Section 26
90. Will my prayer always be the same?
Not if you persevere: "The very effort involved in prayer calms and purifies our heart, and makes it more capacious for receiving the divine gifts, which are poured into us spiritually. For it is not on account of the urgency of our prayers that God hears us, who is always ready to give us his light, not of a material kind, but that which is intellectual and spiritual: but we are not always ready to receive, since we are inclined toward other things, and are involved in darkness through our desire for temporal things. Hence there is brought about in prayer a turning of the heart to him, who is ever ready to give, if we will but take what he has given; and in the very act of turning there is effected a purging of the inner eye, inasmuch as those things of a temporal kind which were desired are excluded, so that the vision of the pure heart may be able to bear the pure light, divinely shining, without any setting or change: and not only to bear it, but also to remain in it; not merely without annoyance, but also with ineffable joy, in which a life truly and sincerely blessed is perfected."294
Note the steps of progress in the spiritual life according to this:
• "Turning of the heart to him" - conversion;
• "Purging of the inner eye" - purification of beginners;
"Entrance into illumination" - proficiency: beginning to see the light with new vision;
• "Remaining in the light with joy" - perfection.
91. But doesn't this complicate things? If our prayer life is a relationship with Someone, why does Augustine treat it like a process or a system?
"Prayer is an affectionate turning of the mind toward God."295 The way Augustine describes prayer, it seems to be less formal and much more relational. Of course, this personal relationship is imperfect unless there is a common ground of understanding - some identity of thought and interests. We should keep in mind that although the reason is involved, it has mostly to do with the will and growth in familiarity with God.
As in every relationship, there are two agents to be taken into account. Unless the soul desires to enter into dialog with God, there will be no prayer, and the soul cannot desire it unless God has made his presence felt in some way. God is the prime mover of all prayer, prompting our first desires to enter into a relationship with him. He sends us his Spirit to influence our intellects, to awaken the good that is in our memory, to arouse fervent desire to communicate with him. But God's desire for communication with each soul is intensely stronger than any desire we could muster or he could arouse in us. Although it is God's initiative, he does not exclude the free participation of the person he loves. As in any relationship, mutual cooperation is imperative. To progress in it, our task is first to ask him for his grace, and then act.
Rather than a dry or formal process, or even an activity carried out at a given time, prayer is a relationship which requires that we continually, as Augustine says, "turn our minds toward God." To be a contemplative is to have a habitual attitude of prayer.
92. What does this "turning the heart to him" look like practically? A simple act of the will?
Turning of the heart to him: On the one hand, we can say that the whole process is a turning of the heart to him. Further, the act of turning toward him effects an immediate commencement of the purification process: "Between baptism and eternal life there is time for prayer and remission of sins,296 so as not to be overwhelmed by evil,297 to attain a good will,298 courage to live up to being a Christian.299 Most certainly, it is the time to confess what one is and to pray to become what one is not."30°
93. Isn't prayer's purging of the inner eye denigrating of the human person?
Purging the inner eye: by way of exercise of faith, hope, and charity, the Christian works toward his goal praying for the necessary grace to conform himself with his divine Ideal. Since "God expects of us to pray to him that he perfect us,"301 this stage of spiritual growth is marked by a "purity of heart that urges us on to pray."302 This "pure prayer," in turn, "purifies the way upon which we tend toward perfection."303 In other words, our prayer spurs us on to a greater purity of heart, and this new spiritual state longs for a more profound prayer life. Such purity of heart makes us transparent in our dealings with God and his will, because in the depths of the pure heart there is total openness to the love of God and all that he loves. Thus, it is a virtuous circle.
But purity of heart is not attained without some suffering. For what is suffering? A longing for something I do not or cannot have. Augustine has told us how restless the heart is that does not rest in God, and this is so because the heart is so full of things that are not God. To get rid of those lower loves (Augustine calls them "burdens of dust and the mire of the world""') in order to possess totally him who is Love, the person must suffer many deaths. And it is precisely this that has given many people the impression that following Christ is about mere self-denial and that somehow we miss out on what life wants to offer us. Hesitating to unburden ourselves of these burdens impedes our elevation to God. It is a refusal to "die a gospel death in order to live a gospel life. But once we have had success in this, we sense an immediate interior approval, `Well done, well done!' not from men ... but in a certain interior silence from which, I know not where, arises that sound, `Well done, well done!' ""'
94. What does one have to do to enter into illumination?
Entrance into illumination: With a renewed and purified interior vision, directly helped from on high, the soul begins to see new realities and old ones in a new light. The intellect is more receptive to the divine truths which are no longer theory, but a lived reality, almost tangible. This affects the prayer life substantially, which has passed from vocal prayer to meditation. The soul in this stage is completely oriented "toward the highest and most secret reward, in order to achieve that for which it has fought so hard. 11106
Nonetheless, the path of illumination, for all of its consolation and sweetness, does not exclude suffering and purgation. "What has happened to me is quite strange, but true; I lament because I am deprived of your vision, and yet my grief comforts me ... Do we not long for the heavenly Jerusalem? And the more impatiently we long for it, do we not the more patiently suffer all things for its sake?"307 So grieved is the soul in love with God in its exile, that such sorrow is compared to an interior wound: "The wound of love is a wound that heals. In the Song of Songs the spouse of Christ sings, I am wounded with love (5:8). And this wound, when will it be healed? When our desire is satisfied in good things. As long as what we do not possess what we long for, it is called a wound. When we come to possess what we desire then the pain passes, but the love will never pass.""'
But that is not all. Concomitant with this interior trial, God blesses the generous soul with exterior trials, often under the guise of calumny, persecution, and loss. "When a Christian begins to consider spiritual progress, he begins to suffer from the tongues of his adversaries. He, on the other hand, who has not yet suffered from such as these, has made no progress. And he who does not suffer these things, does not attempt to advance. Does he want to understand what I mean with this? Experience a bit of what we are compelled to listen to. Then try to advance, to even desire to advance, to despise earthly, perishable, temporal things, and hold this world's happiness as empty, thinking of God alone, never rejoicing in gain or lamenting loss, desiring to sell all he owns and give it to the poor in order to follow Christ. Then let's see how he suffers the tongues of calumniators and many other things from his enemies and, what is more, the attempts of false advisors who would lead him away from salvation.""'
95. They say nobody's perfect. So how can prayer really lead us to perfection?
Remaining in the light with joy: this is the soul that has reached perfection - attainable even in this life. In this state, the person's prayer becomes passive, for it is more the Holy Spirit who prays in him than his own effort. He has reached contemplation. Such a person has identified his will and affections with God's, and "by grace already observes a perpetual Sabbath rest, who carries out every work in view of a future rest, and does not glory in his own works as if he had anything good that he had not first received ... now he walks in the newness of life (Rom. 6:4), he recognizes God working in him, who both works and rests, both controlling and projecting his creation; and finding in God his eternal "And that very joy in the tranquility of our hope is our Sabbath."311
"For this contemplation is promised to us as the end of all actions and the eternal consummation of all joys ... For that which he said to Moses his servant: I AM WHO AM ... This is what we shall contemplate when we shall live eternally. . . For contemplation is the reward of faith, for which reward our hearts are cleansed by faith."312
Nonetheless, Augustine does not reduce spiritual perfection to some sort of passive complacency. To the contrary, he reduces it to the perfection of love, divine charity, God's presence reigning in our hearts. "This is true love: that we cling to the truth and live righteously. 11311 Charity as the norm for Christian perfection is the full living out of the first gift of the Holy Spirit.314 This is the good which makes the possession of all other goods possible, and whose absence makes all other goods impossible: "Have charity and you will have them all; because without charity, whatever you have will be of no benefit."315 This is so, because it is the essence of every other virtue. Only well-ordered love makes the other virtues possible.316 In other words, the difference between mere human values (which are not enough for salvation or holiness) and Christianity is their source. "From where does love for God and neighbor come if not from God himself?"317
96. But I haven't made it yet. I'm far from perfect and I can't see myself making it in this life. What am I to do?
Don't worry. St. Augustine says, "Recognizing your own imperfection is part of achieving perfection"!318 He would also doubtlessly counsel you to keep your focus on Christ and not so much on yourself. How do you do that? Desire. "As a doe longs for running streams, so longs my soul for you, my God. Who is it that says this? We do, if we would only will it! And why ask who it might be, as if it could be anybody other than yourself, since it is in your power to be the very thing about which you inquire? It is not merely one individual, but rather it is `one Body' and `Christ's Body is the Church.' This longing is not found in everyone who enters the Church: let all who have tasted the sweetness of the Lord, and who have developed a relish for Christ, let them know that there are many such seeds scattered throughout the field of the Lord, which is the earth. 11319
The good news for the downcast soul who recognizes her own weakness and deficiencies in the spiritual life is that, as a member of the Mystical Body that is the Church, she can join her weak desire for Christ to the perfect nuptial desire for Christ that proceeds from the Church and participate in it.
"Certainly, it is not hard to understand as are those cries of the catechumens who hurry to the grace of the holy [baptismal] font. But indeed this psalm is normally sung on such occasions, so that they will long for the font of remission of sins, just as the doe longs for running streams ... Nonetheless, it seems to me that this 'longing' is not fully satisfied even in the faithful who are baptized; rather, if they understand to where they journey and from where they have come, their `longing' is enkindled to an even greater intensity.""'
Augustine is saying that what Baptism has obtained for the soul and makes possible to obtain is dependent on one's desire for such goods. Such desire which achieves absolute possession is only possible in eternity. Augustine's mysticism of desiring to assimilate and internalize everything that pertains to Baptism is within everyone's grasp, and is simply a question of cooperating with God's grace and firm, constant exercise of the will in the form of desire. And if our desire should falter, we should unite ourselves to the Church's pure desire for Christ and benefit from her merits.
So long as we are in this life, we must manage our imperfect state. "We will not enjoy perfect health if we do not have perfect charity ... but we will have perfect charity when we see God as he is. And then there will be nothing more to add to our love when we are blessed with that vision."321
Thus, our perfection in this life is relative. "Always be discontent with your [spiritual] state if you want to arrive at perfection. Because when you content yourself with yourself, you cease to progress. If you were to say, `That's enough. I have arrived at perfection,' you will have lost everything."322
Augustine does not make spiritual perfection other-worldly; rather, he says, "It can be held, without fear of falling into absurdity, that to advance faultlessly is possible for the imperfect, if he runs toward perfection, avoiding the capital sins and not omitting to purify himself of venial sins by means of almsgiving."323
Further, he says, "The more you love, the more you are elevated.i324 And elsewhere he says, "Where love grows, concupiscence diminishes."325