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Chapter 33ScalePerfB1.1.33

How men schal do that aren traveylid with veyn thoughtes in her preier.

The Struggle with Distraction

The author addresses the common struggle of vain thoughts in prayer, encouraging humility and reliance on God's mercy.

But now you say that I'm speaking too high for you about this kind of prayer — for it's no great skill for me to say it, but doing it is the real mastery. You say that you can't pray so wholly or so devoutly in your heart as I'm talking about. For when you would lift the mind of your heart upward to God in prayer, you feel so many vain thoughts — of your own deeds already done, or of what you're going to do, or of other people's deeds — and many other things like these holding you back and delaying you, so that you can never feel savor or rest in your prayer, or devotion in the saying of it. And often the more you labor to keep your heart, the farther it is from you and the harder it is — sometimes from beginning to end — so that it seems to you that everything you do is simply lost. As for this, that I speak too high to you about prayer, I grant freely that I speak of more than I can do or am able to do. Still, I say it for this reason: so you know how we ought to pray if we were doing it right. And since we can't do that, we should humbly acknowledge our weakness and cry out to God for mercy. Our Lord said as much himself when he said: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength (Luke 10:27).✦1

Trusting God in Prayer

Practical advice is given to set one's intention toward God and trust in His mercy despite feelings of dryness or failure.

You shall love God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. It's impossible for any person living on earth to fulfill this commandment as fully as it's stated, and yet our Lord still commanded us to love this way—for this purpose, as Saint Bernard says: so that we should know our weakness by it, and then humbly cry for mercy, and we will receive it. Still, I'll tell you what I think about this. When you pray, set your intention and your will at the beginning as wholly and as cleanly toward God as you briefly can in your mind, and then begin and do what you can. And even if you're hindered as much as can be against that first will of yours, don't be too afraid, or too angry with yourself, or impatient with God because He doesn't give you that savor and spiritual sweetness with devotion that you think He gives to other people.2 But see your own weakness by it, and bear it gently, keeping your prayer before your own eyes, simple as it is, with humility of heart, and also trusting securely in our Lord's mercy, that He will make it good more than you know or feel. If you do this, all will be well. For know well that you're discharged of your debt, and you'll have reward for it as for any other good deed you do in charity, even if your heart wasn't set on it while you were doing it.3 So do what belongs to you, and let our Lord give what He will—and don't instruct Him. And even if it seems to you that you're reckless and negligent, and as if you were in great faults over such things, still for this fault and for all other venial sins, which cannot all be avoided in this wretched life, lift up your heart to God, acknowledge your wretchedness, and cry for mercy with a firm trust of forgiveness—and God will forgive you.4

Perseverance and Growth

The author encourages persistent effort and explains that meditation is a free gift of God that grows alongside virtue.

Don't keep struggling with it, and don't dwell on it any longer, as if you could stop feeling such wretchedness by sheer force. Let it go and turn to some good work, whether physical or spiritual, and resolve to do better next time. But even if you fall into the same thing again—yes, a hundred times, a thousand times—still do as I've said, and all will be well. For many a soul can never find rest of heart in prayer, but struggles with their thoughts their whole life long, hindered and troubled by them. If they keep themselves in humility and charity in other respects, they will have a great reward in heaven for their good labor.5 Now I'll tell you how I see meditation. You should understand that no fixed rule can be set for meditation that a person must always follow, for these are the free gift of our Lord, given according to the various dispositions of chosen souls and the state they are in.6 And also as they advance in virtues and in their state, so He increases their meditation in spiritual knowing and loving of Him; for whoever stays always the same in knowing God and spiritual things seems to grow only a little in the loving of God.7

The Gift of the Spirit

The example of the Apostles at Pentecost illustrates how the Holy Spirit grants wisdom and knowledge through love.

You can see this clearly in the apostles: when they were filled with the burning love of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, they weren't fools or simpletons. Instead, they were made wonderfully wise in knowing and speaking of God and spiritual things—as much as anyone can be while still living in the flesh. Thus Holy Scripture says of them: Repleti sunt omnes Spiritu Sancto et ceperunt loqui magnalia Dei (Acts 2:4, 11).✦8 They were filled with the Holy Spirit, and they began to speak of the great marvels of God.✦ And all that knowledge they had through the rapture of the Holy Spirit's love.9

Read the original Latin

But now seist thou that y speke over highe to thee in this manere of praier, for it is no maistrie to me for to seie it, but for to doo it is the maistrie. Thou seist that thu cannot so hoolili ne thus devoutli prai in thyn herte as y speke of. For whanne thou woldest have the mynde of thyn herte upward to God in praier, thou felist so many veyn thoughtis of thyn owen deedis bifore doon, or what thu schalt doon, or of othir mennys dedis, and siche many othire lettynge and taryynge thee, so that thou mai nevere fele savor ne reste in thi praiere ne devocioun in thi seiynge. And ofte sithes the more thu traveilest to kepe thyn herte, the ferthere it is fro thee and the hardere, sumtyme fro the bigynnynge to the laste ende, that thee thenketh it is but loste, al that thou doost. As unto this that I speke to highe to thee of praier, I graunt wel that y speke othirwise than y can do or mai do. Neverthelees y sei it for this entent, that thu schuldest knowe hou we oute to praie yif we dede wel. And sithen we mowen not do so, that we knowe thanne mekeli oure feblenesse and crie God merci. Oure Lord seide so himsilf whan he seide: Diliges dominum tuum ex tote corde tuo, et ex tota anima tua, et ex omnibus viribus tuis (Luke 10:27).

Thou schalt love God of al thyn herte and al thi soule and al thi myghtis. It is inpossible to ony man for to fulfille this biddynge soo fulli as it is seid, lyvynge in erthe, and yit neverthelees oure Lord bad us for to love soo; for this entent, as Seynt Bernard seith, that we schulde knowe therbi oure feblenesse and thanne mekeli crie merci and we schul have it. Neverthelees, I schal telle thee as me thenketh in this askyng. Whenne thu schalt praie, make thyn entente and thi wil in the biginnynge as hool and as clene to God as thou mai schorteli in thi mynde, and than bigynne and do as thou mai; and though thou be never so mykil lettid agens thi first wil, be not to mikil adreed, ne to angri with thisilf, ne unpacient agens God, that he gyveth not thee that savour and goostli swettenesse with devocioun as thee thenketh that he gyveth to othere creatures. But se therbi thyn owen feblenesse and bere it esili, holdynge in thyn owyn sight thi praier, simple as it is, with mekenesse of herte, trustynge also sikirli in the merci of oure Lord, that He schal make it good more thanne thou knowyste or feeliste. And yif thou doo thus, al schal be wel. For wite thou weel that thou art excusid of thi dette, and thou schalt have meede for it as for anothir good dede that thou doost in charité, though thyn herte were not thereupon in the doynge. Therfore doo thou that longeth to thee, and suffre oure Lord to gyve what He wole, and kenne Hym not; and though thee thenketh thee reklees and necgligent, and as thou were in greet defautis for sich thinges, yit neverthelees schalt thu for this defaute and for alle othere veniales, whiche moun not alle been eschewed in this wrecchid lif, lift up thyn herte to God, knowelechynge thi wrecchid-nesse, and crie merci with a good truste of forgyvenesse, and God schal forgyve thee.

Stryve no more therewith, ne hange noo lenger therupon, as thou woldest bi maistrie not fele siche wrecchidnesse. Leve of and goo to sum good deede, bodili or goostli, and thenke to doo betere another tyme. But though thou falle another tyme in the same, yhe an hundrid tymes, a thousand tymes, yit doo as I have seid, and al schal be wel. For ther is many a soule that never mai fynde reste of herte in praiere, but al here liftyme aren stryvande with here thoughtis and taried and troblid with hem. Yif thei kepe hem in mekenesse and charité in othir sides, thei schul have wel mykil mede in hevene for here gode travaile. Now of meditacioun schal y telle thee as me thenketh. Thou schalt undirstonde that in meditacion mai no certayn rule be sette ai a man for to kepe, for thei aren the free gift of oure Lord, aftir the sondrie disposynges of chosen soules and aftir the staat that thei ben inne. And also aftir that thei profiten in vertues and in here astaat, so He encreseth here meditacion, in goostli knowynge and lovynge of Him; for whoso is ai likewise in knowinge of God and of goosteli thinges, it semeth he wexith but litil in the lovynge of God.

And that mai be schewid opynli in the apostelis, whanne thei in the dai of Pentecost weren fulfilled with brennynge love of the Holi Gost; thei weren noo foolis ne fooltes, but thei were maad wondir wise in knowynge and spekynge of God and goostli thinges, als mykil as a man might have in fleschly lyvyng. Thus seith Holi Writ of hem: Repleti sunt omnes spiritu sancto et ceperunt loqui magnalia dei (Acts 2:4, 11). Thei weren fulfillid of the Holi Goost, and thei bigan to speke the grete merveiles of God. And al that knowynge thei hadden bi ravyschynge of love of the Hooli Goost.

Scripture echoes

  1. ↩Luke.10.27 — And he answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself."
  2. ↩Acts.2.4 — And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
  3. ↩Acts.2.4 — And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Notes

  1. 1 ↩Source Latin has 'ex tote corde'; standard form is 'ex toto corde'. Translated by sense; the next section paraphrases the same commandment in English.
  2. 2 ↩ME 'savour and goostli swettenesse with devocioun' names felt relish and consoling sweetness in prayer, not mere emotion; 'devotion' is kept as the durable term.
  3. 3 ↩'Excusid of thi dette' means released from the debt/obligation of prayer when the will is rightly set though the mind is distracted; 'charité' is rendered charity as the theological virtue that makes the deed meritorious.
  4. 4 ↩ME 'kenne Hym not' = do not teach/instruct Him (do not presume to tell God how to give); not 'know Him not'.
  5. 5 ↩charité rendered as charity for the theological virtue paired with humility (mekenesse).
  6. 6 ↩ai rendered as always (ME ay/ai). thei refers to meditations as free gifts, not to persons alone.
  7. 7 ↩ai likewise rendered as always the same / stays always alike (ME ai = always).
  8. 8 ↩Source quotes the Vulgate Latin of Acts 2:4 and 2:11; the English sense is given in the next sentence.
  9. 9 ↩ME 'ravyschynge of love' is mystical rapture/ecstasy of love, not mere strong feeling; rendered 'rapture' to keep the contemplative force.

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