XXVIII — VIRTUES AND GIFTS

Presence of God. — Teach me, O Holy Spirit, to remain in an attitude of continual listening to your inspirations, of continual dependence on your impulses.

Meditation

1 — St. Thomas teaches that the gifts of the Holy Spirit are given to us as help for virtues: dona sunt in adjutorium virtutum. The expression is very profound: the gifts are given to help virtues, therefore not to replace them; this means that the soul must on its part do all it can, applying itself seriously to the exercise of virtues, and then the Holy Spirit, by means of the gifts, will do on his part what the soul cannot do.

Therefore the first practical attitude the soul must take, so that the Holy Spirit may deign to put his gifts into act, is to set itself on the way to holiness through its own efforts. The whole Catholic tradition places this personal activity and application as a starting point, because “if the soul seeks God, much more does its beloved Lord seek it... drawing it and making it run toward Him” (St. John of the Cross, Living Flame 3, 28). And the soul seeks God precisely through assiduous exercise of virtues, which, though not sufficient to lead it to the goal, is nevertheless necessary to show the Lord its good will. As the sailor who wishes to reach port does not idly await the breath of wind, but meanwhile puts himself to rowing vigorously, so the soul that desires to find the Lord, while waiting for Him to come and draw it to Himself, does not abandon itself to idleness but applies itself with zeal to seek Him through personal initiatives: efforts to conquer its own defects, to detach itself from creatures, to practice virtues, to realize interior recollection, etc. And precisely in these efforts the Holy Spirit will insert his action, putting his gifts into act. We see then how mistaken is the attitude of certain souls who remain too passive in their spiritual life, not making sufficient personal initiatives to advance in good, to go to meet God. These souls lose their time and expose themselves to easy illusions. Especially at the beginning of spiritual life, one must actively set to work: only thus can we hope for the Holy Spirit’s help.

2 — In general, in the first period of spiritual life, the influence of the Holy Spirit’s gifts, though never lacking, is rather hidden and rare; naturally, therefore, in this period the soul’s initiative prevails, that is, active exercise of virtues and prayer. But as spiritual life develops, that is, as charity grows, the gifts’ influence also grows; indeed, when the soul is faithful, this influence gradually becomes stronger and more frequent, until it takes precedence over the soul’s own initiatives; and it is precisely thus that, under the Holy Spirit’s direction, the soul comes to holiness.

To be able to profit from the Holy Spirit’s gifts, it is necessary that from the beginning of its spiritual life the soul accustom itself to be active and passive together; that is, while taking its own initiatives, it should at the same time seek to remain attentive and docile to the Holy Spirit’s inspirations. In fact, if there are souls too passive, there are also souls too active, who make everything consist in their plans of spiritual reform, in their resolutions, in their exercises, as though holiness depended solely on their own industry; in the end, they count too much on their own strength and too little on divine help. These souls run the risk of not knowing how to grasp the Holy Spirit’s inspirations, of stifling his impulses, and therefore of toiling without reaching the goal. More teachableness and docility are needed, more abandonment is needed. Teachableness of mind to recognize the Holy Spirit’s interior inspirations, docility of will to follow them, abandonment to let oneself be led also by dark and unknown ways contrary to one’s own tastes. No one can be his own master in holiness; the Master is one alone: the Holy Spirit. One must always remain at his school, in dependence on Him; therefore, while actively working for correction of defects and acquisition of virtues, one must keep the inner ear always attentive to the Holy Spirit’s impulses: precisely to make us capable of this, He gave us his gifts. “The Lord has awakened my ear, that I may hear Him as master,” says Isaiah. “The Lord has opened my ear, and I do not resist nor have I ever drawn back” (50:4-5). This must be the interior attitude of a soul that wants to let itself be guided by the Holy Spirit.

Colloquy

“O Holy Spirit, God-Love, bond of the Holy Trinity by way of love, You rest and place your delights among the children of men, in holy chastity which, under the influence of your strength and your charms, flowers here below like the rose among thorns. Holy Spirit! Love! Love! Tell me what road leads to so delightful a dwelling; where is the path of life that leads to these meadows made fertile by divine dew, where hearts parched by thirst are refreshed. O Love, You alone know this road that leads to life and truth. In You is fulfilled the union full of delights that unites the divine Persons of the Holy Trinity among themselves. Through You, O Holy Spirit, the most precious gifts are spread over us. From You proceed the fertile seeds that produce the fruits of life. From You flows the honey so sweet of delights that are only in God. Through You descend upon us the fertilizing waters of divine blessings, gifts so dear of the Spirit, but, alas, so rare in our region.

“O Holy Spirit, You are the fountain for which I long, the desire of my heart. Ocean overflowing with waters, absorb this least wandering drop that desires to go out of itself to enter into You. You are the entire and only substance of my heart, and to You I cling with all fervor. O what lovable union! Truly this familiarity with You is more to be prized than life itself; your fragrance is like a balm of propitiation and peace.

“O Holy Spirit Love, You are the most sweet kiss of the Most Holy Trinity that unites the Father and the Son. You are that blessed kiss which the royal Divinity gave to humanity through the Son of God. O sweetest kiss, may your bond not abandon me, atom of dust; may your embraces hold me, until I am one thing with God. Make me experience what delights are in You, living God; my sweetest love, make me embrace You, make me unite myself to You. O God-Love, You are my dearest possession, without which I hope for, will, and desire nothing else in heaven and on earth” (St. Gertrude).