De vigili cura et labore contra temptationes
The Discipline of Silence and Work
By maintaining silence, prayer, and diligent work, the believer repels the distractions of the enemy and finds comfort in God.
Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Wherever a good person is busy with God—praying, meditating, studying, or writing—the holy angels are there, rejoicing with them; but the demons are also there, trying to tempt and distract them. When you begin to pray, the demons flee as if from the fire of the Holy Spirit; but when you want to chat, they all return quickly to stir up empty rumors. If a good superior happens to come along, he will quickly scatter all those who are chatting, and he will rebuke those who are wasting time or neglecting good work. Stay in silence, then, and think about your God to find comfort; you’ll be freed from the weariness of good work if you persevere in the good you’ve begun. Be faithful in little things, and you’ll earn ten thousand talents in the kingdom above. Don’t be idle in private or talkative in public, and the devil, defeated by the quiet person, will flee. For he hates the one who is working and keeping silent, the one who is praying and meditating on good things.
The Call to Spiritual Vigilance
Constant alertness, prayer, and patient endurance in all circumstances lead to ultimate victory and a crown of glory.
Wherever you are, whether alone or with others, you must struggle, stay alert, and pray against the temptations of the flesh and the spirit. Fight bravely, pray fervently, work diligently, study often, keep silent willingly, and endure patiently. Always put your hope in the Lord, no matter how severely you are troubled or how desolate you feel. Anyone who commits to patience in every place and time will have greater peace now, gain victory over their adversaries, and in the future will obtain a brighter crown of glory with the elect.1
Read the original Latin
Resistite diabolo: et fugiet a vobis. Vbicumque fuerit bonus homo occupatus cum Deo orando meditando studendo scribendo, ibi assunt angeli sancti congaudendo: assunt et daemones ipsum temptando et distrahendo. Cum inceperis orare fugiunt daemones quasi ab igne sancti Spiritus; et cum volueris fabulari redeunt omnes celeriter: ad augendum rumores inanes. Si autem supervenerit bonus praelatus dissipabit mox omnes fabulantes; et arguet otio vacantes: et bona opera neglegentes. Maneas ergo in silentio et cogita de Deo tuo pro solacio habendo; et liberaberis de taedio boni operis: te perseverante in bono incepto. Esto fidelis in modico: et lucraberis decem milia talenta in regno superno. Non sis otiosus in secreto; nec verbosus in publico: et fugiet diaboluss victus a taciturno. Odit enim laborantem et tacentem: orantem et bona meditantem.
Vbicumque fueris solus vel cum aliis: oportet te certare vigilare et orare contra temptationes carnis et spiritus. Certa fortiter, ora ferventer, labora diligenter; stude frequenter, tace libenter: sustine patienter. Spera in Domino semper: quantumcumque fueris tribulatus et desolatus vehementer. Qui se ipsum in i omni loco et tempore ponit ad patientiam; maiorem nunc habebit pacem, et de adversariis victoriam: et in futuro cum electis clariorem gloriae coronam optinebit.
Notes
- 1 ↩The source text contains a likely typo 'i omni' which has been rendered as 'omni' (in every).
The Little Garden of Roses & The Valley of Lilies companion
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