On the papal plane on the way home from his first international trip, Pope Leo XIV referenced a book that has greatly influenced his spirituality after being asked by a journalist about the conclave and what it’s been like becoming the pope.
“Besides St. Augustine,” Pope Leo said that “The Practice of the Presence of God” by a 17th-century Carmelite friar named Brother Lawrence of the Resurrection is a book that can help anyone to understand his spirituality.
“It’s a very simple book by someone who doesn’t even give his last name,” the pope told journalists on the papal plane Dec. 2. “I read it many years ago, but it describes a type of prayer and spirituality where one simply gives his life to the Lord and allows the Lord to lead.”
“And if you want to know something about me, that’s been my spirituality for many years, in midst of great challenges — living in Peru, during years of terrorism, being called to service in places where I never thought I would be called to serve to — I trust in God, and that message is something that I share with all people,” he continued.
After being asked what it was like for him during the conclave, Pope Leo mentioned the book and said: “I resigned myself to the fact, when I saw how things were going, [that] this could be a reality.”
“I took a deep breath. I said, here we go. Lord, you’re in charge, and you lead the way,” he said.
Who was Brother Lawrence?
“The Practice of the Presence of God” is a collection of Brother Lawrence’s teachings — memorialized in about 30 pages of letters and records of his conversations.
Though Brother Lawrence was virtually unknown in life, Father Joseph de Beaufort compiled his wisdom into a pamphlet published soon after his death in 1691. The book is now beloved by Catholics and Protestants alike.
In his writings, Brother Lawrence presents a spirituality that involves being constantly in contact with God, being accompanied by him in all things — from cooking to shoe repair.
Before he was Brother Lawrence, Nicholas Herman was a soldier during the Thirty Years’ War. Because of a wartime injury, his leg impaired his movement and caused him constant pain for life. But as a young adult, he had a vision of Christ that would inspire him for the rest of his life; or, as de Beaufort recalled: “which has never since been effaced from his soul.”
He went on to join the Discalced Carmelite Prior in Paris, doing humble work as a cook, and eventually working in the sandal repair shop as well.
Brother Lawrence believed that little things could please God just as much as great things.
“We ought not to be weary of doing little things for the love of God, who regards not the greatness of the work but the love with which it is performed,” he taught.
Amid the busy environment of a kitchen serving about 100 people, he still connected with God.
In one recorded conversation, de Beaufort recalled Brother Lawrence saying that “the time of business … does not with me differ from the time of prayer.”
“And in the noise and clutter of my kitchen, while several persons are at the same time calling for different things, I possess GOD in as great tranquillity as if I were upon my knees at the Blessed Sacrament,” he continued.
This article was originally published by CNA.
