The spiritual life:

The deadly forms of idleness...

"When you come before Me, the Eternal Father, and the Spirit, you will be judged. If you are found lukewarm, neither being hot nor cold, I will vomit you from My mouth and cast you into the fires of eternal damnation! You cannot play the middle road, My pastors! You cannot mislead My sheep by giving in to the values of man! You must not change—you must not trade your soul and bargain for your world. No man can have both, the world and the spirit." - Jesus, May 17, 1975

Taken from Growth in Holiness by Fr. Frederick Faber:

If, of all graces, that of perseverance is the most precious, because it is the one which makes all the others of lasting value, certainly among the vices which beset the devout life, spiritual idleness is one of the chief; for it is the contradictory of perseverance. Yet I doubt whether, practically, we regard it with the fear which it deserves. All the dispositions of our normal state, fatigue especially, are desolated by it. Struggle is tempted to give way to laziness, and to take recreation away from Christ. Fatigue is sorely drawn in its aching lassitude to falloff from dry interior faith, and to seek consolation in creatures, a step almost as fatal as going to sleep in the snow. And rest murmurs when the trumpet sounds to renew the fight, and would fain prolong itself by natural means when supernatural means have ceased.

I suppose it may be said that every man is an idle man. Did anyone ever see a man who did not naturally gravitate to idleness, unless perchance he had a heart complaint? Nay, so natural is it, that very idle men plead its very naturalness as a proof that it is almost irresistible. No man does hard work naturally. He must be driven to it, no matter whether it be by the love of money, or the fear of Hell. . . . Nothing is more rare in the Church than a true contemplative vocation. Consequently, it is almost impossible for the generality of devout persons to spend their whole time in direct acts of the virtue of religion, and the cultivation of interior motives and dispositions. Then, on the other hand, they conceive, not always judiciously, that their former habits of recreation, and their old amusements, are to be altogether eschewed. So that their piety creates a sort of void in them, and gives them nothing to fill it up with. This is one great reason why those who have no regular profession, or adequate domestic occupation, should engage themselves in some external work of zeal and mercy. . . .

I suppose it may be said that every man is an idle man. Did anyone ever see a man who did not naturally gravitate to idleness, unless perchance he had a heart complaint? Nay, so natural is it, that very idle men plead its very naturalness as a proof that it is almost irresistible. No man does hard work naturally. He must be driven to it, no matter whether it be by the love of money, or the fear of Hell.

As this idleness is an effectual bar to progress, it is important that we should examine the matter narrowly; and if we do so, we shall find that there are seven developments of this spiritual idleness, about each of which something shall be said.

The first of them is what is usually called dissipation. It is easy to describe, but not easy to define. It is a sin . . . one of its most dangerous characteristics is that a person is rarely aware, at the time, that he is guilty of dissipation. Its effects upon our devotion are quite disproportioned to the insignificance of its appearance. It can destroy in a few hours the hard-earned graces of months . . . Let us see in what it consists. Everyone knows after he has been dissipated that such has been the case; but he does not always see in what his dissipation has consisted. The desolation of his soul is a proof to him that something has been wrong; but he cannot always give the wrong its name.

Dissipation consists, first of all, in putting things off beyond their proper times. So that one duty treads upon the heels of another, and all duties are felt as irksome obligations, a yoke beneath which we fret and lose our peace. In most cases the consequence of this is that we have no time to do the work as it ought to be done. It is therefore done precipitately, with natural eagerness, with a greater desire to get it simply done than to do it well, and with very little thought of God throughout. . . . Another symptom of dissipation consists in over talking and immoderate visits of civility. . . . We must also be on guard against the habit . . . of being always about to begin some occupation and yet not beginning it. This wears away our moral strength . . . The consequences are self-dissatisfaction, the cankerworm of all devotion. . . . followed by ill-temper . . .

The second deadly idle is sadness and low spirits. These are venial sins when indulged in and are unworthy of those souls seeking sanctity. Some mistakenly think that sadness consists of a dignified inner trial, but in reality this state tends to make us querulous, not patient, and thus does not consist of humility and it is not repentance either, for it causes vexation with self, not true sorrow for sin as an offense against God. The soul of sadness is self-love. The more we work at rooting out the smallest of venial sins, the more cheerful we are inclined to be. Nothing gives the devil more power over us than sadness, and this includes most instances of mortal sin, because sadness blunts the Sacraments' effects, turning the sweet things into bitter; the morbid danger of sadness is that it renders us overly sensitive so that we cannot bear pain of all kinds, which leads to a lack of courage. If we should find ourselves in this languid morbidity we must not abandon our devotions, no matter how difficult, as this is what encourages the devil.

These first two forms of spiritual idleness are a part of sloth, but there is a third, a general languor itself. Languor consists of making resolutions then breaking them, continually. This moral malady then saps our physical strength, even though we may be unaware of such a cause, the body wears out, rejects exertions, because the soul is torpid from the little negligences of conscience that make us peevish, passively distasteful of spiritual goods that in turn makes us so filled with disgust that we cannot seem to act, the disgust itself having a hold over us.

The next deadly idle can be called useless industry, which is a great temptation to the more active-minded. Now, there is nothing in a licit, healthy recreation that prevents us from uniting ourselves to God. However, there are a many occupations of relaxation that are not meritorious: for instance reading material that brings distractions to our subsequent prayers, that may tempt us otherwise, supplying ready-made images that interfere with a meditation; writing letters for the sake of dwelling on ourselves or the idolatry of family life. The rule for correspondence ought to follow the rule of silence. Building the proverbial castles in the air is another useless industry, and far from being the most innocent because no one builds a castle in the air without some honor or praise coming to him as this is the nature of these castles.

Having proposed these dangers to be attuned to, in no way can it be said that we must not have recreation, it is the kind and the proportion and our individual states of life. Recreation must be undertaken with the intention of pleasing God.

The fifth peril is not so much sloth but a type of gluttony: not so much eating to the point of harming the body, but the very reason why we eat: to enjoy, even if we are moderate in what we partake in. Again, the spiritual man and woman must have purity of intention, that is to please God in his partaking of meals, and not the satisfaction of a natural inclination.

Another idleness threatening to the devout life is a general indifference to the use of time, which is of greater consequence than one might suppose. Time is what eternity is made of and that it is both precious and irrevocable and that we will have to give a strict accounting of our use of time. (pp. 163-166)

"I will say, with a Mother's torn heart, through countless years of going to and fro across your nations, I will say again that the good have become complacent. Lethargy has set in among them. I would say, My children, in all earnestness that the bad have become worse and the good have gained no further graces in their complacency." - Our Lady of the Roses, June 18, 1978

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These prophecies came from Jesus, Mary, and the saints to Veronica Lueken at Bayside, NY, from 1968 to 1995:

PURPOSE OF LIFE
"While you are upon earth you are there to do honor and glory to your God in Heaven. You must know Him, love Him, and serve Him in this world, so that you will be happy with Him forever in the next." - Our Lady, June 1, 1978

LETHARGY
"I will say, with a Mother's torn heart, through countless years of going to and fro across your nations, I will say again that the good have become complacent. Lethargy has set in among them. I would say, My children, in all earnestness that the bad have become worse and the good have gained no further graces in their complacency." Our Lady, June 18, 1978

MUCH IS EXPECTED
"The world has continued upon its disastrous course. The evil is accelerating. The good people, many of them are becoming complacent, and a lethargy has set in among some. My children of light, do not become self-satisfied in your gifts, for those who have received graces in abundance, much is expected of them. You must go forward now without slackening the pace of the work." Jesus, June 10, 1978

MESSAGE OF REALITY

"Do not become complacent or lethargic, My children. There is no time to cast aside the truth, covering it with all optimism. My Mother did not come to you as a prophet of doom, but She came to you from Heaven with a message of reality and what is to take place upon the earth. You will listen to Her, for I assure you, My children, very soon there will be much gnashing of teeth and woe set upon the earth." Jesus, September 7, 1978

APATHY SET IN
"I do not have to repeat over and over the warnings given from Heaven through My Mother, Who has wandered from coast to coast, country to country, trying desperately to reach your hearts before it is too late. Through countless earth-years Her direction was given and cast aside. An apathy had set in to the hearts of many.
     "My children, you have little time left to go about with your ears closed. You will listen to My Mother's counsel and act upon it. The sins of mankind are crying out for a just punishment, the Chastisement of the Ball of Redemption." Jesus, August 19, 1978

WHY NO ACTION?
"Parents, have you examined what your children have been reading? Their eyes, which are the mirror of the soul, are being polluted, their souls being destroyed by the pornography being sold for profit and gain. Why is there no action, My children, to safeguard your children? Many parents will cry bitter tears of anguish, but too late, too late!
     "I have wandered throughout your world exposing these evils, bringing them before you for your action. So many have passed by, feeling an apathy to My words." Our Lady, August 14, 1975

DOUBT, LAXITY, APATHY
"How much more punishment shall the severity increase to awaken you from your slumber? We have asked Our pastors to put into action the direction given by My Mother to recover My sheep. Instead, My Mother has been received with doubt, laxity, apathy, and an absolute rejection by many. How many voice-boxes must We send among you to awaken you before it is too late?" Jesus, May 26, 1976

WOE TO THE PARENT
"Homes must now become a stronghold of godliness! Homes must be a refuge for the children against the onslaughts of satan now loosed in your world. Parents must give a good example of godliness and piety. Woe to the parent who discards or goes along with apathy in his role as a parent." Our Lady, July 15, 1977

UNLESS YOU ACT...
"My children, you must protest the offenses being committed against the divinity of My Son. Prayer is a great weapon, but unless you act and pray too, My children, you proceed nowhere. You become lax, indifferent; apathy sets in. Each and every individual of conscionable age shall be tested." Our Lady, November 1, 1977

APATHETIC TO MY WARNINGS
"Weep not for Me, My child, but cry for your children. But mothers, cry for your children, for they are the true victims.
     "I have begged you to remove the corruption in your country that now covers, like the darkness of the abyss, your government, your schools, and now My Son's House. But you were apathetic to My warnings. What will you do now? The hour grows late.
     "Atonement, prayer, sacrifice—We beg your prayers! Those of well spirit will bear this with greater heart and courage, My child, but pity those who have descended into darkness." Our Lady, September 28, 1971

YOUR COUNTRY
"You must not be apathetic to the situation in your country, My children, for if you sit back you will be removed from your homes in your land. You must organize a solid front—yes, link to link, soul to soul, across your land—a solid Rosary, My children. Prayer and sacrifice: this is not too much to ask of you in face of the reality of what is coming upon you." Our Lady, November 20, 1971

Directives from Heaven... https://www.tldm.org/directives/directives.htm

D31 - Love of God PDF
D32 - Love of Neighbor PDF
D78 - Charity PDF
D111 - Perseverance PDF
D138 - Permissiveness PDF
D159 - Religious Orders and the Dedicated: Part 1 PDF
D160 - Religious Orders and the Dedicated: Part 2 PDF
D165 - Apathy and Indifference PDF
D220 - Spiritual blindness PDF

Articles...

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https://www.tldm.org/news7/Foley1.htm

Pope Pius XI warned religious orders to maintain rigorous discipline
https://www.tldm.org/news7/Foley2.htm

The new Commandment of Jesus
https://www.tldm.org/News7/Colin1.htm

Love of God and love of neighbor
https://www.tldm.org/News7/Colin2.htm

The dangers of not observing the rule
https://www.tldm.org/News7/Colin5.htm

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