The rule of St. Benedict for a daily life, learning to listen to God with a discerning heart.

I'm Chris McGregor.

Guarding What is Hidden, Episode 44.

St. Gregory addresses a greater danger, one that often comes not at the beginning of responsibility,

but after a person has carried it for some time.

The danger isn't always open failure.

Sometimes it happens more quietly.

The strain of responsibility, the weariness that comes with it, and the temptation to be seen

as good, dependable, or necessary, can slowly wear down the heart. Those things become dangerous

when what we do becomes our identity instead of the one we serve. St. Gregory knows that what is most at risk is not only

the work itself, but the soul doing it. A person may continue serving, speaking, doing what

appears good, and yet gradually lose the hidden life with God that once gave the service its truth.

St. Gregory presses this point. Perseverance isn't dramatic. It's faithful, unseen, and steady.

From the pastoral rule of St. Gregory the Great.

Often the mind is lifted up by the good it does,

and while it seeks the praise of men, it loses the reward of God.

Therefore, the shepherd must guard the interior life more carefully than the works that are seen.

St. Gregory understands how easily even good work can become dangerous to the soul.

The problem isn't that the work is visible. The problem is that the heart can begin to feed

on being visible.

A person can start by serving others sincerely and end by quietly depending on recognition,

approval, or the comfort of being thought good.

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