I. I SEEM now to have come to the subject of prayer,

but there still remains something important for me to
say : it concerns humility, which is most requisite in this
convent, because it is the principal aid to prayer. As
I said,® it is very necessary for you to know how to

22 St. Matt. xxii. i6: “Non enim respicis personam hominum."

1 Valladolid edition, ch, xix. ; Escorial, ch. xxvii.

2 Ch. xvi. I.

CHAP. XVII.] HUMILITY. IO7

practise humility on every occasion : this is one of the
chief points, and most essential for persons given to
prayer. How can any one who is truly humble think
herself as good as others who are contemplatives ?
God may, by His goodness and mercy, and by the merits
of Christ, make her deserve to receive such graces as
they do, but, if she takes my advice, she will always
rank herself in the lowest place, as our Lord taught
us, both by His word and example.’ Let her respond
to His call, if God leads her by the way of contemplation * ;
otherwise, if she thinks herself happy in being allowed
to wait upon the servants of God, humility will serve
in its stead.® Let her praise His Majesty for having
placed her in their company, although she deserves to
be the slave of the devils in hell. I have good cause
for saying this, for, as I told you, it is important to
understand that His Majesty does not lead all souls in
the same way, and perhaps she who thinks herself the
least of all may be the highest in His eyes.

2. Thus it does not follow, because all the nuns in this
convent practise prayer, that they must all be con-
templatives. Such an idea would greatly discourage
those who do not understand the truth, that contempla-
tion is a gift of God, which is not necessary for salvation

® St. Luke X. 42 : “ Recumbe in novissimo loco.” Life,
ch. xxii. 18.

^ Castle, M. iv. ch. ii. 8.

® Castle, M. iii. ch. ii. 16.

I08 THE WAY OF PERFECTION. [CHAP. XVII.

nor for earning our eternal reward, nor does any one here
require us to possess it. She who is without it, yet
who follows the counsels I have given, will attain great
perfection. It may be that she will gain far more merit,
as she has to work harder ® on her own account ; our
Lord is treating her like a valiant woman and keeping
until hereafter all the happiness she has missed in this
life. Let her not be disheartened nor give up prayer,
or the other practices of which her sisters make use
— sometimes our Lord comes very late, and pays as
much all at once as He has given to others during many
years.’ For more than fourteen years I could not medi-
tate without a book.® There are many people of this
kind, and others cannot meditate even with the help
of reading, but are obliged to recite vocal prayers, which
to a certain extent arrest their attention. Some have so
volatile an imagination that they cannot fix their thoughts,
which are always wandering, upon one thing ; if they try
to think of God, they are troubled with a thousand
foolish fancies, scruples, and doubts.

3. I know a very old nun of most exemplary life
(would to God my life were like hers !), very holy, very
austere, and a perfect religious, who has spent many
hours, and even a number of years, in vocal prayers,
but cannot make use of mental prayer : the utmost

® Castle, M, v. ch. iii. 4, 5.

® Life, ch, ix. 6.

’ St. Matt. XX. 12.

CHAP. XVII.] VOCAL PRAYERS. lOQ

she can do is to pause a little, from time to time, during
her Ave Marias and Paternosters, which is a very holy
custom. Many people resemble her : if they are humble,
let them not think they are more imperfect, or believe
they will be any the worse for it in the end, for they
will be quite as well off as those who enjoy many con-
solations. In one way such souls are safer, for we
cannot tell whether spiritual delights come from God
or from the devil : if they are not divine, they are very
dangerous, for Satan tries to excite pride by their means ;
however, if they are sent by God there is nothing to
fear, for they bring humility with them,® as I fully ex-
plained in another book.

4. Other souls, receiving no spiritual consolations,
are humble, for they doubt whether it is not through
their own fault, and are most anxious to improve. When
they see any one else weeping, unless they do the same,
they think they must be much more backward than her
in God’s service, although perhaps they are more ad-
vanced, for tears, though a good sign, do not always
indicate perfection. Humility, mortificatio’n, detach-
ment, and other virtues are the safest : there is no cause
for fear, nor need you doubt that you may become as
perfect as the greatest contemplatives. St. Martha

^ Life, ch. XV. 16; ch. xix. 2 ; ch. xx. 38. Rel. ii. 15 ; vii. 7 ;
viii. 7, 9. Castle, M. vi. ch. iii. 25 ; ch. v. 5 ; ch. ix. 9,

Castle, M. vi. ch.' vi, 6-9,

110 THE WAY 'OF PERFECTION. [CHAP. XVII.

was holy/^ though we are never told she was a con-
templative ; would you not be content with resembling
this blessed woman, who deserved to receive Christ
our Lord so often into her home, where she feasted and
served Him, and where He ate at her table, and even,
perhaps, off her own plate ? If she had always been
enraptured, like the Magdalen, there would have been
no one to offer food to this divine Guest. Imagine,
then, that this community is the house of St. Martha,
where there must be different kinds of people. Let not
the nun who is called to the active life murmur at others
who are absorbed in contemplation, for she knows our
Lord will defend them ; as a rule, they themselves are
silent, for the “better part “ makes them obliv ous
of themselves and of all else. Remember that some one
must cook the food, and think yourself favoured in being
allowed to serve with Martha. Reflect that true humility
consists in being willing and ready to do what our Lord
asks of us : it always makes us consider ourselves un-
worthy to be reckoned among His servants.

5. If contemplation, mental and vocal prayer, nursing
the sick, the work of the house, and the most menial
labour, all serve this Guest Who comes to eat and drink

Excl. V. 2, 3. Castle, M. vii. ch. i. 14. Life, ch. xxii. 13.

12 Excl. V. 2, 3. Castle, M. vi. ch. xi. 12. Way of Perf. ch.