Chapter IV The Virtue of Faith Faith, the fourth virtue mentioned in the Gospel, which you should possess and cultivate in three ways, in imitation of the Virgin. The Virgin Mary was always most firm in faith, and from this faith, in order to please God, she thought, spoke and acted as follows: She conceived the Son of God in faith, humility and obedience. She went up to the hill country, and, entering Zechariah’s house, she greeted St. Elizabeth. Indeed, in view of all this, St. Elizabeth congratulated her: “Blessed is she who trusted the Lord’s words to her would be fulfilled” [cf. Lk 1:45]. According to the example and in imitation of the Virgin, devoted souls, in order to please God, must be firm in faith [cf. 1 Pt 5:9], because without faith it is impossible to please God [cf. Heb 11:6]. Through faith, they must also conceive Jesus and climb the mount of perfection, so as to be able to do some good in Zechariah’s house, that is, in the Church or in the religious institute. To truly greet St. Elizabeth is to share in the good works of the saints. No one, therefore, can be received into this Order who is not faithful Catholic, or is suspected of heresy, or is excommunicated from the Roman Church. For how could anyone be received into this Order that is totally dedicated to pleasing God unless he is faithful and orthodox? In order to possess the virtue of faith more perfectly, let them most diligently avoid tangling themselves in inquisitive or scrupulous ideas about faith, but rather they should simply believe that which holy Mother Church believes. The Superiors are bound to ask the Holy Father for one of the cardinals of the Roman Church to be Protector of this Order. The members will owe obedience and reverence to him, and will be subject to the Apostolic See, to the Roman Church, The Rule of Imitation of the Ten Evangelical Virtues 313
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