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Michael-Paul
Gallagher, S.J
Michael-Paul Gallagher offers a Christian perspective of the 'practical
skill of sifting genuine from deceptive in spiritual experiences'. Although
his message is specifically designed as a response to NRMs, it is also useful
for an ISKCON audience for the insight and counsel it offers on the subject
of spiritual discernment.
Although I find myself on a panel entitled 'Reactions from the Churches', and
although I am a member of the staff of the Pontifical Council for Dialogue with
Non-Believers in the Vatican, this presentation will not try to summarise Roman
Catholic responses to the NRMs. This has already been done in such documents
as the 1986 statement on Sects or New Religious Movements prepared by
four bodies within the Vatican [i] , in the discussions of the Special
Consistory of Cardinals held in 1991
[ii] and in such academic studies as the article published by John Saliba
last year, entitled Vatican Response to the New Religious Movements.
[iii] Of course the Catholic Church continues to be intensely concerned
about this whole field, and there have been many local initiatives and reflections.
However, for my contribution here, I propose a more restricted topic and one
that, though often mentioned as relevant in this field, is seldom expanded on
- the theme of discernment and its applications.
By way of introduction, the relevance of this ancient skill is quite simply
because a central crisis in contemporary culture today lies in the area of the
spiritual. Our primary focus is Europe, and more particularly the new situation
emerging from the demise of Communist systems and from developments within the
European Community. This background does not need sketching in any detail. Suffice
it to say that for different reasons the two continuing blocs of Europe, now
divided more in terms of economics and culture, find themselves in situations
of spiritual vulnerability. In the West, post-modernist culture involves a renewed
interest in non-materialist searching by many people. In the post-Communist
countries a parallel, but different, pattern of religious exploration is taking
place. In brief, there is a double religious vulnerability in the previously
divided Europe: for various reasons due to different situations this continent's
inheritance of Christian belonging finds itself facing new pressures and challenges.
My central thesis here is that unless discernment is known and practised, the
danger is that in such a period of spiritual-cultural confusion, people can
fall into accepting short-term answers to deep human needs. Indeed, these short-term
securities can prove humanly destructive in the long-term - and we have tragic
evidence of that in recent episodes.
Discernment - a first description
What exactly is discernment? I want to comment on it first in theory and then
in practice, making some reference to the Christian scriptures and also to the
Ignatian tradition of spirituality.
In medieval philosophy the virtue of prudence involves the exercise of
'discretion' - not in its modern English definition, but rather a capacity to
examine situations in order to reach a good decision. In this line, discernment
is a spiritual development of 'discretion'. [iv] It involves a process of making choices in
the light of faith, which pays special attention to 'the movement of the Spirit
within a person's experience and within the signs of the times'. In more contemporary
language, discernment specialises in unmasking illusion and in offering skills
for a deeper wisdom in decision-making. Even in this definition, one sees the
essentially double nature of discernment: one needs to recognise and remove
obstacles to making a genuine choice, in order to then move towards a positive
seeking of what is ultimately God's will. In this way it is a practical skill
for sifting genuine from deceptive in spiritual experiences. It offers long-tested
criteria for judging how a person or community can truly claim to be guided
by God's Spirit. In tune with many of today's sensitivities, it values interiority
but also insists on examining the direction of inner experiences, seeking to
recognise roots in terms of fruits, origins of desires and choices in terms
of existential orientations and conversions. To use a metaphor, discernment
involves a scissors movement, a convergence of lights from above and from below.
In the Christian understanding, it seeks to unite the Revelation of God in Christ
with the here-and-now options of one's life and history.
[v] At its core it brings to bear the revelation of God with the actualities
of human situations and decisions.
In short, discernment is an ancient practice of reading the signs of the
Spirit in human experience, of seeking the call of God in one's human freedom
and decisions. This method of weighing of experience offers, I would argue,
precisely the practical or prudential wisdom that many people need in today's
Europe: negativity in order to see through the deceptions on offer in the spiritual
supermarket, and positivity in order to undertake a potentially more fruitful
journey towards mature religious faith.
The Christian scriptures on discernment
From the point of view of the Christian Scriptures, let me briefly offer a
few pieces of essential scaffolding concerning spiritual discernment; in other
words some references, definitions and general perspectives on its nature and
process. The phrase 'discernment of spirits' is used in two rather different
contexts in the New Testament. St. Paul, writing to the Corinthians about diversity
of gifts, uses the word diakrisis and refers to a special charisma not
given to everyone (1 Cor. 12.10) but at the service of the community. In St.
John's first letter the term used is dokimasia, and appears to be a gift
to everyone (1 Jn 4.1) in order to recognise those spirits that can be trusted
as coming from God.
Apart from these two basic texts, several other expressions of St. Paul
use the Joharmine word dokimazein, for instance in 'Romans' where he
speaks of countering the prevailing culture with the ability to 'test' what
is God's will, what is the 'perfect thing to do' (Rom. 12.2). Obviously one
should also mention the various promises of the Paraclete in the last discourse
of St. John's gospel where Jesus describes one of the functions as showing what
is wrong and what is right (Jn. 16. 8).
What is striking in these and other texts of the New Testament, is an underlying
assumption of a context of potential deception, and hence the discernment in
question is a double operation - a matter of seeing through illusion and of
making a godly choice, often in the face of temptation to be taken in by falsity.
Positively, it is a matter of experiencing the call of God within one's human
freedom.
From several instances in the Pauline corpus, it is also clear that discernment
in its full sense is not for beginners in spiritual life. It presumes that a
person has undergone conversion and is therefore able to 'deepen their perception
in order to recognise what is best' (Phil 1. 9). It is a skill for those who
were once 'in darkness' but are now 'light in the Lord' and hence able both
to see 'empty arguments' for what they are and 'discover what the Lord wants'
(Eph. 5. 6-9). In short, discernment presupposes a 'spiritual person' who is
'able to judge the value of everything', and Paul contrasts this level of maturity
with those who are still 'sensual . infants fed with milk' (1 Cor. 2.16-3.2).
Using exactly the same metaphor, the author of 'Hebrews' offers yet another
summary of discernment: 'solid food is for the mature, those with minds formed
through practice to distinguish between good and bad' (Heb. 5.14).
Ignatius of Loyola
Moving on a millennium and a half from the period of the New Testament, I want
to pause on the contribution of St. Ignatius of Loyola as a key figure in the
development of spiritual discernment as both a theory and more importantly,
as a practical discipline. This does not imply that the preceding centuries
were barren in terms of developments; the leap in time is due simply to lack
of space here, and to the seemingly more crucial relevance of Ignatius of Loyola. [vi]
It is significant that Ignatius belongs to the age of early modernity,
when a new sense of the individual was appearing and hence a new capacity for
a spiritual hermeneutics of self-experience (as we might say in today's terminology).
In his Spiritual Exercises, Loyola offers new foundations and
a major breakthrough in the long tradition of discernment, and one that is universally
recognised as still central for spirituality. Here I want to summarise only
those aspects of the Ignatian understanding that are relevant to the modern
NRM problem. In this respect a crucial and simple insight is developed from
St. Paul's remark that Satan can go 'disguised as an angel of light' (2 Cor.
11:14). Ignatius sees consolation as coming from God, marked by an increase
in love and leading to potentially good decisions, whereas desolation arises
from the bad spirit, marked by disturbance and restlessness, and leading to
'continual deceptions'. [vii]
A golden rule is never to change a commitment when in desolation, because 'in
time of desolation . we can never find the way to a right decision'.
[viii] With regard to consolation, things are a little more complicated
than might at first appear: consolation is not infallible; it can be deceptive,
like the 'disguised angel of light'. [ix] In terms of initial disposition for discernment,
a person must be inwardly free. In terms of the state within which a decision
is made, a person must be in consolation. But both freedom and consolation are
vulnerable. They can seem to be genuine, but may not be so in reality.
With this as a hinge, Ignatius proposes a much more sophisticated attention
to the process of one's spiritual movements. He urges one to pay attention not
only to the moods of consolation but to their overall orientation. To use the
test of time and note where everything is leading. Examine 'the beginning and
middle and end of the course of thoughts and experiences'.[x] If all the fruits are good and lasting, this offers the
best available confirmation that the roots are in God. But if at some stage,
an element of the less good creeps in, beware. In Ignatius' words, this process
of subtle deception will show itself in disquiet, 'destroying the peace, tranquillity
and quiet' which marked the initial experience.[xi] In the light of the NRMs, we could give as a typical example
of such danger signals the period following early euphoria, where some closing
of the heart, some opting for rigidity, some inclination not to listen to the
advice of friends, an impulsiveness, a separation from previous roots (for instance
in family or church), a fundamentalism, an inability to dialogue, indeed an
inability to discern, are felt. The loss of a capacity for genuine discernment
is one of the most characteristic and dangerous by-products of some of the NRMs
in practice. Often it goes hand in hand with a shrinking of the field of communication
to those in the inner circle. Once again, a famous metaphor of Ignatius seems
relevant: at one stage he compares the process of spiritual deception to a false
lover who wants his strategies kept secret; however, once unmasked through speaking
freely with 'a spiritual person who understands', the danger can disappear.[xii]
From his own early and rather innocent adventures in spirituality,
Ignatius knew that a spiritual journey can be fraught with deceptions.
He was acutely aware of how temptations in this field usually come
under the appearance of good. This is precisely the Achilles heel
of many NRMs - that they offer short-term good which in time reveals
itself as long-term destructiveness. In the light of both scripture
and the Ignatian tradition, what advice can be given? I would like
to present first an theoretical example of a potential candidate
for one of the NRMs, and thus suggest ways in which discernment
can be applied in practice.
A case history
Several months ago a twenty-one year old Italian student - let
us call him Cosimo - spoke to me about his personal situation. Some
weeks before, he had suffered a sudden break-up of a relationship
with a girlfriend - a decision forced on them by her family. He
is a first-year student of mathematics, who had previously studied
engineering and then abandoned it. He told me that he now wanted
to drop mathematics and take up philosophy or theology with the
idea of becoming a monk. He explained that while trying to study
mathematics, he experienced intense desire for meditation and prayer
and that surely this was a genuine sign from God that he should
follow. Most of us would share the doubts I immediately expressed
about his decision to change studies yet again, over the ultimate
genuineness of the desire for prayer. I say 'ultimate' because in
the immediate moment it could well be a good inclination; it is
within the whole context that it becomes more questionable. Even
to raise that question is to begin a process of discernment, since
at its simplest, discernment is the skill of recognising roots in
terms of fruits.
The problem was not only to identify the weak points in his decisional
logic but more delicately how to communicate this to him in a way
that would not cause alienation. I drew fairly directly on the rules
for discernment found in the Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius
of Loyola, and in particular on his advice to examine carefully
the beginning, middle and end of the process of decision-making.
In Cosimo's case, the middle seemed genuine enough but the beginning
and end were shadowed by serious doubts. By the 'middle', I mean
the actual desire for a fuller spiritual life and even the envisaging
of a religious vocation. Normally this in itself is good, generous,
in harmony with the gospel. But it would be too innocent to take
it in itself and not to hear the pressures of non-normality that
make this desire suspect: indeed that is the dangerous innocence
of many of those attracted to the NRMs.
However, let us return to the more obvious signals of disorder
- in what Ignatius might call the beginning and the end. Clearly
this whole movement in Cosimo's life has its roots in the desolation
of the break-up with his girlfriend. As regards the end, there is
the questionable impulsiveness of wanting to drop his present studies
(indeed changing for the second time within a year). Is he so sure
of his spiritual longings? Could not even the desire to pray be
a form of escape from academic duties? Gradually, as one sifts through
his experiences, one realises the potential for blind self-deception.
By 'blind' I mean that on his own, Cosimo is unlikely to raise these
questions or face these doubts. Using the Ignatian advice about
times of desolation - never to change a decision previously made
with the strength of consolation - one sees the probable seeds of
unwisdom in Cosimo's plan to abandon mathematics and to opt for
a religious journey in this way and at this time.
I have described this individual case because it can serve as
a parable of the dubious attractions of the NRMs in modern European
culture unless these skills of discernment are learned and communicated.
Parallel to the break-up in the background for Cosimo, there is
the sense of fragmentation of culture surrounding many young people
today. We speak of a fatherless society or a 'death of memory' -
with the result that many individuals are left without roots. Spiritual
desires become more dangerous when the person lacks an anchor in
community, memory or tradition, and the support of family or religion.
Frequently, there is also a disenchantment with so-called normal
life and its commitments. Add to this the fact that many people
live in states of unrecognised desolation, even in prisons of cultural
desolation. Against this background it can be dangerous when they
choose to follow an intense but somewhat impulsive desire for spiritual
commitment, something that in itself seems good. In such situations
therefore, practical discernment skills are crucial in order to
unmask potential self-deceptions.
Criteria for Christian choices
Standing back from the example given, what are some of the criteria
of a good and Christian decisions in the light of discernment? From
St. Paul one may select three essential points: the outcome should
build up the community of the church (cf. 1 Cor 14:4); at its core
there should be a recognition of Jesus as Lord (cf. 1 Cor. 12:3);
genuine fruits will be marked by love, joy, peace and other such
unfakeable qualities of spirit and of everyday living (cf. Gal.
5:22).[xiii] There are other criteria to be culled from
St. Paul, such as the capacity to endure persecution or to live
in tune with the Cross of Christ, but these three seem most relevant
in the contemporary situation. The danger of some NRMs is to be
sectarian and separatist, and hence break with the larger Church,
to move away from the fullness of faith in Christ as Lord into some
distorted view, and in the long term to narrow into a ghetto of
righteousness that can lack essentials of compassion and peace.
In this regard, and with an eye to the New Age movement, a recent
publication from the Pontifical Council for Dialogue with Non-Believers
listed various questions as 'tools for discernment':
Is this leading to compassion, gentleness and self-giving
or to self-concern and even to pride? ... is this experience leading
to a stronger sense of Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour or else
is it causing a certain vagueness about God? With regard to prayer,
is it rooted in a sense of reverence for God, and in a relationship
of friendship with Christ, or is it content with ways of meditation
that remain with a world of self-silence? ... Have these approaches
any place for a personal Saviour, or do they tend to self-pedal
the reality of sin and evil?[xiv]
The main thesis of this paper has been that the practical wisdom
and self-questioning at the heart of discernment can be of considerable
relevance in ministry to those in danger from the more dubious NRMs.
At the risk of repetition, I list the 'lights' as follows:
1. 'Good decisions can only come from the true self; bad decisions
spring from the pressures and panics of the false self. Therefore,
never make a decision when "down".'[xv]
2. Be aware that not every experience of peace or spiritual freedom
is genuine. Does it last? What fruits does it bear long-term? Where
is this leading?
3. Being afraid to explore such questions about self-deception
with a friend or counsellor outside your immediate circle is a sure
sign of danger and potential deception.
Conclusion
It is clear that most of what has been argued here is of more relevance
to those who might work with candidates for NRMs than for those
people themselves. If some level of self-awareness and inner freedom
is a precondition for spiritual discernment, then it is precisely
that requirement that is often dangerously lacking in the potential
members of many NRMs. If a further level of purification and conversion
to the values of the gospel is a precondition for specifically Christian
discernment, then even more so this plane remains beyond the horizon
of many of the young attracted to the NRMs. If they had attained
such a maturity, they would not be attracted to deceptive forms
of religiousness. Therefore discernment is a demanding skill often
out of reach for these potential aspirants. My argument is that
it is a vital word of wisdom for anyone who would try to minister
or counsel in this area, and also that it can be translated fruitfully,
at least
[i] Entitled Sects or New Religious Movements:
Pastoral Challenge, an English language version was brought
out by the Office of Publishing and Promotion Services, United
States Catholic Conference, Washington.
[ii] A summary of Cardinal Arinze's address, together
with reports from different continents on the challenge of sects,
was published in Catholic International, Vol. 2 No. 13,
1-14 July 1991, pp. 605-18.
[iii] Theological Studies, Vol. 52, 1992, pp
3-39.
[iv] On this point, see Pietro Schiavone, Il Discernimento
Evanqelico Oggi, CIS, Rome, 1988, pp. 76-7.
[v] Francesco Rossi de Gasperis, Ignace de la Potterie,
et al, Il Discernimento Spirituale del Cristiano Oggi,
FIES, Rome, 1984, p. 81.
[vi] For instance, the thoughts of St. Thomas Aquinas
on the moral virtue of prudence would be worth exploring further
in this context. For him, it was an individual skill, involving
a practical decision about means to ends, and hence was deliberative
rather than contemplative. See Thomas Gillby, 'Prudence', New
Catholic Encyclopaedia, Vol. II, New York, 1967, p.
26.
[vii] The paraphrase offered here draws on the 'Rules
of Discernment of Spirits', pp. 313-36 of The Spiritual
Exercises of St. Ignatius, ed. and trans. Louis Puhl, Loyola
University Press, Chicago, 1952. The quotation is from p. 329.
[ix] This phrase from 2 Cor. 11:14 is adapted by
Ignatius in p. 332. I draw here on the commentary of Pietro Schiavone,
Il Discernimento Evanqelico Oggi, CIS, Rome. 1988, pp.
76-7.
[xiii] See Jacques Guillet, 'Discernment des Esprits',
in Dictionnaire de Spritualite, 1957, cols. 1240-4.
[xiv] Cardinal Paul Poupard with Michael Paul Gallagher,
What will give us Happiness?, Veritas, Dublin, 1992, pp.
96-7.
[xv] Michael Paul Gallagher, Free to Believe:
Ten Steps to Faith, Darton, Longman and Todd, London, 1987,
p. 16
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