There have been saints, to be sure, who were wonderfully wise for all of their ignorance. There have been others, equally as certain, who have been wonderfully ignorant for all of their knowledge.
–Saint Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Remember then how our fathers worked out their salvation; remember the sufferings through which the Church has grown, and the storms the ship of Peter has weathered because it has Christ on board. Remember how the crown was attained by those whose sufferings gave new radiance to their faith. The whole company of saints bears witness to the unfailing truth that without real effort no one wins the crown.
–Saint Thomas Becket (c. 1118-1170)
The saints all passed through many temptations and trials to profit by them, while those who could not resist became reprobate and fell away. There is no state so holy, no place so secret that temptations and trials will not come. Man is never safe from them as long as he lives, for they come from within us—in sin we were born.
— Thomas à Kempis (1380-1471)
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)
How different are all the saints! In heaven the greatest doctor of the church will sit down with a little child.
–Saint Therese of Lisieux (1873-1897)
Noticing the defects of the saints we must avoid the mistake of being complacent with ourselves as we are. We should consider that even if the saints are imperfect then it is no wonder that we are imperfect, too…It is a good thing to see the defects in the lives of the saints. It not only teaches us to imitate the saints in their efforts to overcome their failings and to do penance for them, but it shows us God’s goodness in forgiving them.
–Saint Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
