Catholic Manhood – Four Types of Watchfulness

>Have you ever experienced an intrusive thought, seemingly out of nowhere, and embarrassingly realized how evil it was? Or, after clenching your fists and grinding your teeth for five minutes, have you realized you had been internally contemplating a current event that caused you to lose your temper and unjustly lash out at someone? How do we combat these intrusive thoughts?>How do we cultivate interior peace and guard our senses to quickly dismiss these thoughts when temptation arises? I would like to suggest that, in the face of evil thoughts and temptations, we should adopt a spirit of “watchfulness.” When accompanied by prayer, watchfulness is a spiritual practice that can lead us to one of the eight beatitudes, purity of heart (Matthew 5:8).


Originally published in Catholic Manhood. Read original article