On the Choice We Must Make as to the Practice of the Virtues.
The king of the bees does not go forth into the fields without being surrounded by all his little people; and charity never enters a heart without bringing there with it the whole train of the other virtues, exercising and ordering them as a captain does his soldiers; but She does not set them all to work at once, nor always equally, nor at all times, nor in all places. The righteous man is like a tree planted by the waters, which brings forth its fruit in its season: charity watering his soul, produces therein virtuous works, each in its own season. _Music, which is so sweet in itself, is out of place in mourning_, says the Proverb. It is therefore a great fault in those who undertake the practice of some particular virtue, to wish to perform its acts on every sort of occasion; herein like those ancient philosophers, one of whom always wished to laugh, and the other always to weep, and even more unreasonable, in that they blame and censure those who, like them, do not always practise the same virtues. _Rejoice with those who rejoice_, says the Apostle, _and weep with those who weep_; and he adds: _charity is patient, kind, liberal, prudent, and accommodating_.
The king of the bees does not go forth into the fields without being surrounded by all his little people; and charity never enters a heart without bringing there with it the whole train of the other virtues, exercising and ordering them as a captain does his soldiers; but She does not set them all to work at once, nor always equally, nor at all times, nor in all places. The righteous man is like a tree planted by the waters, which brings forth its fruit in its season: charity watering his soul, produces therein virtuous works, each in its own season. _Music, which is so sweet in itself, is out of place in mourning_, says the Proverb. It is therefore a great fault in those who undertake the practice of some particular virtue, to wish to perform its acts on every sort of occasion; herein like those ancient philosophers, one of whom always wished to laugh, and the other always to weep, and even more unreasonable, in that they blame and censure those who, like them, do not always practise the same virtues. _Rejoice with those who rejoice_, says the Apostle, _and weep with those who weep_; and he adds: _charity is patient, kind, liberal, prudent, and accommodating_.
There are, nevertheless, virtues which are of almost universal use, and which ought not to be confined to their own proper action, but should also spread their spirit over the acts of all the other virtues. Opportunities to practise fortitude, magnanimity, and magnificence do not often present themselves; but gentleness, temperance, honesty, and humility are virtues whose stamp ought to be borne by all the actions of our life. If there are virtues more excellent than these, there are none whose practice is more necessary. Sugar is better than salt; but salt is more frequently used and more indispensable. Therefore we must always have a good and ample store of these general virtues, that we may make use of them almost continually.
In the practice of virtues, we must prefer those which are more in keeping with our duty, and not those which are more in keeping with our taste. It was Saint Paula’s taste to inflict upon herself severe bodily mortifications, that she might more easily enjoy spiritual sweetness; but it was more her duty to practise obedience toward her superiors: therefore Saint Jerome acknowledges that she was blameworthy, in that, contrary to the counsel of her bishop, she practised immoderate abstinences. The Apostles, on the contrary, charged with preaching the Gospel and distributing the heavenly bread to souls, judged very wisely that they ought not to neglect this holy exercise in order to practise the virtue of caring for the poor, excellent though it be. Each state of life has need to practise some particular virtue: the virtues of a prelate differ from those of a prince, those of a soldier, those of a married woman, and those of a widow; and although all must possess all the virtues, nevertheless all must not practise them equally, but each must devote himself particularly to those which are proper to the manner of life to which he is called.
In the practice of virtues, we must prefer those which are more in keeping with our duty, and not those which are more in keeping with our taste. It was Saint Paula’s taste to inflict upon herself severe bodily mortifications, that she might more easily enjoy spiritual sweetness; but it was more her duty to practise obedience toward her superiors: therefore Saint Jerome acknowledges that she was blameworthy, in that, contrary to the counsel of her bishop, she practised immoderate abstinences. The Apostles, on the contrary, charged with preaching the Gospel and distributing the heavenly bread to souls, judged very wisely that they ought not to neglect this holy exercise in order to practise the virtue of caring for the poor, excellent though it be. Each state of life has need to practise some particular virtue: the virtues of a prelate differ from those of a prince, those of a soldier, those of a married woman, and those of a widow; and although all must possess all the virtues, nevertheless all must not practise them equally, but each must devote himself particularly to those which are proper to the manner of life to which he is called.
Among the virtues which do not pertain to our particular duty, we must prefer the most excellent, and not the most conspicuous. Comets ordinarily appear larger than the stars, and occupy much more room in our eyes; yet they are comparable to the stars neither in size nor in beauty, and seem larger only because they are nearer to us, and of a coarser substance. In like manner, certain virtues, because they are near to us, perceptible, and, as it were, material, are greatly esteemed by the common people, and preferred to all the others. Thus temporal alms are commonly preferred to spiritual alms; the hair shirt, fasting, the discipline, and bodily mortifications, to meekness, kindness, modesty, and the other mortifications of the heart, which are nevertheless far more excellent. Choose, therefore, Philothea, the better virtues, and not the more esteemed; the more excellent, and not the more conspicuous; the more real, and not the more beautiful.
It is useful for each person to apply himself particularly to the practice of some virtue, not in order to abandon the others, but to occupy his mind in a more orderly manner. A young maiden, more radiant than the sun, adorned and arrayed like a queen, and crowned with a crown of olives, appeared one day to Saint John, Bishop of Alexandria, and said to him: I am the eldest daughter of the King; if Thou canst win my friendship, I will lead Thee before His face. The saint understood by this vision that it was mercy toward the poor which God commanded him to practise; and from that time he devoted himself so earnestly to the exercise of this virtue that he deserved everywhere to be called Saint John the Almoner. Eulogius of Alexandria, desiring to do something particular in the service of God, and lacking sufficient strength either to embrace the solitary life or to place himself under another’s obedience, conceived the idea of taking into his house a wretched man all eaten away and ravaged by leprosy, in order to exercise charity and mortification toward him; and, wishing to make the deed still more meritorious, he vowed to honour his sick guest, to treat him and serve him, as a servant serves his master and lord. Now, when the temptation to part company came upon the leper and Eulogius, they had recourse to the great Saint Anthony, who answered them thus: Take good care, my children, not to separate from one another; for since you are both near your end, if the angel does not find you together, you run great risk of losing your crowns.
King Saint Louis made it a duty of his own to visit hospitals and to serve the sick with his own hands. Saint Francis loved poverty above all, and called it his lady; and Saint Dominic, preaching, whence his Order derived the name it bears. Saint Gregory the Great delighted in receiving pilgrims, after the example of the great Abraham, and, like him, received the King of glory in the guise of a traveller. Tobit exercised his charity in burying the dead. Saint Elizabeth, great princess though she was, loved above all things self-abasement. Saint Catherine of Genoa, having become a widow, devoted herself to the service of a hospital; and Cassian relates that a devout lady, wishing to exercise herself in the virtue of patience, had recourse to Saint Athanasius, who, to satisfy her desire, placed beside her a poor widow, peevish, angry, troublesome, and truly insufferable, who, constantly scolding this devout maiden, gave her good cause to practise meekness and forbearance to the full. Thus, among the servants of God, some devote themselves to serving the sick, others to succouring the poor, others to teaching Christian doctrine to little children, others to gathering in lost and straying souls, others to adorning churches and beautifying altars, and others, lastly, to restoring peace and concord among men. In this they imitate embroiderers, who, upon a certain ground, lay a great variety of silk, gold, and silver, so as to form all kinds of flowers. For so these devout souls, undertaking the practice of some particular virtue, use it as a ground for their spiritual embroidery, and lay upon this ground a variety of all the other virtues; so that, as all their actions and affections are directed to the same end, they are thereby more closely united, more fittingly arranged, and thus make devotion appear,
In her fair garment, of a fabric of gold wrought, And sown with divers works of needlecraft.
When we are assailed by some vice, we must, as far as possible, embrace the contrary virtue, and bring the practice of the others to bear upon it; for by this means we shall overcome our enemy, and yet not fail to advance in all the virtues. If I am assailed by pride or anger, I must in all things bend and incline myself toward humility and gentleness, and make the other exercises of prayer, the sacraments, prudence, constancy, and sobriety serve this end; for, as boars, to sharpen their tusks, rub and wear them against their other teeth, which thereby in turn become very sharp and keen, so the virtuous man, having undertaken to perfect himself in the virtue which he feels he most needs for his salvation, must hone and sharpen it through the exercise of the other virtues, which, in perfecting that one, in turn become only more excellent and more highly polished. This is what happened to Job: while applying himself particularly to patience amid the many temptations that assailed him, he became perfectly holy and virtuous in every kind of virtue. And indeed it has happened, says Saint Gregory of Nazianzus, that through a single act of virtue, practised with great perfection, a person has at once attained the summit of the virtues; this he proves by the example of Rahab, who, having excellently practised the duties of hospitality, attained immense glory: but for this, the act must be performed with the utmost fervour and very great charity.
When we are assailed by some vice, we must, as far as possible, embrace the contrary virtue, and bring the practice of the others to bear upon it; for by this means we shall overcome our enemy, and yet not fail to advance in all the virtues. If I am assailed by pride or anger, I must in all things bend and incline myself toward humility and gentleness, and make the other exercises of prayer, the sacraments, prudence, constancy, and sobriety serve this end; for, as boars, to sharpen their tusks, rub and wear them against their other teeth, which thereby in turn become very sharp and keen, so the virtuous man, having undertaken to perfect himself in the virtue which he feels he most needs for his salvation, must hone and sharpen it through the exercise of the other virtues, which, in perfecting that one, in turn become only more excellent and more highly polished. This is what happened to Job: while applying himself particularly to patience amid the many temptations that assailed him, he became perfectly holy and virtuous in every kind of virtue. And indeed it has happened, says Saint Gregory of Nazianzus, that through a single act of virtue, practised with great perfection, a person has at once attained the summit of the virtues; this he proves by the example of Rahab, who, having excellently practised the duties of hospitality, attained immense glory: but for this, the act must be performed with the utmost fervour and very great charity.