AVOID THIS SPIRITUAL DANGER WHEN PURSUING KNOWLEDGE OF GOD
One of the basic requirements in developing a relationship with God is to acquire knowledge about God. As the old saying goes, you can’t love what you don’t know. However, when pursuing knowledge of God, there is a spiritual danger that can lead to our ruin, instead of salvation. Italian priest Fr. Lorenzo Scupoli explained this pitfall in his spiritual classic The Spiritual Combat, published in 1589. He wrote, “Be sober and humble even in the desire to understand heavenly things, wishing to know nothing but Christ crucified, His life, His death, and what He requires of thee.” Scupoli continues: By following these instructions you will avoid many dangers; for when the wily serpent sees the will of those who are aiming at the spiritual life to be strong and resolute, he attacks their understanding, that so he may master both the one and the other. The devil recognizes our desire for knowledge, which is a good desire, but then tries to pervert it. Instead of allowing us to p