That No One Ought to Omit Telling His Temptations to His Spiritual Father on the Plea That He Already Knows the Means to Be Taken to Meet Them

ONE may say: “TI have already many times heard of the means to meet temptations, and from what I have seen and read in spiritual books I know what answer the superior or spiritual father can give me; why should I have recourse to him?”? We have good reason to fear lest this temptation may come upon us here, all the more in the case where a man thinks that he is already well advanced in this science. St. Dorotheus was much harassed with this temptation, but he knew well how to deal with it. He relates how, when he was going to manifest his temptation to his superior, the thought at once occurred to him: “Why throw away time to no purpose? He can only answer you this or that. You know it already; it is not worth while going to trouble the superior.” And I, he says, waxed indignant at the temptation and at the uprising of my own judgment and opinion, and I said: “Avaunt thee, Satan, excommunication, anathema, and curses be upon thee!” So I took no notice of the temptation, but went to my superior and told him all that was going on; and when the superior happened to give me the answer that had occurred to myself, and a sudden disturbing thought came over me: “Did I not tell you that such would be his answer, and that there was no need of going to him?” to that I answered to the contrary: ‘Now it is a good remedy, now it is of the Holy Ghost; when it came from you, it was suspect, and I could not feel sure of it.” In this way St. Dorotheus rejected the temptation and never gave it entrance, but carried the whole matter to his superior. So we should act, giving no credit to our own judgment, and not trusting it; for it is the common opinion of wise and holy men that no man is a judge in his own cause. And if that is true where there is no question of temptations, how much more where there is? For temptations blind the eyes of the soul and hinder her from seeing the right thing, according to that saying of the prophet: My sins have overtaken me, and the light is gone out from mine eyes (Psalm xxxix. 13). In such a moment the man does not know the remedy that suits him; and if he knows it speculatively, he does not succeed in making a good use of it or putting it in practice, because he is dazed and troubled by the temptation and passion; and God will help him more by one word of the superior than by all the knowledge that he possesses.

St. Augustine tells a witty story which is pat to our purpose. He says that a certain sick man called in the doctor, who saw him and applied a remedy by which he at once got better. It happened, some days after, that the same attack came back upon him; and as the remedy that he had applied on the former occasion had succeeded so well, he took no thought of the doctor, but took the same remedy, which he remembered right well; but though he took it, he felt none the better for it. He wondered at that, and sent to call in the doctor, and told him what had happened, and asked him why it was that, having taken the same medicine, he felt none the better for it. The doctor gave him this witty and acute answer: “Sir, the reason why this medicine has done you no good this time, is because I did not give it you myself.” Now, we may apply the same saying to our purpose. This remedy that you know and have heard of many times, will do you no good because your superior or confessor has not given it you, he being your Spiritual physician. Medicine has quite a different force and efficacy when it is given by the hand of the physician, who knows the exact situation and circumstances; so it is also with spiritual medicines and remedies. Good were the waters of the rivers of Damascus, and better than those of Jordan; but they did not avail to drive away Naaman’s leprosy, but only those in which the Prophet Eliseus had bidden him wash (IV Kings v. 10). God co-operates with the words which the superior says to you, and with the means that he prescribes, because he is in His place; so an easy and common remedy, given by the hand of the superior, will do you more good than all you know, although you know much more than he.