The universal call to holiness is an important message of Vatican II: “All the faithful of Christ are invited to strive for the holiness and perfection of their own proper state.” St. Alphonsus de Liguori taught that to become holy, a person must give oneself to God without reserve.
The saint wrote, “There are some souls called by God to become saints, but because they come to Him with reserve and do not give Him their whole love, but retain some affection for earthly things, they do not become, and never will become, saints.”
A powerful means to achieve detachment from earthly things is to pray for divine love. The Francis de Sales said, “When a house is on fire see how all the furniture is thrown out of the window! So is it when the heart is possessed by true love of God, all that is not of God seems then to it of no moment at all.”
St. Alphonsus gave the following practical advice: “That a soul may give itself wholly to God, three principal means are to be employed: The first is to flee from all defects, even the least, and also to repress every little inordinate desire, such as curiosity in seeing or hearing, and to refrain from certain little pleasures of sense, from certain witty but useless remarks, and such like; secondly, among things which are good, always to choose that which is the best and the most pleasing to God; and thirdly, to receive from the hands of God, with peace of mind and thanksgiving, the things which are displeasing to our self-love.”
The saint also taught that the two great means for becoming holy are: desire and resolution.
St. Teresa said, “God does not bestow many favours, except on those who earnestly desire His love.” And again: “God leaves no good desire without its reward.” St. Alphonsus urged that if we do not find that we possess a great desire for divine love, let us at least ask for it urgently from Jesus Christ, for He will give it to us.
Many people desire perfection but never make use of the proper means to achieve it. St. Teresa often said: “The devil has no dread of irresolute souls.”
St. Alphonsus listed six practical resolutions for those who desire holiness. He wrote, “If then we truly desire to become saints, let us resolve first to avoid every venial sin, however slight; secondly, to detach ourselves from every affection to earthly things; thirdly, let us never omit our accustomed exercises of prayer and mortification, however great may be the weariness and disgust we feel in them; fourthly, let us meditate daily on the Passion of Jesus Christ, which inflames with divine love every heart that meditates upon it; fifthly, let us resign ourselves in peace to the will of God in all things that annoy us. Father Balthasar Alvarez used to say: ‘He that in troubles resigns himself to the Divine Will runs to God posthaste.’ And, sixthly, let us continually beg of God the gift of His holy love.”
St. John Henry Newman said, “It is the saying of holy men that, if we wish to be perfect, we have nothing more to do than to perform the ordinary duties of the day well… He, then, is perfect who does the work of the day perfectly, and we need not go beyond this to seek for perfection. You need not go out of the round of the day. I insist on this because I think it will simplify our views, and fix our exertions on a definite aim. If you ask me what you are to do in order to be perfect, I say, first – Do not lie in bed beyond the due time of rising; give your first thoughts to God; make a good visit to the Blessed Sacrament; say the Angelus devoutly; eat and drink to God’s glory; say the Rosary well; be recollected; keep out bad thoughts; make your evening meditation well; examine yourself daily; go to bed in good time, and you are already perfect.”
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在一天的本份中尋找完美
梵二的一個重要的訊息是成聖是普遍的呼叫：『所以人人都明白，任何身份與地位的所有基督徒。都被號召走向基督生活的飽 和點及愛德的成全境界』。聖亞豐索教導成聖說，一個人要全無保留地把自己交給天主。
這聖人寫道：『有些靈魂，天主呼叫他們成為聖人，但他們來到天主前時有一點的保留，並沒有把全部的愛交給祂，把一些些愛留給世上的事，他們並不能變成，和永不能變成聖人。』
一個能達到棄絕世上事物的最有力方法是祈求神聖的愛。聖方濟各、沙雷氐說：『當一間屋發生火警時，所有的傢俱都被投出窗外！所以，同樣當一顆心由天主真愛所擁有時，一切不是天主的，對它來說已是沒有存在的一刻。』
聖亞豐索給了以下的實用勸告：『一個靈魂把自己全部給與天主，要能具備三大最重要的方法：首先是要逃避一切的缺點，甚至是最小的，並壓制十分微少的過份的慾望，一如視覺和聽覺上的好奇，也要節制一些感官上的歡愉，一些風趣的但無用的評論等；其次，在好的事情上，時常選取那些最好的和天主最悅納的；第三從天主手中以平和的思潮和感恩去接納我們自私的愛所不喜歡的。』
這位聖人也教道說，成聖的兩件重要的方法是：願望和決心。聖女德蘭說：『天主不常施予恩惠，除了那些熱切渴求祂的愛的人。』再者：『沒有好的意願天主是—不予賞報的。』聖亞豐索敦促說，如果我們覺不到我們擁有對聖愛的大渴求，最低限度急急地向耶穌基督祈求，因為祂是會賜予我們的。
很多人都渴望能完美，但從不以適當的方法去追尋。聖女德蘭時常說：『魔鬼從不擔心沒有志向的靈魂。』
聖亞豐索為冀望成聖的，列出了六項實用的志向。他寫道：『如果我們真的冀望成聖，讓我們首先要躲避小罪，無論是怎樣的小；其次，棄絕一切世上事物；第三，永不忽略我們慣常的祈禱和克己，無論是怎樣疲倦味和厭倦。第四，讓我們每天默想耶穌基督的苦難，它會為每一默想的心燃點聖愛；第五，讓我們在所有讓我們煩惱的事情上都順從天主的旨意。阿爾瓦雷斯神父習慣說：「遇到困難順從於神聖旨意的人會迅速奔向天主。」 第六，讓我們繼續懇求天主，祂聖愛的恩寵。』
聖約翰亨利紐曼說：『這是一些聖者們的說法，如果我們要成完美，我們沒有什麼更要做的，只要把每天普通的責任做到最好…他，便是完美了如果他做好他每天的工作，我們也無需再超越這些去找完美。一天的工作外你不需要再找工作。我強調這點因為我想它會簡化我們的觀點，向著一個肯定的目標，固定我們的努力。如果你問我，你要做什麼才能達至完美，我說，首先要做—到起床的時候，不要賴在床上；把你第一個思想給予天主，好好的拜聖體；每天熱心誦念三鐘經；為天主的光榮而吃喝；好好地誦念玫瑰經；經常收心；遠離壞的思想；做好你的傍晚默想；每天作自身的省察；適當的時間上床休息，你己經是完美的了。』
