Spiritual Maxims

"Pere Grou's great theme in the Spiritual Maxims is his insistence on the following of the spirit of Christ as opposed to what he calls the natural spirit, or the spirit of private judgment. Prayer for him is contemplative prayer, or the prayer of the interior way. Not that he despised formal meditation by any means, but he regarded it always as a stepping-stone towards a higher form of prayer, the intimate prayer of the spirit. His great aim and desire was to urge and encourage souls...
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"Pere Grou's great theme in the Spiritual Maxims is his insistence on the following of the spirit of Christ as opposed to what he calls the natural spirit, or the spirit of private judgment. Prayer for him is contemplative prayer, or the prayer of the interior way. Not that he despised formal meditation by any means, but he regarded it always as a stepping-stone towards a higher form of prayer, the intimate prayer of the spirit. His great aim and desire was to urge and encourage souls not to be afraid, but to persevere in a wholehearted gift of themselves to God, and in a faithful surrender to the guidance of the Holy Ghost." Translator A Monk Of Parkminster St. Alphonsus writes: "a single bad book will be sufficient to cause the destruction of a monastery." First Maxim: By the ladder of sanctity, men ascend and descend at the same time, which leads to knowledge of God and true knowledge of self.Second Maxim: Yield your liberty to God, and have no will but HisThird Maxim: Pray for a wise guide whom, when you have found, trust, revere and obeyFourth Maxim: Be always mindful of the God Who is present everywhere, and Who dwells in the hearts of the justFifth Maxim: Keep close to Our Lord in His mysteries, and draw the purest love from His salutary woundsSixth Maxim: Make good use of the two sacraments, whereof one brings cleansing, and the other life, that is Penance and the Holy EucharistSeventh Maxim: Let your intention be pure, and your devotion simple and uprightEighth Maxim: Follow the enlightening spirit of Christ: mistrust the blindness and treachery of the natural mindNinth Maxim: Take no account of external things: seek strenuously after those blessings which are to be found withinTenth Maxim: Listen to Him Who teaches the heart without sound of words. Receive His peace, and guard it faithfullyEleventh Maxim: Treat God as a child treats his Father amd thus acquire a child-like spiritTwelfth Maxim: Beware of resisting the leadings of grace: be thoroughly generous in great things and in smallThirteenth Maxim: Never cease to struggle with the enemy that lives within the soul, and practice holy mortificationFourteenth Maxim: When God bids you be still in prayer, humble yourself silently before His MajestyFifteenth Maxim: Cling not to sensible sweetness: suffer dryness with a good heartSixteenth Maxim: The tempter combines cunning with violence: we must meet him with prayer and vigilanceSeventhteenth Maxim: Beware of self-love, the rival of the love of GodEighteenth Maxim: Stay quietly at home: regulate your day, and waste no timeNineteenth Maxim: Let charity and piety begin at home, that is always fulfill your daily duties.Twentieth Maxim: Be cordial and kind, gentle and lowly; considerate towards others, severe upon yourselfTwenty-First Maxim: Go straight on: never stop or look back. Grieve for sin, but never lose courageTwenty-Second Maxim: When we know our own helplessness, we learn to appreciate the value and efficacy of graceTwenty-Third Maxim: Love is our law: God is our portion; here by faith, in heaven by sight.Twentieth Maxim: Social Relationships Be cordial and kind, gentle and lowly; considerate towards others, severe upon yourself