The Excellence of a Free Mind, Gained Through Prayer Rather Than By Study
The Disciple
IT IS the mark of a perfect man, Lord, never to let his mind relax in attention to heavenly things,
and to pass through many cares as though he had none; not as an indolent man does, but having by
the certain prerogative of a free mind no disorderly affection for any created being.
Keep me, I beg You, most merciful God, from the cares of this life, lest I be too much entangled
in them. Keep me from many necessities of the body, lest I be ensnared by pleasure. Keep me from
all darkness of mind, lest I be broken by troubles and overcome. I do not ask deliverance from those
things which worldly vanity desires so eagerly, but from those miseries which, by the common
curse of humankind, oppress the soul of Your servant in punishment and keep him from entering
into the liberty of spirit as often as he would.
My God, Sweetness beyond words, make bitter all the carnal comfort that draws me from love
of the eternal and lures me to its evil self by the sight of some delightful good in the present. Let
it not overcome me, my God. Let not flesh and blood conquer me. Let not the world and its brief
glory deceive me, nor the devil trip me by his craftiness. Give me courage to resist, patience to
endure, and constancy to persevere. Give me the soothing unction of Your spirit rather than all the
consolations of the world, and in place of carnal love, infuse into me the love of Your name.
Behold, eating, drinking, clothing, and other necessities that sustain the body are burdensome
to the fervent soul. Grant me the grace to use such comforts temperately and not to become entangled
in too great a desire for them. It is not lawful to cast them aside completely, for nature must be
sustained, but Your holy law forbids us to demand superfluous things and things that are simply
for pleasure, else the flesh would rebel against the spirit. In these matters, I beg, let Your hand
guide and direct me, so that I may not overstep the law in any way