- Lorenzo Scupoli
Lorenzo (Lawrence) Scupoli, born about 1530, died on
28 November 1610 , was theauthor of "Il combattimento spirituale" ("TheSpirit ualCombat "), one of the most important works of Catholicspirituality .The life
Scupoli was from
Otranto inApulia . Atbaptism , he received the name Francesco (Francis ). Being already in a matureage in 1569, he joined theTheatines . He tookHoly Orders exceptionally fast, after eightyear s.In 1585 he was accused of breaking the
rule . He wasarrest ed for ayear and deprived of thepriesthood 's power. Finally he was exculpated fromblame , but he had to wait for it almost till hisdeath . He used to endure the injustaccusation s andpunishment s withhumility andmanfulness , sacrificing thesuffering for variousintention s."The Spiritual Combat"
In 1589 in
Venice the firstedition of the work of his life was printed. At once it gained hugeesteem and became abestseller . During the first 20 years it was published 60 times and translated into German,Latin , French, English and Spanish. Next there were made Portuguese, Croatian, Polish, Armenian, Greek, Arabian and Japanese versions. In the XIX century,Russia n monk Theophanes paraphrased it, writing "The Invisible Fight", a book which had big influence on theOrthodox Church . Until now there were as much as 600 editions of "The Spiritual Combat".The "
Combat " is a practical manual of living. At first it teaches that the sense of life is incessant fighting against egoistic longings and replacing them with sacrifice and charity. The one who does not do this loses, and suffers inHell ; the one who does it, trusting not in his own, butGod 's power, triumphs and is happy in Heaven. The work of Scupoli analyses various usual situations and advises how to cope with them, preserving a pureconscience and improvingvirtue . It emphasizes also the boundless goodness of God, which is the cause of all good. What is bad originates from the human who rebels against God.External links
*it icon [http://www.monasterovirtuale.it/scupoli.html "The Spiritual Combat" in the original language]
* [http://www.catholictradition.org/Classics/combat.htm in English]
* [http://www.copiosa.org/spirituality/spiritual_combat.htm also in English]
* [http://muweb.alumni.marymount.edu/~jep21166/SpiritualCombat/TOC.html as above]
*fr icon [http://livres-mystiques.com/partieTEXTES/Scupoli/LeCombat.html in French]
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