Public-domain ebook
by Jeanne Marie Bouvier de la Motte Guyon
Language: en2,978 downloads on Project Gutenberg
Subjects
In: Christianity·Religion/Spirituality
Public-domain ebook sourced from Project Gutenberg #25133.
Spiritual Torrents is a devotional treatise that frames the path to divine union as a series of progressive “torrents” of the soul, each described in systematic detail. The work opens by distinguishing personal experience from any universal divine plan, then moves into a theological exposition on the necessity of “dying to sin” and being “crucified with Christ” before the inner life of Christ can be manifested. From this foundation the author outlines a short method of prayer, followed by an extensive table of contents that maps out degrees of prayer, spiritual dryness, abandonment, suffering, and the various “passive ways” of faith, culminating in a discussion of mystical death and the resurrection life. The opening passages therefore present the book as both a theological argument and a practical guide, organized into numbered chapters that promise a step‑by‑step progression toward deeper communion with God.
The voice is that of a late‑17th‑century French mystic writing in a dense, didactic style, replete with biblical allusions, analogies of rivers, and a careful categorisation of spiritual states. Its language is formal and reflective, aimed at readers accustomed to theological discourse rather than casual devotional reading. Those who appreciate historical Catholic mysticism, quietist theology, or the rigorous study of prayer practices will find the work rewarding, while modern seekers of spiritual depth may be drawn to its systematic approach to interior surrender.
The opening · free to read
The "Torrents" especially needs to be regarded rather as an account of the personal experience of the author, than as the plan which God invariably, or even usually, adopts in bringing the soul into a state of union with Himself. It is true that, in order that we may "live unto righteousness," we must be "dead indeed unto sin;" and that there must be a crucifixion of self before the life of Christ can be made manifest in us. It is only when we can say, "I am crucified with Christ," that we are able to add, "Nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me." But it does not follow that this inward death must always be as lingering as in the case of Madame Guyon. She tells us herself that the reason was, that she was not wholly resigned to the Divine will, and willing to be deprived of the gifts of God, that she might enjoy the possession of the Giver. This resistance to the will of God implies suffering on the part of the creature, and chastisement on the part of God, in order that He may subdue to Himself what is not voluntarily yielded to Him.
Of the joy of a complete surrender to God, it is not necessary to speak here: thousands of God's children are realising its blessedness for themselves, and proving that it is no hardship, but a joy unspeakable, to present themselves a living sacrifice to God, to live no longer to themselves, but to Him that died for them, and rose again.
A simple trust in a living, personal Saviour; a putting away by His grace of all that is known to be in opposition to His will; and an entire self-abandonment to Him, that His designs may be worked out in and through us; such is the simple key to the hidden sanctuary of communion.
A SHORT METHOD OF PRAYER.
CONTENTS.
CHAP. PAGE I. PRAYER POSSIBLE AT ALL TIMES, BY THE MOST SIMPLE 1
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