At times we can taste the sweetness of the Spirit as it blows past us. We do not know where it has come from or where it is going. The tender aroma of God’s mercy fills us with joy and comforts us. Experiences such as these may be accompanied by synchronicities in our lives, insight into the nature of things, or a deep sense of being one with everything. In the Christian monastic tradition these are called consolations.
A spiritual consolation is not simply a good feeling. We feel joy when our children do remarkable things or when we are comforted by a warm cup of cocoa. However, while beautiful and good in themselves, these consolations are not of the same kind. A spiritual consolation is a glimpse into heaven. It is the sensual (of the senses) experience of divine grace. These consolations are given to us by God to rejuvenate us and encourage us in our spiritual journeys.
Using the story of the Israelites wandering in the wilderness (Exodus 16) to illustrate this, Aelred of Rievaulx talks about the difficulty endured by God’s people and the manna from heaven that relieved their suffering. The toil of the desert he is referring to in this particular instance is the work of lectio divina, where one engages the scriptures in meditation with the hope of being transformed by them. The manna from heaven, which arrived fresh everyday with the morning dew, represents the consolations of inner sweetness we receive from God.
“When you have become used to assiduous meditation on the Scriptures, you will in some way be taken out of this world and, borrowing for yourself the silver wings of the dove from the divine words which are truly like silver tried by fire, you will fly away like the purest turtle dove to the spiritual desert. There, if the Creator’s loving-kindness pours out some spiritual dew on you, know that it is not for you to decide when to gather it up or how much to gather or how long to keep what you gather.” (trans by Connor)
In the Exodus story, God instructs the people to only collect as much as they need for each day. All the manna that people stored away for safekeeping was rotten by morning. We may receive and be refreshed by the manna God gives us in the wilderness, but we should not try to grasp hold of it or control it. If we do, God’s gift will be ruined. One assumes Jesus had this story in mind when he instructed his disciples to pray “give us this day our daily bread.”
At times you may be filled with the warmth of God’s presence deep in your bones, an overwhelming joy that flows through your veins, or a sense of awe and wonder that roots your feet firmly in Mother Earth’s kind embrace. The gift of tears is also considered a kind of consolation, as it is a gift from God that washes away all the stress and anxiety in our body.
In the story of her life written by Cogitosus, St Brigit encounters some wild ducks who I am interpreting as symbols of spiritual consolations. You can read about the Life of Brigit by Cogitosus HERE. You can read about another version of her life, in which she ordained a bishop and shows more attributes of the pre-Christian goddess HERE.
“On another day, the blessed Brigit saw some ducks swimming on the water, occasionally taking wing, and being moved with affection for them, she commanded them to come to her. A great flock of them flew over to her on feathered wings with eager obedience to her words and showing no fear, as if they were used to people. She touched them with her hand and caressed them for a while, before allowing them to fly back into the sky. She praised the Creator of all things, to whom all creatures are subject, and for whom all things live.” (trans by Davies)
Inner peace is not the absence of emotion, as if we were to become uncaring or unfeeling statues. When Brigit saw the ducks, she was filled with a holy affection for them. Both the ducks (consolations) and the love she felt for them (affection) are gifts from God and worthy of praise. However, we still need to practise detachment in regards to consolations even as we actively call them closer. Consolations are meant to refresh us, sustain us, and orient us towards God. If we become attached to them we can lose sight of the God who sent them.
Brigit did not seek out spiritual consolations for their own sake. She did not try to capture the ducks and bring them home in cages. When she encountered them on her journey she noticed them, invited them to sit with her, enjoyed their company, and let them fly away again in peace.
It is important that we slow down enough to notice what consolations are present so that we do not falsely imagine our inner wilderness to be filled with nothing other than demons and distractions. However, if we try to grasp onto spiritual consolations and keep them for later, we do violence to them and take away their freedom. The soul in a state of apatheia relishes in the gifts of God, but does not become attached to them or try to control them.
After cuddling with her ducks for a little while, Brigit released them back into the sky and was filled with a sense of awe and wonder for the good gifts of God. The releasing of the ducks was just as much an act of prayer as was calling them to her. When we find beauty and kindness in the wilderness, we join the song of creation in praising our maker.
The mountains and hills are bursting forth with music and the trees of the field are clapping along. When we stumble upon a flock of beautiful birds on a lake, we can receive the spiritual consolation that accompanies it with joy and then let it go in peace. Turning the spotlight of our mind’s eye onto the ducks, we can sing with the prophet, “You shall go out in joy; and be led back in peace.” (Isaiah 55:12)
If you enjoyed this, please share it on your favourite social media and tell your friends about it. If you would like to learn more about our online community, click HERE for information on what we do and when we do it. Click HERE to join our email list and receive new free content every Sunday morning.
