FINALLY, the meditation must be closed by three acts which should be made with as much humility as possible. The first is the act of thanksgiving by which we thank God for the affections and resolutions which he has given us, and for his goodness and mercy which we have discovered in the mystery upon which we have been meditating. The second is the act of oblation by which we offer to God this same goodness and mercy of his, the death, the blood, and the virtues of his Son, and, together with these, our own affections and resolutions. The third is the act of petition, by which we demand of God and implore him to communicate to us the graces and virtues of his Son, and to bless our affections and resolutions, so that we may be able faithfully to put them into practice; then we pray in like manner for the Church, for our pastors, relations, friends and others, availing ourselves, for this purpose, of the intercession of our Lady, and of the Angels and Saints.

Lastly, I have noted that one should say the Pater noster and Ave Maria, which is the general and necessary prayer of all the faithful. To all this I have added that one should gather a little boutique of devotion. My meaning is as follows: Those who have been walking in a beautiful garden do not leave it willingly without taking away with them four or five flowers, in order to inhale their perfume and carry them about during the day: even so, when we have considered some mystery in meditation, we should choose one or two or three points in which we have found most relish, and which are specially proper to our advancement, in order to remember them throughout the day, and to inhale their perfume spiritually. Now we should do this in the place where we have made our meditation, either staying where we are, or walking about alone for a little while afterwards.

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AFTER the action of the imagination, follows the action of the understanding, which we call meditation, which is no other thing than one or many considerations made in order to stir up our affections towards God and divine things: and herein meditation differs from study and from other thoughts and considerations which are not made to acquire virtue or the love of God, but for other ends and intentions, as, for example, to become learned, to write, or to argue. Having then confined your spirit, as I have said, within the enclosure of the subject upon which you intend to meditate, either by the imagination if the subject be something perceptible to the senses, or by the simple setting forth thereof, if it be something imperceptible, you will begin to make considerations on it, some examples of which you will find fully developed in the meditations which I have given you.

And if you find sufficient relish, light and fruit in one of these considerations, stay there without passing on to another, acting like the bees, who do not leave a flower so long as they find any honey there to gather. But if you do not find anything to your liking in one of these considerations after having dealt with it and tried it for a little while, pass on to another; but proceed quite gently and simply in this matter, without undue haste.

PART 2 – CHAPTER VI. OF THE SETTING FORTH OF THE MYSTERY, WHICH IS THE THIRD POINT OF THE PREPARATION

MEDITATION produces good movements in the will or affective part of our soul, such as the love of God and of our neighbour, the desire of heaven and eternal glory, zeal for the salvation of souls, imitation of the life of our Lord, compassion, admiration, joy, fear of God’s displeasure, of judgement and of hell, hatred of sin, confidence in the goodness and mercy of God, confusion for our bad lives in the past; and in these affections our spirit should expand and extend itself as much as possible. And if you desire to be helped in this matter, take in hand the first volume of the Meditations of Dom Andres Capiglia, and read the preface, for he shows therein how to enlarge these affections; and Father Arias does the same more fully still in his Treatise on Prayer.

However, Philothea, you must not dwell upon these general affections to such an extent that you omit to convert them into special and particular resolutions for your correction and amendment. For example, the first word that our Lord spoke on the cross will doubtless stir up in your soul a good affection of imitation—namely, the desire to pardon your enemies and to love them. But I say now that this is of little value, if you do not add to it a special resolution to this effect: Well then! I will not hereafter be offended by such or such annoying words, which such or such a person, a neighbor of mine perhaps, or a servant, may say of me, nor by such or such an affront which may be put upon me by this person or by that: on the contrary, I will say and do such or such a thing to gain him, and appease him, and so also in other matters. By this means, Philothea, you will correct your faults in a very short time, whereas by the affections alone you will do so but slowly and with difficulty.

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THE invocation is made in this manner: your soul having realized that she is in the presence of God, prostrates herself with profound reverence, acknowledging her unworthiness to appear before so sovereign a Majesty, and nevertheless, knowing that his goodness desires it she asks of him the grace to serve him well, and to adore him in this meditation. If you wish to do so, you may make use of some short and ardent words, such as these of David: Cast me not away, O God, from thy face, and take not the favor of thy Holy Spirit from me. Make thy face to shine upon thy servant,61 and I will consider thy wonders.

Give me understanding and I will search thy law, and I will keep it with my whole heart. I am thy servant, give me understanding; and other similar words. You would do well also to invoke your good Angel, and the holy persons who are concerned in the mystery upon which you are meditating: as in that of the death of our Lord, you may invoke our Lady, St John, St Mary Magdalen and the good thief, in order that the interior sentiments and movements which they received may be communicated to you: and in the meditation on your own death, you may ask your good Angel, who will be present at it, to inspire you with fitting considerations; and so also with other mysteries.

PART 2 – CHAPTER IV. OF THE SETTING FORTH OF THE MYSTERY, WHICH IS THE THIRD POINT OF THE PREPARATION

AFTER these two ordinary points of the meditation, there is a third which is not common to all sorts of meditations; it is that which is called by some the composition of place, and by others the interior lection. This is no other thing than to represent to the imagination the scene of the mystery upon which the meditation is made, as though it were actually taking place in our presence. For example, if you wish to meditate upon our Saviour on the cross, you will imagine yourself to be on mount Calvary, and that you see there all that was done and said on the day of the Passion; or, if you will (for it is all one), you will imagine that the crucifixion is taking place in the very spot where you are, in the way described by the Evangelists.

The same applies to meditations on death, as I have noted in the meditation on this subject, and also to that on hell, and to all similar mysteries which are concerned with things visible and perceptible to the senses; for as regards other mysteries, such as the greatness of God, the excellence of virtue, the end for which we are created, which are invisible things, there is no question of making use of this kind of imagination. It is true that we may very well employ some sort of similitude and comparison to help us in our consideration of such mysteries; but that is somewhat difficult to find, and I only wish to treat with you very simply, and in such a way that your mind may not be wearied with much seeking.

Now, by means of this imaginary scene we confine our spirit within the mystery upon which we intend to meditate, so that it may not range hither and thither, just as we confine a bird within a cage, or as we put jesses on a hawk so that it may remain upon the fist. Yet some will tell you that, in the representation of these mysteries, it is better to make use of the simple thought of faith, and of a simple apprehension entirely mental and spiritual, or else to consider that the things are done within your own spirit; but that is too subtle for a commencement, and until such time as God may raise you higher, I counsel you, Philothea, to remain in the low valley which I have shown you.

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