Spiritual gluttony and reading

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mathematoons

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I read this passage in the book The Complete Spiritual Doctrine of St. Thérèse of Lisieux by Fr. François Jamart:

“She [St. Thérèse] did not indulge in that sort of spiritual gluttony that makes some ‘pious’ persons devour a great quantity of sweetly devotional books. Her reading list can be reduced to Holy Scripture, The Imitation of Christ, Fr. Surin’s Foundations of the Spiritual Life, Fr. Arminjon’s The End of the Present World and the Mysteries of Future Life, and the works of St. Teresa of Jesus and of St. John of the Cross.”

By contrast, I’ve been reading every little scrap of information on the faith I could get my hands on since my conversion nearly 7 years ago. But there’s only so much time I can spend on this, and even if I spent all day every day, I could still only scratch the surface. Plus, I keep going in circles: check my interpretation of the Bible and the Catechism by each other, then by the Fathers and Doctors, and then vice versa… It would probably be better if I limited the number of Catholic books I read (and those, only the best of the best of the best) and went more deeply into them, like St. Thérèse.

Anyone else experience this? If so, what did you do about the problem?
 
What you are doing does not sound to me like spiritual gluttony. It sounds like an earnest search for understanding.
 
This is something that I’ve wondered about myself. This is the approach that I take:
  • I ask myself why I’m reading something: is it so I can say I read it or am I looking to grow in this area?
  • If its the latter then I have to ask myself another question: am I giving myself the opportunity to do so or am I just rushing through it? Am I praying about it and meditating on it? Because what’s the point if it has no effect other than to make me feel accomplished?
  • Generally I like to read through something first and then come back and read it again to let it really “soak in”.
  • You also have to be able to identify when its time to let a book go. Many books are not worth finishing.
 
Hi Mathematoons,

I agree with what bpm said.

Also, it’s good to always place our reading–and everything we do–in the context of our relationship with Jesus through Mary. In my opinion it’s good to find what sources help you the most, and then focus on them–at least for a while. Personally I mostly use the same books over and over because, as you suggest, they are so wonderful that they are worth many readings. Of course this applies to Sacred Scripture. Crucial reference books like the Catechism. Encyclicals. Also to classics like True Devotion to Mary.
 
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Think of gluttony with food. The person eats more than they need to sustain themselves, so it becomes nothing more than pleasure seeking. Spiritual gluttony is no different. The person reads books that make them feel good, it’s the same pleasure seeking. Reading those books is not bad in itself. It depends on the intent of the reader. If they are reading to grow in the faith and become closer to God, there is nothing wrong. If they are reading because it makes them feel good, they need to reevaluate their behavior.

I do a lot of Catholic reading myself, partly to grow closer to God but also to better explain the faith to others. People respond to words differently. Sometimes one explanation or logical argument works better than another. So for me, part of my reading is to help me with our Catholic call to evangelize the world.
 
I’m not all that interested in checking my interpretations or considering philosophical viewpoints. I do like books that either help me pray better or tell an interesting and preferably true story. Many lives of the Saints were quite interesting and I read a lot of them in childhood. Am rediscovering the joy of doing so now.

As for the prayer books, they’re like fitness books. Realistically you’re better off buying and applying 1 or 2 at a time than buying 10 and not having time to read 9 of them.

I’ve read criticisms of “spiritual gluttony” with books before. My impression is that it was a trend back in the 19th and early 20th century to be always reading the latest spiritual book and carrying them around, basically showing off how holy you were, especially considering that back then many people could not read and/or could not afford to buy many books.
 
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I am really bad with spiritual gluttony. I love reading any Catholic book I can possibly find. Though it does inspire me, it has impeded my own relationship with God before. Even if I’m on the internet, I’ll find myself switching constantly from tab to tab, a different book on each tab, and I’ll read it for a few seconds before my attention span runs short. I’ve noticed these days my attention span is at an all time low.

I think I need to cut the internet and limit my books. Maybe set a schedule for myself.
 
I asked my spiritual director about this, and he said what I’m talking about is the vice of curiosity, which needs to be overcome by the virtue of studiosity.
 
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