Pious Reflections for Every Day in the Month
Translated from the French of the Rev. F. Bouhours. The following reflections, on account of their conciseness and simplicity, require neither much time nor application to be read and understood. They do not merely regard the social duties of mankind, like those of Epictetus or Seneca; they are Christian thoughts on the important truths of religion, and the most elevated maxims of the gospel. They are not only adapted for such as, by retirement, are familiarized to the practice of mental prayer; but likewise for those who, from their secular occupations, are as yet but little versed in the use of meditation. Even worldlings are still capable of sometimes elevating their thoughts to heaven; for, in whatever occupations persons may be engaged, they may always find sufficient leisure for a short lecture. If the multiplicity or urgency of the concerns of this life will not afford you sufficient time for regular meditation, you may at least suffer a good thought to take possession of your mind, before the business of the day is entered upon. Such is the design of these short reflections; and the method of using them is as follows:—Every day in each month, after having acquitted yourself of the indispensable duty of morning prayer, place yourself again in the presence of God, and read the Thoughts of the Day; but in order that you may the better comprehend their meaning, read them with deliberation, and the most profound attention. After reading the first article, allow yourself a short interval for reflection before you pass on to the second. Do not rest satisfied with barely conceiving the truth of the maxim you read; but after ruminating seriously upon it, apply it to yourself; and observe the same rule with the second and third articles. But should the urgency of business allow you but sufficient leisure merely to read them, be satisfied, under the assurance that pious thoughts have the same effect on the soul, as a seal has upon melted wax; for, should they enter but ever so slightly into the mind, they will always leave some impression behind. If you cannot find leisure to read these Thoughts in the morning, read them at least in the course of the day, or at night before you go to bed. The Practical Resolutions immediately following the Thoughts, must not be omitted. An act of virtue, or a short reflection, is soon made. The passages from the holy Scriptures and Fathers, at the close of the Reflections, are, as it were, an abridgment or abstract of the Thoughts of the Day; they collect, as in a focus, their whole strength and sense in a few words. Being short and concise, they are easily remembered; being pithy and affecting, they are happily calculated to rouse, support, and nourish the soul throughout the course of the day. They are as grains of essence, which contain a strong and fragrant odour within a small compass; or as an ingenious piece of mechanism, which can execute a great deal of work in a very little time. Be not content with reading these reflections once over; but read them over and over again, month after month, till by making a lasting impression on the mind, you may reap all the spiritual advantages they are capable of producing; for there is always something new to be found in the truths of religion; they are mines which cannot be too deeply dug into; they are fountains whose sources are inexhaustible; but they are also seeds which produce little or no fruit, unless they take root by being deeply planted in the heart.