“Instruments of Good Works”, Pt. 3 (Day 20 of the Holy Rule)

Here, St. Benedict elaborates on his list of "good deeds":

44. To fear the day of judgment.

45. To be in dread of hell.

46. To desire eternal life with all spiritual longing.

47. To keep death before one’s eyes daily.

48. To keep a constant watch over the actions of our life.

49. To hold as certain that God sees us everywhere.

50. To dash at once against Christ the evil thoughts which rise in one’s heart.

51. And to disclose them to our spiritual father.

52. To guard one’s tongue against bad and wicked speech.

53. Not to love much speaking.

54. Not to speak useless words and such as provoke laughter.

55. Not to love much or boisterous laughter.

56. To listen willingly to holy reading.

57. To apply one’s self often to prayer.

58. To confess one’s past sins to God daily in prayer with sighs and tears, and to amend them for the future.

59. Not to fulfil the desires of the flesh.

60. To hate one’s own will.

61. To obey the commands of the Abbot in all things, even though he himself (which Heaven forbid) act otherwise, mindful of that precept of the Lord: “What they say, do ye; what they do, do ye not."

END QUOTE.

FOR TODAY, THE THOUGHTS TURN TO MORE ESCHATOLOGICAL ENDS OF THE "FOUR LAST THINGS"-- Death, Judgement, Heaven, Hell-- BEFORE MOVING ON TO THE CONSCIENCE, TO LANGUAGE AND EXPRESSION (& THE NEED TO HOLD ONESELF IN CHECK IN VARIOUS WAYS), ESPECIALLY THROUGH SUBMISSION TO SPIRITUAL SUPERIORS.

Here, I can only say that the possibility of perdition grows in proportion to the inattentiveness towards our final purpose for which we were made.  With the conscience, we are given a guide-- not always reliable, mind you, anymore than an uncalibrated instrument of any kind is said to be "reliable"!-- to hold our life in account.  

Why all of this vigilance?

We either become what we are called to be (as the conscience dictates) or we reject it for some lesser end.  Little by little, with each choice, we can strengthen this inner voice or get it to say something else (wherever there is sin, there is a lie involved, so follow the trail of deception).  

This battle over the integrity of the conscience is our spiritual fate.  We would do well to not only have to listen to our conscience but to meditate on the Four Last Things for this very reason to keep us calibrated to the Truth.

Be well!