Monday Morning Musing on Peace of Soul

What is one of the most important goals for the Christian striving to do God's will? ALWAYS maintain peace of soul. We all desperately need it, but how many are willing to do the hard work to achieve it.

The first step in examining anything is to understand what it is. So what exactly is peace of soul? When I have a question about faith, I often turn to Fr. John Hardon, that holy Jesuit who went to his eternal reward in 2000. I'll offer some of his insights from a sermon on Peace of Soul:

Put First Things First: Love God and Maintain Your Peace of Soul!

Dom Lorenzo Scupoli

One of the books I use for regular spiritual reading highly recommended by St. Francis de Sales, The Spiritual Combat by Dom Lorenzo Scupoli (c.1530-1610). My edition contains an additional work by the priest, Treatise On Peace of Soul. Along with Imitation of Christ, Imitation of Mary, Humility of Heart, and, of course, holy scripture; Fr. Scupoli's books offer a rich feast for meditation.

Our first duty is love of God. Nothing takes precedence over that: not love of spouse, love of children, or apostolic work. Part of that duty is maintaining our peace of soul. And so I offer the following as a thought for the day. I will be reflecting on it during my adoration hour this afternoon as I pray the Stations of the Cross:

God does not dwell in a soul which He does not first inflame with a love of Him and charity for others; for Christ Himself said He came to set the world on fire.

The Chain Link Cathedral

My favorite book by Sheen

St. Augustine wrote, ““You have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless, until they can find rest in you.”  Blessed Fulton J. Sheen wrote of this restlessness in his book Peace of Soul.  He showed us how there is a longing to reconcile ourselves with truth and come to rest in knowing answers to all the things that trouble us throughout our lives.  Until we have found the fullness of truth there is no enduring peace in our hearts.  

As the world grows less and less religious and membership in churches of all denominations around the globe continues to decline,  it becomes ever more obvious each day how true this longing is and how in spite of man’s rejection of God through professed faith, that longing persists.  It is a longing to achieve inner peace in an ever more violent world.  It is the desire to comfort ourselves with something beautiful and pure and innocent.  We walk away from God, but the farther away we get, the more restless we are to be at peace, to have order and dignity and calm in our lives.