St. Vincent Ferrer Shrine in Church of St. Vincent Ferrer (NYC)

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Length of book: 60 pages

Hailed in his own time as the “Angel of the Apocalypse”, this illustrious Dominican touched the souls and hearts of many during his life; indeed, he has touched more via his intercession since he departed this world, but he also continues to point souls towards beatitude through this humble little work. Who better to take advice on the spiritual life from than a saint?

Though aimed primarily at instructing members of his order, these pages hold many lessons which are applicable to laymen. The general theme St. Vincent stresses is that of the need for sublime humility in the spiritual life, after all, holds true for all Catholics. Read, for example, his recommendation to:

…[C]all often to mind, with fear and trembling, that whatever disposition you have for good, whatever grace and desire to acquire virtue, it is Jesus Christ Who, in His mercy, gives it to you; that this in no way comes from yourself, and that it was in His power, had He chosen, to bestow the same grace on the most criminal of mankind, while He might have left you in an abyss of filth and misery.

(15)

This and other profound meditations on how to govern the mind in light of the truths of the Faith serve as a foundation for holiness. Upon it, the saint teaches us practical habits to help us imitate Christ and grow in virtue, and thereby outwardly profess the spiritual life. Against the voices of those who would reduce the spiritual life to a mere set of prayers to be said in one’s room or in one’s mind on account of the Masonic belief that religion is a “private matter”, the saint answers, “But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?” (James 2:20). Of this point, the author says in summary that the spiritual soldier of Christ must:

…[R]ule his exterior in such a way, that every action and movement of his body may express entire obedience to Jesus Christ, and that in the observance of regular discipline there may reign in him a certain decorum resulting from the regularity of his conduct.

(21)

This advice, though it may seem excessive at first, is in reality quite simple to practice with the proper disposition. And after all, is it really unexpected to call for such an obedience, given that Christ was “obedient unto death” (Philippians 2:8) to save us from eternal hellfire? Since a concrete example suffices the best, I will draw a relevant example concerning how St. Vincent states we ought to conduct ourselves in church:

Suffer not your eyes to wander in search of what others do; but lower them towards the earth, raise them to heaven, close them altogether, or let them rest on your back.

(35)

One should guard against scrupulosity in this, of course. It is not necessary to narrow in on yourself and over-analyze your interactions, your posture, and your manners in order to conform them to the example of Christ—in fact, this kind of excess is a species of pride. Rather, the saint writes that:

…[I]f you have humility and a perfect charity, the unction of the Holy Spirit will teach you how to comport yourself in everything.

(36)

Thus, one should practice meekness even to ourselves and consign ourselves to the inspirations of the Holy Spirit. He will guide us in these matters, especially during our mental prayer. We only need to depend upon Him as a child does upon his parents, asking for these things, and in turn, He will reply and grant us His aid. Of course, the advice of a good spiritual director (a topic also covered in this work) is also something helpful in this regard as well.

There are many other subjects covered in this brief work and they are covered worthily, and with holy simplicity. Though it seems to be an unfortunately uncommon read in our time, this book has undoubtedly served (and will continue to serve) as a great guide on the straight and narrow.