The Three Ways of the Interior Life

The spiritual life is a path. The soul that turns toward God advances, grows, is transformed. The Catholic tradition, since the Fathers of the Church, has recognized in this path three great stages, which it calls the three ways: the purgative way, where the soul purifies itself of its sins; the illuminative way, where it grows in the virtues and the light of God; the unitive way, where it is united to him in love. These three ways are three moments of one same movement, like the childhood, the youth and the mature age of one same life. To know them helps to situate oneself, to understand what God works in us, and to keep courage when the path becomes hard.

The purgative way: to purify

The first moment is that of purification. The soul that turns toward God discovers first what in it draws it away from him: sin, bad habits, disordered attachments. The purgative way is the work of cleansing, where one breaks with grave sin, then where one fights little by little the lighter faults and the evil inclinations. It is the stage of the combat against the passions, and of the conversion that begins again each day. The aim of this purification is to make the heart able to see God, for it is purity that opens the eyes of the soul: “Blessed are the pure of heart, for they will see God.” Matthew 5:8. A heart cluttered with sins does not perceive God; it must first be purified. And this purification passes through the humble confession of one’s faults, where God himself cleanses what man cannot cleanse alone: “If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive them and to purify us of all iniquity.” 1 John 1:9. The purgative way is the work of the beginner, but it remains all of life: one purifies oneself unceasingly. It is the demanding stage, at times arid, yet necessary, for one builds something solid only on a unified heart.

The illuminative way: to grow in the light

When the soul has freed itself from sin, it enters a second moment, where it actively seeks the good after fleeing evil. It is the illuminative way, so named because the soul is there enlightened by the light of Christ, who guides its steps: “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” John 8:12. At this stage, the soul grows in the virtues, learns to know God more deeply, and imitates Christ more closely. Prayer becomes simpler and more loving, charity more active. It is the time when the love of God grows and is strengthened, according to Saint Paul’s wish: “That your charity may abound more and more in knowledge and in all understanding.” Philippians 1:9. And while it contemplates God, the soul is transformed little by little into his image, becoming more like the one it gazes upon: “We all, with unveiled face, reflecting as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are transformed into the same image, ever more resplendent.” 2 Corinthians 3:18. The illuminative way is that of progress, where the soul advances in the light and lets itself be shaped by it.

The unitive way: to be united to God

The third moment is the goal of the whole path: union with God. The soul purified and illuminated lives united to him, in a charity so deep that its whole life is inhabited by his presence. This is what Saint Paul expresses when he says that it is no longer he who lives, but Christ in him: “If I live, it is no longer I who live, it is Christ who lives in me.” Galatians 2:20. At this stage, the soul abides in God as the branch in the vine, receiving from him all its sap and bearing abundant fruit: “I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever abides in me, and I in him, bears much fruit.” John 15:5. This union is a union of love, for God is love, and it is by loving that one abides in him: “God is love; and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.” 1 John 4:16. The unitive way is the stage of the perfect, whose heart is wholly turned toward God, and who live already, on earth, a foretaste of the eternal union. This union, begun here below, is that for which Christ himself prayed for his own: “That all may be one, as you, my Father, are in me, and I in you.” John 17:21.

One same path, three moments

These three ways overlap and intermingle, rather than forming three sealed compartments: one still purifies oneself when already illuminated, and union with God begins well before being full. The progression passes through setbacks, trials, nights where the soul seems to lose what it had gained, and which are in reality deeper purifications that God works himself. What matters is less to know at which stage one stands, which would flatter curiosity or pride, than to walk faithfully, letting oneself be led by God. For it is he who leads the soul from one way to another, at its own pace, according to what it needs. Man’s part is to walk without stopping, to consent to the purification, to open himself to the light, and to let himself be united. The goal of the path is a gift to receive: God himself, who gives himself to whoever seeks him.