An ardor for the cause of God that knows no defeat is what meets our eyes again and again in the lives of the saints. Take, for example, an episode in the life of St. John of God. Seeing a young man engaged in conversation with a harlot, presumably with a sinful intention in mind, the saint knelt down before him and besought him in Jesus’ name to abstain from the sin he was contemplating. Indignant at such an interference with his private affairs, the lad struck him in the face, exclaiming: “Mind your own affairs!” Imperturbably, the saint tendered him his other cheek and said: “Strike me as often as you like, only do not offend God.” Such was the force emanating from this serene contempt of self, this unflinching love for God and an erring fellow creature, that the young man not only abandoned his sinful project but was converted and became a disciple of the saint.

Or again, think of this scene from the life of another saint, Don Bosco. On his journey through a forest he was attacked by a robber shouting, “Your purse or your life!” He recognized the bandit’s voice as that of a former pupil of his, and spoke to him, deeply pained:

“Tonio, what a dangerous path you have chosen! You must change your life; you must confess your sins.” No fear for his life, no thought of himself is present in the saint’s mind; he is possessed by his zeal for the salvation of his fellow man’s soul and for the kingdom of God. In this case, too, the force of a holy hunger and thirst for the kingdom of God prevailed upon the sinner. A few seconds later he was kneeling at the feet of the saint, and making his confession.

Hunger and thirst for the kingdom of God is the very stigma of the saints. They all are devoured with zeal for the honor of God and filled with an unquenchable thirst to win men’s souls for God. But this, let it be clearly understood, is a supernatural zeal, not the enthusiasm and buoyancy of natural man—a zeal that is not merely directed towards God but grounded and anchored in Him, and informed by His Spirit.

Natural enthusiasm for the kingdom of God

For there is also such a thing as a natural zeal for the kingdom of God. The fact that our aim is supernatural does not by itself imply that our attitude is supernatural, too. For one thing, a kind of natural enthusiasm about the kingdom of God is sometimes to be met with, which is likely to flare up impetuously in certain moments but will not stand any hard test. It is deficient in constancy; whenever it encounters defeat or entails the necessity of a heavy personal sacrifice, it is apt to dwindle away. It lacks both ultimate earnestness and sterling solidity.