Q&A: In reading the Collected Works of Saint Louis de Montfort, I detect a strong affinity between his teaching and that of the great Carmelite saints, Teresa of Avila and John of the Cross. Would you agree?
Father J. Patrick Gaffney, SMM
AP, Tulsa, OK
The Writings of St. Louis de Montfort
Definitely. The roots of Saint Louis de Montfort’s Spirituality are firmly embedded in the spirituality of the 17th century, called The French School of Spirituality. Its founder is Cardinal de Bérulle who not only introduced the reformed Carmelites into France but was also influenced by St. Teresa and St. John of the Cross.
One of his famous sayings is; What is a human being? A nothing capable of reaching God. (“un néant capable de Dieu”). Only in accepting and living our nothingness are we filled with the omnipotence of God, Love. Notice the resemblance with Montfort’s teachings on the basic principles of devotion to Mary and the motives for total consecration (True Devotion, 60-89; 135-182).
This is but one example of the many links between de Bérulle’s French School of Spirituality and the teachings of John of the Cross and Teresa of Avila. However, Saint Louis de Montfort, although a contemplative, expresses this total nothingness/ omnipotence not in a cloister but in an active apostolic, missionary life.
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