Spiritual Self-Defense

Late Saturday morning in the common room of the seminary, it is not uncommon to find a group of seminarians fighting in pairs, each trying to subdue his opponent by means of arm bars and chokeholds. Overseeing this struggle is a former Army training instructor turned seminarian, the leader of the seminary’s Self-Defense Club. Members of this club learn techniques that can be used in physical combat to protect themselves from serious injury and subdue an aggressor. Along with self-preservation, there are various physical benefits gained from these practices, such as increased strength, endurance, and motor skills.
 
This self-defense practice also improves certain mental skills. First off, in the midst of action, it is often necessary to think and act quickly, so these fights help each of us to process what is going on in our situation and respond to it quickly and efficiently. On the other hand, we also need to remain calm and collected so that we are able to observe what our opponent is trying to do. We must not only counter and respond to the move but figure out what to do if plan A goes wrong. We learn to wait until an opportunity presents itself, maintaining our position and conserving energy for a moment at which we can move without hesitation.
 
These abilities translate well into self-defense in the spiritual life. It is important to be constantly aware of ways in which the Devil is trying to subdue us. He knows our weaknesses better than we do, and he works to exploit them at every turn. Thus, we too must become aware of our weaknesses, so that we know how to fend off his attacks at those points and how we can respond quickly to repulse temptations. And when the struggle is fierce and it is hard to see how we can overcome our opponent, as in the midst of spiritual desolation—a feeling of distance from God—it is necessary to hold off from any rash action, and hold on to the position we have, maintaining our regular devotions and routines of prayer, until the grace of God provides an opportunity to dispel the darkness of desolation, allowing us to conquer the trial and be stronger for its difficulty.
 
Finally, this self-defense practice teaches us how to be humble, both in victory and defeat. When we are overcome by our brothers, we have the opportunity to graciously accept defeat and respectfully acknowledge the abilities of our brothers. In this we are reminded that it is not our own strength by which we succeed in the battle for our souls, for on our own we will not last a second against the Evil One. In victory, we must always remember that it is by the gifts that God has given us in mind and body by which we succeed, and so too we conquer Satan not by our own power and virtue, but by the Blood of the Lamb, Who defended Himself in no way from the suffering and death He chose to endure, so that He could defend us all from eternal suffering and death, and so bring us into everlasting life.

Mr. Nelson is a College IV seminarian for the Archdiocese of Baltimore.