Pastoral Counseling

1
Pastoral Counseling

• Ordinary Diabolic Activity

2
General Means of avoiding near occasion of sin

• Avoidance of persons, places and things
• Prayer, penance good works
• Devotion to guardian angel
• Devotion to Our Lady, St. Michael etc.

3
Temptation

• The demons can use the cogitative power, the
  imagination, the memory and the passions.

4
The stages of temptations

• Suggestion
• Pleasure
• Consent

5
Avoiding and remedies for temptations

• Avoid the persons, places and things
• Be watchful
• Prayer by which God is placed on our side.
• We need grace from God
• We must avoid that proud presumption
• One must not fall prey to excessive fear about
  his ability to fall.
• Frequent the sacraments, esp. confession
  Communion.
• Sacramentals scapular, St. Benedict medal, holy
  water, holy oils.
• Foster an utter contempt for the demonic.

6
Resisting temptations

• Be prompt
• Never let them linger.
• Lower faculties await judgment of will.
• If will hesitates faculties perceive permission.
• One must never consent because that brings
  habituation.

7
Resisting Be Energetic

• Do not allow regret or attachment to object to
  get in way
• Throw away temptation each time
• Make resolutions of will each time it comes to
  imagination
• this leads to habituation
• Fight humbly
• Not alone, attribute to God, Our Lady, St.
  Michael ect.

8
Direct Resistance

• Faces up to temptation
• Does the opposite of the temptation

9
Indirect Resistance

• Withdraws from temptation
• Distracting mind to other object completely
  distinc

10
Distraction

• Calm mental experience
• hobby, pastime
• When object changes, passion dissipates
• Lower faculties learn not to be fixed on these
  objects
• Faculties wait for will
• Will habituated to move right away

11
Stages of change

• Appetite seeks or flees some object
• Easier to switch to something likable
• Suitable pleasure first at times (e.g. fishing)

12
Masturbation Sequence