Pope Leo's Criteria for Spiritual Discernment
A couple of weeks ago, in a speech to the leaders of the NeoCatechumenal Way, Pope Leo warns against certain forms of missionary and ministry activity. And in this warning, he present a helpful criteria for spiritual discernment.
The pope “reminds everyone that ‘where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.’” Then he said (emphasis mine):
“Therefore, the proclamation of the Gospel, catechesis, and various forms of pastoral action *must always* be free from forms of coercion, rigidity, and moralism, so ensuring that they do not arouse guilt and fear instead of interior liberation” (AI translation from the Italian).
Here we have a spiritual principle to help us discern if a message is from the Lord or if it’s spiritual coercion, if it’s something for me to hang on to and discern or something I can immediately let go of. We can ask ourselves:
Does the homily I’m sitting through, the discussion from the priest in Confession, the YouTube video from my favorite apologist, the online monologue from the celebrity exorcist, or the faith lecture from a family member engender more interior freedom, or does it cause shame or fear?
I think that taking a moment to identify those feelings in these moments is a really helpful tool to empower you to grow in your relationship with God and avoid spiritual abuse.
The Spirit always convicts of sin in order to lead us to Christ. We all despise moralism, but as Augustine said, conversion always begins with fear of God -- it is, after all, the beginning of Wisdom. The saints have always embraced the righteousness of God's judgement and our guilt, and the need for continual penance. Such awareness leads us more deeply to the forgiveness and presence of Christ, especially in the sacraments.
Christ did not die because we are good enough but have psychological doubts. Christ took on the sins of the world, even ours. "This is a saying worthy of full acceptance: Christ came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the greatest." The more we receive the wondrous grace of God given to us in Jesus Christ, the more we receive the reality of the depths of our sin and unworthiness.
Paul, great article. Full of your wisdom, clarity and “obedience” to the Pope.
That group always concerned me.