Salesian Spirituality: What is Devotion?

We continue with our look at Salesian spirituality by looking at the most well known work by Francis de Sales, “The Introduction to the Devout Life.” St. Francis wrote a great deal, and today is the patron saint of authors and of the press. He wrote many topical pamphlets addressing controversies of his day that are not read much today. But he also wrote masterpieces that have endured for centuries, and the “Introduction” is one of them. So popular was this work that the Protestant King James I of England carried a jewel encrusted edition of the book, with all the “Catholic errors” removed, of course.

As we saw in the past a key to Salesian spirituality is that it is universal in nature. All people are called to be saints, but how they do it is going to depend on their state of life. The married person and the vowed religious have different responsibilities to fulfill, and so need to follow paths that will lead to holiness while also helping them fulfill their duties.

St. Francis first question is what is the devout life? While some associate the devout life with praying or fasting, he tells us that these are part of the devout life, but that these things by themselves don’t make us devout. He writes of people who fast, but have hatred in their hearts, or pray a lot, but then gossips and speaks badly about and among their friends and family. Some people may give money to the poor but then won’t forgive their neighbors. This type of devotion is really hypocrisy and possibly superstition. On the other hand St. Francis writes:

But, in fact, all true and living devotion presupposes the love of God;—and indeed it is neither more nor less than a very real love of God…Love while shining on the soul we call grace, which makes us acceptable to His Divine Majesty;—when it strengthens us to do well, it is called Charity;—but when it attains its fullest perfection, in which it not only leads us to do well, but to act carefully, diligently, and promptly, then it is called Devotion.

Devotion in the highest sense of the word, then, is love of God, and of neighbor, or charity, which has become a habit, or virtue. This means that we do good without having to think about it, so much have we conformed ourselves to God’s will. This level of devotion is not arrived at overnight. It takes time and the purification of our desires and actions. In the end it is God’s grace working in us that will make this happen. But we also need to open ourselves and cooperate with God. This begins with making an examination of conscience and making a good confession. What is the best way to make an examination of conscience? This, along with the first stages of purification will be the topics of next week’s letter.