Vigils Reading – Office for Vocations

THE ACTIVITY

OF ALL ACTIVITIES

From “The Golden Epistle” by William of St Thierry4

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In the first place then the newcomer to the desert must be taught to follow

the teaching of the Apostle Paul and offer up his body as a living sacrifice,

consecrated to God and worthy of his acceptance, the workshop due from him as

a rational creature. Therefore the body is to be treated strictly, so that it will not

rebel or grow wanton, yet in such a way that it will be able to serve, for it has

been given to the spirit to serve it. It is not to be regarded as the purpose of life

but as something without which we cannot live. For we cannot break off the

fellowship which we have with the body whenever we want, but we must wait

patiently for it to be broken up in a lawful way and in the meantime observe the

conventions of a valid partnership…

The new monk is then to be trained to follow the common observance and

so bring under control the inordinate desires of his flesh by continual penance

for his past life, and, in order to despise all else, to cultivate a contempt for

himself. He must at all times be fortified in advance against the temptations

which are more savage in their assault upon the solitary who is a novice. The

servant of God, who is serving God gratuitously, is unceasingly beset by vices

that try to make him accept the wages they offer him in the form of pleasures.

This comes at the devil’s suggestion, the flesh making its desires felt and the

world providing material for them. The Lord our God also tempts us, to see

whether we love him or not. Not that he does not know and wishes to find out. It

is in order that we ourselves may realize the truth more fully as a result of the

temptation.

But it is easy to overcome and meet with reason temptations which give

grounds for suspicion or at first sight are obviously evil. It is those which

insinuate themselves under the appearance of good that are more difficult to

recognize and more dangerous to entertain. Just as it is very difficult to observe

due measure in what is believed to be good and not every desire for something

good is safe.

The place, however, where all temptations and evil and useless thoughts

collect, is idleness. For the greatest evil which can befall the mind is unemployed

leisure. The servant of God should never be idle, although he is at leisure to

devote himself to God. A name which gives rise to such suspicion and suggests

such waste of time and such an absence of manliness must not be given to a

matter of such unquestionable value, of such holiness, of such seriousness. Is

leisure to devote one’s time to God idleness? Rather it is the activity of all

activities. Anyone who in his cell is not faithful and fervent in this activity is

indeed idle, whatever else he may do that is not done for the sake of this…

The aim of activity should not be merely to pass the day more or less

enjoyably or at least without becoming too weary of leisure but also that when

the day is over it always leaves something in the mind that will contribute to the

soul’s advancement and that some fresh treasure is added each day to the

heart’s store. A good monk should consider that he has lost a day of his life if

during the day he cannot remember having done any of the things for which a

man lives in solitude.