"Fix your heart upon God"
St. Louis' love for the Sacramental life
“Therefore, dear son, the first thing I advise is that you fix your whole heart upon God, and love Him with all your strength, for without this no one can be saved or be of any worth.” These words St. Louis IX wrote as he prepared to die. He addressed them to his son, Phillip, who was about to take over the throne. The entire letter is certainly worth a read for any parent or would-be parent who seeks to raise his or her child in the practice of the faith, and it may be worthwhile to write a similar letter to your children someday. While the letter is directed toward his son, the saintly king has much to teach us in his letter as well.
“You should allow yourself to experience martyrdom before you commit mortal sin.” This sentiment of St. Louis is one he learned from his own mother. Queen Blanche shared similar words with the young Louis as part of his own moral development, “I love you, my dear son, as much as a mother can love her child; but I would rather see you dead at my feet than that you should ever commit a mortal sin.”
Is mortal sin really that bad? YES! The saintly family’s understanding of the effects of mortal sin is not only noble (pun certainly intended), it is indeed to be imitated by all of us. More than a simple desire to avoid mortal sin, an abhorrence toward the idea of sinning mortally is what we ought to cultivate in our own hearts and in the hearts of our children. Why? The life we live now will come to an end, sooner or later. The decisions we make here and now may seem to have effects that fade, but we are immortal beings; we will live forever, and the effects of those mortal sins could remain with us into eternity. Through mortal sin, we sever the lifeline that is the grace of God dwelling in our hearts from Baptism; we mortally wound ourselves. The life of grace is cut off. We separate ourselves from God and instead choose for ourselves the temporary pleasures with lasting effects. The detrimental effects of mortal sin are eternal, hence the reason the noble family detested the idea to such a degree.
St. Louis and his mother, while certainly fearful of offending God, did not let that fear paralyze them for they knew the mercy of God. King Louis exhorted Philip, “Dear son, I advise you that you accustom yourself to frequent confession…” The forgiveness and grace that we receive in the sacrament of Reconciliation overcome our sinfulness and restore our relationship with the Blessed Trinity. Our lifeline is reestablished.
This exhortation of regular confession was quickly followed by an encouragement to frequently attend Mass. St. Louis knew well our need for the sacramental life. Reconciliation and the Eucharist provide us with those graces which sustain us in fixing our whole heart upon God. They are the graces we need to avoid mortal sin and be drawn deeper and deeper into intimacy with the Trinity, the intimacy for which we were created.
In this time of Eucharistic revival, may our own love for Our Blessed Lord in the Eucharist be deepened. May we grow in our love for the sacrament of reconciliation, and through the intercession of St. Louis IX, the King of France, may our openness to the graces our Lord wishes to give us through the sacramental life be increased.