A Voice to Guide Us

Whether we face chaos and darkness or are merely attempting the lifelong process of following Jesus in our world, there are times when we need the voice of someone whose life and age and wisdom insist we be quiet and listen. I believe this to be a human constant. We need guides. Old or young, woman or man, we are all the same. And, eventually, most of us come to this conclusion: a spiritual life is not something we can do on our own.

But sadly, many of us are alone, and we don’t know where to turn. I have an early memory. I was young, perhaps three. My parents and I were in a K‑Mart, where I vaguely remember some voice announcing a Blue-Light Special being offered among the labyrinth of shopping aisles. Something must have grabbed my atention, and I darted off, slipping away from my parents and into the exhilarating world of potential playthings. Soon, however, what was adventurous and enticing grew menacing and frightful. I realized I was alone. It was a new, terrifying experience to fling at a three-year-old soul. I don’t know how long I stood there in panic, but now, in this terrifying place, I didn’t know what to do. All I had were fear and questions. All I had was myself. 

Thankfully, two attentive nuns noticed a very frightened young boy. They kindly came up beside me, stooped down, asked my name, and told me I would be okay. They took me to the customer service counter, where a crackling voice hit the PA system, letting the entire store know that there was a little boy waiting for his parents. Within moments, Mom and Dad arrived and gathered me up. I was safe. Yet I had needed a guide — in this instance, two guides — to show me the way. 

I am no longer a little boy, but I still need guides. One I have found is named François Fénelon. A French Bishop who lived from 1651 until 1715, Fénelon lived and served during tumultous times. Louis XIV sat on the French throne, and his court was notorious for its debased character.…

I am most intrigued with the context in which Fénelon writes. Most of his young friends were situated in the middle of a place where sin and power reigned. Their world was steeped in power grabs and self-promotion and a commitment to giving one’s self to any whim or passing desire that might shuffle by. Notions of peace and discipline and sacrifice and mercy were entirely out of favor, almost unknown. How would these correspondents love and obey Jesus in the midst of such depravity? This question and the culture that forced it form the background to Fénelon’s letters.… He encourages a tribe of young disciples to seek a subversive and radical life of incarnation. He never encourages them to do the easy thing and withdraw from the darkness surrounding them. Rather, he encourages them to, like Jesus who came as God in the flesh, incarnate a new way in the very middle of the old way. Fénelon prods his correspondents toward the improbable. He suggests that they subvert the lies by simply living the truth.

Many of us long for a wise elder voice to provide us with spiritual direction. We do not want to be coddled or cajoled. We do not want to be given small-minded moralisms. We long for depth and authenticity. We do not want a quick fix or a trite answer. We just want a wiser voice, one who knows God and his ways. And we want to learn how to live in our world in a manner that is truly good. If we will listen to Fénelon, we will find much of what we seek.