This book is exactly what the title implies, sound advice for the healing of souls in the confessional. Saint Leonard was one of the great confessors of all time. He was a Franciscan and a missionary preacher. A must for priests but also very edifying reading for the faithful who wish to gain the most spiritual benefit from their sacramental confessions.

This rich classic passed out of common usage years ago, but here we find it restored for the first time to the benefit of the English reader. St. Alphonsus transformed the landscape of the experience of this Reconciliation, and our confessional experience would be unthinkable without his saintly, intellectual, and pastoral prowess. While the cultural and historical context is amazingly fascinating, it necessitates peeling back those layers to see the glimmering treasure within. For that reason, this edition provides an introductory essay that steps lightly to take note of these difference for a fruitful reception of the saint's genius. May all readers benefit for the greater glory of God.

Voices of Conscience analyzes how the link between politics and conscience was articulated and shaped throughout the seventeenth century by confessors who acted as counsellors to monarchs. Against the backdrop of the momentous intellectual, theological, and political shifts that marked this period, the study examines comparatively how the ethical challenges of political action were confronted in Spain and France and how questions of conscience became a major argument in the hegemonic struggle between the two competing Catholic powers. As Nicole Reinhardt demonstrates, 'counsel of conscience' was not a peripheral feature of early-modern political culture, but fundamental for the definition of politics and conscience. Tracing the rise and fall of confessors as counsellors reveals the parallel transformation of both, approaching a historical understanding of the modernisation of politics with the idea of an 'individual conscience' at its heart. Placed at the junction of norms and practices, royal confessors, directly or in oblique reflection, shaped the ways in which the royal conscience was identified and scrutinized. By the same token, the royal confessors' expertise and activities remained a source of anxiety and conflict that triggered wide debate on the relationship between State and Church, religion and politics. The notion of 'counsel of conscience', of which this book provides the first in-depth analysis, allows the reader to re-examine and challenge fundamental historical paradigms such as the emergence of 'absolutism', individualisation, and the division of public and private. Putting theological concepts and religious dimensions back into political theory and practice sheds new light, not only on the importance of counselling for early modern statecraft, but also on the reconfiguration of the normative frameworks underlying it.

This is a beautiful hard bound book. The Inquisition ordered this book to the Church's "Index Expurgatorius," and Molinos was condemned to life imprisonment for writing about a personal relationship with God through intense devotion, internal reflection and meditation. After all, what would happen to the Church if the people didn't feel they needed it anymore?A table of content was added in front of this edition rather than at the end like the original. Additionally we have prominently displayed the chapter on top of each page to make the text easier to navigate.We have resisted the temptation to "English the text," preferring instead to maintain historical accuracy which the Old English affords scholars.Whether your interest is in Scientific Illuminism, comparative religion, religious history or simple curiosity, we know that our edition of this important work will make a lasting impression upon you. This book is hard bound, and designed to last for many years.