On scrupulosity
"Take care of your soul and do not confess scruples or first movements or imaginings in which the soul does not desire to be detained. Look after your health and do not fail to pray when you can"
St. John of the Cross
Scrupulosity arising from spiritual pride
"It is a secret pride that entertains and nourishes scruples, for the scrupulous adheres to his opinion and inquietude in spite of his director's advice to the contrary. He always persuades himself in justification of his disobedience that some new and unforseen circumstance has occurred to which this advice cannot be applicable. But submit without other reasoning than this: I should obey, and you will be delivered from this lamentable malady."
St. Francis de Sales
Scrupulosity arising from a lack of trust in God:
"Why are you tormenting yourself? Do what lies in your power: I will supply whatever is wanting in you. Moreover, in this sacrament (of Confession) I only require a contrite and humble heart, with sincere will never to offend me again, and sincere confession. In that case I forgive without delay, and thence comes a perfect amendment."
Our Lord to St. Margaret Mary
St. Philip Neri taught his faithful to despise the scruples. It is thus written in his life:
"Moreover, besides the general remedy of committing one's self altogether and for everything to the judgement of the confessor, he gave another, by exhorting his penitents to despise their scruples. Hence he forbade such persons to confess often; and when, in confession they entered upon his scruples, he used to send them to Communion without hearing them."
Obedience to a good confessor as a cure to scrupulosity:
The chief thing they (scrupulous souls) ought to consider is this: that he who acts in obedience to a learned and pious confessor, acts not only with no doubt, but with the greatest security that can be had upon earth, on the divine words of Jesus Christ, that he who hears his ministers is as though he heard himself: He that heareth you heareth Me.
St. Alphonsus Liguori
#scrupulosity
"Take care of your soul and do not confess scruples or first movements or imaginings in which the soul does not desire to be detained. Look after your health and do not fail to pray when you can"
St. John of the Cross
Scrupulosity arising from spiritual pride
"It is a secret pride that entertains and nourishes scruples, for the scrupulous adheres to his opinion and inquietude in spite of his director's advice to the contrary. He always persuades himself in justification of his disobedience that some new and unforseen circumstance has occurred to which this advice cannot be applicable. But submit without other reasoning than this: I should obey, and you will be delivered from this lamentable malady."
St. Francis de Sales
Scrupulosity arising from a lack of trust in God:
"Why are you tormenting yourself? Do what lies in your power: I will supply whatever is wanting in you. Moreover, in this sacrament (of Confession) I only require a contrite and humble heart, with sincere will never to offend me again, and sincere confession. In that case I forgive without delay, and thence comes a perfect amendment."
Our Lord to St. Margaret Mary
St. Philip Neri taught his faithful to despise the scruples. It is thus written in his life:
"Moreover, besides the general remedy of committing one's self altogether and for everything to the judgement of the confessor, he gave another, by exhorting his penitents to despise their scruples. Hence he forbade such persons to confess often; and when, in confession they entered upon his scruples, he used to send them to Communion without hearing them."
Obedience to a good confessor as a cure to scrupulosity:
The chief thing they (scrupulous souls) ought to consider is this: that he who acts in obedience to a learned and pious confessor, acts not only with no doubt, but with the greatest security that can be had upon earth, on the divine words of Jesus Christ, that he who hears his ministers is as though he heard himself: He that heareth you heareth Me.
St. Alphonsus Liguori
#scrupulosity
How to overcome scrupulosity- some advice
1. Trust your confessor
From scrupulosity arises the desire to receive words of affirmation or to "feel okay". This desire is disordered and it can lead us to greater sin of presumption, acting as if we know better than our own confessor by seeking comfort from them or believing that their absolution is not enough. When we do not receive such comfort, we grow weary or worse- despair. We must rest assured that we are forgiven of all sins when we receive absolution if we had intended to make a good confession.
2. "We must not seek the consolations of God, but God of all consolations." - St. Francis de Sales
So many souls fall into scrupulosity by believing that they had sinned gravely or had been abandoned by God when they do not receive certain emotions or spiritual savor. St. John of the Cross warns us of this imperfection , "Attracted by the delight they feel in their spiritual excercises, kill themselves with penances...They spend all their time trying to get some feeling of satisfaction rather than humbly praising and reverencing God dwelling within them."
3. Remind ourselves of the three conditions in which one commits a mortal sin:
- It is a grievous matter
- Full knowledge
- Full consent of the will
If you are questioning a certain sin, then you have probably commited a venial sin at the most or no sin at all. Include the Act of Contrition in nightly prayers for venial sins commited during the day.
4. Scrupulosity is an impediment to your vocation, prevents you from attaining the graces and virtue necessary for your state in life.
You stop trusting God, relying on your own powers and intelligence. You become too prideful while discerning.
#scrupulosity
1. Trust your confessor
From scrupulosity arises the desire to receive words of affirmation or to "feel okay". This desire is disordered and it can lead us to greater sin of presumption, acting as if we know better than our own confessor by seeking comfort from them or believing that their absolution is not enough. When we do not receive such comfort, we grow weary or worse- despair. We must rest assured that we are forgiven of all sins when we receive absolution if we had intended to make a good confession.
2. "We must not seek the consolations of God, but God of all consolations." - St. Francis de Sales
So many souls fall into scrupulosity by believing that they had sinned gravely or had been abandoned by God when they do not receive certain emotions or spiritual savor. St. John of the Cross warns us of this imperfection , "Attracted by the delight they feel in their spiritual excercises, kill themselves with penances...They spend all their time trying to get some feeling of satisfaction rather than humbly praising and reverencing God dwelling within them."
3. Remind ourselves of the three conditions in which one commits a mortal sin:
- It is a grievous matter
- Full knowledge
- Full consent of the will
If you are questioning a certain sin, then you have probably commited a venial sin at the most or no sin at all. Include the Act of Contrition in nightly prayers for venial sins commited during the day.
4. Scrupulosity is an impediment to your vocation, prevents you from attaining the graces and virtue necessary for your state in life.
You stop trusting God, relying on your own powers and intelligence. You become too prideful while discerning.
#scrupulosity
Some maxims to help with scrupulosity:
Bad thoughts are only sinful if we consent to them.
As St. Francis de Sales says: “Do not be disturbed about bad thoughts; it is one thing to have them and quite another to consent to them.” Our thoughts are not always free. Various thoughts enter our minds throughout the day; some that even enter our minds subconsciously, without us realising it. Furthermore, our brain forms connections (neural pathways) between certain thoughts or experiences; for example, if someone says the word “sponge”, I immediately think “bob.” I cannot control this, and if “bob” was hypothetically a sinful word, this would not be a sin because I do not will/desire the thought, nor would I let it disturb me. Why? Because that would only increase the thoughts and create a vicious cycle. There were saints, such as St. Faustina, St. Padre Pio, and St. Anthony Mary, who experienced severe blasphemous thoughts. Their remedy was abandonment to the will of God, and trust in His mercy. An excessive fear of offending God, particularly when we desire to please Him in all things, offends His tender goodness. Our Lord consoled Sr. Consolata Betrone by reminding her that He would not consider any thoughts that she had dwelled on involuntarily.
The Law of Presumptions:
“Let us consider the question of impure thoughts. It is morally impossible for a person who is habitually careful about purity to give full consent to impure thoughts without being fairly certain of it. When the will is habitually set against impurity, full consent to impure thoughts implies a somersault of the will, a volte-face, a turning round from North to South Pole. It is impossible for such a complete change to take place in the will without the mind being pretty certain about it. Uncertainty is, therefore, a clear sign that there was no full consent. In this matter we should go by what the theologians call “the law of presumptions.” If a person regularly gives way to sins of impurity, in case of doubt it is probable that there was sin. If a person never or hardly ever gives way to sins of impurity, in case of doubt it is morally impossible that there was serious sin, for the reason just given.” (Fr. Wilson)
“Peace to men of good-will” (Lk. 2:14)
Good-will comes from God. This extends to all good-will – even the atheist’s good-will. Without actual grace, we cannot so much as think a good thought (2 Cor. 3:5).
When God gives us the desire to repent or to keep His commandments, it is as if He made a pledge with us; it is as if He said: ‘My child, I love you. Receive this gift of my grace. Trust in Me and I will give you grace in abundance. Be faithful and I will protect you.’
We must not anticipate falls and sins. God knows that we are weak and imperfect; He asks only for our trust and fidelity.
Probabilism
“When a precept is susceptible of a twofold interpretation — one strict and the other more gentle — other things being equal, this latter must be preferred. The reason is because the commands of God and the Church have not been framed so as to destroy all spiritual sweetness, which must inevitably disappear under a too narrow and fearsome interpretation. The intention of God and His Church is not to prescribe the impossible, because, according to the law of justice, ‘no one can be bound to that which he cannot perform.” – St. Antoninus (who was far from a liberal theologian!)
Our consent or responsibility for sin is diminished by fear and anxiety:
Fear and anxiety in particular have the tendency to cloud judgement, exacerbate unwanted thoughts and weaken the will. Fear multiplies the number and intensity of unwanted thoughts. We should ask God to remove this fear, and keep in mind that what we fear is a phantom; it cannot harm us. We must recognise that even the most hideous thoughts (if not consented to) are morally neutral; they are neither good (deserving of reward) nor bad (deserving of punishment), and should therefore be ignored.
p. II
#scrupulosity
Bad thoughts are only sinful if we consent to them.
As St. Francis de Sales says: “Do not be disturbed about bad thoughts; it is one thing to have them and quite another to consent to them.” Our thoughts are not always free. Various thoughts enter our minds throughout the day; some that even enter our minds subconsciously, without us realising it. Furthermore, our brain forms connections (neural pathways) between certain thoughts or experiences; for example, if someone says the word “sponge”, I immediately think “bob.” I cannot control this, and if “bob” was hypothetically a sinful word, this would not be a sin because I do not will/desire the thought, nor would I let it disturb me. Why? Because that would only increase the thoughts and create a vicious cycle. There were saints, such as St. Faustina, St. Padre Pio, and St. Anthony Mary, who experienced severe blasphemous thoughts. Their remedy was abandonment to the will of God, and trust in His mercy. An excessive fear of offending God, particularly when we desire to please Him in all things, offends His tender goodness. Our Lord consoled Sr. Consolata Betrone by reminding her that He would not consider any thoughts that she had dwelled on involuntarily.
The Law of Presumptions:
“Let us consider the question of impure thoughts. It is morally impossible for a person who is habitually careful about purity to give full consent to impure thoughts without being fairly certain of it. When the will is habitually set against impurity, full consent to impure thoughts implies a somersault of the will, a volte-face, a turning round from North to South Pole. It is impossible for such a complete change to take place in the will without the mind being pretty certain about it. Uncertainty is, therefore, a clear sign that there was no full consent. In this matter we should go by what the theologians call “the law of presumptions.” If a person regularly gives way to sins of impurity, in case of doubt it is probable that there was sin. If a person never or hardly ever gives way to sins of impurity, in case of doubt it is morally impossible that there was serious sin, for the reason just given.” (Fr. Wilson)
“Peace to men of good-will” (Lk. 2:14)
Good-will comes from God. This extends to all good-will – even the atheist’s good-will. Without actual grace, we cannot so much as think a good thought (2 Cor. 3:5).
When God gives us the desire to repent or to keep His commandments, it is as if He made a pledge with us; it is as if He said: ‘My child, I love you. Receive this gift of my grace. Trust in Me and I will give you grace in abundance. Be faithful and I will protect you.’
We must not anticipate falls and sins. God knows that we are weak and imperfect; He asks only for our trust and fidelity.
Probabilism
“When a precept is susceptible of a twofold interpretation — one strict and the other more gentle — other things being equal, this latter must be preferred. The reason is because the commands of God and the Church have not been framed so as to destroy all spiritual sweetness, which must inevitably disappear under a too narrow and fearsome interpretation. The intention of God and His Church is not to prescribe the impossible, because, according to the law of justice, ‘no one can be bound to that which he cannot perform.” – St. Antoninus (who was far from a liberal theologian!)
Our consent or responsibility for sin is diminished by fear and anxiety:
Fear and anxiety in particular have the tendency to cloud judgement, exacerbate unwanted thoughts and weaken the will. Fear multiplies the number and intensity of unwanted thoughts. We should ask God to remove this fear, and keep in mind that what we fear is a phantom; it cannot harm us. We must recognise that even the most hideous thoughts (if not consented to) are morally neutral; they are neither good (deserving of reward) nor bad (deserving of punishment), and should therefore be ignored.
p. II
#scrupulosity
Some maxims to help with scrupulosity p.II
“Anxiety is a temptation in itself and also the source from and by which other temptations come.”
(St. Francis de Sales). Anxiety that results from distrust, as opposed to the feeling of anxiety, inevitably leads to other sins, because we must trust in God, without Whom we can do nothing. Avoid things that make you anxious, and reflect upon the mercies God has granted you. If He has pardoned us so many times when we were careless and sinful, we can be assured that He is more than willing to assist us when our desire is to love Him. Do not be proud and let past failures discourage us. Pray fervently for humility and trust, and don’t “combat” anxiety. We might think that our weaknesses cause us to fall into sin very easily. This is not so. This mistaken thinking might be the reason we become discouraged so easily.
Likewise, discouragement is a temptation in itself and also the source from and by which other temptations come.
“Discouragement is the enemy of your perseverance. If you don’t fight against your discouragement, you will become pessimistic first and lukewarm afterwards. Be an optimist.” (St. Josémaria Escriva). “He (the devil) is overcome by unlimited confidence in Jesus; the more frequent the falls, the more should confidence grow in the divine Mercy” (Jesus to Sr. Benigna). If we are so weak, we are most likely “little souls.” The doctrine of St. Therese on “little souls” (found in her biography and in the book, ‘My Sister, Saint Therese’) is most consoling.
Do not take an active approach to dispelling unwanted thoughts:
It is quite useless, of course, to try and rid ourselves of these thoughts by thinking about them. Rather, the scrupulous person must recognise their habits, and proceed to go about their daily lives, regardless of the intrusiveness of their thoughts, which in time will lose their power. Our Lord has compassion for our weaknesses; we must therefore have full confidence in His grace, the advice of our confessor, and any other remedy that His Providence places before us. The book ‘The Doubting Disease’ (by Joseph Ciarrochi) is a helpful tool for recognising and overcoming obsessions and compulsions of all sorts. The author, however, is not a theologian. The author says that Jesus did not tell us what “the sin that will not be pardoned” is. That is true in some sense, but elsewhere in Scripture we are given to understand the context for this Scripture: God the Father draws us to His Son for pardon, and the Precious Blood of Jesus washes away all our sins “without exception”, as St. Ambrose says. Search ‘The SEEMINGLY unforgivable sin’ and you will be assured that God is willing to pardon every sin, but He cannot pardon those who are so blind and hardened that they neither recognise nor accept God’s mercy (which can always be accepted in this life).
Jesus Himself, though sinless, experienced the temptations and suggestions of Satan
(Mark 1:13; Matthew 4:8). This should encouraged us, as the grace to conquer such temptations is made available to all by “the Lord thy healer”, the “Counsellor”, “The Prince of Peace” (Exodus 15:26; Isaiah 9:6).
St. Mechtilde also recommends (as does St. Francis de Sales) that we should bear patiently with our imperfections:
We should not struggle to free ourselves from sin. This will only make matters worse. Instead, we should humble ourselves, have compassion for our lower nature (as God most certainly does) and place all our confidence in God. Here are the exact words from ‘The Love of the Sacred Heart’ based on St. Mechtilde’s recommendation “which ought to be received gratefully by scrupulous souls”: “Man should be careful not to wash his stains with too much eagerness- that is, without considering the divine goodness; for by effacing them too eagerly he might easily injure rather than heal, his soul.”
p. I
#scrupulosity
“Anxiety is a temptation in itself and also the source from and by which other temptations come.”
(St. Francis de Sales). Anxiety that results from distrust, as opposed to the feeling of anxiety, inevitably leads to other sins, because we must trust in God, without Whom we can do nothing. Avoid things that make you anxious, and reflect upon the mercies God has granted you. If He has pardoned us so many times when we were careless and sinful, we can be assured that He is more than willing to assist us when our desire is to love Him. Do not be proud and let past failures discourage us. Pray fervently for humility and trust, and don’t “combat” anxiety. We might think that our weaknesses cause us to fall into sin very easily. This is not so. This mistaken thinking might be the reason we become discouraged so easily.
Likewise, discouragement is a temptation in itself and also the source from and by which other temptations come.
“Discouragement is the enemy of your perseverance. If you don’t fight against your discouragement, you will become pessimistic first and lukewarm afterwards. Be an optimist.” (St. Josémaria Escriva). “He (the devil) is overcome by unlimited confidence in Jesus; the more frequent the falls, the more should confidence grow in the divine Mercy” (Jesus to Sr. Benigna). If we are so weak, we are most likely “little souls.” The doctrine of St. Therese on “little souls” (found in her biography and in the book, ‘My Sister, Saint Therese’) is most consoling.
Do not take an active approach to dispelling unwanted thoughts:
It is quite useless, of course, to try and rid ourselves of these thoughts by thinking about them. Rather, the scrupulous person must recognise their habits, and proceed to go about their daily lives, regardless of the intrusiveness of their thoughts, which in time will lose their power. Our Lord has compassion for our weaknesses; we must therefore have full confidence in His grace, the advice of our confessor, and any other remedy that His Providence places before us. The book ‘The Doubting Disease’ (by Joseph Ciarrochi) is a helpful tool for recognising and overcoming obsessions and compulsions of all sorts. The author, however, is not a theologian. The author says that Jesus did not tell us what “the sin that will not be pardoned” is. That is true in some sense, but elsewhere in Scripture we are given to understand the context for this Scripture: God the Father draws us to His Son for pardon, and the Precious Blood of Jesus washes away all our sins “without exception”, as St. Ambrose says. Search ‘The SEEMINGLY unforgivable sin’ and you will be assured that God is willing to pardon every sin, but He cannot pardon those who are so blind and hardened that they neither recognise nor accept God’s mercy (which can always be accepted in this life).
Jesus Himself, though sinless, experienced the temptations and suggestions of Satan
(Mark 1:13; Matthew 4:8). This should encouraged us, as the grace to conquer such temptations is made available to all by “the Lord thy healer”, the “Counsellor”, “The Prince of Peace” (Exodus 15:26; Isaiah 9:6).
St. Mechtilde also recommends (as does St. Francis de Sales) that we should bear patiently with our imperfections:
We should not struggle to free ourselves from sin. This will only make matters worse. Instead, we should humble ourselves, have compassion for our lower nature (as God most certainly does) and place all our confidence in God. Here are the exact words from ‘The Love of the Sacred Heart’ based on St. Mechtilde’s recommendation “which ought to be received gratefully by scrupulous souls”: “Man should be careful not to wash his stains with too much eagerness- that is, without considering the divine goodness; for by effacing them too eagerly he might easily injure rather than heal, his soul.”
p. I
#scrupulosity
The Saints on scrupulosity
“We who run in the way of Love must never torment ourselves about anything. If I did not suffer minute by minute, it would be impossible for me to be patient; but I see only the present moment, I forget the past, and take good care not to anticipate the future. If we grow disheartened, if sometimes we despair, it is because we have been dwelling on the past or the future.”
- st. Therese Lisieux
•“The scrupulous, who have doubts about everything, must follow another rule: they must obey their confessor. When he tells them to conquer their doubts, and to act against scruples, they should obey with exactness; otherwise they will render themselves unable and unfit to perform any spiritual exercise.”
•“Obedience to a confessor is the most acceptable offering which we can make to God, and the most secure way of doing the divine will.”
- st. Alphonsus Liguori
“One of the most admirable effects of Holy Communion is to preserve the soul from sin, and to help those who fall through weakness to rise again. It is much more profitable, then, to approach this divine Sacrament with love, respect, and confidence, than to remain away through an excess of fear and scrupulosity.”
-st. Ignatius of Loyola
#scrupulosity
“We who run in the way of Love must never torment ourselves about anything. If I did not suffer minute by minute, it would be impossible for me to be patient; but I see only the present moment, I forget the past, and take good care not to anticipate the future. If we grow disheartened, if sometimes we despair, it is because we have been dwelling on the past or the future.”
- st. Therese Lisieux
•“The scrupulous, who have doubts about everything, must follow another rule: they must obey their confessor. When he tells them to conquer their doubts, and to act against scruples, they should obey with exactness; otherwise they will render themselves unable and unfit to perform any spiritual exercise.”
•“Obedience to a confessor is the most acceptable offering which we can make to God, and the most secure way of doing the divine will.”
- st. Alphonsus Liguori
“One of the most admirable effects of Holy Communion is to preserve the soul from sin, and to help those who fall through weakness to rise again. It is much more profitable, then, to approach this divine Sacrament with love, respect, and confidence, than to remain away through an excess of fear and scrupulosity.”
-st. Ignatius of Loyola
#scrupulosity
SCRUPLES.pdf
49 KB
What are scruples?
Explanation and practical solutions
Scruples are a malady that affects the mind: or rather that particular activity of the mind which has to do with judging right and wrong, and which is called conscience.
The scrupulous person has a sick conscience. In other things his mind works perfectly, and even in some matters of conscience it may function correctly. But there is always at least one sphere of conscience in which it is completely unreliable. This unfortunate person is forever hesitating between right and wrong; he can never make up his mind about it. Sin
faces him everywhere. He cannot distinguish between temptation and consent. Every thought that flashes into his mind, every feeling that assails him seems to be a sin, He lives in a kind of straight-jacket that robs him of all freedom.
He is almost afraid to do anything.
#scrupulosity
Explanation and practical solutions
Scruples are a malady that affects the mind: or rather that particular activity of the mind which has to do with judging right and wrong, and which is called conscience.
The scrupulous person has a sick conscience. In other things his mind works perfectly, and even in some matters of conscience it may function correctly. But there is always at least one sphere of conscience in which it is completely unreliable. This unfortunate person is forever hesitating between right and wrong; he can never make up his mind about it. Sin
faces him everywhere. He cannot distinguish between temptation and consent. Every thought that flashes into his mind, every feeling that assails him seems to be a sin, He lives in a kind of straight-jacket that robs him of all freedom.
He is almost afraid to do anything.
#scrupulosity