Letter 867. To the Rev. Pére Maillan, Jesumt

My Reverend and very honoured Father,—May the pure love of the divine Saviour reign for ever in us! God has indeed given me a singular respect and esteem for all that your Reverence says to me; hence I receive willingly, and with all possible humility, the remonstrance which it has pleased your paternal goodness to address to me. I confess that my words were too harsh and I candidly own that I have been in fault, for my sorrow was very great. Yet it had not blinded me, and I thought that I ought to write thus strongly, the better to make them understand the consequences of this fault, which they seemed not sufficiently to weigh, for Sister [de Blonay] wrote it to me as a joke, although she told me that our sisters tried their best to re-elect her and very nearly did so, notwithstanding her opposition. Oh, indeed, my very dear Father, from these words and the manner in which they were written I saw Clearly that they did not consider it a fault, and yet I knew it to be one of the greatest and most considerable that could be committed in the Institute, and quite contrary to the intentions of our Blessed Father. I still remember his words to me at Lyons during his last days, and our sisters ought never to listen to what human prudence may say to the contrary.

They know very well that he said, that at the commencement of the Order one could, in a case of real necessity, dispense the age when a sister was found to have suitable talents for government, and in his time this was practised. They also know that he says in the ‘ Book of Customs’ that superiors can continue in office for six years, after which they are obliged to remain deposed, and that no one has ever been more than six years consecutively in charge in the same monastery. Neither are they ignorant that our monastery of Grenoble, following advice quite contrary to the Institute, elected Sister de Chatel for a third triennial, and that we opposed this election, which was declared invalid, although at the time the ‘ Book of Customs’ was not yet published, nor were the Constitutions as yet approved, but they now are. And these Constitutions contain an express prohibition against changing or innovating anything’ whatsoever, under pain of nullity, as can be seen in the Bulls.

I had not, my very dear Father, intended to say so much to you, but the least apprehension of change is a great pain to me, and I have been carried away by the love God has implanted in my soul for the preservation of this little Institute, and have written more than I anticipated. May God deign to give us such a horror of any sort of change that we shall never hearken to the reasonings of human wisdom and knowledge, but live in our simplicity and in fidelity to observance, without gloss or interpretation contrary to what we know to have been the wishes of our holy Founder. If we are not inflexibly firm in this we shall soon die out. And this I say even in regard to the most trifling and insignificant observances. All the stronger reason then for keeping faithfully to those that are more essential, in particular to the rule for the election of superiors; for nature, I foresee, would often go counter to this rule if the door to change were opened ever so slightly. Oh God! how important it is for us never to deviate from our Rule under any pretext. This ought to be an inviolable law with us. I beseech you, my very dear Father, do all in your power to efface the opinion which may have been given to our sisters that we can break this rule, and to imprint in their hearts an undying resolve never either to seek or to listen to any counsel contrary thereto. If some day I have the honour and the consolation of meeting your Reverence, I am persuaded that you will agree with me as to the necessity of adhering firmly to this point. I have not time to give my reasons, but they are so conclusive that I should have abundance of matter to keep alive my sorrow were it not that our sisters ingenuously confess that they were wrong in having had such a thought or plan. This fault I feel sure will be profitable to them and make them hold fast to the simplicity of observance; for their goodwill will not be wanting, and their intention I never blamed; nor certainly had I any thought of attributing this fault to our very dear Sister [de Blonay]—I know her too well for that. It was because of my perfect friendship for her that I poured out all the sorrow of my heart into hers and made my complaint against our sisters with such confidence. Yet I was sorry that she did not, it seemed to me, concern herself much about it, and let it pass, perchance, without reprehending the sisters. Such, my dear Father, are my feelings, and although I think Sister [de Blonay] ought not to have shown my letter, yet I am exceedingly glad that your Reverence has seen it and that you now know what I am. Would to God that I could let you see all my faults! for then I should hope to receive some help for my amendment, as, to tell the truth, my dear Father, your words have great influence with me, God having given me an immense esteem for the gifts with which He has endowed you. May His goodness preserve you, and may you grow daily even unto the heights of perfect sanctity. I remain, yours with whole-hearted affection, etc.