Quotes

Sit in the presence…

Sit in the presence of the Lord every moment of your life, as you think of him and remember him in your heart. Otherwise, when you only see him after a period of time, you will lack freedom of converse with him, out of shame; for great freedom of converse is born out of constant association with him.
–Saint Isaac of Syria (Seventh Century)

Present in the tabernacle…

The Lord is present in the tabernacle in his divinity and in his humanity. He is not present for his own sake but for ours: it is his delight to be with the ‘children of men.’ He knows, too, that, being what we are, we need his personal nearness. In consequence, every thoughtful and sensitive person will feel attracted and will be there as often and as long as possible. And the practice of the Church, which has instituted perpetual adoration, is just as clear.
–Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (1891-1942)

I am clay…

Turn yourself round like a piece of clay and say to the Lord: I am clay, and you, Lord, the potter. Make of me what you will.
–Saint John of Avila (1500-1569)

Empty your heart…

If you desire Him to dwell in your heart, empty it of yourself and of all creatures.
–Saint John of Ávila (1500-1569)

Withdraw your heart…

Christ died for love of us: let us suffer for love of Him. He carried His cross: let us help Him to bear it. He was dishonored, therefore renounce honor: He suffered torments, let them come to me. He lived [lacking] many necessities, let me go destitute. Jesus made Himself a stranger for me, let me have nothing in which my heart can rest. He died for me; may my life be a continual death for the love of Him. Therefore, care less for temporal things and attend instead to those which are more important. Withdraw your heart from the world before God takes your body from it: keep your mind in perfect peace however much it is occupied in business.
–Saint John of Avila (1500 – 1569)

Attain holiness…

Those who imagine they can attain to holiness by any wisdom or strength of their own will find themselves after many labors, and struggles, and weary efforts, only the farther from possessing it, and this in proportion to their certainty that they of themselves have gained it.
–Saint John of Avila (1500-1569)

The soul that is attached…

The soul that is attached to anything, however much good there may be in it, will not arrive at the liberty of divine union. For whether it be a strong wire rope or a slender and delicate thread that holds the bird, it matters not, if it really holds it fast; for until the cord be broken, the bird cannot fly.
–Saint John of the Cross (1542-1591)

Saints out of sinners…

God creates out of nothing. Wonderful you say. Yes, to be sure, but he does what is still more wonderful: he makes saints out of sinners.
–Soren Kierkegaard (1813-1855)

A good spiritual net…

Blessed the one who has become a good spiritual net and caught many for the good Lord, such a one will greatly praised by the Lord.
–Saint Ephrem of Syria (c. 306-373)

Equality of blessing…

Let us put into practice the supreme and primary law of God. He sends down rain on just and sinful alike, and causes the sun to rise on all without distinction. To all earth’s creatures he has given the broad earth, the springs, the rivers and the forests. He has given the air to the birds, and the waters to those who live in the water. He has given abundantly to all the basic needs of life, not as a private possession, not restricted by law, not divided by boundaries, but as common to all, amply and in rich measure. His gifts are not deficient in any way, because he wanted to give equality of blessing to equality of worth, and to show the abundance of his generosity.
–Saint Gregory Nazianzen (329-c. 391)

In failing to confess…

In failing to confess, Lord, I would only hide You from myself, not myself from You.
–Saint Augustine (354-430)

The time for confession…

The present time is the time for confession. Confess what you have done, whether by words or by actions, whether by day or by night. If you confess at the acceptable time, you will receive the heavenly treasure on the Day of salvation. Make yourself pure so that you may be a vessel of more abundant grace.
— Saint Augustine (354-430)

Contemplation is the gaze turned in…

You will note that the Lord establishes as the prime good contemplation, that is the gaze turned in the direction of the things of God. Hence we say that the other virtues, however useful and good we may say they are, must nevertheless be put on a secondary level, since they are all practiced for the sake of this one. “You are full of worry and are upset over many things when actually it should be over a few or even one.” In saying this the Lord locates the primary good not in activity, however praiseworthy, however abundantly fruitful, but in the truly simple and unified contemplation of Himself.
–Saint John Cassian (c. 360-435)

Confession is like..,

Confession is like a bridle that keeps the soul which reflects on it from committing sin, but anything left unconfessed we continue to do without fear as if in the dark.
–Saint John Climacus (c. 525-606)

The greatness of contemplation can…

The greatness of contemplation can be given to none but those who love.
–Saint Gregory the Great (c. 540-604)

Rapt by divine light…

The mind, gazing upon the universe of God’s handiwork,
rapt by the divine and infinite light
–Maximos the Confessor (580-662)

The trees will teach…

The trees and stones will teach you what you never learn from the masters.
–Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153)

Heaven is already mine…

When I gaze with open eyes at what You, my God, have created here, heaven is already mine.
–Saint Hildegarde of Bingen (1098-1179)

Give God their praise…

The blowing wind, the mild, moist air, the exquisite greening of trees and grasses – In their beginning, in their ending, they give God their praise.
–Saint Hildegarde of Bingen (1098-1179)

Who gives these gifts…

Glance at the sun. See the moon and the stars. Gaze at the beauty of Earth’s greenings. Now, think. What delight God gives to humankind with all these things. Who gives all these shining, wonderful gifts, if not God?
–Saint Hildegarde of Bingen (1098-1179)

Creation is a song…

The fire has its flame and praises God. The wind blows the flame and praises God. In the voice we hear the word which praises God. And the word, when heard, praises God. So all of creation is a song of praise to God.
–Saint Hildegard Von Bingen (1098-1179)

Have charity and humility…

Let us have charity and humility, and give alms, for almsgiving cleanses our souls from the filth of sin. At death we lose all that we have in this world, but we take with us charity and the alms-deeds we have done, and for these we shall receive a great reward from God.
–Saint Francis of Assisi (1181–1226)

Take up your cross and follow…

Lift your eyes up to Heaven often; you are invited to take up your cross and follow Jesus Christ. “Through many tribulations one enters the Kingdom of Heaven.”
–Saint Clare of Assisi (1194-1253)

Christians must lean…

Christians must lean on the Cross of Christ just as travelers lean on a staff when they begin a long journey.
–Saint Anthony of Padua (1195-1231)

In detachment…

In detachment, the spirit finds quiet and repose for coveting nothing.
–Saint John of the Cross (1542-1591)

The souls that journeys…

The soul that journeys to God, but doesn’t shake off it’s cares and quiet it’s appetities, is like someone who drags a cart of dirt uphill.
–Saint John of the Cross (1542-1591)

Be detached…

Be interiorly detached from all things and do not seek pleasure in any temporal thing, and your soul will concentrate on goods you do not know.
–Saint John of the Cross (1542-1591)

Speak if you can…

In this way we do not force ourselves to speak to God, for we know that merely to remain close to him is as useful, nay, perhaps more useful to us, though it may be less to our liking. Therefore when you draw near to our Lord speak to him if you can; if you cannot, stay there, let him see you, and do not be anxious about anything else.
–Saint Francis de Sales (1567-1622)

An ineffable joy…

You wish absolutely to form Jesus Christ in you, in your heart, in your works, by a sincere love of his doctrine and a perfect imitation of his life; rest assured it will cost you many pangs; but they will pass away, and the presence of Jesus, who shall live in you, will fill your soul with an ineffable joy which can never be taken from you.
–Saint Francis de Sales (1567-1622)

Less self and self-will…

The less of self and self-will there is in anything we do, the better. You must not amuse yourself with going from side to side, when duty calls you straight on; nor make difficulties, when the real thing is to get over them. Let your heart be full of courage, and then say, “I shall succeed. Not I, but the grace of God which is with me.”
— Saint Francis de Sales (1567-1622)

We serve Jesus…

When we serve the poor and the sick we serve Jesus. We must not fail to help our neighbors, because in them we serve Jesus.
–Saint Rose of Lima (1586-1617)

Remember our crucified Lord…

Constantly remember the pains of our crucified Lord. Know that those great saints who now reign with divine love in heaven above reached the height of perfection by this very path.
–Saint Paul of the Cross (1694-1775)

The Passion of Jesus…

The passion of Jesus is a sea of sorrows, but it is also an ocean of love. Ask the Lord to teach you to fish in this ocean. Dive into its depths. No matter how deep you go, you will never reach the bottom.
–Saint Paul of the Cross (1694-1775)

Meditate on the Passion…

It is very good and holy to consider the passion of our Lord, and to meditate on it, for by this sacred path we reach union with God. In this most holy school we learn true wisdom, for it was there that all the saints learned it.
–Saint Paul of the Cross (1694-1775)

Kiss your crucifix…

When you are alone in your room, take your crucifix, kiss its five wounds reverently, tell it to preach to you a little sermon, and then listen to the words of eternal life that it speaks to your heart; listen to the pleading of the thorns, the nails, the precious Blood. Oh, what an eloquent sermon!
–Saint Paul of the Cross (1694-1775)

Abandonment and desolation…

From what you tell me of your soul, I, with the little or no light that God gives me, tell you that the abandonment and desolation, and the rest you mention, are precisely preparing you for greater graces that will help you in the ministry for which his Divine Majesty has destined you either now or at some other time. Of this I have no doubt.
–Saint Paul of the Cross (1694-1775)

The greatest happiness…

For myself, I think the greatest happiness of this life is to be released from the cares and formalities of what is called the world. My world is my family, and all the change to me will be that I can devote myself unmolested to my treasure.
–Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton (1774-1821)

By the Cross…

By the Cross, we have become children of freedom; by the Cross, Jesus has delivered us from the tyranny of the Devil into which sin had led us.
–Saint John Vianney (1786-1859)

Our three enemies…

Three enemies of man are: Death, which overtakes him by surprise; Time, which keeps slipping by; the devil, who seeks to ensnare him.
–Saint John Bosco (1815-1888)

We are containers…

We are all containers; sometimes of the Light, sometimes of the Dark.
–Gabriela Papayannis (1897-1992)

We live and are…

It is not that which we say, but that which we live. It is not what we do, but what we are.
–Gabriela Papayannis (1897-1992)

The spiritually advanced…

The spiritually advanced person is the one who arrives at a place of no identity and who has understood in his depths that whatever happens is the will of God or by the permission of God.
–Gabriela Papayannis (1897-1992)

We come to confession…

We come to confession quite preoccupied with the shame that we shall feel. We accuse ourselves with hot air. It is said that many confess, and few are converted.
–Saint John Vianney (1786-1859)

By the grace of God…

I am not what I ought to be. I am not what I want to be. I am not what I hope to be. But still, I am not what I used to be. And by the grace of God, I am what I am.
— John Newton (1725-1807)

God always and in everything…

Not the goods of the world, but God. Not riches, but God. Not honors, but God. Not distinction, but God. Not dignities, but God. Not advancement, but God. God always and in everything.
–Saint Vincent Pallotti (1795-1850)

God’s way is love…

Fear of torment is the way of a slave, desire of reward in the heavenly kingdom is the way of a hireling, but God’s way is that of a son, through love.
–Saint Nikodemos the Hagiorite (1749-1809)

We are only that…

We are only that which we are before God.
–Saint Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787)

This pleases God most…

For truly our lover desires the soul so to adhere to him with all its power, and us to adhere to his goodness. For of all things that the heart can think, this pleases God most and and soonest profits the soul.
–Saint Julian of Norwich (1342-1416)

Living temple of God…

Some there are who visit with great devotion holy places and solemn shrines. I do not condemn their piety, but I would remind them that faith teaches us that our own interior is also a sanctuary, because it is the living temple of God, and the dwelling of the Most Holy Trinity. Let us enter, then, into this temple, and adore Our Lord there in spirit and in truth: this is a most sublime devotion. Make frequent visits to this interior sanctuary, and see that the lamps be ever burning there. These lamps are the virtues of faith, hope, and charity. Your soul is the temple in which the living God dwells by faith.
— Saint Paul of the Cross (1694-1775)

God’s dwelling place…

We should highly rejoice that God dwells in our soul and still more highly should we rejoice that our soul dwells in God. Our soul is made to be God’s dwelling place, and the dwelling place of our soul is God who was never made.
–Saint Julian of Norwich (1342-1416)

Spark of blessed fire…

Our Lord has put into your heart a little spark of this blessed fire – that is, himself.
–Walter Hilton (1340-1396)

We are fragile vessels…

Those who want to perfect the works of God should always attend to the fact that they are fragile vessels, for they are human beings, and they should look at what they are and what they will be… and in their characteristics they are like simple children.
–Saint Hildegarde of Bingen (1098-1179)

What you are…

What you are must always displease you, if you would attain to that which you are not.
–Saint Augustine (354-430)

The definition of Christian…

The definition of “Christian” is the imitation of Christ.
–Saint Basil the Great (330-379)

A joyful heart…

A joyful heart is the inevitable result of a heart burning with love.
–Blessed Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997)

Show gratitude with joy…

Joy is prayer – Joy is strength – Joy is love – Joy is a net of love by which you can catch souls. God loves a cheerful giver. She gives most who gives with joy. The best way to show our gratitude to God and the people is to accept everything with joy. A joyful heart is the inevitable result of a heart burning with love. Never let anything so fill you with sorrow as to make you forget the joy of the Christ risen.
–Blessed Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997)

Preach without preaching…

One with a spirit of joy preaches without preaching.
–Blessed Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997)

Holiness is a…

Holiness is a disposition of the heart that makes us humble and little in the arms of God, aware of our weakness, and confident — in the most audacious way — in His Fatherly goodness.
–Saint Therese of Lisieux (1873-1897)

Life is passing…

Life is passing, Eternity draws nigh: soon shall we live the very life of God. After having drunk deep at the fount of bitterness, our thirst will be quenched at the very source of all sweetness.
–Saint Therese of Lisieux (1873-1897)

Communication with God…

Little by little, words disappear, and our communication with God becomes the divine communication of silence.
–Luis M. Martinez (1881-1956)

Silence that imitates Jesus…

To be quiet then, to choose not to excuse ourselves when we could, through love of humility, is a silence that imitates Jesus in His Passion.
–Luis M. Martinez (1881-1956)

Suffering and humility…

Together with the grace of suffering, spiritual tempests bring the grace of humility, a new, deep humility that hollows out in the soul a void so immense that God fits into it.
–Luis M. Martinez (1881-1956)

The root of all evil…

The root of all evil is ‘I’, ‘Me,’ ‘Mine.’
–Saint Pio (1887-1968)

Continue to love Jesus…

Continue to love Jesus and make an effort to love Him more and more, without desiring to know anything else.
–Saint Pio (1887-1968)

Don’t worry about…

Don’t worry about tomorrow because the very same Heavenly Father who takes care of you today will have the same thought tomorrow and always.
–Saint Pio (1887-1968)

Be faithful to God…

Always be faithful to God in keeping the promises made to Him and do not bother about the ridicule of the foolish. Know that the saints were always sneered at by the world and worldlings; and they have trampled them under foot and triumphed over the world and its maxims.
–Saint Pio (1887-1968)

Silence is the…

Silence is not classified as a virtue, but it is the atmosphere in which virtues develop.
–Luis M. Martinez (1881-1956)

Many want a religion…

Many souls fail to find God because they want a religion which will remake society without remaking themselves.
–Blessed Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)

A vessel God built…

A human being is a vessel that God has built for himself and filled with his inspiration so that his works are perfected in it.
–Saint Hildegarde of Bingen (1098-1179)

Your own prayers…

Accustom yourself to pray your own prayers. For instance: it is the essence of evening prayer to thank God for the day and everything that happened, both pleasant and unpleasant; to ask forgiveness for all wrongs committed, promising to improve during the next day; and to pray that God preserve you during sleep. Express all this to God from your mind and from your whole heart.
–Saint Theophan the Recluse (1815-1894)

Jesus Christ alone…

It is Jesus Christ alone Whom we have followed everywhere, and it is He alone Whom we will follow always. Let us relight our lamps before our heavenly Spouse. Let us look only to Him, think only of Him, desire only Him, live only to give to Him.
–Saint Joan Antide-Thouret (1765-1826)

Despise the world…

Let’s despise the world and its false gods. Let’s despise its honors. In vain would we seek our happiness in them. It will benefit us greatly to receive nothing from the world but ingratitude and opposition. This will detach us from it and attach us closely to God alone.
–Saint Joan Antide-Thouret (1765-1826)

Pride is the source…

There are very few people, even in the lowliest conditions, who do not have a good opinion of themselves. They regard themselves as far superior to their equals, and their detestable pride urges them to believe that they are indeed worth a great deal more than most other people. From this I conclude that pride is the source of all the vices and the cause of all the evils which have occurred, and which are still to come, in the course of the centuries. We carry our blindness so far that often we even glorify ourselves on account of things which really ought to cover us with confusion.
–Saint John Vianney (1786-1859)

Think of Jesus…

Only one thing is necessary: Jesus Christ. Think unceasingly of him.
–Saint John Gabriel Perboyre (1802-1840)

Examine yourself…

Examine yourself to see whether you have within you a strong sense of your own self importance, or negatively, whether you have failed to realize that you are nothing. This feeling of self-importance is deeply hidden, but it controls the whole of our life. Its first demand is that everything should be as we wish it, and as soon as this is not so we complain to God and are annoyed with people.
–Saint Theophane the Recluse (1815-1894)

We are to love God…

We are to love God, then, because he loved us first. [1 Jn 4:19] The Passion on Calvary is a supreme declaration of love. It was to redeem us that you suffered so much, O Jesus. The least of your acts has infinite worth, since it is one of God’s acts, and would have been more than ample enough to redeem a thousand worlds, to redeem all possible worlds. But you suffered so much because you wanted to make us holy, to bear our burdens and to draw us into loving you freely. Loving is the most powerful way to attract love, loving is the most powerful way to make oneself loved. It is impossible for us to love him and not imitate him, to love him and not want to be the way he was, do what he did, suffer and die in torment because he suffered and died in torment. It is impossible to love him and want to be crowned with roses when he was crowned with thorns. We must love him as he has loved us.
–Blessed Charles de Foucauld (1858-1916)

The person who tries your patience…

You should regard the person that tries your patience as a treasure. Look upon her with an affectionate eye, as an instrument which God uses to clothe your soul with a garment of gold and pearls; that is, with the virtues, and especially with the patience, the silence, and the meekness of Christ. Oh, how much I cherish the trials which come to you through that person! Do not defend yourself, do not speak, or, if you say anything, let it be to excuse her and honor her. When you pass by her, bow your head respectfully as before an instrument in the paternal hand of God.
–Saint Paul of the Cross (1694-1775)

True virtue has…

True virtue has no limits, but goes on and on, and especially holy charity, which is the virtue of virtues, and which having a definite object, would become infinite if it could meet with a heart capable of infinity. –Saint Francis de Sales (1567-1622)

Your inner peace…

Do not lose your inner peace for anything whatsoever, not even if your whole world seems upset. If you find that you have wandered away from the shelter of God, lead your heart back to Him quietly and simply. –Saint Francis de Sales (1567-1622)

Souls fall away…

Souls generally do not fall away from Christ because of the Creed; they first have difficulty with the Commandments.
–Blessed Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)

Heart of Mary…

No created mind, no created heart, no human force is capable of knowing how much love the Heart of Mary had for the Lord.
–Saint Jerome (c. 340-420)

A modern preacher…

Many a modern preacher is far less concerned with preaching Christ and Him crucified than he is with his popularity with his congregation. A want of intellectual backbone makes him straddle the ox of truth and the ass of nonsense. Bending the knee to the mob rather than God would probably make them scruple at ever playing the role of John the Baptist before a modern Herod. The acids of modernity are eating away the fossils of orthodoxy.
–Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)

Rushed for time…

If you are rushed for time, sow time and you will reap time. Go to church and spend a quiet hour in prayer. You will have more time than ever and your work will get done. Sow time with the poor. Sit and listen to them, give them your time lavishly. You will reap time a hundredfold.
–Dorothy Day (1897-1980)

Open the doors…

Brothers and sisters, do not be afraid to welcome Christ and accept his power….Do not be afraid! Open wide the doors to Christ.
–Saint John Paul (1920-2005)

A closed heart…

The worst prison would be a closed heart.
–Saint John Paul (1920-2005)

To hear God…

We are no longer able to hear God — there are too many frequencies filling our ears.
–Pope Benedict XVI (1927-

The presence of God…

Each of us is enriched by the presence of God everywhere, in every blade of grass, in every beam of light, in every prayer, and in every truth in every scripture.
–Caroline Myss (1952-

To fall in love with God…

To fall in love with God is the greatest of all romances; to seek him, the greatest adventure; to find him, the greatest human achievement.
–Saint Augustine (354-430)

People, place, or thing…

Any loving, desiring, or clinging to some person, place, or thing that is not purely for the glory of God renders the soul incapable of giving that same love to God or others to whom, for the glory of God, it is owed.
–Daniel Burke (2015)

Our Lord continues to love us…

In spite of our poor choices and spiritual blindness in this life, our courteous Lord continues to love us. We will bring him the most pleasure if we rejoice with him and in him
–Saint Julian of Norwich (1432- c. 1420)

Bread of Life…

In each of our lives Jesus comes as the Bread of Life – to be eaten, to be consumed by us. This is how He loves us. Then Jesus comes in our human life as the hungry one, the other, hoping to be fed with the Bread of our life, our hearts by loving, and our hands by serving. In loving and serving, we prove that we have been created in the likeness of God, for God is Love and when we love we are like God.
–Saint Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997)

Jesus is…

Who is Jesus to me? Jesus is the Word made Flesh. Jesus is the Bread of Life. Jesus is the Victim offered for our sins on the cross. Jesus is the sacrifice offered at holy Mass for the sins of the world and for mine. Jesus is the Word – to be spoken. Jesus is the Truth – to be told. Jesus is the Way – to be walked. Jesus is the Light – to be lit. Jesus is the Life – to be lived. Jesus is the Love – to be loved.
–Saint Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997)

Pray for bad people…

If you see a man who has sinned and you do not pity him, the grace of God will leave you. Whoever curses bad people, and does not pray for them, will never come to know the grace of God.
–Saint Silouan the Athonite (1866-1938

Our worst fault…

Our worst fault is our preoccupation with the faults of others.
–Kahlil Gibran (1883-1931)

Mistaken in judgment…

Just as one must will only what God wills in order to be a saint, so also, one must judge things as God judges them, in order to be wise. Now, then, who knows whether your opinions always conform to God’s? How often have you found yourself mistaken in your judgments and decisions?
–Saint Vincent de Paul (1581-1660)

Matters of conscience…

It is often said that second thoughts are best. So they are in matters of judgment but not in matters of conscience.
–Blessed John Henry Newman (1801-1890)

Judge in the most favorable light…

Make it a practice to judge persons and things in the most favorable light at all times and under all circumstances.
–Saint Vincent de Paul (1581-1660)

Judging others…

No greater pride is there than judging others, nor is there anything for which God abandons man, more than for judging others. Everywhere in the Scriptures God tells us clearly not to judge others, but rather ourselves…Take this thought for a conclusion: the beginning of the ruin of the spiritual life is judging others.
–Saint Anthony Zaccaria (1502-1539)

Love and hope in God…

The more a person loves God, the more reason he has to hope in Him. This hope produces in the Saints an unutterable peace, which they preserve even in adversity, because as they love God, and know how beautiful He is to those who love Him, they place all their confidence and find all their repose in Him alone.
–Saint Alphonsus de Liguori (1696-1787)

Acquire love of God…

He who does not acquire the love of God will scarcely persevere in the grace of God, for it is very difficult to renounce sin merely through fear of chastisement.
–Saint Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787)

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