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WE have seen that, comparable with the two crises which mark the
transition from childhood to youth and from youth to manhood,
there are also in the spiritual life two crises, one by which
proficients pass into the illuminative way, and another by which
the perfect reach the state of union.
The first of these crises has been called a second conversion, and
it is of this that we have now to speak.
The liturgy, especially at periods such as Advent and Lent, speaks
often of the need of conversion, even for those who are leading a
Christian life. Spiritual writers also refer often to this second
conversion, necessary for the Christian who, though he has thought
seriously of his salvation and made an effort to walk in the way
of God, has nevertheless begun once more to follow the bent of his
nature and to fall into a state of tepidity -- like an engrafted
plant reverting to its wild state. Some of these writers, such as
the Blessed Henry Suso or Tauler, have insisted especially upon
the necessity of this second conversion, a necessity which they
have learned from their own experience. St. John of the Cross has
profoundly pointed out that the entrance into the illuminative way
is marked by a passive purgation of the senses, which is a second
conversion, and that the entrance into the unitive way is preceded
by a passive purgation of the spirit, a further and a deeper
conversion affecting the soul in its most intimate depths. Among
the writers of the Society of Jesus we may quote Pere Lallemant,
who writes:
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'Saints and religious who reach perfection pass
ordinarily through two conversions: one by which they devote
themselves to the service of God, and another by which they
surrender themselves entirely to perfection. We find this in the
case of the Apostles, first when our Lord called them, and then
when He sent the Holy Ghost upon them; we find it in the case of
St. Teresa, of her confessor, P. Alvarez, and of many others. This
second conversion is not granted to all religious, and it is due
to their negligence.' [57]
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This question is of the greatest interest for every spiritual
soul. Among those who dealt with it before St. John of the Cross
we must count St. Catherine of Siena, who touches upon the subject
repeatedly in her Dialogue and in her Letters. Her treatment,
which is very realistic and practical, throws a great light upon
the teaching which is commonly received in the Church. [58]
Following St. Catherine, we shall speak first of this second
conversion as it took place in the Apostles, and then as it should
take place in us; we shall say what defects render this conversion
necessary, what great motives ought to inspire it, and finally
what fruits it should produce in us.
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