Censure and Judgment on the Spirit and Method of Prayer of a Nun

IN the kind of effective prayer practised by this soul, there seem to be five defects, so that I cannot consider her spirit to be good. The first is, that she has a great fondness for her own way : and a true spirit practises great detachment from all desire. The second is, that she is too confident, and has too little fear of delusions ; the spirit of God is never without fear, in order, as the Wise Man saith, to keep a soul from sin.* The third is, that she wishes to persuade people into the belief that she is in a good and high state : this is not the fruit of a true spirit : for that, on the contrary, would wish to be lightly esteemed, and despised, and does despise itself. The fourth and the chief is, that the fruits of humility are not visible which, when the graces — as she says here — are real, are ordinarily never communicated to the soul without first undoing and annihilating it in an interior abasement of humility. Now, if they had wrought this effect in her, she could not fail to say something, or rather a good deal, about it ; because the first subjects that would suggest themselves to her to speak about, and make much of, are the fruits of humility ; and these in their operations are so effectual, that it is impossible to dissemble them. Though they are not equally observable in all the dealings of God, yet these, which she calls Union, are never found without them. Because a soul is humbled before it is exalted ; and ' it is good for me that Thou hast humbled me.'f The fifth is, that the style and language she uses do not seem to me those of the spirit she refers to ; for that spirit teaches a style which is more simple, free from affectation, and exaggeration : and such is not the one before me. All this that she says : God spoke to me : I spoke to God : seems nonsense.

What I would say is this : she should not be req tared nor permitted to write anything on these matters : and her confessor should not seem to hear of them willingly, except to disparage and set aside what she has to say. Let her superiors try her in the practice of virtue only, particularly in that of contempt of self, humility, and obedience ; and then at the sound of this blow will come forth that gentleness of soul in which graces so great have been wrought. These tests must be sharp, for there is no evil spirit that will not suffer a good deal for his own credit.