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Heliotropium: Conformity of the Human Will to the Divine
Like the heliotropium, an ancient form of sunflower that constantly turned its face toward the sun, so the will of man should be constantly turned toward God - to know and follow His Holy Will. Failure to recognize and accept the Will of God can condemn a soul to misery. Conformity to God's Holy Will, on the other hand, brings peace and contentment to the human heart and is the key to holiness and salvation. In this famous classic, Father Jerernias Drexelius, S.J. tells how to recognize God's Will, how we should conform ourselves to it, the hindrances we encounter and the assistances we receive toward accepting it, and the great benefits that we will derive from this conformity. He also explains the great importance of trust in God. The key to happiness and peace is the conviction that God has a Will for us and that our greatest good is to be derived by discovering what that Will is-and thereafter by putting our own will into conformity with God's Holy Will. In Heliotropium, Fr. Drexelius explains this blessed way of life, which can bring a foretaste of Heaven
- GenresCatholic
430 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1985
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81 people want to read
About the author
Jeremias Drexel
116 booksJeremias Drexel S.J. (also known as Hieremias Drexelius or Drechsel)was a Jesuit writer of devotional literature and a professor of the humanities and rhetoric. He served for 23 years as court preacher in Munich to Maximilian I, Elector of Bavaria and his wife Elizabeth of Lorraine.
Drexel was born in Augsburg and was raised as Lutheran. However, he was converted to Catholicism in his youth and educated by the Jesuits before entering the Jesuit Order. He taught the Jesuit seminarians at Dillingen as professor of rhetoric, and then for 23 years he was a court preacher to Maximilian I, the prince-elector of Bavaria in the Holy Roman Empire. It is said that his voice was strong enough to be heard in every corner of the church and that his sermons were such that an hour would seem like a few minutes. During this period he accompanied Maximilian on his Bohemian campaign. He died in Munich.
Drexel gave up preaching in 1621 and devoted himself to writing a biography of the Duchess and composing theological works redolent of his baroque preaching fervour. Drexel was fond of pictorial symbols to make his teachings concrete and thus most of his books are elegantly illustrated. Jeremias is the author of some 20 works that were widely read and translated. His writings on the eternal truth, the virtues and the Christian exemplar were popular; hundreds of thousands of copies of his works were printed. By 1642 in Munich alone, 170,700 copies of his works had appeared. His first work, De aeternitate considerationes, concerned various representations of eternity. Another of his works, Heliotropism, discussed man's recognition of the divine will and conformity to it.
Drexel was born in Augsburg and was raised as Lutheran. However, he was converted to Catholicism in his youth and educated by the Jesuits before entering the Jesuit Order. He taught the Jesuit seminarians at Dillingen as professor of rhetoric, and then for 23 years he was a court preacher to Maximilian I, the prince-elector of Bavaria in the Holy Roman Empire. It is said that his voice was strong enough to be heard in every corner of the church and that his sermons were such that an hour would seem like a few minutes. During this period he accompanied Maximilian on his Bohemian campaign. He died in Munich.
Drexel gave up preaching in 1621 and devoted himself to writing a biography of the Duchess and composing theological works redolent of his baroque preaching fervour. Drexel was fond of pictorial symbols to make his teachings concrete and thus most of his books are elegantly illustrated. Jeremias is the author of some 20 works that were widely read and translated. His writings on the eternal truth, the virtues and the Christian exemplar were popular; hundreds of thousands of copies of his works were printed. By 1642 in Munich alone, 170,700 copies of his works had appeared. His first work, De aeternitate considerationes, concerned various representations of eternity. Another of his works, Heliotropism, discussed man's recognition of the divine will and conformity to it.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
November 22, 2020
This book, written in 1627, is am excellent treatise on the topic of God's will and the necessity of our conforming to it, if we desire the happiest possible existence in this life and the next. It is a bit long and seems to tread over the same ground, but since conformity to God's will is such a difficult thing the repetition is not a bad thing.
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December 18, 2009Wanda said this is referenced in Uniformity with God's Will.
June 13, 2013
Amazing must read for every Christian
September 13, 2025
Absolutely a must-read for all Christians.
The book derives its name from the sunflower, the plant that has the habit of turning its face to the sun at all times. The heliotrope excellently represents the attitude of the faithful soul toward the Will of God.
And that is a nice and beautiful thought, but it only skims the surface. This book goes intensely deeper than that.
This book with strengthen one's understanding of Divine Providence. The knowledge of Divine Providence will lead to Trust in God. And this trust passes into sweet union with the Divine Will.
This was the absorbing study of all the saints: Recognize God's Providence in ALL things -> Trust in God -> Conform to the Divine Will.
This book is replete with stories, Scripture, examples and teachings from the life of Christ, and lengthy quotes from saints like Augustine and Chrysostom.
The foundation of the book, and perhaps the hardest thing for our modern ears, is that nothing, absolutely nothing, is done in the world without the Will of God, sin being the only exception. Today, the prevailing theological theory is that God only wills good things for us, but this simply doesn't jive with Scripture, the Church Fathers, or any theologian prior to our modern age. When a man cannot accept that all he suffers comes from God, it is from a lack of faith. But the truth is that adverse things come from God just as much as prosperous things. We must ascribe *all things* to the will of God. "Whatever has befallen you, which is really for your advantage, know that God has caused it, as being the Creator of all good." And so these two points must be mastered: 1) Whatever happens is done by Divine Providence; 2) Ascribe all things with complete confidence to Divine Providence.
-> "Whatsoever shall befall as just man, it shall not make him sad." - Proverbs 12:21
-> " All this evil is from God. Most justly does God chastise me. It is the Lord, let Him do what is good in His sight." (1 Kings 3:18)
-> "Yea, Father, for so hath it seemed good in Thy sight" (Matt 11:26)
For an upright man, every calamity is an occasion of virtue. Be assured, there is a reason for what He does, even if you have no evidence. The just man feels afflictions, but he is not conquered by them. The violent assault of adversity does not affect the mind of a brave man. "The just are as bold as lions." - Prov. 18:1.
Another important point of the book is that the most acceptable sacrifice to God is the offering of one's own will. There is no greater sacrifice that we can make to God than to give Him our will. In everything else, man offers his goods, but by giving his will, he gives his entire self. "My son, give Me thy heart." - Prov. 23:26. When you have given God your heart, you have truly given Him everything.
The author also touches on:
-what hinders us from conforming to God's will?
-what things strengthen man's will against God's will?
-the true, solid, everlasting inner peace that comes to those who are entirely conformed to God's will
-the importance of having confidence in God
-trust in divine Providence.
One of the things I appreciate the most about this book is the stories from the Old Testament. He dives into the stories Abraham, Moses, Joseph, Noah, Job, Jonas, Tobias -- using them all as examples of God's mysterious ways in dealing with man; how, in His perfect wisdom, He works what appears to be evil for good.
The whole sum of sanctity is referring the cause of all things, great and small, to God alone, and most readily submitting oneself in everything to the Divine Will.
The book derives its name from the sunflower, the plant that has the habit of turning its face to the sun at all times. The heliotrope excellently represents the attitude of the faithful soul toward the Will of God.
And that is a nice and beautiful thought, but it only skims the surface. This book goes intensely deeper than that.
This book with strengthen one's understanding of Divine Providence. The knowledge of Divine Providence will lead to Trust in God. And this trust passes into sweet union with the Divine Will.
This was the absorbing study of all the saints: Recognize God's Providence in ALL things -> Trust in God -> Conform to the Divine Will.
This book is replete with stories, Scripture, examples and teachings from the life of Christ, and lengthy quotes from saints like Augustine and Chrysostom.
The foundation of the book, and perhaps the hardest thing for our modern ears, is that nothing, absolutely nothing, is done in the world without the Will of God, sin being the only exception. Today, the prevailing theological theory is that God only wills good things for us, but this simply doesn't jive with Scripture, the Church Fathers, or any theologian prior to our modern age. When a man cannot accept that all he suffers comes from God, it is from a lack of faith. But the truth is that adverse things come from God just as much as prosperous things. We must ascribe *all things* to the will of God. "Whatever has befallen you, which is really for your advantage, know that God has caused it, as being the Creator of all good." And so these two points must be mastered: 1) Whatever happens is done by Divine Providence; 2) Ascribe all things with complete confidence to Divine Providence.
-> "Whatsoever shall befall as just man, it shall not make him sad." - Proverbs 12:21
-> " All this evil is from God. Most justly does God chastise me. It is the Lord, let Him do what is good in His sight." (1 Kings 3:18)
-> "Yea, Father, for so hath it seemed good in Thy sight" (Matt 11:26)
For an upright man, every calamity is an occasion of virtue. Be assured, there is a reason for what He does, even if you have no evidence. The just man feels afflictions, but he is not conquered by them. The violent assault of adversity does not affect the mind of a brave man. "The just are as bold as lions." - Prov. 18:1.
Another important point of the book is that the most acceptable sacrifice to God is the offering of one's own will. There is no greater sacrifice that we can make to God than to give Him our will. In everything else, man offers his goods, but by giving his will, he gives his entire self. "My son, give Me thy heart." - Prov. 23:26. When you have given God your heart, you have truly given Him everything.
The author also touches on:
-what hinders us from conforming to God's will?
-what things strengthen man's will against God's will?
-the true, solid, everlasting inner peace that comes to those who are entirely conformed to God's will
-the importance of having confidence in God
-trust in divine Providence.
One of the things I appreciate the most about this book is the stories from the Old Testament. He dives into the stories Abraham, Moses, Joseph, Noah, Job, Jonas, Tobias -- using them all as examples of God's mysterious ways in dealing with man; how, in His perfect wisdom, He works what appears to be evil for good.
The whole sum of sanctity is referring the cause of all things, great and small, to God alone, and most readily submitting oneself in everything to the Divine Will.
June 19, 2021
“Heliotropium - Conformity of the Human Will to the Divine” has been a planned Catholic read for many years. As might be expected it is rich in scripture references. Many parts of the Bible that I have read really reverberated for me when in the context of a particular chapter meditation. For example from Book 5 chapter 3 referencing the prophet/wonder worker Eliseus regarding God being our help in tribulations. “Fear not: for there are more with us than with them” (4 Kings vi. 16)
Besides scripture there is many Doctors of the church quoted and other Saints. The list is extensive but to name a few - St Jerome, St John Chrysostom, St Augustine, Damascine, and authors less known or unknown to me, such as Theophilus Bernardinus.
As stated in the inside cover the word heliotropium is a Latin name for an ancient plant that turns to the sun at all times. Helio - Sun. Tropos - turn.
The book was published in Cologne in 1630 (Latin edition). With it being a 17th century work, the Saints quoted, pre-date Modern Saints and Doctors of the Church. Eg St Alphonsus Ligouri
From page 1 “Lord, what wilt Thou have me do?” Acts ix. 6.
Besides scripture there is many Doctors of the church quoted and other Saints. The list is extensive but to name a few - St Jerome, St John Chrysostom, St Augustine, Damascine, and authors less known or unknown to me, such as Theophilus Bernardinus.
As stated in the inside cover the word heliotropium is a Latin name for an ancient plant that turns to the sun at all times. Helio - Sun. Tropos - turn.
The book was published in Cologne in 1630 (Latin edition). With it being a 17th century work, the Saints quoted, pre-date Modern Saints and Doctors of the Church. Eg St Alphonsus Ligouri
From page 1 “Lord, what wilt Thou have me do?” Acts ix. 6.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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