Quotes

Words of Wisdom & Encouragement

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The secret of happiness…

The secret of happiness is to live moment by moment and to thank God for all that He, in His goodness, sends to us day after day.
–Saint Gianna Molla (1922-1962)

Everything comes from God…

God is very pleased with those who recognize his goodness by reciting the Te Deum in thanksgiving whenever something out of the ordinary happens, without caring whether it may have been good or bad, as the world reckons these things. Because everything comes from the hands of our Father: so though the blow of the chisel may hurt our flesh, it is a sign of Love, as he smooths off our rough edges and brings us closer to perfection.
–Saint Josemaría Escrivá (1902-1975)

The kingdom is within…

What more do you want, o soul! And what else do you search for outside, when within yourself you possess your riches, delights, satisfaction and kingdom — your beloved whom you desire and seek? Desire him there, adore him there. Do not go in pursuit of him outside yourself. You will only become distracted and you won’t find him, or enjoy him more than by seeking him within you.
–Saint John of the Cross (1542-1591)

One mortal sin…

If all the calamities which have existed in the world since the creation and all the sufferings of hell were put into one side of a scale, and put one mortal sin into the other, it would outweigh all these evils, for it is incomparably greater.
–Blessed Louis de Granada (1505-1588)

An egg given…

An egg given during life for love of God is more profitable for eternity than a cathedral full of gold given after death.
–Saint Albert the Great (c. 1206-1280)

For the good of the Church…

In the present course of events when society seems to be at a turning point, it is better to acknowledge the mysterious plans of divine Providence which, through the succession of times and the work of human beings and most of the time against all expectations, reach their goal and arrange everything with wisdom for the good of the Church, even the events that are in opposition to it.
–Saint John XXIII (1881-1963)

God’s love for us is…

God’s love for us is freely given and unearned, surpassing all we could ever hope for or imagine. He does not love us because we have merited it or are worthy of it. God loves us, rather, because he is true to his own nature. As Saint John puts it, “God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.” (1Jn 4:16)
–Saint John Paul (1920-2005)

Obtain tranquility…

It is necessary before all things to obtain tranquility, not because it is the mother of contentment, but because it is the daughter of the love of God and of the resignation of our own will.
–Saint Francis de Sales (1567-1622)

Most Holy Mother…

One of the most ardent desires of the Sacred Heart of Jesus is that his Most Holy Mother be venerated and loved by all: firstly, because the Lord himself has ineffable love for her, and then because he made her the mother of all men, so that with her sweetness she might attract to herself even those who flee the Holy Cross, and bring them to the Divine Heart.
–Saint Jósef Sebastian Pelczar (1842-1924)Virg

To love God above all things…

God does not command us to live in hair shirts and chains, or to chastise our flesh with scourges, but to love Him above all things and our neighbor as ourselves.
–Saint Charles of Sezze (1630-1770)

Believe the gospels…

If you believe what you like in the gospels, and reject what you don’t like, it is not the gospel you believe, but yourself.
— Saint Augustine (354-430)

The foundation of humility…

Do you wish to rise? Begin by descending. You plan a tower that will pierce the clouds? Lay first the foundation of humility.
–Saint Augustine (354-430)

The intercession of saints…

God, who created all things, is in all places, and is everywhere to be worshiped. Yet his infinite wisdom thinks fit to work wonders at the intercession of his saints.
–Saint Augustine (354-430)

Let the name of Jesus…

Jesus is honey on the lips, melody in the ear, joy in the heart. Yet not alone is that name light and food. It is also a remedy. Is any one amongst you sad? Let the name of Jesus enter his heart; let it leap thence to his mouth; and lo! the light shining from that name shall scatter every cloud and restore peace.
–Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153)

Many the gifts of the Holy Spirit…

To seek to bring all men to salvation by one road is very dangerous. He who does so fails to understand how many and various are the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
— Saint Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556)

One who is making a choice…

He who is making a choice ought to examine himself whether the affection that he has towards anything arises solely from love of God and regard to him.
–Saint Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556)

If we had to die…

Let’s continue to be strenuous in pursuing virtue. Let’s not grow tired of seeking it, for our Lord has become a guide for us and for every person who has a desire for the virtues. And so that it might not be tedious for us, St. Paul became our example when he said, “I die daily” (see 1 Cor 15:31). Now, if we were to think each day that we had to die that day, we would never sin at all. This is the explanation of Paul’s saying. If in the morning we imagined that we would never last until evening, and if at evening we thought that we would never see morning, we would never sin.
–Saint Athanasius the Great (c. 296-373)

Those who hunger for revenge…

How many are the pains of those who hunger for revenge! They gnaw away at themselves constantly, and they have killed themselves even before they kill their enemies.
–Saint Catherine of Siena (1347-1380)

In Christ you…

Start being brave about everything. Drive out darkness and spread light. Don’ look at your weaknesses. Realize instead that in Christ crucified you can do everything.
–Saint Catherine of Siena (1347-1380)

God wants our soul to be…

Now realize that this is how God wants our soul to be, without any selfish love of ourselves or of others is in between us, just as God loves us without anything in between.
–Saint Catherine of Siena (1347-1380)

Prayer is…

Prayer is helplessness casting itself on Power, infirmity leaning on Strength, misery reaching to Mercy, and a prisoner clamoring for Relief.
–Blessed Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)

Retirement has may advantages…

Retirement has many advantages. It becomes a time to remake one’s soul, to interiorize, to mediate and begin a cram course for the final exam.
–Blessed Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)

It was to a virgin woman…

It was to a virgin woman that the birth of the Son of God was announced. It was to a fallen woman that his resurrection was announced.
–Blessed Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)

To love is to be transformed…

To love is to be transformed into what we love. To love God is therefore to be transformed into God.
–Saint John of the Cross (1542-1591)

God dwells…

You yourself are the lodging wherein God dwells, and the closet and hiding-place wherein He is hidden.
— Saint John of the Cross (1542-1591)

God turns all…

God passes through the thicket of the world, and wherever God’s glance falls it turns all things to beauty.
–Saint John of the Cross (1542-1591)

Fasting has…

Just as indulgence proves to be cause and promoter of countless evils for the human race, in like manner fasting and neglect of appetite have invariably proved the cause of innumerable benefits to us.
–Saint John Chrysostom (347-407)

Courage follows repentance…

Pay attention carefully. After the sin comes the shame; courage follows repentance. Did you pay attention to what I said? Satan upsets the order; he gives the courage to sin and the shame to repentance.
–Saint John Chrysostom (347-407)

If we were true Christians…

There would be no need for sermons if our lives were shining; there would be no need for words if we bore witness with our deeds; there would be no more pagans if we were true Christians.
–Saint John Chrysostom (347-407)

A stranger and pilgrim…

You have here no lasting home. You are a stranger and a pilgrim wherever you may be, and you shall have no rest until you are wholly united with Christ.
–Thomas à Kempis (1380-1471)

At the Day of Judgment…

At the Day of Judgement we shall not be asked what we have read, but what we have done; not how well have we spoken, but how well we have lived.
–Thomas à Kempis (1380-1471)

Resign entirely to God..

You have yet many things which you must give up, and unless you resign them entirely to God you will not obtain that which you ask.
–Thomas à Kempis (1380-1471)

How could life be happy…

Why persist in walking difficult and toilsome paths? There is no repose where you are seeking it. Search as you like, it is not where you are looking. You are seeking a happy life in the realm of death, and it will not be found there. How could life be happy where there is no life at all?
–Saint Augustine (354-430)

Continuous desire is continuous prayer…

There is another inward kind of prayer without ceasing, which is the desire of the heart… If you do not want to pause in prayer then never pause in your longing. Your continuous desire is your continuous prayer. If you cease to desire than you will have fallen silent in your prayer.
–Saint Augustine (354-430)

In judging your choice…

In judging of what you are to choose, you should consider not the plausibility of appearances, but look forward to the end.
–Saint Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556)

Help the hearts of all…

It is not enough that I should serve God by myself: I must help the hearts of all to love him and the tongues of all to praise him.
–Saint Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556)

Cherish those souls…

No one should call himself a friend of Christ unless he cherishes those souls that Christ redeemed by the shedding of his Blood.
–Saint Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556)

Babbling, reciting prayers…

Never believe that true prayer consists in mere babbling, reciting so many psalms and vigils, saying your beads while you allow your thoughts to roam.
–Johannes Tauler (c. 1300-1361)

Accept all as from God…

Be silent, endure, and accept all as from God, that you may learn to know yourself thereby.
–Johannes Tauler (1300–1361)

Reading spiritual books…

There is nothing more to the purpose for exciting a spirit of prayer, than the reading of spiritual books.
–Saint Philip Neri (1515-1595)

As you know and will…

The most beautiful prayer we can make is to say to God, “As You know and will, O Lord, so do with me.”
–Saint Philip Neri (1515-1595)

Go on journeys…

For although God is right with us and in us and out of us and all through us, we have to go on journeys to find him.
–Thomas Merton (1915-1968)

Love is the spiritual life…

Love, in fact, is the spiritual life; and without it, all other exercises of the spirit are emptied of content.
–Thomas Merton (1915-1968)

In solitude and silence…

It is in deep solitude and silence that I find the gentleness with which I can truly love my brother and sister.
–Thomas Merton (1915-1968)

Every good work…

Your actions, in passing, pass not away, for every good work is a grain of seed for eternal life.
–Saint Jerome (c. 340-420)

Act as if the maxim…

Act as if the maxim of your action were to become through your will a be general natural law.
–Saint Jerome (c. 340-420)

Prayer most pleasing to God…

Pray, even if you feel nothing, see nothing. For when you are dry, empty, sick or weak, at such a time is your prayer most pleasing to God, even though you may find little joy in it. This is true of all believing prayer.
— Saint Julian of Norwich (1342-1416)

Kept in that precious love…

If there is anywhere on earth a lover of God who is always kept safe, I know nothing of it, for it was not shown to me. But this was shown: that in falling and rising again we are always kept in that same precious love.
–Saint Julian of Norwich (1342-1416)

Rejoice in God’s love…

Wonderful and splendid is the place where the Lord lives. And therefore it is his will that we turn quickly at his gracious touch, rejoicing more in the fullness of his love than sorrowing over our frequent failures.
–Saint Julian of Norwich (1342-1416)

For the glory of God…

Do everything for the glory of God, and in no thing – either outwardly nor inwardly – intend anything other than this glory. It should be the measuring stick of every endeavor and place its seal on each one.
–Saint Theophan the Recluse (1815-1894)

Means of salvation…

What a simple and handy means of salvation! Your trespasses are forgiven under the condition that you forgive the trespasses of your neighbor against you. This means that you are in your own hands.
–Saint Theophan the Recluse (1815-1894)

The main thing in repentance…

The main thing in repentance is the anguish of the heart over being deficient in the Lord’s eyes and a firm resolution to try to be diligent in everything in the future.
–Saint Theophan the Recluse (1815-1894)

Doing the will of God…

If we do not concentrate entirely on doing the will of God we shall find neither happiness nor holiness, no matter what pious practices we adopt, however excellent they may be. If you are not satisfied with what God chooses for you, what else can please you?
–Jean-Pierre de Caussade (1675-1751)

Sometimes during prayer…

Sometimes during a lengthy prayer only a few minutes are really pleasing to God, and constitute true prayer, true service to Him. The chief thing in prayer is the nearness of the heart to God.
–Saint John of Kronstadt (1829-1908)

Love our enemies…

Our Savior bids us to love our enemies which is extremely difficult; but for a heart which is reborn through grace, it is easy to do so because God helps the believer in everything.
–Saint John of Kronstadt (1829-1908)

The truly humble…

The truly humble reject all praise for themselves, and refer it all to God.
–Saint Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787)

Last day of your life…

Act as if every day were the last of you life, and each action the last you perform.
–Saint Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787)

All souls in Hell…

All souls in hell are there because they did not pray. All the saints sanctified themselves by prayer.
–Saint Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787)

God cannot turn away…

God cannot turn away his face from those who cast themselves at his feet with a humble and contrite heart.
–Saint Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787)

Holy Communion more frequently…

He who receives Holy Communion more frequently will be freest from sin, and will make farthest progress in Divine Love.
–Saint Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787)

Mary is a refuge…

When you see the storm coming, if you seek safety in that firm refuge which is Mary, there will be no danger of your wavering or going down.
–Saint Josemaría Escrivá (1902-1975)

Call upon your mother Mary…

All the sins of your life seem to be rising up against you. Don’t give up hope! On the contrary, call your holy mother Mary, with the faith and abandonment of a child. She will bring peace to your soul.
–Saint Josemaría Escrivá (1902-1975)

Give thanks to our Mother…

There is no danger of exaggerating. We never hope to fathom this inexpressible mystery nor will we ever be able to give sufficient thanks to our Mother for bringing us into such intimacy with the Blessed Trinity.
–Saint Josemaría Escrivá (1902-1975)

Tell your holy Mother Mary…

So your strength is failing you? Why don’t you tell your mother about it? … Call her with a loud voice. She is listening to you; she sees you in danger, perhaps, and she—your holy mother Mary—offers you, along with the grace of her son, the refuge of her arms, the tenderness of her embrace . . . and you will find yourself with added strength for the new battle.
–Saint Josemaría Escrivá (1902-1975)

His will is accomplished…

Affliction or consolation, health or sickness, is all one to a heart that loves. Since we wish only to please God, it should be enough for us that His Will is accomplished.
–Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647-1690)

A tree planted…

Look upon yourself as a tree planted beside the water, which bears its fruit in due season; the more it is shaken by the wind, the deeper it strikes its roots into the ground.
–Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647- 1690)

Progress in prayer…

Are you making no progress in prayer? Then you need only offer God the prayers which the Savior has poured out for us in the sacrament of the altar. Offer God his fervent love in reparation for your sluggishness. In the course of every activity pray as follows: “My God, I do this or I endure that in the heart of your Son and according to his holy counsels. I offer it to you in reparation for anything blameworthy or imperfect in my actions.” Continue to do this in every circumstance of life.
–Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647- 1690)

Look only at the present…

If I did not simply live from one moment to another, it would be impossible for me to be patient, but I only look at the present, I forget the past, and I take good care not to forestall [anticipate] the future.
–Saint Therese of Lisieux (1873-1897)

I have many distractions…

While praying I have many distractions, but as soon as I’m aware of them, I pray for those people, the thought of whom is diverting my attention. In this way, they reap the benefit of my distractions.
–Saint Therese of Lisieux (1873-1897)

Charity gave me the key to…

Charity gave me the key to my vocation. I understood that the Church being a body composed of different members, the most essential, the most noble of all the organs would not be wanting to her; I understood that the Church has a heart and that this heart is burning with love; that it is love alone which makes the members work, that if love were to die away apostles would no longer preach the Gospel, martyrs would refuse to shed their blood. I understood that love comprises all vocations, that love is everything, that it embraces all .
–Saint Therese of Lisieux (1873-1897)

Melancholy is the poison of…

Melancholy is the poison of devotion. When one is in tribulation, it is necessary to be more happy and more joyful because one is nearer to God.
–Saint Clare of Assisi (1194-1253)

We refuse to weep for our sins…

Therefore we must always dread the final day, which we can never foresee. This very day is a day of truce, a day for conversion. And yet we refuse to cry over the evil we have done! Not only do we not weep for the sins we have committed, we even add to them.
–Saint Gregory the Great (c. 540-604)

The holy Bible…

The Holy Bible is like a mirror before our mind’s eye. In it we see our inner face. From the Scriptures we can learn our spiritual deformities and beauties. And there too we discover the progress we are making and how far we are from perfection.
–Saint Gregory the Great (c. 540-604)

Meditate on the Word of God…

I urge you to meditate seriously on the word of God, and not to think lightly of the writings which your Creator has bequeathed to us. Beyond all doubt they afford warmth to hearts which would otherwise be numb with cold because of our sins.
–Saint Gregory the Great (c. 540-604)

Conformity with the will of God…

A most powerful and efficacious remedy for all evils, a means of correcting all imperfections, of triumphing over temptation, and preserving our hearts in an undisturbed peace, is conformity with the will of God.
–Saint Vincent de Paul (1581-1660)

Do not sin…

But do not sin… expecting that you will repent; and do not succumb [to sin] being confident of forgiveness! Remember that death will not delay. Do not craftily seek means to draw nigh the pleasure of sin with a knavish mind! God is not mocked [Gal. 6:7]. His knowledge precedes your thoughts. Affliction will overtake you suddenly, and when you cry out, He will not answer you.
–Saint Isaac of Syria (Seventh Century)

When the Spirit dwells in a…

When the Spirit dwells in a person, prayer never from then on departs from his soul. Whether he is eating or drinking or sleeping or whatever else he is doing, even in deepest sleep, the fragrance of prayer rises without effort in his heart. Prayer never again deserts him. Even his silence is prayer, and the movements of his heart are like a secret and silent voice that sings to God.
–Saint Isaac of Syria (Seventh Century)

To be full…

To be full of things is to be empty of God. To be empty of things is to be full of God.
–Meister Eckhart (1260-1328)

If the only prayer…

If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, “Thank you,” that would suffice.
— Meister Eckhart (1260-1328)

Be prepared for the Cross…

Be prepared for the cross, and have it ever before your eyes: strive to give no cause for complaint to others and bear patiently with their faults.
–Saint John of Avila (1500–1569)

Our souls dwell…

Let us fast from all consolation in any creature, so that, as our souls dwell in solitude, God may come and fill them, because they are empty of all else.
–Saint John of Avila (1500-1569)

 

The Holy Spirit…

The Holy Spirit takes away the hunger our heart feels when wandering amongst creatures, and fills it with the bread of fulness and satisfaction.
–Saint John of Avila (1500–1569)

Practice sweet silence…

If you do not practice sweet silence, it is impossible to taste the things of God.
–Saint Mary Magdalen de Pazzi (1566-1607)

A cheerful attitude…

A cheerful attitude will sustain you in all your difficulties, trials and sufferings in life.
–Blessed Laura Vicuna (1891-1904)

Be cheerful…

Be cheerful! Jesus will take care of everything. Let us pay no attention to people who do not know what they are talking about. Let us trust in Jesus and our heavenly Mother, and everything will work out well.
–Saint Pio (1887-1968)

Marriage has three blessings…

Marriage has three blessings. The first is children, to be received and raised for God’s service. The second is the loyal faithfulness by which each serves the other. The third is the sacrament of matrimony, which signifies the inseparable union of Christ with His Church.
–Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)

Eternal life consists…

Whatever is delightful is there in superabundance. If delights are sought, there is supreme and most perfect delight. It is said of God, the supreme good: ‘Boundless delights are in your right hand.’ Again, eternal life consists of the joyous community of all the blessed, a community of supreme delight, since everyone will share all that is good with all the blessed. Everyone will love everyone else as himself, and therefore will rejoice in another’s good as in his own. So it follows that the happiness and joy of each grows in proportion to the joy of all.
–Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)

Praise of the Mother praises the Son…

Let us not imagine that we obscure the glory of the Son by the great praise we lavish on the Mother; for the more she is honored, the greater is the glory of her Son. There can be no doubt that whatever we say in praise of the Mother gives equal praise to the Son.
–Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153)

Love of Mary…

Love of Mary and devotion to her are a sure sign of obtaining eternal salvation.
–Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153)

The main battle in prayer is…

It should be clear by now that the main battle in mental prayer is perseverance. God will give us the grace to persevere if we ask him for it trustingly and are firmly resolved to do whatever is up to us.
–Jacques Philippe (1947-

The life of prayer…

If the life of prayer is not a technique to be mastered but a grace to be received, a gift from God, then talk about prayer should not focus on describing methods or giving instructions, but on explaining the necessary conditions for receiving the gift.
–Jacques Philippe (1947-

My heart with contrition…

I’m certain of this – that if my conscience were burdened with all the sins it’s possible to commit, I would still go and throw myself into our Lord’s arms, my heart all broken up with contrition; I know what tenderness He has for any prodigal son of His who comes back to Him.
–Saint Therese of Lisieux (1873-1897)

My gratitude is limitless…

What most attracts God’s graces is gratitude, because if we thank Him for a gift, He is touched and hastens to give us ten more, and if we thank Him again with the same enthusiasm, what an incalculable multiplication of graces! I have experienced this: try it yourself and you will see! My gratitude for everything he gives me is limitless, and I prove it to Him in a thousand ways.
–Saint Therese of Lisieux (1873-1897)

Life is so…

Life is often irksome and bitter; it is hard to begin a laborious day, above all when Jesus hides Himself from us. What is this tender Friend doing? Does He not then see our anguish, the load that oppresses us; where is He? Why does He not come to console us? Ah, fear not … He is there, quite near! He is watching us; He, it is, who begs for these our labors and our tears … He has need of them for souls, for our soul; He wants to give us so glorious a recompense. Ah! Truly, it costs Him to make us drink of this bitter cup, but He knows that it is the one way by which to prepare us to know Him as He knows Himself and to become ourselves God-like.
–Saint Therese of Lisieux (1873-1897)

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