49. ⁶⁸ Isa. vii. 11, 12. ⁶⁹ Islands in the Persian Gulf. ⁷⁰ 2 Sam. vi. 14. ⁷¹ S. Luke i. 48. ⁷² Ps. lxxxiv. 10. ⁷³ Ps. lii. 2. ⁷⁴ 2 Cor. vi. 8. ⁷⁵ Ps. lxix. 7. ⁷⁶ S. Matt. xi. 29. ⁷⁷ “La grace de Saint Paul,” in one old edition: in another, “la graisse de Saint Paull;” the latter probably is the true reading, as there was a quack salve formerly in use for the bites of snakes, partly compounded of adders’ fat. The name is obviously derived from S. Paul’s adventure with the viper in the Island of Melita. (Acts xxviii.) ⁷⁸ Gen. xlv. 24. ⁷⁹ S. James i. 20. ⁸⁰ Eph. iv. 26. ⁸¹ In the English version it is, “Mine eye is consumed for very heaviness” (Ps. xxxi. 9), but in the Vulgate we find, “Conturbatus est in ira oculus meus.” (Vulg. Ps. xxx. 10.) ⁸² Cant. iv. 11. ⁸³ Ps. xlii. 11, 15. ⁸⁴ S. Luke x. 41. ⁸⁵ “Festina lente.” “Il faut depescher tout bellement.” ⁸⁶ Ecclus. xi. 11. ⁸⁷ Heb. xii. 14. ⁸⁸ S. Matt. v. 8. ⁸⁹ Ps. xv. 2. ⁹⁰ Eph. v. 4. ⁹¹ Cant. v. 5. ⁹² iv. 3. ⁹³ i. 15. ⁹⁴ vii. 4. ⁹⁵ There is no mention of earrings in the Canticles, but S. Francis probably was writing from memory, and had in mind “Thy cheeks are comely with rows of jewels, thy neck with chains of gold.” (i. 10.) ⁹⁶ Ps. cxix. 127. ⁹⁷ S. Matt. v. 3. ⁹⁸ Exod. iii. 2. ⁹⁹ I Kings xxi. ¹⁰⁰ “Their abominations were according as they loved.” Hosea ix. 10. ¹⁰¹ 2 Cor. xi. 29. ¹⁰² S. Matt. xxv. 34-36. ¹⁰³ Gen. xxvii. ¹⁰⁴ Ecclus. xii. 13. ¹⁰⁵ “C’est en un mot le jouet des cours, mais la peste des coeurs.” ¹⁰⁶ Ps. cxxxiii. 1. ¹⁰⁷ S. Thecla (V.M.) was a native of Lycaonia, converted (so say S. Augustine, S. Ambrose, S. Epiphanius, and others of the Fathers) by S. Paul, who kindled so strong a love of virginity in her heart that she broke off her intended marriage, and devoted herself to Christ. She is said to have followed S. Paul in several of his journeys, and a very ancient Martyrology, which bears the name of S. Jerome, published by Florentinus, says that she was miraculously delivered unhurt from the persecutors’ flames at Rome. It seems doubtful whether she died a natural or a martyr’s death. The first Christian Emperors built a great Church at Seleucia, where she died. ¹⁰⁸ Rom. i. 31. ¹⁰⁹ S. Luke i. 29. ¹¹⁰ Cant. ii. 15. ¹¹¹ Ps. cxvi. 14, 15. ¹¹² S. Matt. xxv. 27. ¹¹³ Ecclus. vi. 17. ¹¹⁴ S. James iv. 4. ¹¹⁵ Joel ii. 12. ¹¹⁶ Prov. xxiii. 26. ¹¹⁷ Cant. viii. 6. ¹¹⁸ Gal. ii. 20. ¹¹⁹ S. Luke x. 8. ¹²⁰ Numb. xxii. ¹²¹ 2 Sam. xii. 16. ¹²² Rom. xii. 15. ¹²³ Phil. iv. 4, 5. ¹²⁴ S. Mark vi. 30, 31. ¹²⁵ 1 Tim. ii. 9. ¹²⁶ 1 Pet. iii. 3. ¹²⁷ S. Matt. xii. 37. ¹²⁸ Ps. xxxvii. 30. ¹²⁹ Cant. iv. 11. ¹³⁰ S. James iii. 2. ¹³¹ S. Matt. xii. 34. ¹³² Eph. v. 3. ¹³³ 1 Cor. xv. 33. ¹³⁴ S. Luke vi. 37. ¹³⁵ 1 Cor. iv. 5. ¹³⁶ 1 Cor. xi. 31. ¹³⁷ Amos v. 7. ¹³⁸ S. Luke xviii. 11. ¹³⁹ Gen. xxvi. ¹⁴⁰ S. Matt. i. ¹⁴¹ S. Luke xxiii. 34. ¹⁴² Gen. xxix. 11. ¹⁴³ Gen. xxiv. 22. ¹⁴⁴ Isa. vi. 6, 7. ¹⁴⁵ Ps. cxl. 3. ¹⁴⁶ Josh. x. 13. ¹⁴⁷ S. Luke xxiii. 44. ¹⁴⁸ S. Luke vii. 37-39. ¹⁴⁹ S. Luke xviii. 11. ¹⁵⁰ “My dearest Nebridius... I wondered that others subject to death should live, since he whom I loved, as if he should never die, was dead; and I wondered yet more that myself, who was to him as a second self, could live, he being dead.... I felt that my soul and his soul were one soul in two bodies, and therefore my life was a horror to me, because I would not live halved, and therefore perchance I feared to die, lest he whom I had much loved should die wholly.”—Confessions, Oxf. Trans. Bk. iv. p. 52.”... which seems to me rather an empty declamation than a grave confession.”—Retract., Bk. ii. c. 6. ¹⁵¹ Ps. xxxix. 1. ¹⁵² Ps. cxli. 3. ¹⁵³ It is not very clear what S. Francis means by this. In the English version, Sara only says, “Thou knowest, Lord... that I never polluted my name, nor the name of my father” (Tobit iii. 15). In the Vulgate the words are “Numquam cum ludentibus miscui me; neque cum his, qui in levitate ambulant, participem me praebui” (iii. 17). ¹⁵⁴ S. Francis de Sales doubtless had in his thoughts the then common pictorial representations of the Dance of Death, with which (although to our own modern ideas there would be almost irreverence if reproduced) we are familiar through Holbein’s celebrated Dance, and others. The old covered bridge at Lucerne is one of the most striking illustrations. ¹⁵⁵ Cant. iv. 9. In the English version this passage stands as “one chain of her neck;” but in the Vulgate it is “uno crine colli tui.” ¹⁵⁶ Prov. xxxi. Those who desire a helpful book will find one in Mgr. Landriot’s “Femme Forte,” a series of lectures on this chapter of Holy Scripture, which, as well as his “Femme Picuse” is largely imbued with the spirit of S. Francis de Sales, who is frequently quoted in both. ¹⁵⁷ S. Luke xvi. 10. ¹⁵⁸ Cant. ii. 15. ¹⁵⁹ Prov. xii. 22. ¹⁶⁰ Eph. v. 25, 22. ¹⁶¹ 1 Pet. iii. 7. ¹⁶² S. Francis de Sales himself is an instance, his mother having offered him up to God while yet unborn. ¹⁶³ Cf. Marie Jenna’s lovely poem, “L’aimeras-tu?” “Je ne veux plus d’enfants, si ce ne sont des saints.” ¹⁶⁴ Exod. i. 21. ¹⁶⁵ Prov. xvii. 6. ¹⁶⁶ Prov. xxxi. ¹⁶⁷ Gen. xxv. 21. ¹⁶⁸ 1 Cor. vii. 14. ¹⁶⁹ Heb. xiii. 4. ¹⁷⁰ 1 Cor. vii. 30, 31. ¹⁷¹ 1 Tim. v. 3. ¹⁷² 1 Tim. v. 6. ¹⁷³ Cant. ii. 12. in the Vulgate, “Tempus putationis advenit; vox turturis audita est in terra nostra.” ¹⁷⁴ Ruth i. 20, 21. ¹⁷⁵ 1 Tim. v. 8. ¹⁷⁶ Cant. i. 3, 4. ¹⁷⁷ “Quarn gloriosa enirn Ecclesia, et quanta virtutum multitudine, quasi florum varietate! Habet hortus ille Dominicus non solum rosas martyrum, sed et lilia virginum, et conjugatorum hederas, violasque viduarum Prorsus, Dilectissimi, nullum genus hominum de sua vocatione desperet: pro omnibus passus est Christus.”—S. Aug. Serm. ccciv., In Laurent. Mart. iii. cap. 1-3. “How glorious is the Church, how countless her graces, varied as the flowers of earth in beauty! This garden of the Lord bears not only the martyr’s rose, but the virgin’s lily, the ivy wreath of wedded love, and the violet of widowhood. Therefore, beloved, let none despair of his calling, since Christ suffered for all.” ¹⁷⁸ 1 Cor. vii. 40. “Beatior autem erit si sic permanserit.”—Vulgate.