Look, daughters, His will must be done whether we like this or not, and it will be done in heaven and on earth. Believe me, take my advice, and make a virtue of necessity.   St Teresa of Jesus of Avila   The Way of Perfection - chapter 32 : 4

St. Isidore: On Heresy

St. Isidore: On Heresy

“THEREFORE, heresy is so called from the Greek word meaning ‘choice,’ by which each chooses according to his own will what he pleases to teach or believe. But we are not permitted to believe whatever we choose, nor to choose whatever someone else has believed. We have the apostles of God as authorities, who did not themselves of their own will choose what they would believe, but faithfully transmitted to the nations the teaching received from Christ. So, even if an angel from heaven should preach otherwise, he shall be called anathema.”

~St. Isidore of Seville (c. 560 – 636): Etymologies, 8, 3.

When we go to Communion, we experience an extraordinary feeling of comfort which seems to envelop us entirely. What is this but Our Lord communicating Himself to every part of our being, and making us thrill with joy? We are obliged to exclaim like S.t John: "It is the Lord!"   - Saint John Vianney

"People are made for happiness. Rightly, then, you thirst for happiness. Christ has the answer to this desire of yours. But He asks you to trust Him"..  - Pope St. John Paul II

"The last thing I ask of you — and I ask it in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ — is that you love Him alone, that you trust implicitly in Him and that you encourage one another continually to suffer for the love of Him.”  - St. Mary Magdalen De' Pazzi

“Few souls understand what God would effect in them if they should give themselves entirely into His hands and allow His grace to act.”   St. Ignatius of Loyola, Priest

“May the Mother of Jesus and our Mother, always smile on your spirit, obtaining for it, from her Most Holy Son, every heavenly blessing.”  - St. Pio of Pietrelcina

“When God has appointed a way, we must faithfully follow it and never think of another under pretense that it is more easy and safe. It is one of the Devil’s artifices to set before a soul some state, holy indeed, but impossible to her, or at least different from hers, so that by a love of novelty, she may dislike, or be slack in her present state in which God has placed her and which is best for her. In like manner, he represents to her other acts as more holy and profitable to make her conceive a disgust for her present employment.” -St. Ignatius of Loyola, The Spiritual Exercises. (This translation is directly quoted from “Lives of Saints” edited by Fr. Joseph Vann, O.F.M., Nihil Obstat: John M. A. Fearns, S.T.D., Censor Libororum, Imprimatur+ Francis Cardinal Spellman, Archbishop of New York, August 7, 1954)

“Friendship is the source of the greatest pleasures, and without friends even the most agreeable pursuits become tedious”. - St. Thomas Aquinas

“There is an infinite treasure of knowledge available to us: the Word of God kept safe by the Church, the grace of Christ administered in the sacraments and also the witness and example of those who live by our side and have known how to build with their good lives a road of faithfulness to God.” (St. Josemaría Escrivá, Christ is Passing By, 34)

"Yes, when you are obedient I take away your weakness and replace it with My strength. I am very surprised that souls do not want to make that exchange with Me."   WORDS OF  JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA. (Diary, 381)

“There are very few for so much work! Our Lord will have to labor with you.”  – St. Vincent de Paul

“Moses and Cain each hid his face from God. Moses hid his face because he could not bear to look upon such goodness; Cain hid his face because he could not bear to have Divine Goodness look at him.  The sinner cannot bear to have the eyes of God upon him for he does not want to know how wicked he is.  But God cannot change his nature to make up for our perversity; it is the ego that must change its ways. If an egotist really understood the psychology of the human mind, he would never be heard to say that God is wrathful-for such a statement publishes his sinfulness. As a brown-colored glass can make the water in it seem brown, although it is not, so the Love that waits for us, passing through our sinful lives, may seem like wrath and anger. A change in our behavior removes all the unhealthy fear of God.” Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Lift Up Your Heart)

“Great care must be taken to show forth orthodox truth in such a way that if any heretics happen to be present they may have an example of charity and Christian moderation. No hard words should be used nor any sort of contempt for their errors be shown.”
—Saint Ignatius of Loyola.

“You know well enough that Our Lord does not look so much at the greatness of our actions, nor even at their difficulty, but at the love with which we do them.”
-Saint Therese of Lisieux-

"God is more honored by a single Mass than he could be by all actions of angels and men together, however fervent and heroic they might be."  —St. Claude de la Colombière

"Let the greatest sinners place their trust in My mercy. They have the right before others to trust in the abyss of My mercy. My daughter, write about My mercy towards tormented souls. Souls that make an appeal to My mercy delight Me. To such souls I grant even more graces than they ask. I cannot punish even the greatest sinner if he makes an appeal to My compassion, but on the contrary, I justify him in My unfathomable and inscrutable mercy. Write: before I come as a just Judge, I first open wide the door of My mercy. He who refuses to pass through the door of My mercy must pass through the door of My justice".  WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA. (Diary 1146)

The Blessed Virgin will give you a share of her faith, a faith that will remove all concern with sensible and extraordinary things. This faith will be living and animated by love so that you will act entirely out of love. —St. Louis Grignion de Montfort

Do not be afraid to be holy! Have the courage and humility to present yourselves to the world determined to be holy, since full, true freedom is born from holiness.  Pope St. John Paul II

Mary’s grace has given glory to heaven, a God to earth, and faith to the nations. She has conferred death on vices, order on life, and a rule on morals. —St. Peter Chrysologus

“The general aim of education is to train the whole man, the intellect and will and not the mind alone.  You would not take a suit that had only one sleeve.” Archbishop Fulton Sheen

I shouldn't be anxious , that in this life we cannot always be in a stable condition.... but that it should hope in Him and not be afraid.    St Teresa of Jesus of Avila. The Book of Her Life - chapter 40 : 18

He indicated that anyone who is about to receive a prelacy must be far from desiring or wanting it, or at least from striving after it.  St Teresa of Jesus of Avila   The Book of Her Life - chapter 40 : 16

"The cross will not crush you; if its weight makes you stagger, its power will also sustain you."  -St  Pio of Pietrelcin

''I myself by vow to fully & perfectly observe the rules to Accept & Yearn for the things that Christ our Lord Loved."  St. Claude de la Colombiere

I have within me a solitude where He dwells, and nothing can take that away from me.  St Elizabeth of the Trinity

From this moment on, live the Eucharist fully; be persons for whom the Holy Mass, Communion, and Eucharistic adoration are the center and summit of their whole life.  Pope St. John Paul II

“It is easy to go from deficiency to excess of the virtues, from being just to becoming rigid, and from zealous to inconsiderate.”  – St. Vincent de Paul

There is one ONLY THING to do here below: to love #Jesus, to win souls for Him so that He may be loved. -St.Therese of Lisieux

“Those who believe in an ethical order independent of economics can condemn exploitation, but the materialism of Communism cannot do it without repudiating the whole system.  They have no right to use the words right and wrong, but only private and social.  If everything is economically determined, right and wrong, truth and error have no existence, for they do not fit in an economic category.”  Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Life is Worth Living)

"When the clock struck twelve, my soul immersed itself more deeply in recollection, and I heard a voice in my soul, "Do not fear, My little child, you are not alone. Fight bravely, because My arm is supporting you; fight for the salvation of souls, exhorting them to trust in My mercy, as that is your task in this life and in the life to come". After these words, I received a deeper understanding of divine mercy. Only that soul who wants it will be damned, for God condemns no one."  WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA. (Diary 1452)

O sinners, be not discouraged but have recourse to Mary in all your necessities. Call her to your assistance, for you will always find her ready to help. It is God’s will that she should help in every need. —St. Basil

Within oneself, very clearly, is the best place to look for God; and it's not nescessary to go to heaven, nor any further than our own self.   St Teresa of Jesus of Avila.  The Book of Her Life - chapter 40 : 6

"My slightest sighs, my greatest sufferings, my sorrows and my joys, my little sacrifices: my flowers, Jesus, for You."  -St. Therese of Lisieux

"Entrust yourself completely to My will saying, "Not as I want, but according to Your will, O God, let it be done unto me." These words, spoken form the depths of one's heart, can raise a soul to the summit of sanctity in a short time. In such a soul I delight."  WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA  (Diary,1487)

“To combat evil… is to fight with love for all men, including those who are less good. It is to put goodness in relief, so as to make it more attractive, rather than to propagate evil by describing it. When the occasion presents itself to call the attention of society, or of authority, to some evil, it must be done with love for the person to blame, and with delicacy. Do not exaggerate; do not go into detail about the evil any more than is necessary to remedy it.”  —St. Maximilian Kolbe

"I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples."  - St. Teresa of  Calcutta

“When the soul is troubled, lonely and darkened, then it turns easily to the outer comfort and to the empty enjoyments of the world.” -  St. Francis of Assisi

“Don't refuse in any way or for any reason to act charitably to all without exception. Go out of your way to do this when you get the chance. The Lord desires it and you must make an effort to do it.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina.  (Letters I, p. 1353)

“The Declaration of Independence is no more a finished thing than birth; it is an original endowment like life, which is progressive through moral effort and obedience to law.”  Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Whence Comes War)

"He is like an ineffable space which embraces all.He, the Creator, embraces everything, summoning to existence from nothing, not only from the beginning, but always." -  Pope St. John Paul II in his poem "The First Beholder."

“The wisest persons, surprised by some passion, often say things they later regret.”  – St. Vincent de Paul

Mary was the perfect disciple of Christ, mirror of every virtue and embodiment of the evangelical beatitudes proclaimed by Jesus. In her the whole Church attains the most authentic form of the perfect imitation of Christ. —Pope Paul VI

How I fail ..... and I could say it a thousand times, to get rid of everything for You !    St Teresa of Jesus of Avila. The Book of Her Life - chapter 39 : 6

"Oh, how painful it is to Me that souls so seldom unite themselves to Me in Holy Communion. I wait for souls, and they are indifferent toward Me. I love them tenderly and sincerely, and they distrust Me. I want to lavish My graces on them, and they do not want to accept them. They treat Me as a dead object, whereas My Heart is full of love and mercy".  WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA
(Diary,1447)

"When I come to a human heart in Holy Communion, My hands are full of all kinds of graces which I want to give to the soul. But souls do not even pay any attention to Me; they leave Me to Myself and busy themselves with other things. Oh, how sad I am that souls do not recognize Love! They treat Me as a dead object".

WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA. (Diary 1385)

"Sufferings well received will prove our passport to eternity."    - St. Louise de Marillac

“There is an infinite treasure of knowledge available to us: the Word of God kept safe by the Church, the grace of Christ administered in the sacraments and also the witness and example of those who live by our side and have known how to build with their good lives a road of faithfulness to God.” (St. Josemaría Escrivá, Christ is Passing By, 34).

"Do not omit Holy Communion unless you know well that your fall was serious; apart from this, no doubt must stop you from uniting yourself with Me in the mystery of My love. Your minor faults will disappear in My love like a piece of straw thrown into a great furnace".   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA. (Diary 156)

“The nature of giving is best illustrated in the life of Our Blessed Lord, Who one day was approached by a leper who asked for healing.  The Gospel tells us that Our Lord stretched forth His hand and touched the leper.  Jesus could have healed without the touch, as He healed the servant of the centurion at a distance.  Why, then, in the face of one of life’s greatest miseries and a disease from which the healthy often recoil, did the Lord cure with a touch?  The Son of God Made Man touched the leper in order to annihilate distance between the Giver and the receiver, between the Lover and the beloved, to prove sympathy by contact, to identify himself with the woes of others.” Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Footprints in a Darkened Forest)

 “Our Blessed Lady herself revealed to a holy soul, that this devotion of offering the Mass, as also of saying three ‘Paters, , Aves, and Glorias,’ in honor of the most Holy Trinity, and in thanksgiving for the graces granted to her, was most pleasing to her; for the Blessed Virgin, being unable fully to thank our Lord for all the precious gifts He has bestowed on her, rejoices greatly when her children help her to thank God. 2. To reverence the Saints who are more nearly related to Mary, as Saint Joseph, Saint Joachim, and Saint Anne. The Blessed Virgin herself recommended a certain nobleman to be devout towards her mother, Saint Anne.”   -  St. Alphonsus de Liguori, Glories of Mary, Eccles. Approval, 1852, Tenth Devotion in honor of the Divine Mother

“Zeal is the soul of the virtues.”  – St. Vincent de Paul

The Mother of God is a Model of the Church in the matter of faith, charity, and perfect union with God. Through the gift and role of the Divine Motherhood, Mary is united with her Son and with the Church. —Vatican II: The Church, 63

“The Rosary, though clearly Marian in character, is at heart a Christ-centered prayer.  It has all the depth of the gospel message in its entirety.  It is an echo of the prayer of Mary, her perennial Magnificat for the work of the redemptive Incarnation which began in her virginal womb.”
 Pope St. John Paul ll

O Wealth of the poor, how admirably You know how to sustain souls ! And without their seeing such great wealth, You show it to them little by little.  St Teresa of Jesus of Avila. The Book of Her Life - chapter 38 : 21

"Priests will recommend it to sinners as their last hope of salvation. Even if there were a sinner most hardened, if he were to recite this Chaplet only once, he would receive grace from My infinite mercy…I desire to grant unimaginable graces to those souls who trust in My mercy."  WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA. (Diary 687)

“I hope that you will all live in peace in order to advance in virtue, lighten each other’s burdens, and be a consolation to one another in your heavy labors.”  – St. Vincent de Paul

"Mary, the most faithful mediatrix of our salvation." - St. Bonaventure

My God, if my tongue cannot say in every moment that I love You, I want my heart to repeat it to You as often as I draw breath.  - St. John Vianney

“O blissful penance, which has purchased for me so great a reward!'m”    St. Peter of Alcantara, to St. Teresa of Jesus, appearing to her after his death

“I bless the good God for the holy sentiments his grace gives you. You do well never to begin any task without first having implored Divine help. This will obtain for you the grace of holy perseverance.”  St. Pio of Pietrelcina

“The deeds you do may be the only sermon some persons will hear today.”  St. Francis of Assisi

“Two glasses that are empty cannot fill up one another. There must be a fountain of water outside the glasses in order that they may have communion with one another.  It takes three to make love.” Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Three to Get Married)

“I do not tremble when I see my weakness, for the treasures of a mother belong also to her child, and I am thy child, O dear Mother Mary.” - St. Thérèse of Lisieux

Each man, in his suffering, can also become a sharer in the redemptive suffering of Christ.
Pope St. John Paul II

Christ remained in Mary’s womb for nine months. He will dwell in the tabernacle of the faith of the Church until the end of the world. And He will remain in the knowledge and love of the faithful for all eternity. —St. Isaac of Stella

Everything I see with my bodily eyes seems to be a dream and a mockery. What I have already seen with the eyes of my soul is what I desire.   St Teresa of Jesus of Avila. The Book of Her Life - chapter 38 : 7

To convert somebody go and take them by the hand and guide them.  - St. Thomas Aquinas

"To priests who proclaim and extol My Mercy, I will give wondrous power; I will anoint their words and touch the hearts of those to whom they will speak."  WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA. (Diary 1521)

"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."  - St. Josemaria Escriva

“Remember that the cornerstone of perfection is charity; he who lives by charity, lives in God, because God is charity, as the Apostle said.”  St. Pio of Pietrelcina

Jesus wishes to own your heart completely. - St. Therese of Lisieaux

“To believe in Jesus is to accept what he says, even when it runs contrary to what others are saying. It means rejecting the lure of sin, however attractive it may be, in order to set out on the difficult path of the Gospel virtues.” (Pope St. John Paul II; WYD Toronto Welcoming Ceremony; July 25, 2002)

“The morning of my First Communion, [my mother] . . . would not let me do anything; I was only to read and pray. My mother often said: ‘My dear son, this has been a great day for you. I am sure that God has truly taken possession of your heart. Now you must promise Him to do your best to remain good until the day you die. In the future, go frequently to Holy Communion and beware not to commit sacrilege. In confession tell all you know, obey always, go readily to catechism classes and sermons and, for the love of God, avoid like the plague those who use foul language.’

I treasured these words and did my best to practice the counsels of my pious mother; and I think that from that day on there has been some improvement in my life, particularly in obedience and in submission to others, which I found very difficult at the time, since, like a child, I always wanted to have my way with all who were in charge or advised me.”  —St. John Bosco

“From the Virgin Mary, life was born in person, and thus did Mary become the Mother of all living.”
- St. Epiphanius

I believe that the Humanae Vitae is one of the great tests of the Church in our times.  We live in days of moral laxity, where there is a shrinking from responsibility for rearing children and a love of carnal experience divorced from love of person.  In that world where love and life are made discontinuous, Paul VI affirms the deep relatedness of one to the other.  It was not an infallible decision; that would have too clearly separated sheep from goats; it was only a moral decision of the Chief Shepherd that the Vatican Council said the faithful should obey.”  Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Seven Words to the Cross)

“Since God is the Master of the sea and the winds, I ask God to make them favorable to you, to steer the ship wherever you go, to be your guide and pilot, and, in a word, to lead you safely to your destination.”  – St. Vincent de Paul

Mary has a great desire to be invoked by us so that she may dispense her favors to us in greater abundance. So true is this that she is offended not only by those who speak ill of her but also by those who neglect to ask for her graces. —St. Bonaventure

The death of those who truly love God and despised the things of this life must be more gentle.  St Teresa of Jesus of Avila. The Book of Her Life - chapter 38 : 5

To predispose our mind to welcome the Lord who, as we say in the Creed, one day will come to judge the living and the dead, we must learn to recognize him as present in the events of daily life. Therefore, Advent is, so to speak, an intense training that directs us decisively toward him who already came, who will come, and who comes continuously.  Pope St. John Paul II

"When a spiritual person feels a great calmness of mind in asking anything of God, it is a good sign that God either has granted it, or will do so shortly." -St. Philip

Never let your home be without a crucifix upon its walls.   - St. John Vianney

"Devotion to you, O Blessed Virgin, is a means of salvation which God gives to those whom he wishes to save."   - Saint John Damascene

"If every tiny flower wanted to be a rose, spring would lose its loveliness." -St. Therese of  Lisieux

“As it is love alone which procures in us the desire of conformity with our Sovereign Master, we can only attain to this conformity by loving Him supremely.”  St. Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647-1690)

“Fight like strong souls if you wish to obtain the reward of strong souls.”  St. Pio of Pietrelcina (Letters III, p. 409)

Pope Benedict XIV, Nimiam Licentiam, May 18, 1743: “What We have said on the subject of matrimony up to this point sufficiently informs the faithful of the sanctity of marriage. They may now approach this great sacrament with that reverence and piety which is fitting, and regard it as indissoluble.”

“In  marriage, however, let the blessings of marriage be loved: offspring,  fidelity, and the sacramental bond. Offspring, not so much because it  may be born, but because it can be reborn; for it is born to punishment  unless it be reborn to life. Fidelity, but not such as even the  unbelievers have among themselves, ardent as they are for the flesh. . .  . The sacramental bond, which they lose neither through separation nor  through adultery, this the spouses should guard chastely and  harmoniously.”–St. Augustine (Marriage and Concupiscence 1:17:19 [A.D. 419])

“There was room for the rich; there was room for those who were clothed in soft garments…But when finally the scrolls of history are completed down to the last word of time, the saddest lines of all will be: ‘There was no room in the inn.’  The inn was the gathering place of public opinion, the focal point of the world’s moods, the rendezvous of the worldly, the rallying place of the popular and the successful.  But there’s no room in the place where the world gathers.  The stable is the place for outcasts, the ignored, and the forgotten.  The world might have expected the Son of God to be born in an inn; a stable would certainly be the last place in the world where one would look for Him.  The lesson is: divinity is always where you least expect to find it.  So the Son of God-Made-Man is invited to enter into His own world through a back door.”  Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Bishop Sheen Catechism)

“Pride is a most pernicious vice, and the more to be dreaded as we are strongly inclined to it by nature.”

– St. Vincent de Paul

"Souls perish in spite of My bitter Passion. I am giving them the last hope of salvation; that is, the Feast of My Mercy. If they will not adore My mercy, they will perish for all eternity. Secretary of My mercy, write, tell souls about this great mercy of Mine, because the awful day, the day of My justice, is near."   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA. (Diary 965)

The Eucharist is the heart of the Church. Where Eucharistic life flourishes, there the life of the church will blossom.  Pope St. John Paul II

We are lost on a raging sea, far from God, and buffeted at every moment by storms. We lie at the very jaws of spiritual death, and so we cry out: “Hail, Mary….”   —St. Anthony of Padua

I see how basely we are occupied, those of us who are detained by earthly things.  St Teresa of Jesus of Avila. The Book of Her Life - chapter 38 : 3

“If the devil tempts me by the thought of divine justice, I think of God's mercy; if he tries to fill me with presumption by the thought of His mercy, I think of His justice.”  St. Ignatius of Loyola (1491.-1556.)

St. Birgitta, or Bridget of Sweden, in a letter to the pope, forwarding a message from Christ to make peace with a temporal ruler due to a grave scandal it was causing souls: “For, even if the Pope were expelled from the popedom, it were better that he should humble himself and make peace on whatever occasion it could be done, rather than so many souls perish in eternal damnation.” (Quoted in “Saint Catherine of Siena: A Study in the Religion, Literature, and History of the Fourteenth Century in Italy” by Edmund Garratt Gardner pub. 1907)

My daughter, do whatever is within your power to spread devotion to My mercy. I will make up for what you lack. Tell aching mankind to snuggle close to My merciful Heart, and I will fill it with peace.  WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA. (Diary, 1074)

“Let us continue to offer one another to God and to love each other in Our Lord, as he has loved us.”  – St. Vincent de Paul

"Politics has become so primary in modern life that the masses are more moved by promises than by fullfillments." Archbishop Fulton Sheen

“You carry your snare everywhere and spread your nets in all places. You allege that you never invited others to sin. You did not, indeed, by your words, but you have done so by your dress and your deportment. . . When you have made another sin in his heart, how can you be innocent? Tell me, whom does this world condemn? Whom do judges punish? Those who drink poison or those who prepare it and administer the fatal potion?

You have prepared the abominable cup, you have given the death dealing drink, and you are more criminal than are those who poison the body; you murder not the body but the soul.

And it is not to enemies you do this, nor are you urged on by any imaginary necessity, nor provoked by injury, but out of foolish vanity and pride.”—St. John Chrysostom, Father and Doctor of the Church
(Quoted in John Chrysostom, Homilies on the Gospel of Matthew, by J. H. Parker, 1843, p. 257)

“Know, O beautiful soul, that you are the image of God.” -St. Ambrose of Milan

"Freedom consists not in doing what we like, but in having the right to do what we ought."  Pope St. John Paul II

"Your name, O Mary, is a precious ointment, which breathes forth the odor of divine grace. Let this ointment of salvation enter the inmost recesses of our souls."  - St. Ambrose

“I want to be only a poor friar who prays - if God sees blemishes even in the angels, can you imagine what He sees in me!”  St. Pio of Pietrelcina

“ To work or to suffer is all one to a heart that loves. Let us, then, leave the future to the loving Providence of this divine Heart Which only asks of us fidelity to the present moment.”  St. Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647-1690)

The demons are ever anxious in their pursuit of souls. However, they quickly abandon their prey at the sole Name of Mary. —St. Bridget

Whoever understands Him more loves Him and praise Him more.   St Teresa of Jesus of Avila. The Book of Her Life - chapter 37 : 2

“To work or to suffer is all one to a heart that loves. Let us, then, leave the future to the loving Providence of this divine Heart Which only asks of us fidelity to the present moment.” St. Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647-1690)

"Your name, O Mary, is a precious ointment, which breathes forth the odor of divine grace. Let this ointment of salvation enter the inmost recesses of our souls."  - St. Ambrose

“Our Blessed Savior revealed to Mary Magdalene the truth that He was no longer to be seen under the form of time and in the world of sensations, but only by the soul and in the world of eternity….This great truth needs to be stressed strongly on this new Easter Day when human beings no longer speak of eternity, but only of time; when they are more concerned about citizenship in the Kingdom of this world than citizenship in the Kingdom of Heaven; when their interests center more about passing questions of science, politics, economics, wealth, and power, instead of around the Risen Christ who sits eternally at the right hand of God.” Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Manifestations of Christ)

“The prayers of the Saints in heaven and of the just on earth are the perfume which will never be lost.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

“The essential act of penance, on the part of the penitent, is contrition, a clear and decisive rejection of the sin committed, together with a resolution not to commit it again, out of love which one has for God and which is reborn with repentance…”  Pope St. John Paul II

The Lord said to me, ‘The loss of each soul plunges Me into mortal sadness. You always console Me when you pray for sinners. The prayer most pleasing to Me is prayer for the conversion of sinners. Know, My daughter, that this prayer is always heard and answered.   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA.   (Diary, 1397)

Pope Pius V in Inter Multiplices confirms the doctrinal teachings of Trent, such as the following—Council of Trent, Sess. 14, Chap. 4, On the Sacrament of Penance: “The Council teaches, furthermore, that although this contrition sometimes happens to be perfect through charity and to reconcile man to God before this sacrament is actually received, nonetheless this reconciliation ought not to be ascribed to the contrition itself without the desire of the sacrament which is included in it.”

“The Providence of God is never wanting to him who confides in God as he ought.” St. Benedict Joseph Labrè  (Quoted by Don Antonio Maria Coltraro, whose work was translated into English “The Life of The Venerable Servant of God, Benedict Joseph Labrè.” Trans. Pub. Cum Approbatione Bp. Nicholas , Feb. 2, 1850., pg. 355)

True devotion to Mary is something holy. It leads a soul to avoid sin and to imitate the virtues of Mary. —St. Louis Grignion de Montfort

“A teacher who cannot explain an abstract subject to a child does not himself thoroughly understand his subject; if he does not attempt to break down his knowledge to fill the child’s mind, he does not understand teaching.” Archbishop Fulton Sheen

"When a soul sees and realises the gravity of it sins; when the whole abyss of the misery into which it immersed itself is displayed before its eyes, let it not despair, but with trust, let it throw itself into the arms of My mercy, as a child into the arms of its beloved mother. These souls have a right of priority to My compassionate Heart; they have first access to My mercy".   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA. (Diary 1541)

The vision of Christ left upon me an impression His most extraordinary beauty, and the impression remains today; One time is sufficient to make this imprint.  St Teresa of Jesus of Avila. The Book of Her Life - chapter 37 : 4

"A Carmelite has a soul that has looked upon the crucified God" St Elizabeth of the Trinity

“It is Jesus that you seek when you dream of happiness; He is waiting for you when nothing else you find satisfies you; He is the beauty to which you are so attracted; it is He who provoked you with that thirst for fullness that will not let you settle for compromise; it is He who urges you to shed the masks of a false life; it is He who reads in your heart your most genuine choices, the choices that others try to stifle.
It is Jesus who stirs in you the desire to do something great with your lives, the will to follow an ideal, the refusal to allow yourselves to be ground down by mediocrity, the courage to commit yourselves humbly and patiently to improving yourselves and society, making the world more human and more fraternal.”  ― Pope St. John Paul II

“The greatest saints, those richest in grace and virtue will be the most assiduous in praying to the most Blessed Virgin, looking up to her as the perfect model to imitate and as a powerful helper to assist them.”  - Saint Louis Marie de Montfort

“Wretched man is alone, in not being satisfied with his state and condition, whatever it may be: if he is sick, he wants to be made well; if he is well, he wants to be made rich; if rich, wise, and so on.”   St. Antonino Pierozzi (1389 – 1459)

“Our Lord does not look so much at the greatness of our actions, or even at their difficulty, as at the love with which we do them.”  —St. Thérèse of Lisieux

“Let us allow God to act; God bring things to completion when we least expect it.”  – St. Vincent de Paul

Eve believed the devil—and the world perished! Mary put her faith in the Angel of God—and the world was saved! —St. Lawrence of Brindisi

I would very eagerly choose all the trials for a little more of rejoicing in the knowledge of God's grandeurs.    St Teresa of Jesus of Avila.  The Book of Her Life - chapter 37 : 2

“If man remembered that it is written: "By your words you will be justified and by your words you will be condemned," (Matt 12:37) he would choose to remain silent.”  St. Poemen

“It is better to be a child of God than king of the whole world!”  ― St. Aloysius Gonzaga

"Let the greatest sinners place their trust in My mercy. They have the right before others to trust in the abyss of My mercy. My daughter, write about My mercy towards tormented souls. Souls that make an appeal to My mercy delight Me. To such souls I grant even more graces than they ask. I cannot punish even the greatest sinner if he makes an appeal to My compassion, but on the contrary, I justify him in My unfathomable and inscrutable mercy. Write: before I come as a just Judge, I first open wide the door of My mercy. He who refuses to pass through the door of My mercy must pass through the door of My justice".   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTNA. (Diary 1146)

“Mary is the sure path to our meeting with Christ. Devotion to the Mother of the Lord, when it is genuine, is always an impetus to a life guided by the spirit and values of the Gospel.”  - Pope St. John Paul II

"As the whole order of the universe rests on the surrender of the chemicals to the plants, of the plants to the animals, of the animals to man, so that peace of man comes only in the surrender of self to God." Archbishop Fulton Sheen

“I have nothing to complain of in particular, except this rather bitter agitation of yours, which prevents you from tasting all the sweetness of the Cross. Correct this, and continue to do what you have been doing so well up to now.”  St. Pio of Pietrelcina  ( Letters III, p.451)

“Reputation is but an empty bubble when it is not founded on truth, and when established on this basis, it has nothing to fear.”  – St. Vincent de Paul

We can pray perfectly when we are out in the mountains or on a lake and we feel at one with nature. Nature speaks for us or rather speaks to us. We pray perfectly.  Pope St. John Paul II

“We must needs abide in the Lord and not depart from Him. For, if the Lord be our protector and helper, we are able firmly to endure every contest; but if we neglect and forsake the Lord, we make our adversary stronger.”  -St. Ambrose: In Ps. 43 Enarr. 94

Mary is living the perfect joy promised to the Church. Her children on earth turn to her who is the Mother of Hope and Mother of Grace. They invoke her as the cause of our joy. —Pope Paul VI

"Now, have you ever considered, that God lays such stress upon the keeping of His commandments, and that He promises such great benefits in return for their faithful observance?  You will then agree with me, that our whole happiness consists in keeping faithfully the commandments."

"If you wish, dear brethren, to experience the magnitude of the goodness of God, then make it your duty to observe exactly what the commandments order you, and you will see with amazement how God cares for those who strive to please Him. If you wish to see a proof of this, turn to the pages of Holy Scripture, and there you will find full confirmation of this...the prophet Elias hid himself in the woods in order to escape the persecutions of Queen Jezabel.  There, deprived of all human aid, do you think that the Lord allowed him to die of hunger?  No, dear friends, certainly not.  The Lord did not lose sight of His faithful servant.  He sent at once an angel from heaven, to console him, and to bring him everything that was necessary for his maintenance."

St. John Vianney, Sermon-The First Commandment

Thus to share in the sufferings of Christ is, at the same time, to suffer for the kingdom of God. In the eyes of the just God, before his judgment. Those who share in the sufferings of Christ become worthy of this kingdom.  Pope St.John Paul II

Mary is a Model of all virtues who is more within our reach. When we contemplate her, we do not feel overwhelmed by the splendor of the Divinity. On the contrary, we are attracted by the kinship of a common nature and strive more confidently to imitate her. —Pope Leo XIII

God commanded the prophet Elijah to hide himself by the brook Cherith, and to proclaim Him on Mount Carmel the one true God. May He grant you Elijah's spirit of solitary prayer and his zeal for the divine glory.    St Teresa of Jesus of Avila

'There are some who sin through frailty, or through the force of some violent passion. They desire to break these chains of death; if their prayer is constant they will be heard.' St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (1696-1787)

Pope Eugene IV, Council of Florence, Session 8, November 1439 (Bull of union with the Armenians): “Fifthly, for the easier instruction of the Armenians of today and in the future we reduce the truth about the sacraments of the church to the following brief scheme. There are seven sacraments of the new Law, namely baptism, confirmation, eucharist, penance, extreme unction, orders and matrimony, which differ greatly from the sacraments of the old Law. The latter were not causes of grace, but only prefigured the grace to be given through the passion of Christ; whereas the former, ours, both contain grace and bestow it on those who worthily receive them. The first five of these are directed to the spiritual perfection of each person in himself, the last two to the regulation and increase of the whole church.For, by baptism we are reborn spiritually; by confirmation we grow in grace and are strengthened in faith. Once reborn and strengthened, we are nourished by the food of the divine eucharist. But if through sin we incur an illness of the soul, we are cured spiritually by penance. Spiritually also and bodily as suits the soul, by extreme unction. By orders the church is governed and spiritually multiplied; by matrimony it grows bodily.All these sacraments are made up of three elements: namely, things as the matter, words as the form, and the person of the minister who confers the sacrament with the intention of doing what the church does. If any of these is lacking, the sacrament is not effected.Three of the sacraments, namely baptism, confirmation and orders, imprint indelibly on the soul a character, that is a kind of stamp which distinguishes it from the rest. Hence they are not repeated in the same person. The other four, however, do not imprint a character and can be repeated.Holy baptism holds the first place among all the sacraments, for it is the gate of the spiritual life; through it we become members of Christ and of the body of the church. Since death came into the world through one person, unless we are born again of water and the spirit, we cannot, as Truth says, enter the kingdom of heaven. The matter of this sacrament is true and natural water, either hot or cold. The form is: I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy Spirit. But we do not deny that true baptism is conferred by the following words: May this servant of Christ be baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy Spirit; or, This person is baptized by my hands in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy Spirit. Since the holy Trinity is the principle cause from which baptism has its power and the minister is the instrumental cause who exteriorly bestows the sacrament, the sacrament is conferred if the action is performed by the minister with the invocation of the holy Trinity. The minister of this sacrament is a priest, who is empowered to baptize in virtue of his office. But in case of necessity not only a priest or a deacon, but even a lay man or a woman, even a pagan and a heretic, can baptize provided he or she uses the form of the church and intends to do what the church does. The effect of this sacrament is the remission of all original and actual guilt, also of all penalty that is owed for that guilt. Hence no satisfaction for past sins is to be imposed on the baptized, but those who die before they incur any guilt go straight to the kingdom of heaven and the vision of God.”

St. Andrew Corsini, the night of his spiritual conversion: ”Glorious Virgin Mother,” he said, “behold me, a ravening wolf, and full of iniquity, who most humbly beseech you that, as you did bring forth the Lamb without spot, whose blood hath redeemed and purified us, so He may in such wise purify and change my wolfish nature, that I may become a tame and docile sheep, to serve and follow you all the days of my life in your most holy order.” (Cited in a work entitled ”Anecdotes and Incidents, ecclesiastical and religious” pub. 1858 by Burns and Lambert)

 Jesus: My child, do you fear the God of mercy? My holiness does not prevent Me from being merciful. Behold, for you I have established a throne of mercy on earth-the tabernacle-and from this throne I desire to enter into your heart. I am not surrounded by a retinue or guards. You can come to me at any moment, at any time; I want to speak to you and desire to grant you grace.  WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA.  (Diary, 1485)

“If anyone does not believe that Holy Mary is the Mother of God, such a one is a stranger to the Godhead.”- St. Gregory Nazianzen

“An age without faith is an age of superstition.  Religious belief is so essential to the heart of man that once it is cast aside, some false form is called in to fill the void.  Every epoch of materialism has been followed by an era of superstition in which minds believe everything as fanatics and quacks become shrines of worship and objects of adoration.”  Archbishop Fulton Sheen (The World’s First Love)

“Beware of anxiety and restlessness because there is nothing that more greatly impedes progress towards perfection. Sweetly place your heart in the wounds of our Lord, but not with force. Have great confidence in His mercy, because He will never abandon you. But do not fail, for this reason, to tightly embrace His holy Cross.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina  ( Letters III,p.711)

“Perhaps in heaven you will discover that the good you are doing here is one of the most pleasing things you have ever done for God.”  – St. Vincent de Paul

To those who are young He gives fortitude and knowledge so that they are unable to desire anything else.   St Teresa of Jesus of Avila.  The Book of Her Life - chapter 35 : 12

“For if we are bidden to honor carnal fathers and mothers, how much more the spiritual? ... If this virtue of charity has been overlooked, a man will lose any fruit of salvation in any good he may do.”  - Pope St. Gregory VII

"Today the Lord said to me, ‘Daughter, when you go to Confession, to this fountain of My mercy, the Blood and Water which came forth from My Heart always flows down upon your soul and ennobles it. Every time you go to Confession, immerse yourself entirely in My mercy, with great trust, so that I may pour the bounty of My grace upon your soul. When you approach the confessional, know this, that I Myself am waiting there for you. I am only hidden by the priest, but I Myself act in your soul. Here the misery of the soul meets the God of mercy. Tell souls that from this fount of mercy souls draw graces solely with the vessel of trust. If their trust is great, there is no limit to My generosity. The torrents of grace inundate humble souls. The proud remain always in poverty and misery, because My grace turns away from them to humble souls."  WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA
(Diary 1602)

“Humility is a virtue which Jesus Christ has exceedingly loved, and which He came to teach to the world. The most powerful weapon to conquer the devil is humility.” 

– St. Vincent de Paul

“The cross is the school of love.”   -St. Maximilian Kolbe

"To saints, their very slumber is a prayer."  - St. John of the Cross

“After you have made a decision that is pleasing to God, Satan may try to make you have second thoughts. Intensify your prayer time, meditation, and good deeds. For if Satan's temptations merely cause you to increase your efforts to grow in holiness, he'll have an incentive to leave you alone.”
Saint Ignatius of Loyala

“A hypocrite is someone who teaches his neighbor something he makes no effort to do himself.”  St. Poemen (c. 340–450)

“The illusion is that suicide is total destruction.  The sentiment is the desire for repose, the will to shake off the worries of life.  Suicide is not so much the desire that one wants to be annihilated, but rather that one wants to be at ease, which is just another way of saying one wants to have a different life.”  Archbishop Fulton Sheen

"If you put all the love of all the mothers into one heart it still would not equal the love of the Heart of Mary for her children."   St. Louis de Montfort

By becoming the Mother of God, Mary was the means of the salvation of sinners. In the same way, sinners are saved by proclaiming the praises of Mary. —St. Anselm

The Church and the world have a great need of eucharistic worship. Jesus waits for us in this sacrament of love. Let us be generous with our time in going to meet Him in adoration and in contemplation that is full of faith and ready to make reparation for the great faults and crimes of the world. May our adoration never cease. Pope St. John Paul II

It was a great delight for me to see that His Majesty had used me - who am so wreched - as an instrument for such a marvelous work.  St Teresa of Jesus of Avila   The Book of Her Life - chapter 36 : 6

"The Lord said to me, ‘The loss of each soul plunges Me into mortal sadness. You always console Me when you pray for sinners. The prayer most pleasing to Me is prayer for the conversion of sinners. Know, My daughter, that this prayer is always heard and answered."  WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA. (Diary 1397)

“God made the interests of the afflicted His own.”  – St. Louise de Marillac

“God has no need of your money, but the poor have. You give it to the poor, and God receives it.”
-Saint Augustine

“The best way to prepare for death is to spend every day of life as though it was your last”   -- St. Philip Neri

“Let us then cast ourselves at the feet of this good Mother, and embracing them let us not depart until she blesses us, and accepts us for her children.”  -Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, Father and Doctor of the Church

Pope Eugene IV, Council of Basel, Session 19, Sept. 7, 1434: “… there is hope that very many from the abominable sect of Mahomet will be converted to the Catholic faith.”

“Remember that true religion is not a matter of words; there must be deeds. Hence, if you find something related worthy of admiration, do not be satisfied with saying: I like that, or that is very good; but rather say: I want to put into practice what I see is praiseworthy in others.”  St. John Bosco   (in his work “The Life of Dominic Savio” translated from the Italian and published in English LONDON: SALESIAN PRESS, SURREY LANE, BATTERSEA, S.W., 1914., Nihil Obstat, Imprimatur)

“No one can ever pass on to another the comfort that God gives until he has himself felt it after a moment of trial and suffering.  Never seek true wisdom from a person who has never suffered.” Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Lenten & Easter Inspirations)

“It is even strongly to be feared that good accomplished without suffering is not a perfect good.”  – St. Vincent de Paul

Jesus Christ has taken the lead on the way of the cross. He has suffered first. He does not drive us toward suffering but shares it with us, wanting us to have life and to have it in abundance.  Pope St. John Paul II

The Hail Mary said well is the force that puts the devil to flight. It is the sanctification of the soul, the joy of Angels, the melody of the Elect, the canticle of the New Testament, the delight of Mary, and the glory of the Holy Trinity. —St. Louis Grignion de Montfort

May it please the Lord that all be to His glory and praise and to that of the glorious Virgin Mary, whose habit we wear.   St Teresa of Jesus of Avila. The Book of Her Life - chapter 36 : 28

From this moment on, live the Eucharist fully; be persons for whom the Holy Mass, Communion, and Eucharistic adoration are the center and summit of their whole life.   Pope St. John Paul II

"There are several ways to avoid loving God: Deny that you are a sinner. Pretend that religion is for the ignorant and the superstitious but not for the truly learned such as yourself. Insist that the sole purpose of religion is social service. Judge religion by whether or not it is accepted by the important people of the world. Avoid all contemplation, self-examination, and inquiry into the moral state of your soul."   - Archbishop Fulton SheenF 

It seemed to me I possessed all the world's riches in resolving to live by the love of God.   St Teresa of Jesus of Avila. The Book of Her Life - chapter 35 : 6

“Take, beloved son this scapular of thy order as a badge of my confraternity and for thee and all Carmelites a special sign of grace; whoever dies in this garment, will not suffer everlasting fire.”  Our Lady of Mount Carmel to St. Simon Stock.

Tell [all people], My daughter, that I am Love and Mercy itself. When a soul approaches Me with trust, I fill it with such an abundance of graces that it cannot contain them within itself, but radiates them to other souls.  WORDS OF JESUS TO ST FAUSTINA. (Diary, 1074)

“Violence and arms can never resolve the problems of men.” -St. John Paul II

“Our love of God is always opposed by our self-love, our love of one another by the miserable pride and pretension which creates jealousy, rash judgment and the pitiful dislikes and impatience which so often trouble us and wound charity.”  – St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

“The waters of life become more purified by running over the jagged mountain streams of suffering.” Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Three to Get Married)

I feel a great desire to abandon myself with greater trust, to the divine mercy, and to place my hope in God alone.  St. Padre Pio

The Hail Mary is the most beautiful of all prayers after the Our Father and the most beautiful compliment you can give to Mary. It is by this compliment that you will also win her heart, if you say it as you ought. —St. Louis Grignion de Montfort

“The most glorious and desirable death is that which surprises us with arms in our hands for the service of the Lord.”

– St. Vincent de Paul

“While you are proclaiming peace with your lips, be careful to have it even more fully in your heart."
Saint Francis of Assisi

"...how little true Christianity is found in the world and how few among those who live in the world are guided by the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Still, it is this Spirit alone which ought to inspire all our actions, making them holy and agreeable to God."—St. Jean Baptiste de la Salle

Pope Martin V confirmed the following Session 37 of the Council of Constance: “May this judgment come forth from the face of him who sits on the throne, and from his mouth proceeds a double-edged sword, whose scales are just and weights are true, who will come to judge the living and the dead, our lord Jesus Christ, Amen. The Lord is just and loves just deeds, his face looks on righteousness. But the Lord looks on those who do evil so as to cut off their remembrance from the earth. Let there perish, says the holy prophet, the memory of him who did not remember to show mercy and who persecuted the poor and needy... This same holy synod, moreover...absolves and declares to be absolved all Christ’s faithful from obedience to him [Antipope Benedict XIII], and from every duty of obedience to him and from oaths and obligations in any way made to him. It forbids each and every one of Christ’s faithful to obey, respond to or attend to, as if he were pope, the said Peter de Luna, who is a notorious, declared and deposed schismatic and incorrigible heretic, or to sustain or harbour him in any way contrary to the aforesaid.”

“The religion of Christian Faith is greatly diminished; we be very few; and whereas sometime we were spread almost through the world, now we be thrust down into a very straight angle or corner. Our enemies hold away from us Asia and Africa, two of the greatest parts of the world. Also they hold from us a great portion of this part, called Europe, which we now inhabit, so that scant the sixth part of that we had in possession before is left unto us. Besides this, our enemies daily lay await to have this little portion. Therefore, good Lord, without Thou help, the name of Christian men shall utterly be destroyed and fordone. . . . Therefore, merciful Lord, exercise Thy mercy, show it indeed upon thy Church, quia tempus est miserendi ejus. If there be many righteous people in Thy Church militant, hear us, wretched sinners, for the love of them ; be merciful unto Sion, that is to say, to all Thy Church. If in Thy Church be but a few righteous persons, so much the more is our wretchedness, and the more need we have of Thy mercy.” -St. John Fisher (From “The Life of Blessed John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester, Cardinal of the Holy Roman Church and Martyr Under Henry VIII” by Rev. Thomas Edward Bridgett, C.SS.R. pub. permissu superiorum, with a Nihil Obstat and Imprimatur, 1890.)

“Good is not good if one does not suffer in doing it.”

– St. Vincent de Paul

“Where there is no obedience there is no virtue, where there is no virtue there is no good, where there is no good there is no love, where there is no love, there is no God, and where there is no God there is no Paradise.”  St. Pio of Pietrelcina

"God is as really present in the consecrated Host as He is in the glory of Heaven." - St. Paschal Baylon.

In the evening, I saw the Lord Jesus upon the cross. From His hands, feet and side, the Most Sacred Blood was flowing. After some time, Jesus said to me, "All this is for the salvation of souls. Consider well, My daughter, what you are doing for their salvation". I answered, "Jesus, when I look at Your suffering, I see that I am doing next to nothing for the salvation of souls." And the Lord said to me, "Know, My daughter, that your silent day-to-day martyrdom in complete submission to My will ushers many souls into heaven. And when it seems to you that your suffering exceeds your strength, contemplate My wounds, and you will rise above human scorn and judgment. Meditation on My Passion will help you rise above all things". I understood many things I had been unable to comprehend before.  WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA.  (Diary 1184)

“Suffering is bearable if there is someone we love. No human being is free to decide whether he will go through life without suffering and trial. These constitute as much the essence of life as shadows resulting from sunlight. Our choice is only to decide how we will react to them. Some trials in marriage are of such a magnitude that no human remedy can help; it is then that one must turn to God and the fullness of His love.” Archbishop Fulton Sheen

Are you capable of risking your life for someone? Do it for Christ.  Pope St. John Paul II

Mary is our “pillar of cloud.” She protects us against the burning rays of the Divine wrath and the fire of temptations. —St. Bonaventure

“Formerly, man lived in a three-dimensional universe where, from an earth he inhabited with his neighbors, he looked forth to heaven above and to hell below.  Forgetting God, man’s vision has lately been reduced to a single dimension; namely, that of his own mind.  Where can the soul go, now that a road block has been thrown up against every external outlet?  Like a city which has had all its outer ramparts seized, man must retreat inside himself.  As a body of water that is blocked turns back upon itself, collecting scum, refuse, and silt, so the modern soul (which has none of the goals or channels of the Christian) backs upon itself and in that choked condition collects all the sub-rational, instinctive, dark, unconscious sediment which would never have accumulated had there been the normal exits of normal times.  Man now finds that he is locked up within himself, his own prisoner.  Jailed by self, he now attempts to compensate for the loss of the three-dimensional universe of faith by analyzing his mind.”  Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Go To Heaven)

Allow the light and the healing presence of Christ to shine brightly through your lives. In that way, all those who come in contact with you will discover the loving kindness of God.  Pope St. John Paul II

When I behold majesty as extraordinary as this concealed in something as small as the host, it happens afterward that I marvel at wisdom so wonderful.  St Teresa of Jesus of Avila. The Book of Her Life - chapter 38 : 21

Today the Lord said to me, "I have opened My Heart as a living fountain of mercy. Let all souls draw life from it. Let them approach this sea of mercy with great trust. Sinners will attain justification, and the just will be confirmed in good. Whoever places his trust in My mercy will be filled with My divine peace at the hour of death".  WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA.  (Diary 1520)

“Pray with perseverance, trust and a serene and calm mind.” St. Pio of Pietrecina

"God solicits each of us by a dialogue no other soul can hear. His action on the soul is always for us alone. He sends no circular letters, uses no party lines. He calls His sheep by name; He leaves the 99 that are safe to find the one that is lost. Once the soul becomes conscious of the Divine Presence it whispers to itself: this is a message sent to me and to no one else. Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Lift up Your Heart)

To humanity, which sometimes seems to be lost and dominated by the power of evil, selfishness and fear, the risen Lord gives the gift of His love which forgives, reconciles and reopens the soul to hope.
Pope St. John Paul II

Before Christ ascending into heaven, strengthening some, encouraging others, our companion in the most Blessed Sacrament; it doesn't seem it was in His power to leave us for even a moment.  St Teresa of Jesus of Avila. The Book of Her Life - chapter 22 : 6

The Virgin Mary is like a “vessel” because of her humility. She is made of “gold” because of her poverty and “embellished with every kind of precious stone” because of her virginity. —St. Anthony of Padua

Whoever lives in the presence of Christ can endure all things.  St Teresa of Jesus of Avila. The Book of Her Life - chapter 22 : 6

“Firmly control anger and desire, and you will speedily rid yourself of evil thoughts.”   St. Thalassios the Libyan

"May 1, [1938]. This evening, Jesus said to me, My daughter, do you need anything? I answered, "O my Love, when I have You I have everything." And the Lord answered, If souls would put themselves completely in My care, I myself would undertake the task of sanctifying them, and I would lavish even greater graces on them. There are souls who thwart My efforts, but I have not given up on them; as often as they turn to Me, I hurry to their aid, shielding them with My Mercy, and I give them the first place in My Compassionate Heart."  WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA  (Diary, 1682)

Pope St. Pius X confirms the practice of the Fourth Lateran Council in QUAM SINGULARI, August 8, 1910: “This new practice, already accepted by certain local councils, was solemnly confirmed by the Fourth Council of the Lateran, in 1215, which promulgated its celebrated Canon XXI, whereby sacramental Confession and Holy Communion were made obligatory on the faithful after they had attained the use of reason, in these words: ‘All the faithful of both sexes shall, after reaching the years of discretion, make private confession of all their sins to their own priest at least once a year, and shall, according to their capacity, perform the enjoined penance; they shall also devoutly receive the Sacrament of Holy Eucharist at least at Easter time unless on the advice of their own priest, for some reasonable cause, it be deemed well to abstain for a while.’”

 “Yes, my dear mother! I have seen that soul in purgatory. Oh! my mother,” she continued, weeping, “how good is God in His justice! How has this prince followed the spirit of the world and the lights of the flesh — how little anxiety has he had for his soul, and how little devotion in the use of the sacraments! And yet, my dear mother, I am not so much moved at the lamentable state of suffering in which I have seen his soul, as I am struck with wonder at the blessed movement of grace which accomplished his salvation. That happy instant seems to me an out flow of the infinity of God’s goodness, sweetness, and love. The action in which he died deserved hell. It was no attention to God on His own part which won from heaven that precious moment of grace. It was an effect of the communion of saints by the participation which he had in the prayers that were made for him. The Divine Omnipotence lovingly allowed itself to be turned by some good soul, and in that grace acted beyond its wont. Ah! my dear mother, henceforth we must teach all the world to beg of God, our blessed Lady, and the saints, that final instant of grace and mercy for the hours of death, and also to pave the way for it by good works, because, though our Lord may sometimes derogate from His ordinary providence, we must never presume on that privilege in our own case.” -St. Marie Denise. (From the book “Mary's call to her loving children; or, Devotion to the dying”, pub. with permission of the bishop, 1880, quoting Fr Faber who quotes this saint, on pp. 68-69)

“How good it is to trust God! Turn to Him often, then, as children look to their father and mother in their needs.”  – St. Louise de Marillac

"With the fighting forces no group equally large is so revered. It is their high calling to the defense of justice and freedom that makes them loved. It was a soldier who first uttered the words recalled by the Church at Communion: 'Lord I am not worthy to have Thee come under my roof but only say the word, and my servant will be healed.' (Matt 8:8)" Archbishop Fulton Sheen

"Do not be afraid to take a chance on peace, to teach peace, to live peace... Peace will be the last word of history."  - Pope St. John Paul II

“There is no state in the world that has not its bitterness and crosses, and which therefore does not make us desire to embrace some other condition.”  – St. Vincent de Paul

All the gifts and graces that we receive from God are dispensed by the hands of Mary. They are given to whom she pleases, when she pleases, and as she pleases. —St Bernardine of Siena

“My past, O Lord, to Your mercy; my present, to Your love; my future to Your providence.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

Entrust yourself completely to My will saying, "Not as I want, but according to Your will, O God, let it be done unto me." These words, spoken form the depths of one's heart, can raise a soul to the summit of sanctity in a short time. In such a soul I delight."   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA. (Diary,1487)

“One does not go to bed one night a saint and wake up the next morning as a devil.  Between the realms of black and white there is the grey confusion of a barely perceptible decline.  Samson, after many moral lapses, was unconscious that his strength was lost.” Venerable Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Walk With God)

"We say, dear brethren, that rash judgment arises from a proud and envious heart, and this is easily understood.  The proud and envious have a good opinion only of themselves and they attribute everything that their neighbor does to mad motives;  the good which they perceive in their neighbor, anger and vexes them....This sin kills by a slow fire.  O, what a sad life!  But all the happier is the life of those who do not criticize their neighbors, and who take everything for the best!  Their soul is at peace, they think badly only of themselves, and in consequence humble themselves before God and implore His mercy."   St. John Vianney, Sermon on Rash Judgement

“To enjoy we must love; and to love we must sacrifice.”

– St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

“It is no surprise that among the Sisters there are some who become discouraged in the thick of temptation.”

– St. Vincent de Paul

Although I have lived through much darkness, I have seen enough evidence to be unshakably convinced that no difficulty, no fear is so great that it can completely suffocate the hope that springs eternal in the hearts of the young... Do not let that hope die! Stake your lives on it! We are not the sum of our weaknesses and failures; we are the sum of the Father's love for us and our real capacity to become the image of his Son.  Pope St. John Paul II

How You desire, Lord, thus to be with us and to be present in the Sacrament.... You would be glad to be with us since You say that Your delight is to be with children of the earth.   St Teresa of Jesus of Avila. The Book of Her Life - chapter 14 : 10

There are many graces that we will not obtain if we ask them of God. But if we ask them of Mary, we will obtain them, not because she is more powerful but because God wants to honor her in this way. —St. Anselm

“Remember that true religion is not a matter of words; there must be deeds. Hence, if you find something related worthy of admiration, do not be satisfied with saying: I like that, or that is very good; but rather say: I want to put into practice what I see is praiseworthy in others.” St. John Bosco (Feast Day, Jan 31st).   (in his work “The Life of Dominic Savio” translated from the Italian and published in English LONDON: SALESIAN PRESS, SURREY LANE, BATTERSEA, S.W., 1914., Nihil Obstat, Imprimatur)

How You desire, Lord, thus to be with us and to be present in the Sacrament.... You would be glad to be with us since You say that Your delight is to be with children of the earth.    St Teresa of Jesus of Avila.  The Book of Her Life - chapter 14 : 10

“Jesus is the mediator of justice; Mary obtains for us grace; for, as St. Bernard, St. Bonaventure, St. Bernardine of Siena, St. Germanus, St. Antoninus, and others say, it is the will of God to dispense through the hands of Mary whatever graces He is pleased to bestow upon us. With God, the prayers of the saints are the prayers of His friends, but the prayers of Mary are the prayers of His mother.”
-  Saint Alphonsus Liguori

“Maybe you will say that a sinner is not interested in hell, or does not even believe in it. All the worse. Do you think that this will stop him from being damned? Indeed no; rather it is an even clearer sign of his fatal condemnation, as the Gospel says: "He who does not believe will be condemned."' St. Anthony Mary Claret (1807-1870)

Pope St. Leo the Great is quoted in Lateran Council III (Ecumenical Council XI) in its canon 27: “As Blessed Leo says: ‘Although ecclesiastical discipline, content with sacerdotal judgment, does not employ bloody punishments, it is nevertheless helped by the constitutions of Catholic rulers, so that men often seek a salutary remedy, when they fear that corporal punishment is coming upon them.’ For this reason, since in Gascony, in Albegesium, and in parts of Tolosa and in other places, the cursed perversity of the heretics whom some call Cathari, others Patareni, others Publicani, others by different names, has so increased that now they exercise their wickedness not as some in secret, but manifest their error publicly and win over the simple and weak to their opinion, we resolve to cast them, their defenders and receivers under anathema, and we forbid under anathema that anyone presume to hold or to help these in their homes or on their land or to do business with them.” (Denz. 401)

 “As in all the following visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament a spiritual communion is recommended, it will be well to explain what it is, and the great advantages which result from its practice. A spiritual communion, according to St. Thomas, consists in an ardent desire to receive Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament, and in lovingly embracing Him as if we had actually received Him. How pleasing these spiritual communions are to God, and the many graces which He bestows through their means, was manifested by our Lord Himself to Sister Paula Maresca, the foundress of the convent of St. Catherine of Sienna in Naples, when (as it is related in her life) He showed her two precious vessels, the one of gold, the other of silver; He then told her that in the gold vessel He preserved her sacramental communions, and in the silver one her spiritual communions. He also told Blessed Jane of the Cross, that each time that she communicated spiritually she received a grace of the same kind as the one which she received when she really communicated. Above all, it will suffice us to know that the holy Council of Trent greatly praises spiritual communions, and encourages the faithful to their practice. 

　Hence all devout souls are accustomed often to practise this holy exercise of spiritual communion. Blessed Agatha of the Cross did so two hundred times a day. And Father Peter Faber, the first companion of St. Ignatius, used to say that it was of the highest utility to make spiritual communions, in order to receive the sacramental communion we ll.”   St. Alphonsus de Liguori  (Taken from his work VISITS TO THE MOST HOLY SACRAMENT AND THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY. translated into the English by THE REV. R. A. COFFIN, C.SS.R)

“Those who deny guilt and sin are like the Pharisees of old who thought our Saviour had a “guilt complex” because He accused them of being whited sepulchers—outside clean, inside full of dead men’s bones. Those who admit that they are guilty are like the public sinners and the publicans of whom Our Lord said, “Amen, I say to you, that the publicans and the harlots shall go into the Kingdom of God before you” (Matt. 21:31). Those who think they are healthy but have a hidden moral cancer are incurable; the sick who want to be healed have a chance. All denial of guilt keeps people out of the area of love and, by inducing self-righteousness, prevents a cure. The two facts of healing in the physical order are these: A physician cannot heal us unless we put ourselves into his hands, and we will not put ourselves into his hands unless we know that we are sick. In like manner, a sinner’s awareness of sin is one requisite for his recovery; the other is his longing for God. When we long for God, we do so not as sinners, but as lovers.” Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Peace of Soul)

“I do not think it expedient for you to relieve yourself by imparting your little annoyances to this one or that. A good stomach digests everything, while a delicate one ejects what it cannot endure. Oh, how good it is to keep our affairs between God and ourselves!”  – St. Vincent de Paul

Mary gave being and life to the Author of all grace. That is why she is called the Mother of Grace. —St. Louis Grignion de Montfort

In this silence of the white Host, carried in the Monstrance, are all His words; there is His whole life given in offering to the Father for each of us; there is also the glory of the glorified body, which started with the Resurrection, and still continues in Heavenly union.  Pope St. John Paul II

My Lord, You do not leave us empty-handed when we give You everything we can.  St Teresa of Jesus of Avila. The Way of Perfection - chapter 32 : 1

Second Lateran Council, confirming the legislature of Popes St. Gregory VII,  Urban and Pope St. Paschal: “Adhering to the path trod by our predecessors, the Roman pontiffs Gregory VII, Urban and Paschal, we prescribe that nobody is to hear the masses of those whom he knows to have wives or concubines. Indeed, that the law of continence and the purity pleasing to God might be propagated among ecclesiastical persons and those in holy orders, we decree that where bishops, priests, deacons, subdeacons, canons regular, monks and professed lay brothers have presumed to take wives and so transgress this holy precept, they are to be separated from their partners. For we do not deem there to be a marriage which, it is agreed, has been contracted against ecclesiastical law. Furthermore, when they have separated from each other, let them do a penance commensurate with such outrageous behaviour.”

"Now, rest your head on My bosom, on My Heart, and draw from it strength and power for these sufferings because you will find neither relief nor help nor comfort anywhere else."  WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA. ( Diary)

"When harmed, insulted or persecuted by someone, do not think of the present but wait for the future, and you will find he has brought you much good, not only in this life but also in the life to come."   -St. Mark the Ascetic

“Vanity and inordinate affections suffice to damn a soul. It is only through the divine mercy that we can hope to be saved, and shall we ever cease to implore it?” St. Hugh, Bishop of Grenoble   (Fr. Alban Butler, “Lives of the Saints”)

"Let us hasten with confidence to Christ’s throne of grace, and with prayers and profound contrition, let us beg Him to repeat for every one of us the words He said to His mother, ‘Behold your Son.’ In the same way, as He looks at Mary, may He repeat to every one of us the wonderful invitation: 'Behold your mother.’”  - St. Robert Bellarmine

“There are some people who make themselves mentally sick.  Actually there are cases on record of men saying ‘if I had not been sick I would have written one of the finest novels that has ever been produced,’ ‘If I had not been sick, I would have been a millionaire,’ etc.  Such people induce sickness out of fear of being called upon to fulfill their boasts or out of fear of their weakness and ignorance being discovered.”  Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Life is Worth Living)

“The longer the trial to which God subjects you, the greater the goodness in comforting you during the time of the trial and in the exaltation after the combat.”  St. Pio of Pietrelcina

“The inspirations of God are gentle and peaceful, inclining us lovingly toward the good He desires of us.”

– St. Vincent de Paul

“In the realm of evil thoughts none induces to sin as much as do thoughts that concern the pleasure of the flesh.”  -- Saint Thomas Aquinas

See the confidence that the Church places in Mary. In all public calamities she invariably calls upon the faithful to enlist her protection through novenas, through prayers and processions, and through visits to her churches and shrines. —St. Alphonsus Liguori

Yet He doesn't take away entirely what He has given, when one lives with a pure conscience.  St Teresa of Jesus of Avila. The Way of Perfection - chapter 31 : 12

Our Lady desires that we not only work for her but also suffer for her. We must calmly bear the little crosses of each day and even desire that they exist! —St. Maximilian Kolbe

“Shame proves that there is something in the human being which is not in the animal.  Shame draws a veil over the deepest instincts, holding them in check.  It guards the person against a too precocious revelation of its instincts, and bears witness to the fact that there is some great mystery and sanctity attached to the body such as Paul referred to when he said, ‘The body is for the Lord.’”  Venerable Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Love, Marriage and Children)

“The most beautiful act of faith is the one made in darkness, in sacrifice, and with extreme effort.”  St. Pio of Pietrelcina

“From Mary we learn to surrender to God's Will in all things. From Mary we learn to trust even when all hope seems gone. From Mary we learn to love Christ her Son and the Son of God!”  - Pope St. John Paul I

“God compensates for and accomplishes in a divine way what men and women are not able to do in a human way.”– St. Vincent de Paul

“We shall never learn to know ourselves except by endeavoring to know God; for, beholding His greatness, we realize our own littleness; His purity shows us our foulness; and by meditating upon His humility we find how very far we are from being humble.”  (St. Teresa of Avila, Doctor of the Church)

Pope Innocent III (1198), Sermon IV: “The Roman Pontiff has no superior but God. Who, therefore (should a pope ‘lose his savor’) could cast him out or trample him under foot - since of the pope it is said ‘gather thy flock into thy fold’? Truly, he should not flatter himself about his power, nor should he rashly glory in his honor and high estate, because the less he is judged by man, the more he is judged by God.
Still the less can the Roman Pontiff glory [Minus dico] because he can be judged by men, or rather, can be shown to be already judged, if for example he should wither away into heresy; because he who does not believe is already judged.
In such a case it should be said of him: ‘If salt should lose its savor, it is good for nothing but to be cast out and trampled under foot by men’.”
(Sermo 4: In Consecratione PL 218:670.)

We should have to be angel in order to make this petition and recite well our vocal prayers.
St Teresa of Jesus of Avila. The Way of Perfection - chapter 30 : 6

"Nothing is more destined to create deep-seated anxieties in people than the false assumption that life should be free from anxieties."  - ArchbishopFulton J. Sheen

"A Dieu, little sister, let us remain at the center of our soul, there where He dwells; then it will be a heart-to-heart through all things. Oh! if you knew how He loves you and how, through you, He wants to be loved".   -St Elizabeth of the Trinity (July 3, 1905)

Those of you who are the enemies of contemplatives should not think that you are free from being a contemplative you recite your vocal prayers as they should be recite with a pure conscience. St Teresa of Jesus of Avila   The Way of Perfection - chapter 30 : 7.

"Let us run to Mary, and, as her little children, cast ourselves into her arms with a perfect confidence."   - Saint Francis de Sales

“You must accept your cross. If you bear it courageously it will carry you to heaven.” (St. Jean-Baptiste Marie Vianney, Cure d’Ars)

Saint Quote of the Day (07/07/2016)

St. Augustine - City of God, excerpts from Book I, chapter 16 and 18. 

“Let this, therefore, in the first place, be laid down as an unassailable position, that the virtue which makes the life good has its throne in the soul, and thence rules the members of the body, which becomes holy in virtue of the holiness of the will; and that while the will remains firm and unshaken, nothing that another person does with the body, or upon the body, is any fault of the person who suffers it, so long as he cannot escape it without sin. 

“But since purity is a virtue of the soul, and has for its companion virtue, the fortitude which will rather endure all ills than consent to evil; and since no one, however magnanimous and pure, has always the disposal of his own body, but can control only the consent and refusal of his will, what sane man can suppose that, if his body be seized and forcibly made use of to satisfy the lust of another, he thereby loses his purity? For if purity can be thus destroyed, then assuredly purity is no virtue of the soul; nor can it be numbered among those good things by which the life is made good, but among the good things of the body, in the same category as strength, beauty, sound and unbroken health, and, in short, all such good things as may be diminished without at all diminishing the goodness and rectitude of our life. But if purity be nothing better than these, why should the body be perilled that it may be preserved? If, on the other hand, it belongs to the soul, then not even when the body is violated is it lost. Nay more, the virtue of holy continence, when it resists the uncleanness of carnal lust, sanctifies even the body, and therefore when this continence remains unsubdued, even the sanctity of the body is preserved, because the will to use it holily remains, and, so far as lies in the body itself, the power also.

“For the sanctity of the body does not consist in the integrity of its members, nor in their exemption from all touch; for they are exposed to various accidents which do violence to and wound them