Quotes

Words of Wisdom & Encouragement

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After your death…

Don’t be deceived regarding the knowledge of what will be after your death: what you sow here, you will reap there. After leaving here, no one can make progress. Here is the work, there the reward, here the struggle, there the crowns.
–Saint Barsanuphius the Great (Sixth Century)

The Body and Blood of our Lord…

When Christ gave the Bread He did not say “This is the symbol of My Body” but “This is My Body”. In the same way when He gave the cup He did not say “This is the symbol of My Blood” but “This is My Blood”; for He wanted us to look upon the Eucharistic elements after their reception of grace and the coming of the Holy Spirit not according to their nature, but that we receive them as they are: the Body and Blood of our Lord.
–Theodore of Mopsuestia (c. 350-428)

Whoever gives an evil example…

Whoever bids other folks to do right, but gives an evil example by acting the opposite way, is like a foolish weaver who weaves quickly with one hand and unravels the cloth just as quickly with the other.
–Saint John of Damascus (c. 676-750)

If we pray to God and…

If we weave by day and undo at night, nothing gets woven. If we build by day and destroy by night, nothing is ever built. If we pray to God and do evil before Him, the nothing is woven, and a house for our soul is not built.
–Saint Nicholas of Serbia (1880-1956)

All that you lose in the…

All that you lose in the name of God, you keep. All that you keep for your own sake, you loose. All that you give in the name of God, you will receive with interest. All that you give for the sake of your own glory and pride, you throw into the water. All that you receive from people as from God will bring you joy. All that you receive from people as from people will bring you worries.
–Saint Nicholas of Serbia (1880-1956)

Be a saint…

Since everybody is calling me Holy Father, as if this was my first title, I must be and really want to be a saint.
–Saint John XXIII (1881-1963)

Becoming a saint…

Jesus does not want from me a mediocre virtue, but a high one: He is not happy with me until I become, or at least I am committed to becoming a saint.
–Saint John XXIII (1881-1963)

Have hope and firm faith…

Have hope and firm faith in God, for He will help you in everything. Act, move, believe, strive, hope, cry out to Him with all your heart, for without doubt you will see marvelous things, if you direct everything to the praise and glory of His Majesty and the good of souls.
–Saint Angela Merici (1474-1540)

When someone loves God…

When you are in love, surely your constant concern is to be near the beloved at any and every opportunity, and you avoid anything that would hinder you from being in the company and society of your loved one. So it is when someone loves God. One constantly desires to be with him and speak with him. This can only be achieved through pure prayer, so let us apply ourselves to prayer with all our strength, for it makes us become like the Lord.
–Saint Theodorus the Ascetic (Seventh Century)

Make a fresh start…

When you arise it on each day, make a fresh start in every virtue and commandment of God with greatest patience, with fear and long-suffering, and the love of God, with all spiritual and physical fervor, and with much humiliation.
–The Desert Fathers (and Mothers)

Live quietly and…

Just as grass does not grow at all on a well-traveled road, even if you sow seed on the road, because the ground is trampled down, so it is with us: Live quietly, apart from things, and you will see plants growing that you had no knowledge of because they were within you and you were trampling them down.
–The Desert Fathers (and Mothers)

Love and self-control…

Love and self-control liberate the soul from its obsessions. Reading and reflection deliver the intellect from ignorance. Regular prayer brings the soul into the very presence of God.
–Saint Maximos the Confessor (580-662)

Whoever believes…

Whoever believes, fears. Whoever fears is humble. Whoever is humble becomes gentle. Whoever is gentle pacifies the unruly forces of desire and aggression and begins to keep the commandments. Whoever keeps the commandments is purified. Whoever is purified is illuminated. Whoever is illuminated is made a spouse of the divine Logos-Bridegroom and shares with him the bridal chamber of the mysteries.
–Saint Maximos the Confessor (580-662)

Certain interior dispositions are…

Certain interior dispositions are necessary if we are to make good use of the great means which the Church proposes to all… (1) purity of heart; (2) simplicity of spirit; (3) profound humility; (4) love of recollection and perseverance in prayer; (5) fervent charity.
–Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange (1877–1964)

Through the Holy Spirit…

If you would know of the Lord’s love for us, hate sin and wrong thoughts, and day and night pray fervently. The Lord will then give you His grace, and you will know Him through the Holy Spirit, and after death, when you enter into paradise, there too you will know the Lord through the Holy Spirit, as you knew Him on earth.
–Saint Silouan the Athonite (1866-1938)

If the heart does not pray…

If the heart does not pray, the tongue works in vain.
–Saint Thomas of Cori (1655-1729)

To love and be loved…

There is nothing in human life better than mutual love nor anything sweeter than holy fellowship. To love and be loved is a sweet exchange, the joy of one’s whole life, the recompense of blessedness. What can be lacking in the sweetness of this good and pleasant dwelling, this place where God dwells and where he rests? ‘God is in his holy place, God, who makes those of one mind to dwell in a house’.
–Baldwin of Forde (c. 1125-1190)

For when God loves….

Love is a great thing so long as it continually returns to its fountainhead, flows back to its source, always drawing from there the water which constantly replenishes it. Of all the movements, sensations and feelings of the soul, love is the only one in which the creature can respond to the Creator and make some sort of similar return however unequal though it be. For when God loves, all he desires is to be loved in return; the sole purpose of his love is to be loved, in the knowledge that those who love him are made happy by their love of him.
–Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153

Growth in grace…

Once you have had the experience of God’s benevolence, you need no longer feel abashed in aspiring to a holier intimacy. Growth in grace brings expansion of confidence. You will love with greater ardor, and knock on the door with greater assurance, in order to gain what you perceive to be still wanting to you. ‘The one who knocks will always have the door opened to him’. It is my belief that to a person so disposed, God will not refuse that most intimate kiss of all, a mystery of supreme generosity and ineffable sweetness.
–Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153)

Turn to the teaching…

Therefore let us leave untouched the senseless speculations of the masses and the false doctrines, and turn to the teaching delivered to us in the beginning, let us be temperate and ready for our prayers, persevere in fasting, and fervently implore the All-seeing God not to expose us to temptations, since the Lord has said: ‘The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.’
— Saint Polycarp (Second Century)

Light the divine fire in our…

In the beginning there is struggle and a lot of work for those who come near to God. But after that there is indescribable joy. It is just like building a fire: at first it is smoky and your eyes water, but later you get the desired result. Thus we ought to light the divine fire in ourselves with tears and effort.
–Saint Synkletike (d.350)

A simple rule to be followed…

A simple rule, to be followed whether one is in the light or not, gives backbone to one’s spiritual life, as nothing else can.
–Evelyn Underhill (1875-1941)

Devotional life…

Anyone can lead a “prayer-life”–that is, the sort of reasonable devotional life to which each is called by God. This only involves making a suitable rule and making up your mind to keep it however boring this may be.
–Evelyn Underhill (1875-1941)

Many Christians are like deaf people…

But so many Christians are like deaf people at a concert. They study the programme carefully, believe every statement made in it, speak respectfully of the quality of the music, but only really hear a phrase now and again. So they have no notion at all of the mighty symphony which fills the universe, to which our lives are destined to make their tiny contribution, and which is the self-expression of the Eternal God.
–Evelyn Underhill (1875-1941)

Pride does not…

Pride does not allow the soul to set out on the path of faith. Here is my advice to the unbeliever: let him say, “Lord, if you exist, then illumine me, and I will serve you with all my heart and soul.” And for this humble thought and readiness to serve God, the Lord will immediately illumine him… And then your soul will sense the Lord; she will sense that the Lord has forgiven her, and loves her, and you will know this from experience, and the grace of the Holy Spirit will be a witness in your soul of your salvation, and you will want to cry out to the whole world: “The Lord loves us so much!”
–Saint Silouan the Athonite (1866-1938)

Not every person is able to….

Not every person is able to achieve the highest state of transcendent soul; but it certainly is possible for everyone to find reconciliation with God, and it is this that will save them.
–Saint John Climacus (c. 525-606)

Fear starts sometimes…

Fear starts sometimes in the soul, sometimes in the body, and the one communicates the weaknesses to the other. But if your soul is unafraid even when the body is terrified, you are close to being healed.
–Saint John Climacus (c. 525-606)

In the Lord’s presence…

Our best plan is to place ourselves in the Lord’s presence, meditate upon His mercy and grace and upon our lowliness, and leave Him to give us what He wills…He knows best what is good for us.
–Saint Teresa of Ávila (1515-1582)

Avoid being bashful…

Avoid being bashful with God, as some people are, in the belief that they are being humble. It would not be humility on your part if the King were to do you a favor and you refused to accept it.
–Saint Teresa of Avila (1515-1582)

Faith, charity, and hope…

Faith lengthens the soul, charity widens it, hope gives it height.
–Blessed Isaac of Stella (Twelfth Century)

A heart that would contemplate…

A heart that would contemplate must be bright as a mirror, shimmer like some still stretch of water crystal clear, so that in it and through it the mind may see itself, as in and through a mirror, an image in the image of God. The heart that covets the sight of God as in a mirror must keep itself free from cares, from harmful, unnecessary and even necessary ones. It must keep itself ever alert through reading, meditation and prayer. “Blessed are the pure of heart; they shall see God.” (Mt 5:8)
–Blessed Isaac of Stella (Twelfth Century)

Forgiveness w/o Christ and the Church…

The Church is incapable of forgiving any sin without Christ, and Christ is unwilling to forgive any sin without the Church. The Church cannot forgive the sin of one who has not repented, who has not been touched by Christ; Christ will not forgive the sin of one who despises the Church. What God has joined together, man must not separate. This is a great mystery, but I understand it as referring to Christ and the Church.
–Blessed Isaac of Stella (Twelfth Century)

Everyone wants happiness…

Everyone, without exception, wants happiness, blessedness. However they all have different ideas about it: one thinks it lies in the delight of the senses and an easy life; another, in virtue; another, in knowledge of the truth. Hence he who teaches us all… begins by correcting those who stray, guiding those who are on the way, and welcoming those who are knocking at the door… So he who is “the Way, the Truth and the Life” (Jn 14:6) both corrects and guides and welcomes, and he begins with these words: “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” (Mt 5:3)
–Blessed Isaac of Stella (Twelfth Century)

Love of God and neighbor…

Whatever religious practice or observance it leads to, any teaching or discipline that fosters a stronger love of God and, through God, of our neighbours, is most acceptable to God for that reason. This love is the reason why things should be or not be, why they should remain the same or be changed. This love should be the reason why things are and the end to which all things are directed. For nothing can be considered wrong that is truly directed towards and according to that love. Without such love we cannot be pleasing to God, and without it we cannot achieve anything at all.
–Blessed Isaac of Stella (Twelfth Century)

Living chaste is…

Living a chaste Christian life is sometimes more difficult than suffering a martyr’s death.
–Saint Mark the Ascetic (Fifth Century)

To journey without direction…

Think nothing and do nothing without a purpose directed to God. For to journey without direction is wasted effort.
–Saint Mark the Ascetic (Fifth Century)

Endure present troubles…

He who wishes to avoid future troubles should endure his present troubles gladly. For in this way, balancing the one against the other, through small sufferings he will avoid those which are great.
–Saint Mark the Ascetic (Fifth Century)

Do not destroy the balance

Vigils, prayer and patient acceptance of what comes constitute a breaking that does not harm but benefits the heart, provided we do not destroy the balance between them through excess. He who perseveres in them will be helped in other ways as well; but he who is slack and negligent will suffer intolerably on leaving this life.
— Saint Mark the Ascetic (Fifth Century)

Preserve us from excess…

With all our strength and with all our effort we must strive by humility to acquire for ourselves the good gift of sober-mindedness, which can preserve us unharmed by excess from both sides. For, as the Fathers say, the extremes from both sides are equally harmful—both excess of fasting and filling the belly, excess of vigil and excessive sleep, and other excesses.
— Saint John Cassian (c. 360-435)

It is useless to boast of…

Fasts and vigils, the study of Scripture, renouncing possessions and everything worldly are not in themselves perfection, as we have said; they are its tools. For perfection is not to be found in them; it is acquired through them. It is useless, therefore, to boast of our fasting, vigils, poverty, and reading of Scripture when we have not achieved the love of God and our fellow men. Whoever has achieved love has God within themselves and their intellect is always with God.
–Saint John Cassian (c. 360-435)

Hope in God…

Hope in God. If you have good hope and faith in Him, you shall be delivered from your enemies.
–Saint Joan of Arc (1412-1431)

Charity win souls…

We must give alms. Charity wins souls and draws them to virtue.
–Saint Angela Merici (1474-1540)

If God is for us?

If God is for us, what evil could possibly harm us? One can never insist enough on the necessity of quiet, meditative prayer – the real source of interior peace. The heart does not awaken to confidence until it awakes in love.
–Jacques Philippe (1947-

How to foster inspiration…

How Can We Foster Inspirations?

Practice Praise and Thanksgiving.
Desire and Ask For Them.
Resolve to Refuse God Nothing.
Practice Filial and Trusting Obedience.
Practice Abandonment.
Practice Detachment.
Practice Silence and Peace.
Persevere Faithfully in Prayer.
Examine the Movements of Our Hearts.
Open Our Hearts To a Spiritual Director.

–Jacques Philippe (1947-

Those who travel with God…

Those who travel with God feel free; they feel that they have nothing to fear, that they are not subject to control, but on the contrary that everything is subject to them because everything works together for their good, whether favorable or unfavorable circumstances, good or bad. They feel that everything belongs to them because they are God’s children; that nothing can limit them, because God belongs to them. They are not subject to conditions but always do what they want because what they want is to love, and that is always within their power. Nothing can separate them from the God they love; and they feel that even if they were in prison, they would be just as happy, because there is no way that any power in the world could take God away from them.
–Jacques Philippe (1947-

Detraction blackens…

Detraction, like fire borne onward by the wind, passes from mouth to mouth, and what it does not destroy, it blackens.
–Saint John Baptist de la Salle (1651-1719)

Prayer with force…

If you do not feel like praying then force yourself. The Holy Fathers say that prayer with force is higher than prayer unforced. You do not want to, but force yourself. The Kingdom of Heaven is taken by force (Matthew 1112).
–Saint Ambrose of Optina (1812-1891)

Perseverance to the…

A tree is shown by its fruits, and in the same way, those who profess to belong to Christ will be seen by what they do. For what is needed is not mere present profession, but perseverance to the end in the power of faith.
–Saint Ignatius of Antioch (First Century)

As God sees fit…

God is both light and darkness to each one as he sees fit. If he is darkness to you, seek nothing else.
–Saint Jane Frances de Chantal (1572-1641)

Dissolve into the ocean of divinity…

To feel God’s presence so intimately and powerfully, so that you are no longer aware of yourself is to have that little drop of water, self, dissolve in the ocean of divinity.
–Saint Jane Frances de Chantal (1572-1641)

Mortification without…

As birds cannot soar on high with only one wing, neither should the soul persuade herself that she can rise aloft to God by mortification unless it be accompanied by prayer. Mortification without prayer is useless toil, and prayer without mortification is like meat without salt: it soon corrupts. Hence the soul must provide herself with both wings if her flight is to be towards the courts of heaven where her heart ought to find its full content in converse with God.
–Saint Jane Frances de Chantal (1572-1641)

Saints contemplate to love…

The saints do not contemplate to know, but to love. They do not love for the sake of loving but for the love of Him whom they love… For them, the end of ends is not to bring exultation to their intellect and nature and thus stop at themselves. It is to do the will of Another, to contribute to the good of the Good. They do not seek their own soul. They lose it.
–Jacques Maritain (1882–1973)

Live as if dying…

Live each day as if dying.
–Saint Anthony of Egypt (c. 251-356)

Time to relax…

If we push ourselves beyond measure we will break; it is right for us from time to time to relax our efforts.
–Saint Anthony of Egypt (c. 251-356)

Fruit ripens through…

The fruits of the earth are not brought to perfection immediately, but by time, rain and care; similarly, the fruits of men ripen through ascetic practice, study, time, perseverance, self-control and patience.
–Saint Anthony of Egypt (c. 251-356)

Keep these three precepts…

Someone asked Abba Anthony, “What must one do in order to please God?” The old man replied, “Pay attention to what I tell you: whoever you may be, always have God before your eyes; whatever you do, do it according to the testimony of the holy Scriptures; in whatever place you live, do not easily leave it. Keep these three precepts and you will be saved.”
–Saint Anthony of Egypt (c. 251-356)

Follow the saints…

Follow the saints, because those who follow them will become saints.
–Saint Clement (First Century)

To be a saint…

If God does not desire me to be a saint, He would not have created me a reasonable being.
–Saint Peter Julian Eymard (1811-1868)

You must be holy…

You must be holy in the way that God asks you to be holy. God does not ask you to be a Trappist monk or a hermit. He wills that you sanctify the world and your everyday life.
–Saint Vincent Pallotti (1795-1850)

Imitate the saints..

In all your acts, in all your works, in all your behavior, imitate the good; be a competitor of the saints, keep your eye on the heroism of the martyrs, follow the example of the just. It is my wish that the life and teachings of the saints be for you an encouragement to virtue.
–Saint Isidore of Seville (c. 560-636)

Tempests and struggles…

I carry within me three lives, all very strong: family life with its multiple sorrows of a thousand kinds, that is, the life of a mother; the life of the Works of the Cross with all its sorrows and weight, which at times crushes me until I have no strength left; and the life of the spirit or interior life, which is the heaviest of all, with its highs and lows, its tempests and struggles, its light and darkness. Blessed be God for everything!
–Blessed Concepcion Cabrera de Armida (1862-1937)

Active contemplation…

The active life to be productive must have contemplation. When it (contemplation) gets to a certain height it overflows to active life and gets help and strength from the heart of God. This is the way the saints produced so much fruit, and we’re all called to be saints.
— Saint Katharine Drexel (1858-1955)

Each is a sacrament…

Each incident, each event, each suffering, as well as each joy, is a sacrament which gives God to it; so it no longer makes a distinction between these things; it surmounts them, goes beyond them to rest in its Master, above all things.
–Saint Elizabeth of the Blessed Trinity (1880-1906)

Heavenly Mother…

Always stay close to this Heavenly Mother, because she is the sea to be crossed to reach the shores of Eternal Splendor.
–Saint Pio (1887-1968)

May the Mother of Jesus…

May the Mother of Jesus and our Mother, always smile on your spirit, obtaining for it, from her Most Holy Son, every heavenly blessing.
–Saint Pio (1887-1968)

If you separate yourself from

Do not think that you maintain the true Gospel of Christ if you separate yourselves from the flock of Christ.
–Saint Cyprian of Carthage (c. 200-258)

Love is the reason for my…

To say that I am made in the image of God is to say that love is the reason for my existence, for God is love. Love is my true identity. Selflessness is my true self. Love is my true character. Love is my name. If, therefore, I do anything or think anything or say anything or know anything that is not purely for the love of God, it cannot give me peace, or rest, or fulfillment, or joy. To find love I must enter into the sanctuary where it is hidden, which is the mystery of God.
–Thomas Merton (1915-1968)

To seek God perfectly…

This is what it means to seek God perfectly: to withdraw from illusion and pleasure, from worldly anxieties and desires, from the works that God does not want, from a glory that is only human display; to keep my mind free from confusion in order that my liberty may be always at the disposal of His will; to entertain silence in my heart and listen for the voice of God. And then to wait in peace and emptiness and oblivion of all things.
–Thomas Merton (1915-1968)

Die to yourself…

If you die to the world and to yourself, you will begin to live for Christ.
–Saint Macarius the Great (295-392)

Never be discouraged…

We can hope. We are precisely the ones that Jesus came to save, for we are being lost. Yes, without Him we are perishing at every moment. We can hope, for whatever we may be guilty of, Jesus wants to save us. The more sinful we are, the closer to death, the deeper our state of despair for our body and our soul, the more it can be said that Jesus wants to save us, for He came to save what was about to be lost. We must never be discouraged, but always hope. We are on the edge of a gulf, we are about to sink…we are sinking. We are just the ones Jesus came to save. He wants to save us because we are sinking. He is infinitely good and infinitely powerful. To the very last, as long as there is a breath of life left, all can hope in Him.
–Blessed Charles De Foucauld (1858-1916)

Find pleasure in…

Those who love God will find pleasure in everything; those who do not love God will never find true pleasure in anything.
–Saint Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787)

A subtle form of pride…

When it happens that we commit some fault, we must also be gentle with ourselves. Getting at ourselves after doing something wrong is not humility but a subtle form of pride…. To be angry at ourselves after the commission of a fault is a greater fault than the one just committed, ted, and it will lead to many others.
–Saint Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787)

Without prayer our…

Even though we may have had a powerful conversion experience, felt great fervor, and received immense graces, without fidelity to mental prayer our Christian life will soon reach a plateau and stall there.
–Jacques Philippe (1947-

Persist in praying…

Someone who persists in praying day after day is like a man who acquires an old house in the country with a well in the garden. The well has not been used for maybe the last hundred years and is blocked up. The man thinks it would be a good idea to restore it to use, so he starts clearing it. To begin with, it is not very pleasant: he finds dead leaves, stones, mud, and all sorts of rubbish, some of it quite disgusting. If he does not give up, but continues toiling away, in the end he discovers at the bottom of the well water that is clear, fresh, and unbelievably thirst-quenching.
–Jacques Philippe (1947-

Dying to self…

this doctrine of dying to self is the law for every Christian, for Christ said: “If anyone wants to follow Me, let him take up his cross and deny himself.” (Mk 8:34) But this doctrine which seems so austere, takes on a delightful sweetness when we consider the outcome of this death— life in God in place of our life of sin and misery.
–Saint Elizabeth of the Blessed Trinity (1880-1906)

Forgetful of self…

The freest soul, I think, is the one most forgetful of self. If anyone were to ask me the secret of happiness, I would say it is to no longer think of self, to deny oneself always. That is a good way to kill pride: let it starve to death! You see, pride is love of ourselves; well, love of God must be so strong that it extinguishes all our self-love.
–Saint Elizabeth of the Blessed Trinity (1880-1906)

Walk in Jesus…

“Walk in Jesus Christ, rooted in Him, built up on Him strengthened in faith and growing in Him in thanksgiving.” (Col 2:6-7) Yes, little child of my heart and soul, walk in Jesus Christ: you need this broad road, for you were not made for the narrow paths of here below! Be rooted in Him. This implies being uprooted from self, or doing everything as if you were, by denying self each time you meet it. Be built up on Him, high above everything that is passing, there where everything is pure, everything is luminous.
–Saint Elizabeth of the Blessed Trinity (1880-1906)

Tradition and Scriptures…

Everything is clear, trustworthy and simple, since we accept Holy Tradition in addition to the Holy Scriptures. And Holy tradition is a living, unbroken voice of our Church from the time of Christ and His Apostles until now, and which will exist until the end of the world. In it all the meaning of the Holy Scriptures are preserved.
–Saint Nicholas of Japan (1836-1912)

Scripture readings…

Scriptural readings such as those from the prophets were viewed not as reminiscences from the past but as a living message for the present.
–Saint Justin Martyr (100-165)

Tradition is that…

What is tradition? It is that which has been understood by everyone, everywhere and at all times … that which you have received, and not that which you have thought up … So then, our job is not to lead religion where we wish it to go, but to follow it where it leads, and not to give that which is our own to our heirs, but to guard that which has been given to us.
–Saint Vincent of Lerina (Fifth Century)

Faith and Tradition…

If someone wants to be protected from tricks and remain healthy in the faith, he must confine his faith first to the authority of the Holy Scriptures, and secondly to the Tradition of the Church. But someone may ask, is not the canon of Scripture sufficient for everything, and why should we add thereto the authority of Tradition? This is because not everyone understands the Scriptures in the same way, but one explains them this way and another that way, so that it is possible to get there from as many thoughts as there are heads. Therefore it is necessary to be guided by the understanding of the Church.
— Saint Vincent of Lerina (Fifth Century)

Joy follows sadness…

Let your understanding strengthen your patience. In serenity look forward to the joy that follows sadness.
–Saint Peter Damian (1007-1072)

On a full stomach…

There can be no knowledge of the mysteries of God on a full stomach.
–Saint Isaac of Syria (Seventh Century)

Occupy your minds…

Occupy your minds with good thoughts, or the enemy will fill them with bad ones. Unoccupied, they cannot be.
–Saint Thomas More (1478-1535)

Lives of Saints…

Just as painters in working from models constantly gaze at their exemplar and thus strive to transfer the expression of the original to their own artistry, so too he who is anxious to make himself perfect in all kinds of virtue must gaze upon the lives of the saints and must make their excellence his own by imitation.
–Saint Basil the Great (330-379)

Although God is…

Although God is all powerful, He is unable to give more; though supremely wise, He knows not how to give more; though vastly rich, He has not more to give.
–Saint Augustine (354-430)

Be always displeased…

Be always displeased with what you are if you wish to be what you are not. Keep on adding, keep on walking, keep on progressing: do not delay on the road, do not go back, do not deviate.
–Saint Augustine (354-430)

Pass by themselves…

Men go abroad to wonder at the heights of mountains, at the huge waves of the sea, at the long courses of the rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean, at the circular motions of the stars, and they pass by themselves without wondering.
–Saint Augustine (354-430)

Fasting cleanses…

Fasting cleanses the soul, raises the mind, subjects one’s flesh to the spirit, renders the heart contrite and humble, scatters the clouds of concupiscence, quenches the fire of lust, and kindles the true light of chastity. Enter again into yourself.
–Saint Augustine (354-430)

Our Lady is…

It is Our Lady who is working in me in these days, trying to awaken in me, bring out new worlds to light, draw me into her Christ Who is the center of all. And she does this when I go to her.
–Thomas Merton (1915-1968)

Make space for silence…

Even amid the “busy-ness” and the stress of our daily lives, we need to make space for silence, because it is in silence that we find God, and in silence that we discover our true self. And in discovering our true self, we discover the particular vocation which God has given us for the building up of his Church and the redemption of our world.
–Pope Benedict XVI (1927-

Surrender all…

Jesus gives all to those who surrender all.
–Saint Bernadette (1844-1879)

Death is certain…

Nothing is more certain than death, nothing more uncertain than its hour.
–Saint Anselm (1033-1109)

Peace within you…

Just as a city is not built in a day, do not think that you can achieve, in a day, this peace, this interior calm, because it is within you that a home must be built for God, while you yourself become his temple. And it is the Lord himself who must handle the construction. Without him your work would not exist.
–Jacques Philippe (1947-

Peace is…

Peace is the simplicity of spirit, the serenity of conscience, the tranquility of the soul and bond of love. Peace is order, it is the harmony in each one of us, it is a continual joy that is born in witnessing a clear conscience, it is the holy joy of a heart wherein God reigns. Peace is the way to perfection, or, even better, in peace dwells perfection.
–Jacques Philippe (1947-

Devotion to Mary…

No matter how sinful one may have been, if he has devotion to Mary, it is impossible that he be lost.
–Saint Hilary of Poitiers (c. 300-368)

The Holy Virgin…

I have been amazed that some are utterly in doubt as to whether or not the Holy Virgin is able to be called the Mother of God. For if our Lord Jesus Christ is God, how should the Holy Virgin who bore him not be the Mother of God?
–Saint Cyril of Alexandria (378-444)

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