A SHORT INSTRUCTION FOR THE BETTER UNDERSTANDING AND PERFORMING OF MENTAL PRAYER. PRINTED AT PARIS By L. SEVESTRE, over against Grassin College.  
MDCXCI.   

TO THE ILLUSTRIOUS, AND VERTVOUSE DAME D. IGNATIA FITZJAMES RELIGIOUS OF THE HOLY ORDER OF S. BENEDICT AT PONTOISE.  
MADAM,  
The interest your Goodness allows me to take in the highest of your concerns; is the only apology I can make for taking the freedom to present you with this small treatise of mental prayer; which being to make on of the Chiefest duties of your Life in Religion, your present, and future happiness cannot but in a great measure depend upon it. Never can you attain the perfection you aspire to, in the happy state you have embraced, never can you be entirely united with God, nor solidly virtuous but by the frequent use of this heavenly exercise.  
You was presented last year with an abridgement of the highest maxims of Evangelical perfection, left unto you as a rich legacy by our saviour as he was leaving this world; but little will all these Treasures avail you, if they be not applied to your soul by solid reflections, strong resolutions, and affections which only are the fruits of mental prayer. We may say without fear of saying too much that never person had greater encouragement to perfection, never child more forcible domestic examples, of heroical virtues, than you, from your Royal Father. His gracious Majesty has been pleased to assure you by the tenderest expressions of his Royal mouth of the true satisfaction he received to see you make so happy à choice, esteeming you hapyer a thousand times under à Religious veil, than a diadem, so convinced he is, of the vanity of this world. But who can see without admiration such a Complex of the rarest virtues à Christian soul can be adorn'ed with? has ever King been endued with more piety, And Religion? were Ever such adversities carried with morer equality, resignation, and conformity to the will of god? with what constancy, and true Christian generosity has he born the vicissitudes of fortune? who could ever be so practically and throughly convinced as he his of the great difference there is betwixt temporal, and eternal? were not his soul so enabled by a lively faith, so strengthened by steadfast hope, and so united to god by true Charity as it his: by which means giving so rare examples of all Christian virtues, who can but be sensibly moved to devotion, and encouraged by them to the practice of virtue? and if we at so noble a sight feel our souls even to melt in devotion within us, what effect must it needs produce in you? but shall I omit hear to place before you that unparallelled, pious and accomplished Princess, our most gracious Queen, who with such great devotion honnored both your happy Ceremonies, of Clothing, and profession, with her Royal presence, signing, and ratifying, your sacred Nuptials with the vesture of immortality, I mean those holy veils which give a right to follow the Lamb in eternal glory. To this let us add the examples you have constantly before your eyes of a community composed of so many solidly virtuous and pious religious women that the like else where is not easy to be found; where greater regularity? greater union with god? more peace, and charity one with an other? where greater emulation in virtue? where more cheerfulness amidst all the mortifications of a religious life? where greater submission in inferiors? where more love charity and condescendence towards her inferiors, joint with a certain character of resolution and firmness so becoming a Superior as in your most worthy lady Abbess? whom we may say god has placed upon the candlestick that the ligth of her hidden virtues may shine to the whole house. Is it not this so sweet a harmony of so many truly virtuous and religious souls that has already wrought so powerfully upon your that as to make you fall so much in love with virtue, to make you so generously despise the world, as you have done, by so cordially imbraceing a religious life entering so couragously the narrow path of perfection whereby you give us equal edification, and comfort, by the hopes we have of your attaining an eminent degree in what you pursue with so much zeal.  
But dear Madam how wonderfully will they increase. And whatspeedy progress shall we see you make in solid virtue if these verities on which so exemplar virtue is grounded be once deeply imprinted in your soul by frequent meditation. Receive then honoured Dame this small translation which if you measure not by the bulk, but by the affection of the presenter and his most earnest desire to contribute in some measure to your advancement in perfection, I presume so much of your goodness, as to hope it may have a favourable reception at your hands, and serve for a true mark of the profound respect of.  
Most Religious and virtuous DAME, Your most humble and obedient servant and perfectly wellwisher C. A. S. I.   

A SHORT INSTRUCTION FOR THE BETTER UNDERSTANDING AND PERFORMING OF MENTAL PRAYER.  

FIRST SECTION. General Maxims concerning the better understanding of Mental Prayer.  
I. THE Gift of prayer is à present from heaven that depends more upon the grace of God than our labour or industry; the holy Ghost who is the source and fountain of all supernatural gifts, is the only master able to teach us this important lesson: it's he that calls us to this heavenly exercise and its from him we must expect all the success we can hope for in it. We may nevertheless dispose our selus to it by a great purity of heart, recollection mind, and a constant practice of virtue by which a soul is enabled and Rendered capable of conversing with God almighty, use and experience, contribute also very much to make easy this holy exercise and the conduct of a wise and prudent Director, is neeldfull to avoid all illusions of the devil, which are so ordinary and dangerous in this Matter.  
II. The end and aim of prayer Being to unite us with God by the application of our understanding and Will; the more and Perfecter it is, the more it vnits us with him and gives us more strength to practise what is Good, by communicating to us the Spirit of god.  
III. Amongst all the Kind's of prayer we undertake to make use of; that is the best and most to our purpose, to which we find ourselves interiorly drawn and inclined, which succeeds better with us, and out of which we reap more profit, what ever Kind of prayer it be.  
IU. All that defiles the heart, as sin, passion, disorder in our senses, or what may cause any trouble or anxiety, in our mind; as too much Business, scruples, unquietness of mind; hinders all success in prayer.  
V Go to prayer with à pure and upright intention, to seek nothing, but god and with an humble resignation to his will, to do and suffer in it what ever shall be his pleasure.  
VI At the Beginning of your meditation, before you apply your mind to the subject you have prepared; keep for à little time in suspense the faculties of your soul, and let your thoughts for a moment be at a stand, without producing any sort of act; this will contribut very much to allay the agitation of your senses, passions & imagination; to bring your mind into a quiet and even temper, and to settle you in a profound interior peace; which composition of mind is absolutely necessary to dispose a soul to receive the operations of the holy ghost.  
VII. This don, put yourself in the presence of god by an act of faith which will be fitting you renew now and then, even during the time of your prayer.  
VIII. Keep yourself in that posture of body, which may mark your respect to god, in who's presence you are, but which may also be as little subject as you can to any agitation or motion, for even the tranquillity of the Body contributs to a certainequality, and peace of mind.  
IX. Let your application be serious, but moderate; both in regard of the subject of your prayer, and of the acts you are to produce by the faculty of your understanding, and your will; not permitting yourself to be so carried with that application of mind, and attention of spirit which may prejudice the Breast, or distemper the head.  
X. Take as little notice as you can, and be not the least disquieted at the extravagant representations of a restless imagination, let only your application be to hinder your mind from following it, whilst it is thus running astray, and as soon as you remark it has been à Wand'ring out of its subject because of the connexion it has with the imaginative faculty; Bring it to it again with all sweêtness and evenness without so much as making reflection on the distraction you have had.  
XI. Be persuaded, and doubt not in the least, that althô you did no other thing all the time of your meditation but fight and Wrestle against these importune thoughts & distractions, never admitting them voluntary, nor consenting to them, but suffering all the pain, Disgust, Tediousness, they make you feel, without being cast down or dijected; your prayer has had very Good success, and may prove more benficiall, and meritorious then if you had prayed with more sweetness & fervour.  
XII. If you happen to find yourself, in that hardness of heart and stupidity of mind, that you neither can meditate nor produce any Good affections, suffer with patience that dryness and aridity, and be satisfied; with standing thus humbled in the sight of god. There is no disposition fit to mollify even the hardest of hearts and more capable of changing that inward insipidity into the tenderest sentiments of devotion.  
XIII. It is fitting you insist longer on that part of your subject, which moves and touches you most, stirring you up to a great tenderness and feeling of Devotion; but let your endeavours be always to employ your will more than your understanding; for oft entims we need not much discourse to discover what is our duty and to be persuaded of it; but we have very much need of strong purposes, and solid resolutions to come to practise it.  
XIV. Remember in fine since that meditation or prayer is not to be accounted the best in which we have had most facility, consolation, and sensible devotion, but that in which we have been more faithful, constant, submisive to the dispositions of gods holy will: the surest means we can find to have good success in our prayer, is to show that fidelity, constancy, and resignation to gods divine will, in bearing the whole weight of our Miseries and natural weakness without ever being in the least dejected or discouraged. On our side let us do what lies in our power, and we may hold for most certain that in what ever disposition we find ourselves at prayer, if we are faithful to god and suffer it as we ought, he will never fail to make it serve for his greater glory, and our greater good.   

SECOND SECTION. Practise of Meditation or mental prayer Made by way of Discourse.  
IN this kind of Prayer of Discourse and reasoning commonly called meditation, each faculty of our soul has its proper office and Employment. The memory proposes the subject, and ostentimes to fix the agility and livelyness of our imagination we give it its own task, obliging it to make us à lively representation of the subject when it can bear it. Our understanding considers, meditats and reasons upon it, strives to fram so clear notions and distinct conceptions upon the matter, from which may naturally flow so strong and practieall conclusions, that by them the will is enabled, and set to work, to draw out of these conclusions, affections and resolutions conform to the subject proposed to it by the understanding.  
The ordinary subject of mental prayer is either some mystery, à Sentence out of scripture or some truth proposed to us by faith.  
Before the time comes that you are to employ in this manner of praying, you must read with attention, the matter and prepare the different points you are to meditate upon.  
The first thing you do beginning your meditation is, after you have put yourself in the presence of god, to make à profound act of humility and adoration, after which only in general and confusedly you represent to yourself the subject you pretend to meditate on; and to the end your endeavours may prove successful, beg of the holy ghost the assistance of his grace, imploring also to the same effect the intercession of our blessed Lady.  
This don you make on every point of your meditation particular considerations. Many solid reflections able to make your will produce affections and resolutions conform to your subject.  
1. If you have for the subject of your meditation any mystery, you must consider attentively all the particulars and circomstances of it, that you may the better be instructed & with more force be convinced of what you ought to avoid, do, or suffer. If you meditate upon à sentence of scripture or any article of faith, you must do your endeavour to dive into the sense of it, out of which you must draw moral conclusions for your own conduct; and in all the discoursing and reasoning you have upon the matter, you must chiefly and particularly rely upon faith, which must serve for the bassis or groundwork on which must be settled all the acts of both will and understanding that you produce in your Prayer.  
2. The affections take their rise from the considerations and that according to the nature of the subject you meditate upon. The principal affections are of admiration thanksgiveing, confidence, of abondoning perfectly ourselves into the hands of god, of love, desire, joy complacency, of compassion, fear, hatred, horror confusion, etc.  
3. When one makes a serious reflection, and casts an eye back on what he hath already past of his life with relation to the present subject in hand discovering the disorders of his former life and behaviour, he cannot but find his soul covered with a holy confusion, which powerfully disposes it to an humble contrition and to the sincerest sentiments of love and charity towards god who has all this while so patiently expected the Return of this prodigal child.  
4. searching in prayer and examining the sentiments of one's own heart in its present situation; we must do our endeavours to put and settle ourselves in the best disposition possible according to the subject of our meditation and the light we receive from god,  
5. If you cast your Eyes upon the future, and what is te come; we ought to make strong resolutions both for the practising of Good or avoiding Evil and forseing the occasions we are to be in, to encourage ourselves; so offering up to god our good, pious and fervent desires, make him a thousand protestations of an inviolable fidelity. It's after this manner we finish our prayer by a hearty and most affectionate address to god which from the latin we term colloquium, in which our soul Directs its prayer now to god, now to some of the three persons of the blessed Trinity now to the Blessed Virgin, to the Angels or the Saints who's help assistance and intercession we go about to implore.   

THIRD SECTION. Different sorts and Ways of Praying, to make this holy Exercise more Easy for Beginners.  
THe first manner I here set down of praying is that of holy saint Teresa, of which by her own testimony she first made use of when she began by This holy Exercise to converse with god. It's very Easy and little different from a simple lecture or reading; one takes a spiritual book, as the new testament, or following of Christ, or any such; you read à chapter or some few lines by intervals, than you consider and meditate for some time upon what you have read, striving to penetrate into the sense of it and to imprint it deeply in your mind; then draw from it some holy affection, as of loüe of god, of penance, contrìtion or of some other virtue which you must make à good purpose to put in practice when occasion shall occur.  
You have only two extremities to avoid, the one of reading too much, the other of meditating too much, so that your mind gins to wander, and its attention and vigour rather to decay then to be encouraged and stirred up to practise the good you have proposed to be done. But you must keep within the bounds of à just moderation stopping as long at every paragraph as your understanding shall find in it where upon to give itself à grateful and profitable entertainment.  
The second manner is almost the same with the precedent. You take for subject à text of Scripture or some vocal prayer as the Pater noster, the Ave or the Creed, you pronounce the words outwardly or inwardly in your heart, you make à stop at every word out of which you draw several pious sentimen, which make as long the application of your soul as you can find you can relish them; at the end you make an humble address to god, begging of his bounty some grace, or some virtue according to the subject of your meditation. In the practice of this prayer three things are to be observed; not to insist too long with teadiousness, and disgust upon one word, but when nothing more occurrs capable of keeping your mind employed, pass softly and gently to an other. 2. When you find your heart moved by some good sentiment, there, be sure to fix as long as it lasts, without putting yourself in pain to proceed further. 3. It is not needful alwaïes to make new acts, yea it's often sufficient to keep yourself there in the presence of god; ruminating in silence upon the words of your meditation, and endeavouring to relish the sentiments they have already produced in your heart.  
The third manner may be used when the subject you have prepared does not furnish you with thoughts enough, than you may take as a very profitable employment that of producing acts of faith, adoration, thanksgiving, hope, love, etc. For example I believe o my god! that I am here in your sight and that you are incessantly applied to govern and conduct me, etc.  
I adore your sovurain power and do hearty make you homage for my being, and for all the power I have as a good belonging to you and which I hold of you, etc.  
I render you à million of thanks for having loved me from all eternity, etc.  
I hope your divine Providence will never Abondon me in my necessity and want, and that it will conduct me happily to the accomplishment of your designs by that way, it will point out to me, etc.  
I love you o Eternal beauty! o infinite goodness! I love you above all things and with all my soul, etc.  
I am hearty sorry for having served you so ill hitherto, and for having offended you so often, etc.  
I Wish from my heart that you might receive indeed and in effect, all the honour your creatures are capable to render you, etc.  
These acts are only by way of example, and as it were a mould of such as you may produce, you may give them as much extent as you think fitting, make à stop at every one, giving yourself the time to feel at leisure, to relish and savour, the good sentiments that have made the most impresion upon your soul.  
The forth manner of prayer may be made use of when on is in such à disposition that he neither can meditate nor produce any affections upon the points of the prayer you have prepared. In that incapacity and sterility of mind, it's very good to make in the presence of god; à sincere protestation that your intention and desire is to make as many acts of virtue, as for example, of contrition as you shall by times draw your breath or as you shall run over your beads or pronounce exteriorly some short prayer: you must renew from time to time the same protestation; & if god of his bounty gives you any other good sentiments, receive it with humility & make it your interior occupation.  
Te fift manner is for souls in trouble and tormented with à certain stupidity of mind and insensibility of heart, Provided they have courage enough to persevere and so much of fidelity as not to let themselves be overcome, by distractions, & that they be willing to suffer something for the love of god. The best prayer that such souls can make whilst they are stupid and insensible, surrounded with darkness and born down by the weight of their own miseries, is to abondon themselves generously to suffering, without being in the least disheartened or disquieted, yea without endeavouring to get out of so sad à condition or producing any other acts but those of abandoning themselves entirely into the hands of god to undergo that trial or any other it shall please his mercy or justice to put them to. They may also unite their sufferings, and present pain with the Agony of our saviour in his prayer in the garden, or with that unspeakable resignation he felt upon the cross striving to persuade ourselves by his example, there to remain and to suffer constantly even till death.  
The sixth manner of praying consists in a review of our own interior. You must by a serious consideration enter into your own heart, and endeavour to make a perfect discovery of the present state and condition of your soul; set before your eyes your defects, your passions, your infirmities, your weaknesses, your evil inclinations, for none but has more or less something of corrupt nature in them, examine your heart how ever inscrutable it be; dive into the bottom, lay open your own miseries and your nothing. Adore the judgements of god in regard to the present state you are in, bow and submit to his holy will and bliss him equally for the punishment and chastisement of his justice, and for the favours you have received from his infinite Mercy; humble your foul in presence of his sovuraigne majesty, make a sincere Confession of your sins and infidelities, beg a thousand pardons, there retract your falls and erroneous judgements, when blinded by passion you so often preferred temporal to eternal honour, richesse, pleasures, to contempt, pauverty, and suffering. Abhor and detest all the evil you have ever committed by thought, word deed, or omission; and make a stead fast purpose of amendment for the future.  
This manner of prayer is without constraint, and all kind of affections may find place in it, you may make it at all times but chief after some suddan and unexpected accident for to dispose on's soul to the merciful chastisement of god's justice; or after having been in any exterior dissipating concern for to recover again your wont interior peace and recolection of mind.  
The seaventh manner of praying consists in a lively representation of the 4. last things that are to befall man. That excellent Master of à spiritual life father john d'Avila, recommends it much. I imagine says he in a letter to one of his disciples that you are already buried; reduced into ashes, forgot by your parents & friends, and that your soul is already in its state of separation, etc.  
You may then to perform this kind of prayer represent to yourself that you are effectualy reduced to your last agony and ready to give up your soul; put yourself in spirit betwixt time and eternity, betwixt your life past and the judgement of god where you are going to appear, there you must endeavour to conceive and feel before hand the sentiments you will have when you come to that extremity! what you would wish then to have done, how you would wish to have lived, etc. You must not only foresee, but even also strive to have an anticipated feeling of the pain, trouble and fear you will then certainly be in; recall to your mind your sins, the disorders of your life, the frequent abuse you have made of god's grace. how at that moment you would wish to have behaved yourself in such and such occasions, etc. Infine you must make some strong and solid purposes to apply some efficacious remedy to all that you have any ground to fear, at the sight of that state and of its Terrible consequences. You may also imagine that you are already before the Tribunal of Christ Jesus, or in Purgatory, or in hell, the more the representation is liuly the more profitable will be your prayer.  
'tis in this state that god often puts in spirit many souls, for to draw them perfectly out of this world, and divest them of their bodies, causing them to make an entire divorce from flesh and blood and all that has been the dearest to them upon earth. for it is an order, and an indispensable law of divine Providence, that we must absolutely die by that mystical death; for to partake of the first resurrection, which consisteth in being delivered, and made free from all corruption of sin, and that we must of necessity pass through this Purgatory before we can perfectly enjoy god almighty, and attain to that possession which is the perfectest Manner we can posess him upon earth.  
The eight Manner of praying may be called an application of our mind to Jesus-Christ in the blessed Sacrament, which is performed after this manner. 1. After you have adored our saviour in this mystery with all the respect that his real presence requires. You must unite yourself to him and all his divine operations in the Eucharist, where he never ceases from adoring praising, and loveing god his father in the name of all mankind, and that after the perfectest manner, imaginable; that is to say in the form and state of à victim. You must then meditate and strive to conceive something of his retirement & recollection, of his solitude, his hidden life, his obedience, his humility and of all other virtues according to the model and example he gives of them in this Sacramental state. you must stir up your soul to the imitation of his virtues, and make good purposes not to fail to put them in practice, as often as you shall have occasion.  
2. Offer up to god the father his son Christ Jesus, as the only victim worthy of him, and by which alone we are able to render due homage to his suprême Dominion; acknowledge his benefits, satisfy his justice, and oblige his mercy to help and assist us.  
3. Offer up yourself to god, make à sacrifice to him of your being, your life, your employments, and in particular make à good purpose to perform some act of virtue, some mortification that you relolue to undergo, to Overcome yourself, and that for the same end for which our saviour in the blessed Sacrament offers himself up in sacrifice; and you must make this oblation with an earnest desire to increase as far as lies in your power the glory he renders to his father in this sacred Mystery.  
Finish your prayer by à spiritual Communion, this way of prayer is excellent, and your study must be, to make the practice of it, so much the more familiar, that our happiness in this life depends on our union with Christ Jesus in the blessed Sacrament, and I advise you to make use of it as often as you can & particularly towards evening.  
The ninth manner of prayer we make in the name of our saviour, and as taking his place in the addresses we make to god; which may help us wonderfully to breed in our souls à perfect confidence in god almighty and make us enter in Spirit into the sentiments of our saviour. It is grounded on this truth, to wit that we have contracted à true alliance with the son of god. We are his brothers, the members of his mystical body, he has granted, and made over to us all his merits, he leaves us by his testament legataries of the recompenses and rewards due to, all his works for all the pains and troubles he has been at, death itself that he suffered to glorify his father: by this we are enabled to honour & worship god as god, that is with à worship not inferior to what his excellency requires & by the same way we enter in right to converse with god and can in some sort exact his favours by some kind of justice, we have not that right as creatures, and as yet much less as sinners because of that infinite disproportion that is betwixt god and à creature, and that infinite opposition which is betwixt him and à sinner; but as being allied to the son of god in man's flesh, as being his brothers and his members, we may appear with confidence in the presence of god, converse with him familiarly and engage him to hear us favourably to listen to our requests, to grant us graces and favours because of the union we have with his son.  
It's in this manner you may appear at prayer in the presence of god; now to adore and praise him through Jesus-Christ, working in you as the head in his members, and raising & elevating you by this operation of his spirit to à state wholly Divine; now to beg some favour of him in virtue of the merits of his son; and for that effect you represent unto him the services his well beloved son has rendered him, his life, his death, his sufferings, the reward of which you may lawfully claim right to by virtue of à grant and of à true session by which he has made them over to us. This way of prayer is excellently performed in à supernatural state and 'tis properly in that spirit that those who are obliged to say the Divine office ought to say it. It's after this manner the church prays and for that reason she concludes all her prayers in these words. Per Dominum nostrum, etc.  
The tenth manner of praying is à Mixture partly of à simple attention to the presence of god and partly of meditation, it may be practised after this fashion.  
Before you apply yourself to meditate upon the subject you have prepared, put yourself in the presence of god, without taking any distinct thought or stirring up in your soul any other sentiment but that of a dutiful respect and tender love towards him, with which gods very presence cannot but inspire you. Be satisfied to stand thus silent in the sight of god and remain as long in that peace and quietness of mind as you can have any interior delight or relish in it so that your soul be kept by it in that constant respect. But this coming to fail lay presently hold on the points of the meditation you have prepared, upon which you make your considerations as you want to do with your reflections, resolutions, and affections, according to the ordinary method; it would not be amiss to begin thus all your meditations keeping yourself in silence as long in the presence of god as that interior respect and affection of your soul towards him can keep your imagination free from wandering and your thoughts so composed that they put no opposition to your enjoying his divine presence in peace and quietness, and in the course of your meditation after every point your mind being wearied by producing frequent acts it will prove very profitable and advantageous to make à stop and repose à little in this simple attention to god; by so doing you settle yourself in an interior recollection, and being thus accustomed to fix your mind on god, you may dispose yourself by little and little to contemplation which is nothing but à simple view of god accompanied with respect and love; but 'tis à perfect illusion to remain so, out of à mere laziness and unwillingness to take pains to consider and Meditate.  
When one has gained so much by the mortification of his own passions and a frequent and habitual communication with god, as to be able to remain in that interior tranquillity of spirit in his Divine presence à good space of time without being much troubled with distractions nor diverted by the inconstancy and instability of the faculties of his soul, 'tis a certain mark he is not far from what we call a passive state.