Letter 4. To the Same

My Dear Daughter, May 3, 1604.

You fill the double position of a Religious and an Abbess; you are bound to serve God in both, and all your aims, practices, and affections ought to tend so to do. Remember that there is no one so happy as a devout Religious; no one so unhappy as a Religious who has no true devotion.

Devotion is neither more nor less than a prompt, fervent, loving service of God; and the difference between an ordinarily good man and one that is devout lies herein, that the first observes God's commands without any special fervour or promptitude; whereas the latter not only keeps them, but does it willingly, earnestly, and resolutely. Now a true Religious should be devout, and strive to attain great promptitude and fervour. To this end it is necessary to keep the conscience clear from sin. Sin is a heavy biurden, and he who carries it cannot go fast onwards. Therefore be frequent in confession, and never allow sin to harbour in your souL Then, too, we must rid ourselves of whatever may hinder our course, through the affections \ withdrawing them not only from evil objects, but from that which is not actually good. Moreover, such fervour must be asked of God, and with this aim you should be diligent in prayer and meditation, never letting any day go by without spending a short hour therein.

As to prayer, as a first rule I would say. Never neglect the appointed offices of the Church: it is better to leave any other prayers unsaid rather than these. After the office, give the preference to meditation: it is the most useful and acceptable to God. And thirdly, accustom yourself to use ejaculatory prayer, which consists of loving aspirations seeking God's Help. This will be greatly promoted by keeping that point of your meditation which you relished most, present to your imagination through the day; and it is also useful often to touch the Cross or any other object of devotion which you wear, in honour of Him represented thereby; and when the clock strikes to say some heartfelt words, as “ Hail 1 Jesus f “ Now is the time to awake out of sleep; ” “ Mine hour is come;" or the like. Do not, if possible, pass any c day without some spiritual reading which may nourish a devout mind within you.

Make a habit of placing yourself in the Presence of God before going to bed, thanking Him for having preserved you, and making your examination of conscience, as you have learnt to do. Do the same in the morning, preparing yourself to serve God through the day, offering yourself to His Love. I should recommend that your meditation be made in the morning, and that you read the point on which you propose to meditate overnight

In order to attain a holy promptitude in well doing, do not let any day go by without some special act done with this intention: such a habit helps forward devotion not a little. And you will never omit your regular Communions and confessions, kindling in your heart a holy reverence and spiritual joy at receiving your Beloved Saviour, and making a fresh resolution to serve Him fervently, which must be followed up well and stedfastly.

On the days of Commimion, maintain as devout a mind as you can, longing after Him Who dwells within you j gaze upon Him perpetually with your inward soul, where He reigns as on a throne, and offer all your senses and faculties to Him. This should be specially done after Communion, in a short meditation.

Beware of being melancholy or ungeniai to tnose who live with you, lest they should attribute it to your devotion, and consequentiy think lightly of that; rather seek to afford as much satisfaction and comfort as possible to all around, so as to make them esteem and honour your devotion, and imitate it Cultivate a gentle, cheerful, humble spirit, which is the aptest to devotion; as also evenness of mind, not being eager for this or that. Go calmly along your way, with full confidence in God’s Mercy, Which will lead you safely to the Heavenly Home, and the while beware of giving way to vexations or irritation.

As Abbess — that is to say. Mother of a Religious House — ^you are bound to seek the good of all your Religious, specially in the perfecting of their souls, and therefore you must give heed to reform both their conduct and the whole House.

To do this well, you must be gentle, gracious, cheerful, not beginning by finding fault with things tolerated hitherto, but letting your own life and conversation be an example' to all Do not be over-eager;

let all you do be done gently and cheerfully, less by force of authority than by example

To all these duties God calls you. Listen and obey. You cannot take too much trouble or patience in pursuit of so great an aim. Happy you, if at the end you can venture to say in our Dear Lord’s words, “ I have finished the work which Thou gavest me to do.”* Desire this, seek for it, think of it, pray for it, and God, Who gives you the will to serve Him, will also give you strength to do it

CS7-1 V.