The subject of God's will was for Alphonsus a theme of predilection, a theme dearest to his heart. Just as St. Ignatius stressed 'the greater glory of God, ' St. Alphonsus in all his works, gave prominence to 'the greater good pleasure of God.' The death of a friend deeply affected the Saint and he expressed his sentiments in a poem on God's will. The wide acclaim it received may have suggested to him the thought that a tract on the same subject would...