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Andrew M. Greenwell: St. Bonaventure on Counsel

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In Bonaventure's analysis of this gift of counsel, there are three steps to sound counsel, which we may also call distinctions.  Counsel relates to whether something is permitted, and, if permitted, whether it is appropriate, and, if permitted and appropriate, whether it is expedient.  Clearly, the gift of counsel is related, and so is in some manner analogous to, to the virtue of prudence.

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Highlights

span style="line-height: 1.22;">CORPUS CHRISTI, TX (Catholic Online) - In this series of articles addressing St. Bonaventure's teaching of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit-the "holy seven," sacrum septenarium-we will address the gift of counsel (consilium).  Prior articles dealt with the gifts of fear of the Lord (timor Domini), piety (pietas), knowledge (scientia), and fortitude (fortitudo).
The gift of counsel (consilium) relates to our life hidden with Christ in God.  (cf. Col. 3:3).  Specifically, it relates to what we must believe (faith/truth), what we must do (the good), and how we must do it.  
In an audience on May 7, 2014, Pope Francis said some lovely things about this gift of counsel, and it is worth mentioning them here.  "Now, through the gift of counsel, it is God himself, through his spirit, who enlightens our heart so as to make us understand the right way to speak and to behave and the way to follow."  
In Bonaventure's analysis of this gift of counsel, there are three steps to sound counsel, which we may also call distinctions.  Counsel relates to whether something is permitted, and, if permitted, whether it is appropriate, and, if permitted and appropriate, whether it is expedient.  Clearly, the gift of counsel is related, and so is in some manner analogous to, to the virtue of prudence.
However, the gift of counsel is directly tied-not to virtue and temporal goods, but to salvation.  Therefore, the gift of counsel is the divine aid which allows us to know what is permitted for salvation, what is proper for salvation, and what is expeditious for salvation.
The gift of counsel addresses our action with respect to three levels: reason, will, and virtue.  First, it addresses what is true according to right reason and divine law.  It is therefore directly tied into the natural moral law, what is called the "first grace," and divine law as contained in the Old Testament and New Testaments.  Compliance with the natural moral law and divine positive law is essential for salvation.  Those who disobey the commandments of the Lord, whether found in nature or revealed, cut themselves out from God's grace.
"'Keep the law and counsel, and you will have grace in your mouth and life in your soul,'" observed St. Bonaventure, quoting Proverbs 3:21-22.
Relative to right reason or the natural moral law, the gift of counsel helps us understand what God, speaking to us through nature, right reason, and revelation (and by implication that teaching Church, the Magisterium), has made good and therefore what is permitted, appropriate, and expedient in a life of grace.
The gift of counsel also addresses what is good according to good will, and allows us to peer behind the natural moral law and the divine commandments to understand the divine reason behind that law.  We realize that these are not arbitrary, but are meant for our own good.
Here, nature, right reason, and moral theology are not the focus, but direct access to God whose thoughts are not our thoughts, and whose ways are not our ways.  (Cf. Isaiah 55:8).  This sort of counsel is learned not by study, but by prayer.  St. Bonaventure urges us to ask the Lord to direct our ways so that his counsels may remain in us.  "No matter how much knowledge a person has," St. Bonaventure observes, "it is still necessary to seek counsel of the Lord."  [VII, 12]
As Pope Francis expresses this truth very well in his audience: "The essential condition for preserving this gift [of counsel] is prayer. . . . To ask the Lord: 'Lord, help me, give me counsel, what must I do now?'  And through prayer we make space so that the Spirit may come and help us in that moment, that he may counsel us on what we all must do. Prayer! Never forget prayer. Never!"
Finally, the gift of counsel aids us in understanding what accords with the practice of virtue as we seek to live our life according to the true and the good.  In this sense, it looks at concrete or practical sanctity, especially as practiced by our Lord and the saints of God.  The saints help us to see the how of living a life both true and good.  This is the "science of the Saints."  
This counsel recognizes the wisdom of going beyond ourselves, and not trusting ourselves exclusively even when it comes to colloquy with God.  "One form of counsel consists in this," teaches St. Bonaventure, "that a person does not take counsel of himself, but ought to ask another for counsel." [VII, 11, 13]  
In the spiritual life led solo, there is a high risk that we may fool ourselves, and substitute our own desires as if it were the will of God.  "A fool's way is right in his own eyes."  (Prov. 12:15).  Or as the old saw has it: the man who acts as his own counsel has a fool for a client.
But even seeking counsel outside of ourselves is not enough.  The gift of counsel as it relates to the practice of virtue therefore allows us to "distinguish between counselors in order to choose a good one and avoid a bad one."  We must not follow a blind man, lest both the counselor and the counseled fall into the ditch.  (Cf. Matt. 15:14)  
Therefore, the gift of counsel not only encourages us to seek good counsel, but it also puts us on guard against evil counsel.  "Thus it is written," says St. Bonaventure quoting Sirach 37:9, "'Keep your soul from an evil counselor.'"
Wisely, St. Bonaventure says that the counsel of the virtuous seeks the advice of "divinely inspired men."  Quoting Sirach 37:9, 14-16, St. Bonaventure observes that we ought not to listen to every counsel, but to associate only with a holy man.  [VII, 13]  
Of course, the Christian knows that the great counselor is Jesus Christ.  In Isaiah's resplendent words: Jesus is "wonderful, counselor," or, as the Litany of the Holy Name of Jesus (drawing from the translation of the Hebrew in the Septuagint) puts it, Jesus is our "angel of great counsel." (Cf. Is. 9:6).  "It is he," St. Bonaventure urges, "to whom we must listen with a pure heart."  "There is no firm counsel except that of my God."
Again, Pope Francis has some beautiful reflections about the role that Jesus has in the gift of counsel, and it merits repeating them:
"[T]he Holy Spirit . . . . leads us more and more to turn our interior gaze to Jesus, as the model of our way of acting and of relating with God the Father and with the brethren.  Counsel, then, is the gift through which the Holy Spirit enables our conscience to make a concrete choice in communion with God, according to the logic of Jesus and his Gospel."
But Jesus-despite being the epitome of counsel-does not deem his counsel something to be grasped at, and he shares his counsel with His saints.  Indeed, that is precisely what the gift of counsel is, the sharing of Christ's counsel with the saints of the Church through the Holy Spirit.  "That counselor, namely, Christ, has many counselors with whom he shares his counsel."  [VII, 15]
"If you wish to hear the testimony of the saints about these counsels, ask Anthony, Paphnutius, and Macarius. . . . Ask bishops such asw Basil, Augustine, Martin, and Gregory. . . . Also ask Benedict. . . . Ask Dominic and Francis."  And so on.  Given the plethora of canonized saints in the Roman calendar, there is a saint to counsel us in any situation.  
We are fools not to take counsel from the writings and the lives of the saints.  In a lovely expression, St. Bonaventure calls the saints, "Lambs come forth from the Lamb," and "lights to illumine the counsels."  [VII, 16]
Unfortunately, the world is full of bad counselors and bad counsel.  Since the wheat grows with the tares in the Church (cf. Matt. 13:24-30), we should not unexpectedly find bad counsel even within our Church.
Given the modern doctrinal and moral confusion in the Church, it is perhaps good to focus on St. Bonaventure's rules regarding bad counsel.  Bad counselors are those who twist great matters into nothing, qui magna convertit in nihilum (and, by implication, also nothing into great matters).  Bad counselors are those who turn good things to evil things, quo bona convertit in malum (or evil things to good things).  Finally, bad counselors are those who change certainty into doubt, qui certa deducit in dubium (or doubt into certainty). [VII, 17]
In our confused times, we should pray for the gift of counsel with celerity and great vehemence so that we might choose what is conducive to our spiritual advancement, what will increase our faith, hope, and love of God, and what will lead to the increase of virtue and the extirpation of vice.  We must also pray for the gift of counsel so that we might discover and avoid the wiles and snares of the tempter, the Father of lies, and all his evil counselors.
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Andrew M. Greenwell is an attorney licensed to practice law in Texas, practicing in Corpus Christi, Texas.  He is married with three children.  He maintains a blog entirely devoted to the natural law called Lex Christianorum.  You can contact Andrew at agreenwell@harris-greenwell.com.

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