Letter 1621. To a Superior of the Visitation

My very good and dear Daughter,—All praise to our divine Saviour, who has given you so much love and affection for our Blessed Father and for your very unworthy Mother! I see your good heart pining away in disquietude under the share God has given you of His Cross. You ought not to do so, but rather to keep up a brave heart while enduring this sense of lassitude and of powerlessness to act. Bear with this feeling sweetly, without forcing yourself to overcome it. Keep tranquil, and surrender yourself submissively to the good pleasure of God. Make no reflections on your sufferings, nor on all that takes place within your soul. Faithfully discharge all your exterior duties just as usual, and leave the care of your inward life to Our Lord. Look at Him as you have the power to do, and be content therewith. Suffer His good pleasure and abide in patience. Do likewise as regards all these combats between our two natures, the inferior and the superior, and never let them frighten you. ‘ Blessed is the man that endureth temptation, for when he hath been proved he shall receive the crown of life.’ + Be joyous, as joyous as you can under this trial, and by such means, if you are faithful, you will advance more than if you abounded in consolations. I have already thanked you, before I had seen it, for the alb you presented to our Blessed Father; but now that I have seen it I must redouble my thanks, for it is most beautiful. I pray that the sovereign Goodness, through the intercession of our holy Founder, may clothe you and all your daughters with a robe of innocence and of grace in this world and of eternal glory in the next.

Keep firm in the resolve never to admit any subject who has not the true dispositions required by the spirit of our holy vocation, and God will more and more bless you. Above all avoid those who set up for being saints or ecstatics. To be really holy is to be profoundly humble and submissive and to have joy of spirit in the common life.

You have done wisely in not allowing those good religious ladies to make a long sojourn in your monastery. We must serve our neighbour in every way in our power—above all must we serve those dedicated to God—but it should always be without detriment to our chief duties. I salute all our dear sisters, and say a little special word to her who you tell me is suffering from a bad colic and pains. I compassionate her, but, on the other hand, she is to be congratulated, for there is no happier lot for the servants of Our Lord than to share His Cross and His sufferings. We ought to strive by our fidelity in this way to show Him our love, as He has shown His for us by the excess of His incomparable sufferings, compared with which ours are nothing. May God bless this dear soul, and you also, my daughter, to whom my wish would be always to send some little words of news, so that you may say there are no friends like the old friends.

We have happily returned from Turin. We left very suddenly, just in the nick of time before the siege began. We came across a company of French soldiers, but all good men, who were exceedingly kind to us. In order to keep clear of the armies we had to travel out of our way for eight days along a road between frightful precipices. The mule that drew our conveyance fell once; if he had fallen on either side we should have -inevitably been killed. So, daughter, was there not good reason to put all our trust in divine Providence, which has so singularly blessed our journey? And this new monastery will, I hope, through the mercy of God, be a great success.

We have given the habit to five postulants and received three or four others. Now you must indeed be my dearest daughter, for me to have written you such a long letter as this, for since my return I am overwhelmed with letters, and besides, when getting old one is not so robust and active for work. May God make us very vigorous in His holy love, in which I am all yours.