"Be sure that wherever our lot is cast we may and must aim at the perfect life."

Written over 400 years ago, Introduction to the Devout Life is still one of the most popular books for those pursuing holiness. St. Francis de Sales explains how to turn that desire for sanctity into resolutions that yield grace-filled results.

Themes include:

Pursuing a devout life whole-heartedly
Incorporating prayer and sacraments into a busy schedule
Growing in virtue
Battling wisely against temptation
Making spiritual progress through daily, monthly, and yearly exercises

Whether you are just beginning your spiritual journey or are more advanced in the spiritual life, you'll be able to apply this timeless wisdom immediately. Let St. Francis de Sales illumine the path to holiness and strengthen your desire to walk that road with the Lord.

St. Francis de Sales (1567–1622) was the Bishop of Geneva and a renowned spiritual director. Preaching during the Counter-Reformation, he is estimated to have converted 70,000 Calvinists in his lifetime. He was a fervent proponent of the universal call to holiness and spent much of his time guiding lay people on the road to sanctity. Declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Pius IX in 1877, St. Francis is still helping to form saints through his many writings, of which Introduction to the Devout Life is the most famous.

—description from the publisher

Introduction to the Devout Life full text: https://watch.formed.org/introduction-to-the-devout-life-by-st-francis-de-sales

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Theme music: "2 Part Invention", composed by Mark Christopher Brandt, performed by Thomas Mirus. ©️2019 Heart of the Lion Publishing Co./BMI. All rights reserved.

Timestamps

00:38 Preface

12:26 Part 1 – Counsels and Exercises for the Guidance of the Soul from Its First Desire After a Devout Life unto a Full Resolution of Pursuing the Same

12:38 True Devotion Explained

18:19 The Nature and Excellence of Devotion

23:17 Devotion is Suitable to Every Vocation and Profession

27:26 The Need of a Guide for those who would Enter Upon and Advance in the Devout Life

33:35 The First Step: Purifying the Soul

38:22 The First Purification: From Mortal Sin

40:56 The Second Purification: From All Sinful Affections

44:17 How to Affect This Second Purification

46:56 First Meditation, On Creation

53:26 Second Meditation, On the End for Which We Were Created

59:26 Third Meditation, On the Gifts of God

1:05:20 Fourth Meditation, On Sin

1:11:39 Fifth Meditation, On Death

1:19:00 Sixth Meditation, On Judgment

1:24:59 Seventh Meditation, On Hell

1:29:02 Eighth Meditation, On Paradise

1:34:05 Ninth Meditation, On the Choice Open to You Between Heaven and Hell

1:39:26 Tenth Meditation, On How the Soul Chooses the Devout Life

1:46:40How to Make a General Confession

1:49:23 A Sincere Protest Made with the Object of Confirming the Soul's Resolution to Serve God as a Cojnclusion to its Acts of Penitence

1:53:58 Conclusion of This First Purification

1:55:53 The Necessity of Purging Away All Tendency to Venial Sins

2:00:35 It Is Necessary to Put Away All Inclination for Useless and Dangerous Things

2:03:14 All Evil Inclinations Must Be Purged Away

02:05:29 Part 2 – Counsels as to Uplifting the Soul to God in Prayer and the Use of the Sacraments

2:05:38 The Necessity of Prayer

2:11:30 A Short Method of Meditation in the Presence of God: The First Point of Preparation

2:17:05 Invocation: The Second Point of Preparation

2:18:38 Representing the Mystery to Be Meditated to Your Imagination: The Third Point of Preparation

2:20:49 Considerations: The Second Part of Meditation

2:22:16 Affections and Resolutions: The Third Part of Meditation

2:24:01 The Conclusion and Spiritual Bouquet

2:25:44 Some Useful Hints on Meditation

2:30:40 Concerning Dryness in Meditation

2:33:15 Morning Prayer

2:36:05 Evening Prayer and Examination of Conscience

2:38:03 Spiritual Refreshment

2:42:42 Aspirations, Brief Prayer, and Holy Thoughts

2:53:34 Holy Communion, and How to Receive It

2:58:17 The Other Public Offices of the Church

3:00:13 How the Saints Are United to Us

3:02:58 How to Hear and Read God's Word

3:05:05 How to Receive Inspirations

3:10:31 Confession

3:17:35 Frequent Communion

3:23:09 How to Communicate

03:28:01 Part 3 – Counsels Concerning the Practice of Virtue

03:28:08 How to Select That Which We Should Chiefly Practice

03:36:56 The Same Subject Continued

03:43:55 Patience

03:53:08 Greater Humility

03:59:02 Interior Humility

04:08:28 Humility Makes Us Rejoice in Our Own Abjection

04:15:11 How to Combine Due Care for a Good Reputation with Humility

04:22:40 Gentleness Towards Others and Remedies Against Anger

04:31:05 Gentleness Towards Ourselves

04:35:35 We Must Attend to the Business of Life Carefully, but Without Eagerness or Over-Anxiety

04:40:18 Obedience

04:45:43 Purity

04:49:05 How to Maintain Purity

04:52:48 Poverty of Spirit amid Riches

04:58:28 How to Exercise Real Poverty although Actually Rich

05:06:08 How to Possess a Rich Spirit amid Real Poverty

05:09:50 Friendship: Evil and Frivolous Friendship

05:13:31 Frivolous Attachments

05:18:48 Real Friendship

05:24:40 The Difference between True and False Friendship

05:28:57 Remedies against Evil Friendships

05:35:47 Further Advice concerning Intimacies

05:40:22 The Practice of Bodily Mortification

05:50:59 Society and Solitude

05:56:24 Modesty in Dress

06:00:20 Conversation: First, How to Speak of God

06:02:52 Unseemly Words and the Respect Due to Others

06:07:18 Hasty Judgments

06:17:28 Slander

06:28:27 Further Counsels as to Conversation

06:32:24 Amusements and Recreations: What Are Allowable

06:34:56 Forbidden Amusements

06:36:53 Balls and Other Lawful but Dangerous Amusements

06:41:59 When to Use Such Amusements Rightly

06:43:49 We Must Be Faithful in Things Great and Small

06:49:23 - A Well-Balanced, Reasonable Mind

06:53:33 - Wishes

06:58:15 - Counsels to Married People

07:11:47 - The Sanctity of the Marriage Bed

07:13:15 - Counsels to Widows

07:22:31 - One Word to Maidens

07:23:51 Part 4 – Counsels Concerning Some Ordinary Temptations

07:23:58 - We Must Not Trifle with the Words of Worldly Wisdom

07:29:29 - The Need of Good Courage

07:32:09 - Temptations and the Difference Between Experiencing Them and Consenting to Them

07:37:19 - Two Striking Illustrations of the Same

07:40:56 - Encouragement for the Tempted Soul

07:43:26 - When Temptation and Pleasure are Sin

07:47:23 - Remedies for Great Occasions

07:50:15 - How to Resist Minor Temptations

07:52:26 - How to Remedy Minor Temptations

07:55:02 - How to Strengthen the Heart Against Temptation

07:57:40 - Anxiety of Mind

08:03:27 - Sadness and Sorrow

08:08:40 - Spiritual and Sensible Consolations and How to Receive Them

08:23:23 - Dryness and Spiritual Barrenness

08:33:49 - An Illustration

08:41:07 Part 5 - Counsels and Practices for Renewing and Confirming the Soul in Devotion

08:41:15 - It Is Well Yearly to Renew Good Resolutions by Means of the Following Exercises

08:43:58 - Meditation on the Benefit Conferred on Us by God in Calling Us to His Service

08:48:55 - Examination of the Soul as to Its Progress in the Devout Life

08:52 :13 - Examination of the Soul's Condition as Regards God

08:56:52 - Examination of Your Condition as Regards Yourself

08:59:16 - Examination of the Soul's Condition as Regards Our Neighbor

09:00:43 - Examination as to the Affectations of the Soul

09:03:10 - The Affections to Be Excited After Such Examination

09:04:36 - Reflections Suitable to the Renewal of Good Resolutions

09:05:23 - First Consideration, On the Worth of Souls

09:08:13 - Second Consideration, On the Excellence of Virtue

09:10:01 - The Example of the Saints

09:11:48 - The Love That Jesus Christ Bears to Us

09:15:05 - The Eternal Love of God for Us

09:16:36 - General Affections That Should Result from These Considerations and Conclusion of the Exercise

09:19:16 - The Impressions That Should Remain After This Exercise

09:20:53 - An Answer to Two Objections That May Be Made to This Book

09:23:45 - Three Important and Final Counsels

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