SAN JUAN DE AVILA
"Vanity is a bad weed that
poisons every garden, it is necessary to be alert when handling the hoe"
said Argentine.
You will serve other gods by day and
by night (Jerem., 16, 13), God casts out as a curse those who serve false gods;
and be done very well in those who worship honor. Saint John (12:43) speaking
of a leading people of Jerusalem, who believed in Christ, but did not dare to
publish themselves out of respect for men, says of them with great reproach
that they loved the honor of men more than the honor of God. Which with good
reason can be said of these lovers of honor, since we see that because they are
not despised by men they despise God, whose Law they are ashamed to follow,
because they are not ashamed of men.
But do what you want; honor his honor
enough that you can no longer; that fixed and firm is the sentence pronounced
against them by Jesus Christ, sovereign Judge, who says (Lk, 9, 26): Whoever is
ashamed of Me and my words, the Son of the Virgin shall be ashamed of him; when
he comes in his Majesty and his Father and his angels. And then all the angels
and all the Saints will sing (Ps., 118, 137): You are just, Lord, and your
judgments are just; that, if the vile worm was ashamed to follow the King of
the Majesty, that You, Lord, are ashamed, being the same honor and highness,
that a thing so low and so bad is in the company of yours and yours. Oh, with
what impetus (Rev 18:21) the honor of Babylon will then be cast into the
deepest hells, in the company of the torments of the proud Lucifer,because they
wanted to be his companions in the guilt of pride! Don't scoff; No one, nor let
the love of the honor of the world be a small evil, for the Lord, who searches
hearts, said to the Pharisees (Jn., 5, 44): How can you believe in Me, since
you seek to be honored some from others, and do you not seek the honor that
comes from God alone? And since this bad affection is so powerful that it was
enough to make them not believe in Jesus Christ, what evil could not? And who
of it will not cross himself? For this reason Saint Augustine said that no one
knows what forces he has to damage the love of vain honor, but he who has
caused warfare.since you seek to be honored one another, and you do not seek
the honor that comes from God alone? And since this bad affection is so
powerful that it was enough to make them not believe in Jesus Christ, what evil
could not? And who of it will not cross himself? For this reason Saint
Augustine said that no one knows what forces he has to damage the love of vain
honor, but he who has caused warfare.since you seek to be honored one another,
and you do not seek the honor that comes from God alone? And since this bad
affection is so powerful that it was enough to make them not believe in Jesus
Christ, what evil could not? And who of it will not cross himself? For this
reason Saint Augustine said that no one knows what forces he has to damage the
love of vain honor, but he who has caused warfare.
Much help against this evil should be
to us, that the same natural light condemns it; since it teaches us that man
has to do works worthy of honor, but not to deserve honor and not value it; and
that the big heart must despise being precious and being despised; and that
nothing should be considered great, but virtue.
But if with all this the Christian
does not have the heart to despise this vanity, lift his eyes to his Lord on the
cross, and see him so full of dishonor, that, although they weigh themselves,
they can compete with the greatness of the torments he received… And not
without cause did the Lord choose death with extreme dishonor, but because he
knew how powerful tyrant is the love of honor in the hearts of many; who do not
hesitate to put themselves to death, and flee from the genre of death, if it is
with disgrace. And to make us understand that neither one nor the other should
frighten us, he chose death on the cross, in which grave pains are combined
with excessive disgrace.
Behold, then, if you have eyes,
Christ esteemed by the lowest of men, and reviled (vilely despised, insulted)
with grave disgraces; some, that the same death on the cross brings with it,
since it was the most infamous of all; and others with which they particularly
offended our Lord, since no kind of people was left that was not used to
blaspheme, despise and insult him with unseen kinds of dishonor; and you will
see how well he fulfills what he had said in preaching (Jn., 8): I do not seek my honor. Do you like
this. And if you stop the ears of your soul, you must listen carefully to that
pitiful cry that was given against innocence itself, proclaiming Jesus
Christ our Lord as a criminal through the streets of Jerusalem,you will be
confused when you see that they honor you, or when you wish to be honored; and
you will say with an endearing groan: Oh Lord! ¿Are you trumpeted as bad, and I
praised as good? What is the most painful thing? And not only will your desire
for the honor of the world be taken away from you, but you will also desire to
be despised, for being in conformity with the Lord, following whom, as the
Scripture says (Eccl., 23, 38), is great honor. And then you
will say with Saint Paul (Gal., 6, 14): It does not please God that I honor
myself, but in the cross of Jesus Christ our Lord; and you will
wish to fulfill what the Apostle himself says (Hebr., 13, 13): Let us go out to
Him outside the camp, loaded with his reproach.
And if the affection of vain honor is
a powerful thing, much more powerful is the medicine of the example and grace
of Christ, which in such a way overcomes and uproots it from the heart, that it
makes him feel that it is a very abominable thing, than seeing a Christian Let
the Lord of the Majesty come down to such contempt, let the vile worm remain
swollen with the love of honor. For this reason the Lord invites us and strives
with his example, saying (Jn., 16, 33): Trust, that I have conquered the world. As if to say:
Before I came here, a great thing was to fight against the deceitful world,
rejecting what flourishes in it, and embracing what it rejects; But after he
put all his strength against me, inventing a new kind of torment and dishonor,
all of which I suffered without turning my face, he no longer only seemed thin,
because he found someone who could suffer the most; even more, it remains
defeated for your benefit, because with my example that I gave you, and the
strength that I gained, you will be able to slightly overcome, surpass and
trample it. Look at the Christian,
since the world despised the blessed Son of God, who is eternal Truth and the
highest Good, there is no reason why no one has him in anything, or believe him
in anything. Before seeing that he was deceived in not knowing such a very
clear light, and in not honoring the one who is very true honor; that the
Christian disapproves, that the world approves; and that value and love, that
the world hates and despises; fleeing with great care to be precious from the
one who despised his Lord; and having as a great sign of being loved by Christ,
being despised by the world, with Him and by Him.
As a result, just as those of this
world do not have ears to listen to the truth and doctrine of God, before they
despise it, so the one who is on the side of Christ must not have them to
listen to or believe the lies. of the world. Because now I flatter, now
persecute, now promise, now threaten, now frighten, or seem soft, in everything
he deceives himself and wants to deceive, and with such eyes we must look at
him; Well, it is true that in so many lies and false promises we have taken
him, that the means (the means: half)) that a man said, in nothing we would
trust him, and with great difficulty, even if he said the truth, we would give
him credit. What the world can do is neither right nor wrong, for it cannot
give or take away God's grace. Not even in what seems like he can, he can't do
anything,because it cannot reach the hair of our head without the will of the
Lord (Lk., 21, 18): and if something else wants to make us understand, we do
not believe it. Who will there be who does not dare to fight against an enemy
who cannot do anything?
So that you better understand what
has been said to you, you must know that it is one thing to love human honor or
esteem for itself and to stay in it, and this is bad as has been said, and
another thing is when these things are loved for some good purpose, and this is
not bad.
It is clear that a person who has
command or state to take advantage of others, may want that honor and esteem to
treat his office with greater benefit from others; For if they despise the
one who commands, they will despise his commandment, even if it is good.
And not only these people, more
generally every Christian must comply with what is written (Eccli., 41,
15): Be
careful of the good reputation. Not because he has to stop there, but rather
because such a Christian has to be, that whoever hears or sees his life, gives
God glory; as we usually give it seeing a rose, or a tree with fruit and
freshness. This is what the holy Gospel commands (Me, 5, 13), that our light
shine before men, so that, seeing our good works, they give glory to the
heavenly Father, from whom all good things come.
And
this attempt to honor God and take advantage of others moved Saint Paul (2
Cor., 4) to tell about himself great and secret favors that our Lord had done
him, without considering himself a breaker of Scripture, that says (Prov., 27):
Praise the mouth of others, and not yours. Because he told these his praises so
without sticking any of them, as if he did not speak them; fulfilling himself
what he had said to those of Corinth (1 Cor., 7), that those who have women
should be as if they did not have them, and those who cry as if they did not
cry, with other things similar to these.
In which it means, that he profitably
uses what is temporary, prosperous or adverse, joyful or sad, that his heart
does not stick to it; more passes through it as a vain thing and that soon
passes. And true, when Saint Paul recounted these things about himself, with a
heart he said them, not only a despiser of honor, but a lover of contempt and
disgrace for Jesus Christ, whose cross he held for supreme honor. (Gal, 6, 14.)
And of these such hearts it is possible to trust that they receive honor, or
they say things that take advantage of to have it; because they will never do
these things except when it is very necessary; for some good end.
Moreover, just as it is a thing of
great virtue to have things as if they did not have it, and not stick to the
heart the honor that they give us from outside, so it is a difficult thing and
that very few achieve it. Because, as Saint Chrysostom says: "Walking among
honors and not sticking to the heart of the honored one, is like walking among
beautiful women without ever looking at them with unchaste eyes." And
experience has shown us that dignities and places of honor
very few times they have played good
bad guys, and very many good bad guys; Because to suffer the weight of honor
and occasions that come with it, great strength and virtue are required.
Because, according to Saint Jerome he says: "The highest mountains with the
greatest winds are fought." And it is true that greater
virtue is required to be in command than to obey. And not without cause, and
great cause, our sovereign Master and Lord, who knows everything, fled from
being chosen by King (Jn., 6). And since He could not endanger in a state no
matter how high it was, of course it is a doctrine for our weakness, that she
must flee from what is dangerous, since He fled, who was sure.
And if it is very daring, and against
the example of Christ, to receive the state of honor when they offer it, what
will it be to desire it and what will it mean to seek it? Because to say how
bad it is to give money for it, there is not enough man. It is a very
terrifying thing that, since a man can safely walk on flat land, he chooses the
dangers of walking on the sea; and not with bonanza, but with continuous
storms. Because, according to Saint Gregory he says: "What else is the
might of highness but tempest of the soul?"And after these jobs and dangers that
are in a high place, there happens that terrible threat spoken by God, although
of few heard and felt, (Sab., 6): Very harsh judgment will be made in those who
have control. What is this, that being the ordinary judgment of God such, that
the most stretched out in virtue tremble and say (Ps. 142, 2): Do not enter
into judgment with your servant? ¿Sir, there are people so daring that they
choose to go to trial, not just anyone, ¿narrower and harder? And seeing that a
King Saul, to whom was the reign offered by God, without his exalting himself
or paying attention to it, and even hid himself because he did not receive it,
and was found because God manifested it (1 Reg. , 10), with all this the
highness of dignity mistreated him so badly with his occasions, that having
preceded choosing him God, and fleeing him, such a bad life and bad end
happened,that it must put fear and punishment to those who enter into states of
honor, even called and by a good door, and much greater to those who do not
enter through such.
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