Curb Curiosity

FOCUS:

Be dead to all earthly things and the changes of the world, great and small, be to thee as though they were not; and should they come in thy way, reject them, and drive them far from thee.

Be sober and humble, even in thy desire to understand heavenly things, wishing to know nothing but Christ crucified, His Life, and His Death, and whatsoever He requires of thee.

Cast all other things far from thee, and thus shalt thou be very pleasing unto God. 

Seek of Him such things alone as suffice to the 1. love of His Divine Goodness, and 2. to the fulfillment of His Will. 

Curb curiosity 

THE second danger from which we must guard our understanding is curiosity; because, by filling it with hurtful, vain, and frivolous thoughts, we disable it from laying hold of that which most nearly concerns the true mortification of ourselves and our perfection.

To this end thou must be as one dead to all earthly things, which do not concern thee, although they may be harmless in themselves.

Ever restrain thine intellect as much as possible, and love to keep it lowly.

Let the news and the changes of the world, great and small, be to thee as though they were not; and should they come in thy way, reject them, and drive them far from thee.

Be sober and humble, even in thy desire to understand heavenly things, wishing to know nothing but Christ crucified, His Life, and His Death, and whatsoever He requires of thee.

Cast all other things far from thee, and thus shalt thou be very pleasing unto God. For He loves and delights in those who desire and seek of Him such things alone as suffice to the love of His Divine Goodness, and to the fulfilment of His Will. Every other petition and enquiry springs from self-love, pride, and the deceit of the devil.

If thou wilt follow these instructions thou wilt escape many snares; for when the wily serpent sees the will of those who aim at the spiritual life is strong and resolute, he endeavours to overthrow their understanding, that so he may be able to master both the one and the other.

His plan is to infuse lofty and curious sentiments into their minds, especially if they be of an acute and subtle intellect, and such as are easily lifted up into pride; so that, occupied with the enjoyment of investigating such matters, and falsely persuading themselves they thereby enjoy God, they may neglect to purify their hearts, and to apply themselves to self-knowledge and real mortification. So, falling into the snare of pride, they make an idol of their own understanding.

Hence, gradually and imperceptibly, they persuade themselves that they have no need of advice or guidance from others, being accustomed as they are, in all cases, to have recourse to the idol of their own judgment.

A most perilous condition this, and very hard to cure, the pride of the understanding being far worse than that of the will; for when the pride of the will is once manifest to the understanding, it may in time be easily remedied by obedience where it is due; but how or by whom can he be cured, who obstinately believes that his own opinion is worth more than that of any other man? How shall he submit to other men’s judgment, which he considers inferior to his own?

The understanding is the eye of the soul, by which the wound of the proud will must be discovered and healed; if that eye, then, itself be weak, and blind, and swollen with pride, by whom shall it be cured?

And if the light become darkness, and the rule faulty, by which we measure our actions, what will become of the rest?

Therefore resist this dangerous form of pride betimes, before it penetrate into the marrow of thy bones.

Curb the acuteness of thine intellect; submit thine own opinion willingly to that of others; become a fool for the love of God, and thou shalt be wiser than Solomon.