The refusal to take sides on great moral issues is itself a decision. It is a silent acquiescence to evil. The Tragedy of our time is that those who still believe in honesty lack fire and conviction, while those who believe in dishonesty are full of passionate conviction.
–Blessed Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)
It is an error to think that faith is so entirely a gift of God that it is not in our power to increase and strengthen it. Some… admire faith in the saints as a purely gratuitous grace; they persuade themselves that they can do nothing to increase their own faith and that the only thing to do is to remain passive until God grants them that favor; they will make no effort to grow in faith, saying that to do so is quite useless… We must get rid of these ideas, see why it is our faith is so weak, and acknowledge that it is our own fault and that, whatever we may say, the truth is that we do not believe because we do not wish to believe.
–Saint Claude de la Colombiere (1641-1682)
If ever you have a fit of sadness or trouble, remember that it is because you are still attached to life, or health, or some comfort, or person, or thing that you ought to forget and despise that you may desire Jesus Christ only.
–Saint Claude de la Colombiere (1641-1682)
Every Christian has renounced the world and its pomps at baptism. This vow does not oblige you to live like a hermit, but it certainly obliges you to something. It is not an empty promise.
–Saint Claude de la Colombiere (1641-1682)
However we do mental prayer, we can be sure of encountering difficulties. Some have already been mentioned: dryness, distaste, a sense of our own worthlessness, the feeling the effort to pray is useless. The first thing to say about such difficulties is that they should not come as a surprise or cause us to worry or be upset. Not only are they inevitable, they are actually good for us. They purify our love for God and strengthen our faith.
–Jacques Philippe (1947-
The most important criterion for discerning divine inspirations is the one that Jesus himself gives us in the Gospel: “A tree is known by its fruit.” An inspiration from God, if we follow it, will produce sound fruit: the fruits of peace, joy, charity, communion, and humility. An inspiration that comes from our flesh or from the devil will be sterile or even bear the negative fruits of sadness, bitterness, pride, and the like.
–Jacques Philippe (1947-
