the Saint exhorts this lady, who was aged
and infirm, and whom he calls his mother, to
lift up her desires towards heaven, to love
crosses, to have patience and gentleness
with the persons who waited on her . . 222
VII. To THE SAME. Same subject . . . 223
VIII. To THE SAME. Same subject . . . 224
IX. To A LADY. It is permitted to mourn the
dead with moderation and resignation.
Long sicknesses are advantageous . .226
X. To A EELIGIODS OK THE VISITATION. On want
of reverence in church .... 228
. XL To. A LADY. The way not to offend God in
the pleasure of the chase .... 229
XII. To MADAME DE CHANTAL. Thoughts on the
renewal of the year 231
XIII. To THE SAME. Wishes of blessing for the
New Year 232
XIV. To A LADY. Wishes for the New Year . 233
XV. To MADAME DE CHANTAL. Same subject . 234
XVI. To THE SAME. Same subject . . . 236
XVII. To A SUPERIOR OF THE VISITATION. The Saint
tells her how to distinguish true revelations
from false 238
XVIII. To MADAME DE CHANTAL. Considerations on
the Feast of the Conception of the Holy
Virgin, and on a Cope which he had re-
ceived ....... 242
Table of Contents. xxv
BOOK VI.
VARIOUS LETTERS.
UtTTER PAGE
I. To MADAME DE CHAXTAL. On the Feast of
our Lord's Nativity 245
EC. To THE SAME. On Temptations and Dry-
nesses. Means to repel them, and guard
ourselves against them .... 247
IIL To THE SAME. Patience in interior troubles.
Looking at God. Not to be precipitate
in the choice of a state. Advice on con-
fession 257
IV. To THE SAME. Great crosses are more meri-
torious and require more strength . . 266
V. To THE SAME. Never to forget the day on
which we returned to God . . . 267
VI. To THE SAME. Not to reason with tempta-
tions, nor to fear them, nor even reflect on
them 270
VTI. To MADAME DE CHANTAL. He exhorts her to
prepare her heart that the Blessed Virgin
may be born therein, and to unite herself
closely to Jesus. " The little virtues" . 273
VIII. To THE SAME. We are to carry Jesus Christ
in our soul 275
IX. To A YOUNG LADY. What the courage of
Christians is 276
X. To MADAME DE CHANTAL. Means of passing
Lent well 278
XI. To THE SAME. On troubles of spirit . . 280
XII. To THE SAME. We must work with courage
at our salvation and perfection, whether in
consolations or in tribulations. What
abjection is ; its difference from humility.
Action which parents should take with
regard to the vocation of their children.
Advice on temptations. God wishes to be
loved rather than feared .... 280
xxvi Table of Contents.
LETTER PAflffi
XIII. To THE SAME. Advantage of interior trials
for perfection. God communicates himself
in afflictions rather than in consolations . 298
XIY. To THE SAME. On the Love of God . . 300
XV. To A LADY. Sign of good prayer. Advice
on this exercise and on the choice of books
of piety ; on Paschal Confession and Com-
munion 307
XVI. To A LADY. We must always keep our souls
in repose before God 309
XVII. To A LADY. We must bear our own infir-
mities with patience. God acts in different
ways towards His servants. Advice on
drynesses in prayer. The will of God . 310
XVIII. To A LADY. Piety must be solid. We must
be faithful to it everywhere and in every-
thing without failing . . . .316
XIX. To A LADY. We must labour to perfect our-
selves in our state. Advice on Confession
and Communion ..... 317
XX. To ONE OF HIS EELATIVES. He wishes her
the Love of God 320
XXI. To THE SAME. The Saint exhorts her to be
faithful to God 322
XXII. To ONE OP HIS SISTERS. To avoid eagerness
in devotion, and to practise mortifications
which come of themselves . . . 324
XXIII. To MADAME DE CHANTAL. It is a great hap-
piness to keep ourselves humble at the foot
of the cross 325
XXIV. To THE SAME. On the repose of our hearts
in the Will of God 327
XXV. To A LADY. We must hate our faults with
tranquillity, and not uselessly desire what
we cannot have 329
XXVI. To MADAME DE C^^TAL. The difference
between putting nfb keeping ourselves in
the presence of God 332
Table of Contents. xxvii
LETTER PAGE
XXVII. To THE WIFE OF PRESIDENT DE HERCE. He
consoles her under the motions of the
passions which she felt and which alarmed
her. Nature is not indifferent to sufferings
in this life : our Lord in his Passion an
example of this. Remedy for the out-
bursts of self-love 335
XXVIII. To A LADY. Human respect is blameworthy
in matters of religion. Advice on interior
drynesses 338
XXIX. To ONE OF HIS SISTERS. The Saint recom-
mends to her gentleness and peace in the
troubles of this life 340
XXX. To A LADY. Of resignation in trials, and of
Christian mildness 341
XXXI. To MADAME DE CHANTAL. Resignation to
God's will. Cure for spiritual troubles . 343
XXXII. To A RELIGIOUS. Different effects and signs
of self-love and true charity . . . 344
XXXIII. To ONE OF HIS SPIRITUAL DAUGHTERS. Effects
of self-love very different from those of
fraternal charity * .... 347
XXXIV. To A SUPERIOR OF THE VISITATION, HIS NIECE.
"We must serve God at his pleasure, not
our own 348
XXXV. To A LADY. We should not refrain from
speaking of God when it may be useful. It
is not being a hypocrite to speak better
than we act. Advice for a person in
society 350
XXXVL To A LADY. We must not be surprised at
spiritual coldness, provided we are firm in
our resolutions. A servant of God . . 353
XXXVII. To A LADY. God does not give good desires
without giving the means to accomplish
them . ^ 354
XXXVIIL To A LADY. The Saint consoles her on her
spiritual dry ness 356
xxviii Table of Contents.
LETTER PAGTS
XXXIX. To A LADY. The will of God gives a great
value to the least actions. We must love
nothing too ardently, even virtues . . 358
XL. To MADEMOISELLE DE TRAVES. The Saint
removes two scruples which she had . 3^0
XLI. To A LADY. Merit of the service which we
pay God in desolations and drynesses . 361
XLII. To A RELIGIOUS OF THE VISITATION. Answers
to questions on the truths of Faith . . 363
XLIII. To A LADY. Of piety in the midst of afflic-
tions 365
XLIV. To A LADY. Purity of Christian affections :
God is their bond. The world is insipid to
those who loveGod. Humility must supply
the want of courage 369
XLV. To ONE OF HIS SISTERS. The Saint exhorts
her to live in a great conformity with our
Lord 371
XLYI. To THE SAME. The Saint exhorts her to
communicate often, and to abandon herself
to Providence in contradiction . . . 374
XLVIL To A LADY. The means to be all to God is
to crucify our strongest inclinations . . 376
XLVIIL To A SUPERIOR OF THE VISITATION. God
regards us with love, provided that we
have good will. Our imperfections must
neither astonish nor discourage us . . 377
XLIX. To A LADY. A confessor may for various
reasons withdraw frequent communion
from certain persons ; this privation must
be borne with a humble obedience, to make
it advantageous 380
L. To A LADY. The Saint exhorts her to fidelity
in her spiritual exercises and the practice
of virtue. How we are to treat our heart
when it has committed a fault . . . 382
LI. To A SUPERIOR OF THE VISITATION. Consi-
derations on the death of the Blessed Virgin 384
Table of Contents. xxix
LETTER PAGE
LII. To A LADY. We must support with patience
our own imperfections. Advice on Medi-
tation. The judgments of the world . 385
LII I. To A LADY. The remedy for calumny is
not to trouble ourselves about it. Advice
on confession 389
LIV. To A LADY. The consideration of the suffer-
ings of our Saviour ought to console us in
our pains 392
LV. To A LADY. The Saint recommends her
peace of the soul and trust in God . . 394
L VI. To AN ECCLESIASTIC. Advantage of Christian
friendship over that of the children of the
world 396
LVII. On humility of heart and ravishments . . 398
LVIII. To A PROTESTANT WHO HAD ASKED TO HAVE A
CONFERENCE WITH HIM .... 400
LIX. To MADAME DE CHANTAL. The Saint deplores
the misfortune of a lady who had fallen
into heresy 402
LX. To HIS BROTHER, COADJUTOR OP GENEVA.
About one of their friends who had turned
Calvinist, and gone into England . . 405
LXI. To His HOLINESS PAUL V. On the Vener-
able Ancina 408
BOOK VII.
LETTERS OF THE SAINT ABOUT HIMSELF.
I. MONSIEUR DE BOISY, COUNT DE SALES, TO
HIS SON ST. FRANCIS DE SALES . . .415
II. ST. FRANCIS DE SALES TO HIS FATHER. He
excuses himself for being unable to return 416
III. To MADAME THE COUNTESS OP SALES, HIS
MOTHER. He consoles her for his absence
by the hope of seeing him again . .417
xxx Table of Contents.
LETTER PAGE
IV. To MADAME DE CHASTAL. He speaks to
her of the fruit of his Lent-preaching at
Annecy, in 1607 ..... 417
V. To THE SAME. He encourages her, by his
example, patiently to suffer, that her gen-
tleness, in domestic contradictions, should
be put down to dissimulation . . .419
VL To TIIE SAME. He informs her that he is
going to visit his diocese ; he congratulates
her on her love for sicknesses ; he promises
to write often 422
VII. To THE SAME. Sentiments which he felt in
the procession of the Blessed Sacrament 423
VIII. To THE SAME. WTiy he was strong before
great attacks. His relish for prayer . 425
IX. To THE SAME. On the death of his young
sister, Jane de Sales, who died in the arms
of Madame de Chantal .... 427
X. To THE SAME. He sends copies of the Intro-
duction for several persons . . . 432
XI. To MADAME de COKNILLON, HIS SISTER. On
the death of their mother . . . -435
XII. To MADAME DE CHASTAJL On the death of
his mother, and her last moments . . 436
XIII. To MADAME DE CORXILLOX, HIS SISTER. The
Saint consoles her on the death of M. the
Baron de Thorens, their brother . . 441
XIV. To MADAME DE CHAXTAL. Perfect resigna-
tion of the Saint 442
XV. To THE SAME. Profound peace of the Saint
amidst his affairs. Mark of his humility.
He permits ladies some innocent recreations
under the name of balls. He announces
that he is going to work at T// Love of God 443
XVI. To THE SAME. On his soul. The will . 446
XVII. To A LADY. He blames one of his spiritual
daughters, who, in speaking of him, said
extravagant things in his praise . 449
Table of Contents. xxxi
LETTER PAGE
XVIII. To A CURE OF THE DIOCESE OF GEKEVA. He
recommends to him the conversion of an
heretical doctor who was treating Madame
de Chantal 451
XIX. To A FRIEND. He complains of not being
able to give himself to study . . . 452
XX. To AN ECCLESIASTIC. On friendship . . 454
XXT. To MADAME DE CHANTAL, AT PARIS. The Saint
expresses his disgust for the court, and for
the condition of a courtier . . -455
XXII. To THE SAME. Disinterestedness of the
Saint 458
XXIII. To THE SAME. Acquiescence of the Saint
in the divine will ..... 459
XXIV. To M. FAVRE. The thought of eternity . 461
XXV- To A LADY. Contempt of the grandeurs of
the world. Desires of eternity. . . 463
BOOK I.
LETTERS TO YOUNG LADIES
LETTER I.
To A YOUNG LADY,
Advice fur acquiring true srveetn^^.
I PRAY God to bless your heart, my dear daughter,
and I say to you these words according to my pro-
mise.
You should, every morning, before all things, pray
God to give you the true sweetness of spirit he requires
in souls which serve him, and resolve to exercise your-
self well in that virtue, particularly towards the two
persons to whom you are most bound.
You must undertake the task of conquering your-
self in this matter, and remind yourself of it a hundred
times a day, recommending to God this good design :
for I do not see that you have much to do in order
to subject your soul to the love of God, except to
make it gentler from day to day, putting your con-
fidence in his goodness. You will be blessed, my
dearest daughter, if you do this; for God will dwell
B
2 St. Francis de Sales.
in the midst of your heart, and will reign there in all
tranquillity.
But if you happen to commit some little failings,
Ipse^iQ^^QUfage : rather, put yourself straight again
at once, neither more nor less than if you had not
fallen.
This life is short, it is only given us to gain_the
other ; and you will use it well if you are gentle to-
wards those two persons, with whom God has placed
you. Pray for my soul, that God may draw it to
himself.
LETTER II.
To A YOUNG LADY GOING TO LIVE IN SOCIETY.
We must despise the jiidgments, contempt and raillery of worldly
people.
MY DEAREST DAUGHTER, You will often be amongst
the children of this world, who, according to their
custom, will laugh at all they see or think they see
in you contrary to their miserable inclinations. Do
not busy yourself disputing with them, show no sort
of sadness under their attacks ; but joyously laugh at
their laughter, despise their contempt, smile at their
remonstrances, gracefully mock at their mockeries;
and not giving attention to all this, walk always
gaily in the service of God ; and in time of prayer,
commend these poor souls to the Divine mercy.
They are worthy of compassion in having no desire
Letters to Young Ladies. 3
for honourable company, except to laugh and mock at
subjects worthy of respect and reverence.
I see that you abound in the goods of the present
life; take care that your heart become not attached
thereto. Solomon, the wisest of mortals, commenced
his unspeakable misery by the pleasure he took in
the grandeurs, ornaments and magnificent equipages
he had, though all this was according to his quality.
Let us consider that all we have makes us really
nothing more than the rest of the world, and that
all this is nothing before God and the Angels.
Remember, my dearest daughter, to fulfil well the
will of God in the cases in which you may have the
most difficulty. It is a little thing to please God in
what pleases us : filial fidelity requires that we will
to please him in what does not please us, putting
before our eyes what the great well-beloved Son said
of himself : / am not come to do my will, but the will
of him that sent me.* For you also are not a Chris-
tian to do your own will, but to do the will of him
who has adopted you for his daughter and eternal
heiress.
For the rest, you are going away, and I I also
am going away, without any hope of seeing you again
in this world. Let us pray God earnestly to give us
grace so to live according to his pleasure in this
pilgrimage, that arriving at our heavenly country, we
may be able to rejoice at having seen one another
here below, and to have spoken here of the mysteries
* John vi. 38.
B 2
4 St. Francis de Sales.
of eternity. In this alone must we rejoice to have
loved one another in this life, namely, that all has
been for the glory of his Divine Majesty, and our
eternal salvation.
Keep that holy gaiety of heart, which nourishes
the strength of the soul, and edifies our neighbour.
Go thus in peace, my dearest daughter, and God be
ever your protector; may he ever hold you in his
hand, and conduct you in the way of his holy will
Amen, my dearest daughter. And I promise you
that every day I will renew these sacred wishes for
your soul, which mine will ever cherish unchangeably.
And to God be ever praise, thanksgiving and bene-
dictions. Amen,
LETTER III.
To A YOUNG LADY.
The, Saint invites her to despise the world. She w not tc>
show too much wit.
1 ANSWER your last letter, my good daughter. The
ardours of love in prayer are good if they leave good
effects and occupy you not with yourself, but with
God and his holy will. In a word, all interior and
exterior movements which strengthen your fidelity
towards this Divine will are always good. Love, then,
celestial desires, and desire as strongly celestial love.
"SVe must desire to love and love to desire what can
never be enough desired or loved.
Letters to Young Ladies. 5
May God give us the grace, my daughter, to ab-
solutely despise the world, which is so hostile to us
as to crucify us if we crucify it. But mental abnega-
tions of worldly vanities and goods are made easily
enough : real ones are far more hard. And here
you are amidst the occasions of practising this virtue
up to its extreme point, since to this abnegation is
joined reproach, and since it comes on you, without
you and through you, or rather in God, with God and
for God.
You do not satisfy me about what I said to you
the other day, on your first letter, touching those
\vorldly repartees, and that vivacity of heart which
urges you. My child, determine to mortify yourself
in this : often make the cross on your mouth, that it
may open only according to God.
Truly a lively wit often causes us much vanity ; and
we oftener show disdain by the expression of our mind
than the expression of our face; we give arch looks
by our words, as well as by the looks themselves. It
is not good to walk on tiptoe, either in mind or body ;
for if we stumble the fall is all the worse. So then,
my child, take good pains to cut off, little by little,
this excrescence of your spiritual tree ; keep your
heart very low, very quiet there at the foot of the
cross. Continue to tell me veiy frankly and often
news of that heart, which mine cherishes with great
love, on account of him, who died of love, that we
might live by love in his holy death.
Vive Jesus.
6 St. Francis de Sales.
LETTER IV.
To A COUSIN.
Danger of vain and worldly conversation.
MY DEAR CHILD, Indeed, very dear child, my cousin,
you must get this poor soul away from risk, for the
luxurious way of living in the place where it is, is so
perilous that it is a wonder when a person escapes from
the midst of it. Alas ! my poor child, you have a right
to be astonished that a creature should will to offend
God, for that goes beyond all astonishment: still it is
done, as we unhappily see every day. The unfortunate
beauty and grace which these poor worthless girls
make themselves believe they have, because those
miserable people tell them so, is what ruins them : for
they occupy themselves so much with the body that
they lose care of the soul. So then, my child, we
must do what we can, and remain iu peace.
LETTER V.
To A YotNG LADY.
On perfection.
MADEMOISELLE, I received by my brother one of
your letters, which makes me praise God for having
given some light to your mind : but if it is not yet
Letters to Young- Ladies. 7
ultogether detached, you must not be astonished.
Spiritual as well as corporal fevers are generally fol-
lowed by some returns of the feeling of illness, which
are useful to the person who is getting better for
many reasons ; but particularly because they consume
the remains of peccant humours which had caused the
malady, so that there may not remain a trace of them ;
and because they remind us of the evil past, to make
us fear the relapse which we might bring on by too
much liberty and license, if the old feelings, like
threats, did not keep us on our guard with ourselves,
until our health is perfectly restored.
But, my good daughter, as you have half got out of
those terrible paths which you have had to travel, I
think you should now take a little rest, and consider
the vanity of the human spirit, how prone it is to
entangle and embarrass itself in itself.
For I am sure you will remark that those interior
troubles you have suffered have been caused by a great
multitude of considerations and desires produced by a
great eagerness to attain some imaginary perfection.
I mean that your imagination had formed for you an
ideal of absolute perfection, to which your will wished
to lift itself; but frightened by this great difficulty!
or rather impossibility, it remained in dangerous travail,
unable to bring forth, to the great danger of the child.
Then it multiplied useless desires which, like great
buzzing drones, devoured the honey of the hive, and
the true and good desires remained deprived of all
consolation. So now take a little breath, rest a little j
S 6V. Francis de Sales.
and by the consideration of dangers escaped, avert
those which might come afterwards. Suspect all those
desires which, according to the general opinion of
good people, cannot come to effect : such as the
desires of a certain Christian perfection which can be
imagined but not practised, in which many take lessons,
but which no one realizes in action.
Know that the virtue of patience is the one which
most assures us of perfection ; and if we must have
patience with others, so we must with ourselves.
Those who aspire to the pure love of God have not so
much need of patience with others as with themselves.
We must suffer our imperfection in order to have per-
fection ; I say suffer, not love or pet : humility feeds
on this suffering.
The truth must be told ; we are poor creatures,
and can only just get on : but God who is infinitely
good is content with our little services, and pleased
with the preparation of our heart.
I will tell you what is meant by this preparation of
heart ? According to the Holy Text, God is greater
than our heart, and our heart is greater than all the
world. Now, when our heart, by itself, in its medi-
tation, prepares the service it will render to God
that is, when it makes its plans for serving God,
honouring him, serving our neighbour, mortifying the
interior and exterior senses, and similar good resolu-
tions, at such times it does wonders, it makes prepa-
rations and gets ready its actions for an eminent
degree of admirable perfection. All this preparation
Letters to Young Ladies. 9
is indeed nowise proportioned to the greatness of God,
who is infinitely greater than our heart ; but still this
preparation is generally greater than the world, than
our strength, than our exterior actions.
A soul which considers the greatness of God, his
immense goodness and dignity, cannot satisfy herself
in making great and marvellous preparations for him.
She prepares him a flesh, mortified beyond rebellion,
an attention at prayer without distraction, a sweetness
in conversation with no bitterness, a humility with no
outbreak of vanity.
All this is very good, here are good preparations.
And still more would be required to serve God accord-
ing to our duty : but at the end of this we must find
some one to do it : for when it comes to practice we
stop short, and perceive that these perfections can
neither be so grand in us nor so absolute. We can
mortify the flesh, but not so perfectly that there shall
be no rebellion : our attention will often be broken
by distractions, and so on. And must we, for this,
trouble, worry, excite ourselves? Certainly not.
Are we to apply a world of desires to excite our-
selves to arrive at this miracle of perfection? No.
We may indeed make simple wishes that show our
gratitude. I may say : Ah ! why am I not as fervent
as the Seraphim, in order better to serve and praise
my God ! but I shotdd not occupy myself with form-
ing desires, as if I must in this world attain that
exquisite perfection. I must not say : I wish it ; I
will try to get it; and if I cannot reach it, I will be vexed.
io St. Francis de Sales.
I do not mean to say that we are not to put our-
selves in that direction; but we are not to desire to
get there in one day, that is, in one day of this mor-
tality : for this desire would torment us, and for
nothing. To advance well we must apply ourselves
to make good way in the road nearest to us, and to
do the first day's journey. We must not busy our-
selves with wanting to do the last, but remember that
we are to do and work out the first.
I will give you this word, and keep it well : some-
times we so much occupy ourselves with being good
angels that we neglect being good men and women.
Our imperfection must accompany us to our coffin,
we cannot move without touching earth. We are not
to lie or wallow there, but still we are not to think
of flying : for we are but little chicks, and have not
our wings yet. We are dying little by little ; so we
are to make our imperfections die with us day by day:
dear imperfections, which make us acknowledge our
misery, exercise us in humility, contempt of self,
patience, diligence ; and in spite of which God regards
the preparation of our hearts, which is perfect.
I know not if I am writing to the purpose, but it
has come to my heart to say this to you, as I think
that a part of your past trouble has come from this
that you have made great preparations, and then,
seeing that the results were very small, and strength
insufficient to put in practice these desires, these
plans, these ideas, you have had certain heartbursts,
impatiences, disquietudes and troubles ; then have
Letters to Yoimg Ladies. 1 1