465. Thirty-third Saturday of Ordinary Time

Meditations no. 409 (unofficial computer-aided translation)

Seeking the advice of others to act prudently.

In today’s Gospel, we read that some Sadducces asked Jesus for his advice regarding a question of conscience. Although their intention was far from upright, our Lord listens and responds to them.

We often find ourselves in a similar situation, unable to resolve the complex questions that crop up in life. Then we can’t take refuge in culpable ignorance or proud silence: we have to ask for advice in order to act correctly. For as St Augustine wrote, it is essential to discern what leads us to God from what separates us from him.

Our Founder often stressed the maxim from Scripture: discite benefacere, learn to do good. It’s not enough to want to become a doctor: one has to study medicine. It’s not enough to want to become an engineer: a lot of hard study is required. And this is the case with all the virtues we strive to practise in the Work. It’s not enough to want to practise them: we must learn to do so.

We have to acquire the habit of judging supernaturally - with the light of grace and common sense - in order to discern the best way to serve God and souls in each case. We must be people of sound judgement, with solid criteria. Our Father wanted all his daughters and sons to be mature, to be of age.

To grow in maturity, we need to ask advice from other people. Good will, the desire to please God, and even knowledge of theology are not enough for sound judgement. We need to be aware of the specific facts, the people involved and their particular circumstances. Only then can we judge rightly and fulfil what God is asking of us at every moment, here and now.

We therefore need to have recourse to others. As St Thomas wrote, complex events require taking many circumstances into consideration, which it is not easy for one person to do. But several people can do so with greater certainty, since what escapes the notice of one, another takes note of.

Having a guide helps us develop our abilities.

For prudence, one needs to learn from others, St Thomas said. The first act of prudence is to take advice based on others’ experience. Our Father wrote: to be prudent, the first step is to acknowledge our own limitations. This is the virtue of humility. Through it, we admit that in certain matters we cannot cover everything, that in so many cases we cannot take in all the circumstances that have to be borne in mind in order to make a fair judgement. So we seek advice. Then we will not be led astray by false reasoning, nor will our passions prevent us from seeing issues in their true light. We are then assured of being at peace, for we will have enlisted every means possible to avoid straying from our divine path.

To seek advice, we need to be humble. The leprosy of self-will is more pernicious the more disguised it is, St Bernard wrote. I call “self-will” whatever is not in keeping with God’s will … when our desires are opposed to God’s glory and the good of others … and only satisfy our own petty attachments … But the leprosy of self-reliance in judging is even more pernicious, because it is more hidden; and the more it takes hold, the healthier the afflicted one thinks he is. This is the leprosy of those zealous for God, not in accord with wisdom, but with their own mistaken criteria, shunning all advice … They are enemies of unity and concord, and lack charity; they are swollen with vanity, in love with themselves, great in their own eyes, ignorant of God’s justice and eager to impose their own.

Listening to the opinions of others helps us develop our own personality while overcoming our limitations. Asking for advice is a sign of maturity and sound judgement. St Thomas says: It is a point of excellence in a man that he should have at hand those who are able to be of service to him by giving us advice when we need it. Therefore, St Gregory tells us, the life of the saints is prudent. It is not so independent that it leads to pride: for independence often hides pride under the guise of “holy freedom”. Nor does it confuse humility with timidity, for fear paralyzes the spirit, impeding us from saying what is due, and making us indecisive.

We have to combine both sides of prudence: on the one hand, consulting and listening to the opinions of others; and on the other, being decisive, acting freely and responsibly. We can never use the advice we receive as an excuse for avoiding responsibility for our actions. Sound judgement entails the capacity to act on one’s own account, after taking the necessary measures of prudence.

Acquiring the habit of seeking advice.

My son, do nothing without advice, says Sacred Scripture, and when you have acted, you will not have to regret it. Our Lord wants us to be prudent, thoughtful and measured in all we do; ready to learn and diligently carry out whatever we are asked; prompt to avoid danger, with a balanced spirit of initiative; ready to judge - if it’s our duty to - when we possess all the necessary information; and quick to flee from excessive concern for temporal things.

Therefore, we have to have frequent recourse to those who can and should advise us. Then we will attain the wisdom of the heart that guides and governs many other virtues. Through prudence, a man learns to be daring without being rash. He will not make excuses (based on hidden motives of indolence) to avoid the effort involved in living wholeheartedly according to God’s plans.

In our life as children of God in his Work, our Lord has lovingly disposed that we can habitually count on this help from others. But we don’t go to just anyone, but to a person with the right qualities, to someone who wants to love God as sincerely as we do and who tries to follow him faithfully. It is not enough to ask just anyone for their opinion. We must go to a person who can give us sound and disinterested advice.

In the chat, God gives us light to know - to learn - what we have to do to behave well, with Christian perfection, in a specific case. We thus follow the advice from Scripture: stay constantly with a godly man whom you know to be a keeper of the commandments, whose soul is in accord with your soul, and who will sorrow with you if you fail. And establish the counsel of your own heart, for no one is more faithful to you than it is. For a man’s soul sometimes keeps him better informed than seven watchmen sitting high on a watchtower. And besides all this pray to the Most High that he may direct your way in truth. Especially when you see a problem, a difficulty, our Father advised, strive to be objective, serene and, in order to be so, go to your brothers or sisters. Often we don’t see, because our eyes are too close to the obstacle.

Let us ask our Blessed Lady, Mater Boni Consilii, Mother of Good Counsel, to obtain for us such a clear knowledge of our own limitations that we will feel the need to have recourse to others for help. Thus we’ll be people of sound, mature judgement. For as St Augustine wrote, maturity depends not on one’s age, but on wisdom and prudence.