De triplici statu vitae humanae
The Call to Interior Virtue
The soul is invited to imitate Christ by cultivating inner holiness and discipline rather than mere outward appearance.
I am the flower of the field and the lily of the valleys. This is the voice of Christ to the holy Church in general, and to every devout soul in particular. For Christ is the beautiful bridegroom of the holy Church and the head of all the faithful; he is the flower of all virtues, the lily of the valleys, and the lover of humility and chastity. Therefore, anyone who wishes to serve Christ and please this heavenly bridegroom should strive to overcome their vices, gather the lilies of virtue, and avoid idleness. They should study willingly, write books, work with their hands at what is useful, pray often, and be intimately occupied with God. They should flee from noise, love solitude, and keep silent about the affairs of others and things that are harmful to themselves. For an outward habit is of little value before God without inner virtue. It is a vessel adorned on the outside, but empty within. Just as a good scent comes from a good vessel of wine, so from the good heart of a religious person come good words and holy works, for the praise of God and the benefit of one's neighbor. Pay attention, therefore, brother, to the state in which you stand and walk before others, so that you may strive to please God worthily and edify others through your holy deeds and conduct.
Three Paths of the Soul
The author contrasts the three states of human life—the carnal, the angelic, and the demonic—to warn the believer against vice and encourage spiritual vigilance.
Everything you do, whether good or evil, will come back to you before God. When you eat, drink, sleep, rest, and go wherever you please on a whim, you're performing the works of the flesh and making yourself like the beasts of the earth, which run about, eat, drink, and fill their bellies until they're satisfied. And if anyone resists them, they prod him with their horns and hooves, terrify him with their faces, bite him with their teeth, and cry out with horrible voices. Carnal people are just like that: gluttonous, greedy, proud, irritable, and quarrelsome. They don't have the Spirit of God, but follow their own passions. But when you keep watch and pray, read and sing psalms and hymns to God and His saints, or when you fast, abstain from vices, and serve your neighbor, or when you grieve, groan, and weep for your sins, confessing them and asking for mercy, then you're doing the works of the Holy Spirit, walking according to the Spirit, and keeping the order of the religious life. Then you're also made like the holy angels in heaven, who always praise, sing to, and bless God, and never turn their faces away from Him. When, however, you grow proud, get angry, slander, grumble, deceive, lie, disturb others, rejoice in their misfortunes, and feel sad at their successes, or when you despise your neighbor and seek your own advantage in everything, then you're following the devil and making yourself like the demons through the malice and vices you commit. For they follow their own passions and wickedness as much as they can and dare; they delight in evil because they aren't good, and they strive to seduce and pervert others. The life of the righteous is like that of the angels; the life of the carnal is equal to that of beasts; the life of the proud is compared to that of demons. Be careful, servant of God, that you aren't caught in their snares, and that you aren't accused and put to shame by them at the judgment.
Read the original Latin
Ego flos campi: et lilium convallium. Haec est vox Christi ad sanctam ecclesiam in generali: et ad quamlibet animam devotam in speciali. Christus enim est speciosus sponsus sanctae ecclesiae et caput omnium fidelium: flos omnium virtutum, et lilium convallium, amator humilitatis et castitatis. Qui ergo vult Christo servire et caelesti sponso placere: studeat vitia sua vincere, lilia virtutum colligere, otium vitare; libenter studere, libros scribere manibus operari quod utile est: frequenter orare, et Deo intime vacare; tumultus fugere, secretum diligere: et de alienis rebus et sibi nocivis tacere. Habitus namque exterior parum valet sine interiore virtute coram Deo. Vas est foris ornatum: sed intus vacuum. Sicut ex bono vase vini bonus odor procedit: sic ex bono corde religiosi bona verba et sancta opera procedunt ad laudem Dei et utilitatem proximi. Attende ergo frater statum tuum in quo stas et coram hominibus ambulas; ut Deo digne placere studeas: et alios factis et moribus sanctis aedifices.
Totum enim in te redundabit quidquid boni feceris: et quidquid mali coram Deo commiseris. Quando ergo comedis et bibis, dormis et quiescis, et ubicumque volueris pro libitu tuo transis; tunc facis opera carnis et assimilaris bestiis terrenis quae discurrunt comedunt et bibunt: et replent ventrem suum donec saturentur. Et si quis eis resistit illum stimulant cornibus et ungulis, terrent vultibus, et mordent dentibus, et clamant vocibus horrendis. Tales sunt carnales homines, gulosi avari, superbi iracundi et litigiosi: spiritum Dei non habentes sed passiones suas sequentes. Sed quando vigilas et oras legis et cantas psalmos et hymnos de Deo et sanctis eius: vel quando ieiunas et abstines a vitiis et proximo servis: aut pro peccatis tuis doles gemis et ploras, confiteris et veniam petis: tunc facis opera Spiritus sancti et secundum spiritum ambulas et religiosae vitae ordinem servas. Tunc etiam sanctis angelis assimilaris in caelis; qui semper Deum laudant et cantant et benedicunt: et numquam faciem suam ab eo avertunt. Quando vero superbis irasceris detrahis, murmuras, fallis mentiris, alios perturbas, et de malis eorum gaudes et de bonis tristaris: aut quando proximum despicis, et commodum tuum in omnibus quaeris; tunc diabolum sequeris et daemonibus assimilaris: per malitiam et vitia quae committis. Nam ipsi passiones suas et nequitias sequuntur quantum possunt et audent facere; et in malis delectantur quia boni non sunt: et alios seducere et pervertere nituntur.
Vita ergo iustorum angelis similis; vita carnalium bestiis aequalis: vita superborum daemonibus comparatur. Cave serve Dei ne laqueis eorum involvaris: et in iudicio ab eis accuseris et confundaris.
The Little Garden of Roses & The Valley of Lilies companion
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