"Be sure that wherever our lot is cast we may and must aim at the perfect life."
Written over 400 years ago, Introduction to the Devout Life is still one of the most popular books for those pursuing holiness. St. Francis de Sales explains how to turn that desire for sanctity into resolutions that yield grace-filled results.
Themes include:
- Pursuing a devout life whole-heartedly
- Incorporating prayer and sacraments into a busy schedule
- Growing in virtue
- Battling wisely against temptation
- Making spiritual progress through daily, monthly, and yearly exercises
Whether you are just beginning your spiritual journey or are more advanced in the spiritual life, you’ll be able to apply this timeless wisdom immediately. Let St. Francis de Sales illumine the path to holiness and strengthen your desire to walk that road with the Lord.
St. Francis de Sales (1567–1622) was the Bishop of Geneva and a renowned spiritual director. Preaching during the Counter-Reformation, he is estimated to have converted 70,000 Calvinists in his lifetime. He was a fervent proponent of the universal call to holiness and spent much of his time guiding lay people on the road to sanctity. Declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Pius IX in 1877, St. Francis is still helping to form saints through his many writings, of which Introduction to the Devout Life is the most famous.
—description from the publisher
Introduction to the Devout Life full text: https://watch.formed.org/introduction-to-the-devout-life-by-st-francis-de-sales
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Theme music: "2 Part Invention", composed by Mark Christopher Brandt, performed by Thomas Mirus. ©️2019 Heart of the Lion Publishing Co./BMI. All rights reserved.
Timestamps
00:38 Preface
12:26 Part 1 – Counsels and Exercises for the Guidance of the Soul from Its First Desire After a Devout Life unto a Full Resolution of Pursuing the Same
12:38 True Devotion Explained
18:19 The Nature and Excellence of Devotion
23:17 Devotion is Suitable to Every Vocation and Profession
27:26 The Need of a Guide for those who would Enter Upon and Advance in the Devout Life
33:35 The First Step: Purifying the Soul
38:22 The First Purification: From Mortal Sin
40:56 The Second Purification: From All Sinful Affections
44:17 How to Affect This Second Purification
46:56 First Meditation, On Creation
53:26 Second Meditation, On the End for Which We Were Created
59:26 Third Meditation, On the Gifts of God
1:05:20 Fourth Meditation, On Sin
1:11:39 Fifth Meditation, On Death
1:19:00 Sixth Meditation, On Judgment
1:24:59 Seventh Meditation, On Hell
1:29:02 Eighth Meditation, On Paradise
1:34:05 Ninth Meditation, On the Choice Open to You Between Heaven and Hell
1:39:26 Tenth Meditation, On How the Soul Chooses the Devout Life
1:46:40How to Make a General Confession
1:49:23 A Sincere Protest Made with the Object of Confirming the Soul’s Resolution to Serve God as a Cojnclusion to its Acts of Penitence
1:53:58 Conclusion of This First Purification
1:55:53 The Necessity of Purging Away All Tendency to Venial Sins
2:00:35 It Is Necessary to Put Away All Inclination for Useless and Dangerous Things
2:03:14 All Evil Inclinations Must Be Purged Away
02:05:29 Part 2 – Counsels as to Uplifting the Soul to God in Prayer and the Use of the Sacraments
2:05:38 The Necessity of Prayer
2:11:30 A Short Method of Meditation in the Presence of God: The First Point of Preparation
2:17:05 Invocation: The Second Point of Preparation
2:18:38 Representing the Mystery to Be Meditated to Your Imagination: The Third Point of Preparation
2:20:49 Considerations: The Second Part of Meditation
2:22:16 Affections and Resolutions: The Third Part of Meditation
2:24:01 The Conclusion and Spiritual Bouquet
2:25:44 Some Useful Hints on Meditation
2:30:40 Concerning Dryness in Meditation
2:33:15 Morning Prayer
2:36:05 Evening Prayer and Examination of Conscience
2:38:03 Spiritual Refreshment
2:42:42 Aspirations, Brief Prayer, and Holy Thoughts
2:53:34 Holy Communion, and How to Receive It
2:58:17 The Other Public Offices of the Church
3:00:13 How the Saints Are United to Us
3:02:58 How to Hear and Read God’s Word
3:05:05 How to Receive Inspirations
3:10:31 Confession
3:17:35 Frequent Communion
3:23:09 How to Communicate
03:28:01 Part 3 – Counsels Concerning the Practice of Virtue
03:28:08 How to Select That Which We Should Chiefly Practice
03:36:56 The Same Subject Continued
03:43:55 Patience
03:53:08 Greater Humility
03:59:02 Interior Humility
04:08:28 Humility Makes Us Rejoice in Our Own Abjection
04:15:11 How to Combine Due Care for a Good Reputation with Humility
04:22:40 Gentleness Towards Others and Remedies Against Anger
04:31:05 Gentleness Towards Ourselves
04:35:35 We Must Attend to the Business of Life Carefully, but Without Eagerness or Over-Anxiety
04:40:18 Obedience
04:45:43 Purity
04:49:05 How to Maintain Purity
04:52:48 Poverty of Spirit amid Riches
04:58:28 How to Exercise Real Poverty although Actually Rich
05:06:08 How to Possess a Rich Spirit amid Real Poverty
05:09:50 Friendship: Evil and Frivolous Friendship
05:13:31 Frivolous Attachments
05:18:48 Real Friendship
05:24:40 The Difference between True and False Friendship
05:28:57 Remedies against Evil Friendships
05:35:47 Further Advice concerning Intimacies
05:40:22 The Practice of Bodily Mortification
05:50:59 Society and Solitude
05:56:24 Modesty in Dress
06:00:20 Conversation: First, How to Speak of God
06:02:52 Unseemly Words and the Respect Due to Others
06:07:18 Hasty Judgments
06:17:28 Slander
06:28:27 Further Counsels as to Conversation
06:32:24 Amusements and Recreations: What Are Allowable
06:34:56 Forbidden Amusements
06:36:53 Balls and Other Lawful but Dangerous Amusements
06:41:59 When to Use Such Amusements Rightly
06:43:49 We Must Be Faithful in Things Great and Small
06:49:23 - A Well-Balanced, Reasonable Mind
06:53:33 - Wishes
06:58:15 - Counsels to Married People
07:11:47 - The Sanctity of the Marriage Bed
07:13:15 - Counsels to Widows
07:22:31 - One Word to Maidens
07:23:51 Part 4 – Counsels Concerning Some Ordinary Temptations
07:23:58 - We Must Not Trifle with the Words of Worldly Wisdom
07:29:29 - The Need of Good Courage
07:32:09 - Temptations and the Difference Between Experiencing Them and Consenting to Them
07:37:19 - Two Striking Illustrations of the Same
07:40:56 - Encouragement for the Tempted Soul
07:43:26 - When Temptation and Pleasure are Sin
07:47:23 - Remedies for Great Occasions
07:50:15 - How to Resist Minor Temptations
07:52:26 - How to Remedy Minor Temptations
07:55:02 - How to Strengthen the Heart Against Temptation
07:57:40 - Anxiety of Mind
08:03:27 - Sadness and Sorrow
08:08:40 - Spiritual and Sensible Consolations and How to Receive Them
08:23:23 - Dryness and Spiritual Barrenness
08:33:49 - An Illustration
08:41:07 Part 5 - Counsels and Practices for Renewing and Confirming the Soul in Devotion
08:41:15 - It Is Well Yearly to Renew Good Resolutions by Means of the Following Exercises
08:43:58 - Meditation on the Benefit Conferred on Us by God in Calling Us to His Service
08:48:55 - Examination of the Soul as to Its Progress in the Devout Life
08:52 :13 - Examination of the Soul's Condition as Regards God
08:56:52 - Examination of Your Condition as Regards Yourself
08:59:16 - Examination of the Soul's Condition as Regards Our Neighbor
09:00:43 - Examination as to the Affectations of the Soul
09:03:10 - The Affections to Be Excited After Such Examination
09:04:36 - Reflections Suitable to the Renewal of Good Resolutions
09:05:23 - First Consideration, On the Worth of Souls
09:08:13 - Second Consideration, On the Excellence of Virtue
09:10:01 - The Example of the Saints
09:11:48 - The Love That Jesus Christ Bears to Us
09:15:05 - The Eternal Love of God for Us
09:16:36 - General Affections That Should Result from These Considerations and Conclusion of the Exercise
09:19:16 - The Impressions That Should Remain After This Exercise
09:20:53 - An Answer to Two Objections That May Be Made to This Book
09:23:45 - Three Important and Final Counsels
