In this last section on sola fide, I would like to look at the book 3 Ways of the Interior Life: The Principle of the Interior Life, by Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange as it was one of the most impactful books on my conversion process to the Catholic Church. While this book is fantastic for many reasons, here are 2 main reasons why I think it was so impactful on my journey into the Catholic Church.
First, it summarizes what I have come to see as the key difference in the view of Catholics and the original Reformers in their dispute over justification: this is whether the formal cause of justification is imputed righteousness or infused righteousness. In this book, Garrigou-Lagrange argues succinctly from logic and scripture as to why justification is seen, and always has been seen, as infused righteousness in the Catholic tradition and why the original Reformer’s positions against the Catholic Church’s view of salvation should be rejected.
Second, this book was so impactful on my conversion because it showed me a most important part of the Christian’s life that has sadly been lost to most Protestant traditions: the call to grow in holiness through the rich spiritual traditions of the Church. This book showed me that because we are made righteous through the infusion of sanctifying grace, we are called to grow in this grace throughout our lives through the ascetical practices (e.g. prayer, fasting, virtue formation, and sacraments), cooperating with the grace of God who is drawing us into fuller union with Himself. The best part is this book showed me there is a long tradition in the Church explaining the science behind this process of the interior life.
Once I learned about this process of the spiritual/interior life, everything changed for me as I began to seek out methods to incorporate spiritual practices into my life. There is simply nothing that has changed my spiritual life as dramatically as this book.
1. The interior life is necessary for all Christians, whether they realize it or not.
Father Garrigou-Lagrange begins his book by explaining how the interior life of a Christian, that is to say the means a Christian uses to grow in virtue, holiness, and union with God, is absolutely necessary for all Christians.
THE interior life is for all the one thing necessary. It ought to be constantly developing in our souls; more so than what we call our intellectual life, more so than our scientific, artistic or literary life. The interior life is lived in the depths of the soul; it is the life of the whole man, not merely of one or other of his faculties. And our intellectual life would gain immeasurably by appreciating this; it would receive an inestimable advantage if, instead of attempting to supplant the spiritual life, it recognized its necessity and importance, and welcomed its beneficial influence — the influence of the theological virtues and the gifts of the Holy Ghost. How deeply important our subject is may be seen in the very words we have used: Intellectuality and Spirituality. And it is important to us not only as individuals, but also in our social relations, for it is evident that we can exert no real or profound influence upon our fellow-men unless we live a truly interior life ourselves. 1
— Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange
Father Garrigou-Lagrange will later explain in depth what this “principle” of this interior life is. It is this principle that we will explore in this post to summarize and close out our discussion of the doctrine of justification. This will bring us full circle and show why this isn’t some highfalutin discussion of obscure theological ideas; rather this principle not only explains why the original Reformer’s view of justification was incorrect, it also explains what is one of the most important aspects of the Christian life that was rejected by the Reformers leading to the largely neglected practices of the interior life in Protestant churches today.
2. Lutherans believe we are declared righteous and our sins are only covered with Christs righteousness, not that we are made righteous and cleansed completely of our sins in justification.
Before spelling out exactly what this principle of the interior life is, Fr. Garrigou-Lagrange will first contrast what is the key error of Luther and the original reformers in their split with the Church over the doctrine of justification.
It is all the more important to recall the necessity and the true nature of the interior life, because the true conception of it, as given to us in the Gospel, in the Epistles of St. Paul and in the whole of Tradition, has been partially obscured by many false ideas. In particular it is evident that the notion of the interior life is radically corrupted in the Lutheran theory of justification or conversion. According to this theory the mortal sins of the convert are not positively blotted out by the infusion of the new life of grace and charity; they are simply covered over, veiled by faith in the Redeemer, and they cease to be imputed to the person who has committed them. There is no intrinsic justification, no interior renewal of the soul; a man is reputed just merely by the extrinsic imputation of the justice of Christ. According to this view, in order to be just in the eyes of God it is not necessary to possess that infused charity by which we love God supernaturally and our fellowmen for God’s sake. Actually, according to this conception, however firmly the just man may believe in Christ the Redeemer, he remains in his sin, in his corruption or spiritual death. 2
— Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange
As we have seen in our previous posts, Luther was seemingly over-scrupulous and unable to see how he could ever live up to the expectations of God. As such, he made some connections with verses in the Bible that gave him the idea of salvation by faith alone through the imputed righteousness of Christ to cover what he saw as his ever sinful nature. Luther thought the Christian remained a sinner ontologically before God after justification, they just received the righteousness of Jesus to cover thier sins. Since it was just a covering and the person’s sinful nature always remained, one can already begin to see how this would push ascetical practices, which are not easy, to the side and to be seen as optional. It isn’t really a stretch, then, to see how people just stopped doing them altogether. Why spend days fasting and praying when we can simply get into heaven solely by faith alone?
Next, Garrigou-Lagrange will contrast this incorrect view of imputed righteousness with the Catholic and biblical idea of infuse righteousness.
3.We are transformed in conversion with infused sanctifying grace, not just declared righteous and imputed Christ’s righteousness
Against the Reformer’s view of imputed righteousness, Fr. Garrigou-Lagrange now will show from scripture that we are made righteous interiorly in justification by the infusion of grace and love (charity) into our souls.
If it were true that by conversion sins were only veiled, and not blotted out, it would follow that a man is at once both just and ungodly, both justified, and yet still in the state of sin. God would love the sinner as His friend, despite the corruption of his soul, which He is apparently incapable of healing. The Saviour would not have taken away the sins of the world if He had not delivered the just man from the servitude of sin. Again, for the Christian these truths are elementary; the profound understanding of them, the continual and quasi-experimental living of them, is what we call the contemplation of the saints. The blotting out and remission of sins thus described by the Scriptures can be effected only by the infusion of sanctifying grace and charity — which is the supernatural love of God and of men for God’s sake. Ezechiel, speaking in the name of God, tells us that this is so:
‘I will pour upon you clean water, and you shall be cleansed from all your filthiness; and I will cleanse you from all your idols. And I will give you a new heart, and put a new spirit within you; and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh and will give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit in the midst of you; and I will cause you to walk in my commandments.’ [Ez 36:25]
This pure water which regenerates is the water of grace, of which it is said in the Gospel of St. John:
‘Of his fulness we have all received; and grace for grace.’ ‘By (our Lord Jesus Christ) we have received grace,’ [John 1:10]
we read in the Epistle to the Romans:
‘the charity of God is poured forth in our hearts, by the Holy Ghost who is given to us’ [Romans 5:5]; and in the Epistle to the Ephesians:
‘To every one of us is given grace, according to the measure of the giving of Christ.’ [Eph. 4:7]
If it were otherwise, God’s uncreated love for the man whom He converts would be merely an idle affection, and not an effective and operative love. But God’s uncreated love for us, as St. Thomas shows, is a love which, far from presupposing in us any lovableness, actually produces that lovableness within us. His creative love gives and preserves in us our nature and our existence; but his life-giving love gives and preserves in us the life of grace which makes us lovable in His eyes, and lovable not merely as His servants but as His sons. (I, Q. xx, art. 2). 3
— Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange
4. Sanctifying grace is the principle of the interior life
Now we are ready for Fr. Garrigou-Lagrange to explain to us the principle of the interior life: sanctifying grace. This is the supernatural help that God gives us in justification to elevate our natural human nature, adopting us into God’s family and starting the process of us becoming holy so we can fully partake in the divine nature of God (2 Pet. 1:4).
Sanctifying grace, the principle of our interior life, makes us truly the children of God because it makes us partakers of His nature. We cannot be sons of God by nature, as the Word is; but we are truly sons of God by grace and by adoption. And whereas a man who adopts a child brings about no interior change in him, but simply declares him his heir, God, when He loves us as adoptive sons, transforms us inwardly, giving us a share in His own intimate divine life.
Hence we read in the Gospel of St. John:
‘(The Word) came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them he gave the power to be made the sons of God, to them that believe in his name. Who are born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.’ [John 1:11-13]
And our Lord Himself said to Nicodemus
‘Amen, amen, I say to thee, unless a man be born again of water and the Holy Ghost, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Wonder not that I said to thee: You must be born again.’ [John 3:5]
St. John himself, moreover, writes in his first Epistle
‘Whosoever is born of God committeth not sin; for God’s seed abideth in him. And he cannot sin because he is born of God.’ [1 John 3:9]
In other words, the seed of God, which is grace — accompanied by charity, or the love of God — cannot exist together with mortal sin which turns a man away from God; and, though it can exist together with venial sin, of which St. John had spoken earlier, yet grace is not the source of venial sins; on the contrary, it makes them gradually disappear.
Still clearer, if possible, is the language of St. Peter, who writes :
By (Christ) he hath given us most great and precious promises, that by these you may be made partakers of the divine nature’; [2 Pet. 1:4]
and St. James thus expresses the same idea:
‘Every best gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no change nor shadow of alteration. For of his own will hath he begotten us by the word of truth, that we might be some beginning of his creature.’ [James 1:17]
Truly sanctifying grace is a real and formal participation of the divine nature, for it is the principle of operations which are specifically divine. When in heaven it has reached its full development, and can no longer be lost, it will be the source of operations which will have absolutely the same formal object as the eternal and uncreated operations of God’s own inner life; it will make us able to see Him immediately as He sees Himself, and to love Him as He loves Himself:
‘Dearly beloved,’
says St. John,
‘we are now the sons of God; and it hath not yet appeared what we shall be. We know that when it shall appear we shall be like to him, for we shall see him as he is.’ [1 John 3:2]
This is what shows us, better than anything else, in what the true nature of sanctifying grace, the true nature of our interior life, consists. We cannot emphasize it too much. It is one of the most consoling truths of our faith; it is one of those vital truths which serve best to encourage us in the midst of the trials of our life on earth. 4
— Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange
5. We will see God face to face, so we need to be perfected [1 John 3:2]
God makes us righteous and calls us to grow in holiness because we will see him face to face someday.
1 John 3:2 (ESV)
2 Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.
We are called to be partakers of his divine nature and need to be perfect to be in his presence.
Revelation 21:27 (ESV)
27 But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
Matthew 5:48 (ESV)
48 You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Along the same lines, Fr. Garrigou-Lagrange shows us that this life of grace is supernatural; it is making us partake in God’s divinity.
The future life of which the philosophers speak is a natural life, similar almost to the life of the angels; whereas eternal life, of which the Gospel speaks, is essentially supernatural, as much for the angels as for us. It is not merely superhuman, it is super angelic, truly divine. It consists in seeing God immediately as He sees Himself, and in loving Him as He loves Himself. This is the reason why our Lord can say to you: ‘ Be ye perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect ‘; because you have received a participation in His inner life. 5
— Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange
6. Sanctifying grace is the seed of glory
Though we are cleansed in baptism and justification, we still grow in this holiness and righteousness over our lives. The grace we recieve in baptism, then, is a seed that blossoms over time as we grow in holiness.
The little child, likewise, could never become a man if it had not a rational soul, if reason were not already latent within it. In the same way, a Christian on earth could never become one of the blessed in heaven unless he had already received the divine life in Baptism.
And just as it is impossible to know the nature of the germ enclosed within the acorn unless we study it in its perfect state in the oak tree, so we cannot know the life of grace unless we consider it in its ultimate development, in that glory which is the consummation of grace. ‘ Grace, ‘ says the whole of Tradition, ‘ is the seed of glory. ‘ 6
— Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange
7. We are all called to the spiritual life
We are, then, called to union with God. This is the purpose of life! This is only possible with His grace which he is giving us in various forms through out our life. We will not be able to receive the beatific vision until we are perfected. While we are called to strive for this now, we will be purified with any attachments to sin we have remaining in the purifying fires after death (1 Corinthians 3:15). The Christian life should be to purify ourselves now, for tradition teaches us it is much harder in the afterlife, let alone you run the risk of ruining your relationship with God through mortal sin and ending up in hell.
We can see this call to the interior life throughout the teaching of scripture and tradition. Here the Catechism states:
CCC 2013 “All Christians in any state or walk of life are called to the fullness of Christian life and to the perfection of charity.”65 All are called to holiness: “Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”66 (915; 2545; 825)
In order to reach this perfection the faithful should use the strength dealt out to them by Christ’s gift, so that … doing the will of the Father in everything, they may wholeheartedly devote themselves to the glory of God and to the service of their neighbor. Thus the holiness of the People of God will grow in fruitful abundance, as is clearly shown in the history of the Church through the lives of so many saints.67 7
We can also see this in many places in the writings of St. Paul, here being one:
Romans 12:1-2 (ESV)
A Living Sacrifice12 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship] 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
and also from Lumen Gentium, a document from the Second Vatican Council:
Thus it is evident to everyone, that all the faithful of Christ of whatever rank or status, are called to the fullness of the Christian life and to the perfection of charity; by this holiness as such a more human manner of living is promoted in this earthly society. In order that the faithful may reach this perfection, they must use their strength accordingly as they have received it, as a gift from Christ. They must follow in His footsteps and conform themselves to His image seeking the will of the Father in all things. They must devote themselves with all their being to the glory of God and the service of their neighbor. In this way, the holiness of the People of God will grow into an abundant harvest of good, as is admirably shown by the life of so many saints in Church history. 8
8. The Means of the Spiritual Life
How are we to live this spiritual life? Through the ascetical practices. Through prayer, fasting, almsgiving (Matt. 6), growing in virtue, and partaking in the sacraments.
Of particular importance is prayer. The Catechism of the Catholic Church eve goes as far to say, “Prayer and Christian life are inseparable” (CCC 2745)
Here’s what St. Bonaventure said regarding prayer:
[B]y prayer the soul is cleansed from sin, replenished with charity, confirmed in faith, strengthened, and refreshed in spirit. Prayer establishes the inward man, brings peace to the heart, knows the truth, conquers temptations, expels sorrow, renews the senses, stirs up languishing virtue, puts to flight tepidity, and scours the rust of vices. In prayer, the quick sparkles of celestial desires are incessantly sent forth, from the burning coals of divine love. The privileges of prayer are rare, the prerogatives admirable. Prayer unlocks the gates of heaven, manifests divine secrets, and always finds free access to the ears of God. 9
We are also called to union with God through the cross. We do this through spiritual battle as shown here in the Catholic Catechism:
CCC 2014 Spiritual progress tends toward ever more intimate union with Christ. This union is called “mystical” because it participates in the mystery of Christ through the sacraments—“the holy mysteries”—and, in him, in the mystery of the Holy Trinity. God calls us all to this intimate union with him, even if the special graces or extraordinary signs of this mystical life are granted only to some for the sake of manifesting the gratuitous gift given to all. (774)
CCC 2015 The way of perfection passes by way of the Cross. There is no holiness without renunciation and spiritual battle.68 Spiritual progress entails the ascesis and mortification that gradually lead to living in the peace and joy of the Beatitudes: (407; 2725; 1438)
He who climbs never stops going from beginning to beginning, through beginnings that have no end. He never stops desiring what he already knows.69 10
9. Three ways (stages) of the spiritual life
The most commonly described progression of the spiritual life in tradition is a three fold path: 1) the purgative stage, 2) the Illuminative stage, and 3) the unitive stage. They are all part of a process of helping a person to purge themselves of sin and to grow in holiness and virtue, finally resting in and desiring only God.
The progressive, multi-stage development of the spiritual life can be seen in many of the teachings of the Doctors of the Church. They are particularly evident in Saints Teresa of Avila, John of the Cross, Bernard of Clairvaux, Thomas Aquinas, and Catherine of Sienna. St. Thomas Aquinas provides a profound and simple summary of the division of the three stages and the emphasis of the pilgrim in each:
The first duty which is incumbent on man is to give up sin and resist concupiscence, which are opposed to charity; this belongs to beginners, in whose hearts charity is to be nursed and cherished lest it be corrupted. The second duty of man is to apply his energies chiefly to advance in virtue; this belongs to those who are making progress and who are principally concerned that charity may be increased and strengthened in them. The third endeavor and pursuit of man should be to rest in God and enjoy Him; and this belongs to the perfect who desire to be dissolved and to be with Christ.25
Though these and other saints did not always use the terms we commonly use to describe these phases today, they clearly taught using analogies that reflect commonly experienced phases of maturity that serious Christians work through in their progress to God. These phases are predominantly classified as “purgative,” “illuminative,” and “unitive”—words that focus on what happens at each stage. Because of their obscurity, however, we often employ another set of terms that signify the spiritual maturity of a person at each phase: “childhood,” “adolescence,” and “adulthood” (we will use these terms interchangeably):
Phase 1: Purgative Way (Childhood)
Phase 2: Illuminative Way (Adolescence)
Phase 3: Unitive Way (Adulthood) 11— Dan Burke
These three stages of the interior life are often compared to the life-cycle of human beings.
The three periods of the spiritual life.
If such is the life of grace, if such is the spiritual organism of the infused virtues and the gifts, it is not surprising to find that the development of the interior life has often been compared to the three periods or stages of physical life: childhood, youth, and manhood. St. Thomas himself has indicated this analogy: and it is an analogy which is worth pursuing, particular attention being paid to the transition from one period to the other. 12
— Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange
Here are Fr. Garrigou-Lagrange’s synopsis of each stage.
9.1 Purgative
After conversion there ought to be a serious beginning of the purgative life, in which beginners love God by avoiding mortal sin and deliberate venial sin, through exterior and interior mortification and through prayer. But in actual fact this purgative life is found under two very different forms: in some, admittedly very few, this life is intense, generous; it is the narrow way of perfect self-denial described by the saints. In many others the purgative life appears in an attenuated form, varying from good souls who are a little weak down to those tepid and retarded souls who from time to time fall into mortal sin. The same remark will have to be made for the other two ways, each of which likewise is found in an attenuated and in an intense form. 13
— Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange
9.2 Illuminative
The transition to the illuminative life follows upon certain sensible consolations which generally reward the courageous effort of mortification. As the soul lingers in the enjoyment of these consolations, God withdraws them, and then the soul finds itself in that more or less prolonged aridity of the senses which is known as the passive purgation of the senses. This purgation persists unceasingly in generous souls and leads them, by way of initial infused contemplation, to the full illuminative life. In other souls that are less generous, souls that shun the cross, the purgation is often interrupted; and these souls will enjoy only an attenuated form of the illuminative life, and will receive the gift of infused contemplation only at long intervals. [128] Thus the passive night of the senses is seen to be a second conversion, more or less perfect.
The illuminative life brings with it the obscure infused contemplation of the mysteries of faith, a contemplation which had already been initiated in the passive night of the senses. It appears under two normal forms. the one definitely contemplative, as in the many saints of the Carmel; the other active, as in a St. Vincent de Paul, a contemplation which, by the light of the gifts of wisdom and counsel, constantly sees in the poor and abandoned the suffering members of Christ. Sometimes this full illuminative life involves, not only the infused contemplation of mysteries, but also certain extraordinary graces (visions, revelations, interior speech), such as those described by St. Teresa in her own life. 14
— Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange
9.3 Unitive
The transition to the unitive life follows upon more abundant spiritual lights, or an easier and more fruitful apostolate, these being, as it were, the reward of the proficient’s generosity. But in them the proficient is apt to take some complacency, through some remnant of spiritual pride which he still retains. Accordingly, if God wills to lead the proficient into the perfect unitive life, He causes him to pass through the night of the spirit, a painful purgation of the higher part of the soul. If this is endured supernaturally it continues almost without interruption until it leads the soul to the perfect unitive life. If, on the other hand, the proficient fails in generosity, the unitive life will be correspondingly attenuated. This painful purgation is the third conversion in the life of the servants of God.
The perfect unitive life brings with it the infused contemplation of the mysteries of faith and a passive union which is almost continuous. Like the preceding, this life appears under two forms: the one exclusively contemplative, as in a St. Bruno or a St. John of the Cross; the other apostolic, as in a St. Dominic, a St. Francis, a St. Thomas, or a St. Bonaventure. Sometimes the perfect unitive life involves, not only infused contemplation and almost continuous union with God, but also extraordinary graces, such as the vision of the Blessed Trinity received by St. Teresa and described by her in the VIIth Mansion. In this perfect unitive life, whether accompanied by extraordinary favors or not, there are evidently many degrees, ranging from the lowest to the highest among the saints, to the Apostles, to St. Joseph and our Lady. 15
— Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange
10. God calls us to the interior life to prepare us for union with Him.
Fr. Garrigou-Lagrange stated in the opening line of his book that “the interior life is for all the one thing necessary”. This is because it is the path to union with God. The practices, trials, and tribulations of the interior life are the preparation our soul needs to partake in God’s divine nature and be united with Him in eternity in the beatific vision.
THOSE who follow the way of generosity, self-denial, and self-sacrifice which the saints have taught, will come at length to know and taste the joys of God’s complete dominion within us.
Truly spiritual delights have their source in the cross, in the spirit of sacrifice which causes disordered inclinations to die in us and gives the first place to the love of God and the love of souls in God, which installs in the throne of our souls that charity which is the source of peace, the tranquility of order. These deep joys cannot enter into the soul until the senses and the spirit have been purged and refined by tribulations and sufferings which detach us from things created. As we read in the Acts of the Apostles: ‘ Through many tribulations we must enter into the kingdom of God. ‘ [161]
…
These graces are a preparation for that other awakening of the supreme moment of death, when the soul issuing forth from the body will see itself immediately as a spiritual substance, as the angels see themselves. And the last awakening of all will be in the moment of entrance into glory, when the soul, separated from the body, sees God face to face, and sees itself in God. Happy the saints who go straight to heaven. While those about them are lamenting their departure, they have reached the end of their journey in the clearness of the vision that gives them joy. As the Gospel says, they have entered into the joy of their Lord. 16
— Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange
11. Conclusion
There is so much that can be said about the spiritual life. For the Christian on the way to union with God, its study is of the utmost importance. As this is a series on why the fullness of the truth is only found in the Catholic Church, I will leave a further exploration for spiritual life for future endeavors.
I hope it is evident why the errors of the original Reformer’s views of justification via imputed righteousness are so disastrous. The denial of sanctifying grace has lead to a slow erosion of the dependence on God to do good and grow in holiness. It is strange, because that was in no way what Luther or the Reformers would have intended. They saw themselves as so sinful they wanted to leave everything up to God in the process of salvation. But this well-intentioned error lead to disastrous consequences. It removed man’s obligation to cooperate fully in this process of growing closer to God. If we are not called to become holy as a condition of being in God’s family, it is too easy to just disregard the interior life all together and see it as a form of works righteousness. It is anything but, though. As Augustine stated, we can only proceed on this path of the interior life, grow in holiness, or do truly good works with God’s grace. As such:
“If, then, your good merits are God’s gifts, God does not crown your merits as your merits, but as His own gifts.” (Augustine, On Grace and Free Will 6. 15.)
Here are a few more resources that I highly recommend for wading into the deep waters of the interior life.
Suggested Reading
Garrigou-Lagrange 3 Ways of the Interior Life
Dan Burke Into the Deep: Finding Peace Through Prayer
Dan Burke Navigating the Interior Life: Spiritual Direction and the Journey to God
Eziekel 36:25
I will pour upon you clean water, and you shall be cleansed from all your filthiness; and I will cleanse you from all your idols. And I will give you a new heart, and put a new spirit within you; and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh and will give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit in the midst of you; and I will cause you to walk in my commandments.
- From Garrigou- Lagrange, Reginald. 3 Ways of the Interior Life. THE PRINCIPLE OF THE INTERIOR LIFE. I apologize that there aren’t page numbers. I have only been able to find this work online and it is without page numbers: https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/library/three-ways-of-the-spiritual-life-12556
- Ibid.
- Ibid.
- Ibid.
- Ibid.
- Ibid.
- Catechism of the Catholic Church
- Catholic Church. (2011). Dogmatic Constitution on the Church: Lumen Gentium. In Vatican II Documents. Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana.
- Burke, Dan. Into the Deep: Finding Peace Through Prayer . Wellspring. Kindle Edition. loc. 41
- Catechism of the Catholic Church
- Burke, Dan . Navigating the Interior Life: Spiritual Direction and the Journey to God . Sophia Institute Press. Kindle Edition. loc. 1214
- Garrigou- Lagrange, Reginald. 3 Ways of the Interior Life. THE PRINCIPLE OF THE INTERIOR LIFE.
- Ibid.
- Ibid.
- Ibid.
- Ibid.
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