Seven spiritual weapons

Holy Mother Church proposes the lives of the Saints to us as examples of Christian living. Looking to the Saints, we learn from them a great many hints and tips, if you will, to remaining faithful to Christ Jesus.

Recently Pope Benedict XVI held up the example of Saint Catherine of Bologna (1413-1463) and made mention of the seven spiritual weapons she wrote of to combat the devil:

1. always to be careful and diligently strive to do good
2. to believe that alone we will never be able to do something truly good
3. to trust in God and, for love of him, never to fear in the battle against evil, either in the world or within ourselves
4. to meditate often on the events and words of the life of Jesus, and especially on his Passion and his death
5. to remember that we must die
6. to focus our minds firmly on memory of the goods of Heaven
7. to be familiar with Sacred Scripture, always cherishing it in our hearts so that it may give direction to all our thoughts and all our actions.

If you want to deepen your life of faith but aren't sure where to begin, these seven weapons are a good place to start.