“I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love.”   - St. Teresa of Calcutta

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

“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.

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

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

At adoration during the Forty-Hours' Devotion, the Lord said to me, My daughter, write that involuntary offenses of souls do not hinder My love for them or prevent Me from uniting Myself with them. But voluntary offenses, even the smallest, obstruct My graces, and I cannot lavish My gifts on such souls.   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA   (Diary, 1641)

“In order to attract us the Lord gives us many graces and we imagine we are almost in Heaven. We do not know, however, that to grow we need hard bread: crosses, humiliations, trials and contradictions.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

“Mary having co-operated in our redemption with so much glory to God and so much love for us, Our Lord ordained that no one shall obtain salvation except through her intercession.”   - St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

“The emptiness of self is in order that Christ may get in; compassion and service is in order that Christ may get out to others.  The priest exists to hold the world open for God – like Christ on the Cross.”     Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Those Mysterious Priests)

“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

"He who goes about to take the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass from the Church plots no less a calamity than if he tried to snatch the sun from the universe."   - St. John Fisher

“I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love.”   St. Teresa of Calcutta

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

Teach us to give and not count the cost.    St. Ignatius of Loyola

"To announce to Catholic Christians a doctrine other than that which they have received was never permitted, is nowhere permitted, and never will be permitted. It was ever necessary, is everywhere necessary, and ever will be necessary that those who announce a doctrine other than that which was received once and for all be anathema."   - St. Vincent of Lérins on doctrine

“ Do not let your soul be troubled at the sad spectacle of human injustice; even this has its value in the economy of events. Do not stop in your search for the truth and in the acquisition of the Most High. Be docile to the inspirations of grace.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

"Chosen souls are, in My hand, lights which I cast into the darkness of the world and with which I illumine it. As stars illumine the night, so chosen souls illumine the earth. And the more perfect a soul is, the stronger and the more far-reaching is the light shed by it. It can be hidden and unknown, even to those closest to it, and yet its holiness is reflected in souls even to the most distant extremities of the world."   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA   (Diary, 1601)

“Mary having co-operated in our redemption with so much glory to God and so much love for us, Our Lord ordained that no one shall obtain salvation except through her intercession.”   - St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

“I have often sought some way to explain the fact that we priests are to know Christ, rather than know about Christ. Many translations of the Bible use the word "know" to indicate the unity of two-in-one flesh. For example: "Solomon knew her not," which meant that he had no carnal relations with her. The Blessed Mother said to the Angel at the Annunciation: "I know not man." St. Paul urges husbands to possess their wives in knowledge. The word "know" here indicates two-in-one flesh. The closeness of that identity is drawn from the closeness of the mind with any object it knows. No knife could ever separate my mind from the idea it has of an apple. The ecstatic union of a husband and wife described as "knowing" is to be the foundation of that love by which we priests love Christ.”     Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Treasure in Clay)

“Our happiness lies in the cross; even Our Lord did not will to enter his glory except through suffering.”   – St. Vincent de Paul

“I for my part, would not believe the Gospel, unless the authority of the Catholic Church moved me. They therefore whom I obeyed saying, ‘Believe the Gospel’, why should I not believe them saying, ‘Believe not Manichæus’? Choose whether thou wilt. If thou wilt say, ‘Believe the Catholics’, lo, they warn me that I give no credit unto you, and therefore believing them, I must needs not believe thee. If thou say, ‘Believe not the Catholics,’ it is not the right way, by the Gospel to drive me to the faith of Manichæus [because he defended his heresy by Scripture], because I believed the Gospel itself by the preaching of Catholics.”    - St. Augustine

O'let us not waste our time! Let us save souls! Souls are falling into hell innumerable as the flakes of snow on a winter day.    - St. Therese of Lisieux

"Real love is demanding. I would fail in my mission if I did not tell you so. Love demands a personal commitment to the will of God."    -Pope St. John Paul the Great

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

Fortunately, while being Martha one can remain like Mary Magdalene always near the Master, contemplating Him with a wholly loving look. And that is our life in Carmel, for, although prayer is our principal and even our unique occupation, for the prayer of a Carmelite never ceases, we also have works, external acts. I wish you could see me at the wash, with my habit turned up and splashing around in the water. You doubt my ability in this field, and with good reason, but with Jesus I tackle everything, and I find everything charming, nothing is difficult or boring.    St. Elizabeth of the Trinity 

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

See, I have left My heavenly throne to become united with you. What you see is just a tiny part and already your soul swoons with love. How amazed will your heart be when you see Me in all My glory.   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA   (Diary, 1810)

“ Vainglory is an enemy that assails those who have consecrated themselves to the Lord and embraced the spiritual life. Hence it can rightly be called the consuming moth of souls tending to perfection. The saints refer to it as the woodworm of holiness.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

"Men do not fear a powerful hostile army as the powers of hell fear the name and protection of Mary."   -  St. Bonaventure

“The ideal of spirituality is to be found in the first and last words of Our Lord’s public life.  The first word of His public life was: ‘come’ (John 1:39; Mark 1:17; Matthew 4:18).  The last word was ‘go’ (John 20:21; Mark 16:20; Matthew 28:19).  The disciple first comes to absorb His Truth, to become inflamed with His Love; then and then only, he goes to accomplish his mission.  Both words are summarized in the summary of the call of the disciples: He called the men He wanted; and they went and joined Him….these He would send out to proclaim the Gospel (Mark 3:14).  Unfortunately today, we have too many ‘go-goes’ and not enough ‘come-comes.’  The proper balance is found again in the story of Martha and Mary which follows in the Gospel the Good Samaritan.  In the latter, social service is praised.  But in the story of Martha and Mary, it is suggested that we are not to become too absorbed in serving, that we have become too absorbed in serving that we have no time to sit at the foot of Jesus and learn His lessons.”     Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Those Mysterious Priests)

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

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

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

“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

"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."e

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

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

“ Simplicity is a virtue, but up to a point, it must never be without prudence; on the other hand cunning and slyness are diabolical and do a lot of harm.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

"There are few souls who contemplate My Passion with true feeling; I give great graces to souls who meditate devoutly on My Passion."    WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA   (Diary, 737)

"To give worthy praise to the Lord's mercy, we unite ourselves with Your Immaculate Mother, for then our hymn will be more pleasing to You, because She is chosen from among men and angels. Through Her, as through a pure crystal, Your mercy was passed on to us. Through Her, man became pleasing to God; Through Her, streams of grace flowed down upon us."     - St. Faustina

“In order that the world might be made safe for so many conflicting points of view, broad-mindedness was cultivated as the most desirable of all virtues.  The man who still believed in truth was often called narrow, while he who cared not to distinguish it from error was praised for his breadth.”     Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Freedom Under God)

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

"Love our Lady. And she will obtain abundant grace to help you conquer in your daily struggle."   -St. Josemaria Escriva

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

“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

“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

Know that the greatest service that man can offer to God is to help convert souls.   -  St. Rose of Lima

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

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. ''   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA   (Diary, 1447)

“ 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

"Mary, give me your Heart: so beautiful, so pure, so immaculate; your Heart so full of love and humility that I may be able to receive Jesus in the Bread of Life and love Him as you love Him and serve Him in the distressing guise of the poor."   - St. Teresa of Calcutta

“You think you are having a good time, but time really is the greatest obstacle in the world to happiness, not only because it makes you take pleasures successively, but also because you are never really happy until you are unconscious of the passing of time.  The more you look at the clock, the less happy you are.  The more you enjoy yourself, the less conscious you are of the passing of time.”    Archbishop Fulton Sheen (You)

“The work of Our Lord is dependent less upon many workers, than upon the fidelity of the few He calls.”   – St. Vincent de Paul

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

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

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

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!”    St. Peter of Alcantara, to St. Teresa of Jesus, appearing to her after his death

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

“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

“ May your heart always be a temple of the Holy Spirit.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

"After Holy Communion, I heard these words in my soul: I am in your heart, I whom you had in your arms. I then pleaded with Jesus for a certain soul [Father Sopocko], asking the Lord to grant him the grace to fight, and to take this trial from him. As you ask, so shall it be, but his merit will not be lessened. Joy reigned in my soul that God is so good and merciful; God grants everything that we ask of Him with trust."    WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA   (Diary, 609)

Most Holy Virgin, accept me as thy servant and shelter me under thy mantle, thou who art the Mother of mercy.      - St Alphonsus Liguori

“It is never true to say that we have no time to meditate; the less one thinks of God, the less time there will always be for God. The time we have for anything depends of how much we value it. Thinking determines the uses of time; time does not rule over thinking.  The problem of spirituality is never, then, a question of time; it is a problem of thought.  For it does not require much time to make us saints; it requires only much love.”    Venerable Archbishop Fulton Sheen (God Love You)

“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

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

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

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

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

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

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

“ 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

Once, as I was going down the hall to the kitchen, I heard these words in my soul: Say unceasingly the chaplet that I have taught you. Whoever will recite it will receive great mercy at the hour of death. 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 that the whole world know 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)

"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

“Decisions and resolutions taken during an enthusiastic moment mean little unless tested by time and by waiting. The immediate request for places on the right and left side of the kingdom by James and John he ordered tested by the ability to bear sacrifice and to drink the cup of His Passion and Crucifixion. When after multiplying the bread, the multitude wished to make him a bread king, Our Lord fled into the mountains alone. It is always a good policy never to choose the most enthusiastic person in a gathering as a leader. Wait to see how much wood there is for the flame.”    Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Guide to Contentment)

“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

“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)

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

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

"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 Neri

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

“Fight like a strong soul if you wish to obtain the reward of strong souls.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

"Through this Chaplet you will obtain everything, if what you ask for is compatible with My Will."   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA   (Diary, 1731)

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

“Though there be such things as deathbed conversions, nevertheless as the tree falls, there it lies. One man who led an evil life always boasted of the fact that he needed never worry about his soul when time would end, for he could save it with three words which he quoted in Latin: "Miserere mei Deus" [-- God have mercy, on me]. He was right about saying three words at the moment of his death, but they were not the words he expected to say, for his life had not been lived as to pronounce them from his heart. As his horse threw him over the cliff he said: "Capiat omnia biabolus," which means, "I'll be damned."    Archbishop Fulton Sheen (On Being Human)

“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)

“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

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

“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.)

“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

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

"A Saint has told us that one day at Mass he saw Jesus Christ with His hands full of gifts, looking for souls to whom He might give them."    - St. John Vianney

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

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

"You have not written everything in the notebook about My goodness towards humankind; I desire that you omit nothing; I desire that your heart be firmly grounded in total peace."   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA   (Diary, 459)

“ . I am suffering, and suffering very much, but thanks to our good Jesus I still feel a little strength, and when aided by Jesus what is the creature not capable of doing?”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

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

“Taking away wives from husbands by force does not make them chaste, any more than confiscating productive property makes men devoid of the passion of greed.  It is voluntary discipline the world needs and not an imposed discipline.”     Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Freedom Under God)

“Each of our days is marked with the protection of Mary, who is exceedingly anxious to be our mother, when we desire to be her children.”   – St. Vincent de Paul

"You must be reconciled with your enemies, speak to them as if they had never done you anything but good all your life, keeping nothing in your heart but the charity, which the good Christian should have for everyone, so that we can all appear with confidence before the tribunal of God." - St John Vianney.

“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

“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)

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

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

“ 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

On an earlier occasion
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)

"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)

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

“The Providence of God is never wanting to him who confides in God as he ought.”   St. Benedict Joseph Labrè

“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

“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)

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

"Put a good bunch of grapes under the winepress, and a delicious juice will come out. Under the winepress of the cross, our soul produces a juice that feeds and strengthens us. When we haven’t got any crosses, we are dry. If we carry them with resignation, what happiness, what sweetness we feel!"   - St John Vianney.

“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 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

“ 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

"My daughter, I want to teach you about spiritual warfare. Never trust in yourself, but abandon yourself totally to My will. In desolation, darkness, and various doubts, have recourse to Me and to your spiritual director. He will always answer you in My name. Do not bargain with any temptation; lock yourself immediately in My Heart and, at the first opportunity, reveal the temptation to the confessor."   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA    (Diary, 1760)

“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

“Every person is a precious mystery.  An individual cannot be weighed by public opinion; he cannot be measured by his conditionings; he belongs to no one but himself, and no creature in all the world can penetrate his mystery except the God who made him.  The dignity of every person is beyond our reckoning.”    Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Lift Up Your Heart)

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

“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

"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."
W"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

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

“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

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

“In trial or difficulty I have recourse to Mother Mary, whose glance alone is enough to dissipate every fear.”   -St. Therese of Lisieux

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

"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)

“Charity is the yardstick with which the Lord will judge us all.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

“To desire grace without recourse to the Virgin Mother is to desire to fly without wings.”   -  Pope Pius XII

“It seems to be a fact of human psychology that when death approaches, the human heart speaks its words of love to those whom it holds closest and dearest.  There is no reason to suspect that it is otherwise in the case of the Heart of hearts.  If He spoke in a graduated order to those whom He loved most, then we may expect to find in His first three words the order of His love and affection.  His first words went out to enemies: “Father, forgive them,” His second to sinners: “This day you will be with Me in Paradise,” and His third to saints: “Woman, behold your son.” Enemies, sinners and saints – such is the order of Divine Love and Thoughtfulness.”    Archbishop Fulton Sheen (The Seven Last Words)

“How true it is that the world is filled with misery! Courage, we must put up with our own and with that of others as long as God pleases.”   – St. Vincent de Paul

"You must be reconciled with your enemies, speak to them as if they had never done you anything but good all your life, keeping nothing in your heart but the charity, which the good Christian should have for everyone, so that we can all appear with confidence before the tribunal of God."    - St John Vianney

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

“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)

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

“Charity is the queen of virtues. As pearls are held together by a string, so are the virtues held by charity. And just as the pearls fall if the string breaks, so are the virtues lost if charity fails.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

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

“As the scourging was the reparation for the sins of the flesh, so the crowning with thorns was the atonement for the sins of the mind – for the atheists who wish there were no God, for the doubters whose evil lives becloud their thinking, for the egotists, centered on themselves.  The soldiers cursed as the thorns pricked their fingers.  Then they cursed the Lord, as they drove the crown of thorns into His head, as a mockery of a royal diadem.  Into His hands they placed a reed, the symbol of His kingdom, presumed to be false and unstable like the reed.  His flesh, already hanging from Him like purple rags, is now covered with a purple robe to ridicule His claim to kingship of hearts and nations.  Blindfolding Him, they struck Him, asking Him to prophesy, or tell whom it was that delivered the blow.  They then bowed down before Him in mock reverence, spitting in His face, that all the subsequent Mindszentys, Stepinacs, and martyrs of the world might have courage in their hour of martyrdom.  In this Mystery is verified the truth of our Saviour’s warning: ‘If the world hates you, be sure that it hated Me before it learned to hate you.  If you belonged to the world, the world would know you for its own and love you; it is because you do not belong to the world, because I have singled you out from the midst of the world, that the world hates you.’  He who expects to preserve His faith without being mocked by the world is either weak in it, or else not so bold in goodness as to draw upon himself the mocking insults of another purple robe and a torturing circle of thorns.”   Archbishop Fulton Sheen (The Fifteen Mysteries)

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

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

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.”   -St. Bernard of Clairvaux, Father and Doctor of the Church

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

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

“Endeavor to walk in the presence of God, in the ways I taught you and which
you know. Guard yourselves against anxiety and worries, because there
is nothing worse in the way of perfection than agitations, worries
and anxieties of soul.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

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    WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA   (Diary 1520)

"You are My Mother, the Mother of Mercy, and the consolation of the souls in Purgatory."   - St. Bridget to our Lady

“Our Blessed Lord left the world without leaving any written message.  His doctrine was Himself.  Ideal and history were identified in Him.  The truth that all other ethical teachers proclaimed, and the light that they gave to the world, was not in them, but outside them.  Our Divine Lord, however, identified Divine Wisdom with Himself.  It was the first time in history that it was ever done, and it has never been done since.”    Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Life of Christ)

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

“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.”    - St. Ignatius of Loyala

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

“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

"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

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

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

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

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

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)

“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

“ I cannot tolerate criticism and speaking ill of our neighbor. It is true, sometimes I enjoy teasing them, but speaking ill of them makes me sick. We have so many defects in ourselves to criticize, why pick on our neighbor? And lacking in charity we damage the roots of the tree of life, with the risk of killing it.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

"Not 100 people in the United States hate the Roman Catholic Church, but millions hate what they mistakenly think the Roman Catholic Church is.”    Archbishop Fulton Sheen

You must ask God to give you power to fight against the sin of pride which is your greatest enemy –
the root of all that is evil,  and the failure of all that is good.  For God resists the proud.   -St. Vincent de Paul

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

"...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

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

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

ABORTION

"Why sow where the ground makes it its care to destroy the fruit? where there are many efforts at abortion? where there is murder before the birth? for even the harlot thou dost not let continue a mere harlot, but makest her a murderer also. You see how drunkenness leads to whoredom, whoredom to adultery, adultery to murder; or rather something even worse than murder. For I have no name to give it, since it does not take off the thing born, but prevents its being born. Why then dost thou abuse the gift of God, and fight with His laws, and follow after what is a curse as if a blessing, and make the chamber of procreation a chamber for murder, and arm the woman that was given for childbearing unto slaughter? For with a view to drawing more money by being agreeable and an object of longing to her lovers, even this she is not backward to do, so heaping upon thy head a great pile of fire. For even if the daring deed be hers, yet the causing of it is thine. Hence too come idolatries, since many, with a view to become acceptable, devise incantations, and libations, and love potions, and countless other plans. Yet still after such great unseemliness, after slaughters, after idolatries, the thing [fornication] seems to belong to things indifferent, aye, and to many that have wives, too."   - St. John Chrysostom (A.D. 347-407):

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

Tell [all people], My daughter, that I am Love and Mercy itself..   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA    (Diary 1074)

“ I beseech you, by the meekness of Jesus, and by the bowels of mercy of the heavenly Father, never to slacken on the path of virtue. Keep on running and don't ever make up your mind to stop, for you know that to stand still on this path is equivalent to retracing one's steps.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

“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

“Mary is not only mother of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, but she is also our mother, and this is not by a title of courtesy, not by legal fiction, not by a mere figure of speech, but by the right of bringing us forth in sorrow at the foot of the cross…Mary, by sacrifice and obedience, regained for us the title, Mother of the living.  What a destiny to have the Mother of God as my Mother and Jesus as my brother.”    Archbishop Fulton Sheen

“ Good is not good if one does not suffer in doing it.”   – St. Vincent de Paul

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

“What is meritorious is not that a man should be poor, but that, being poor, he should love poverty.”   St. Vincent Ferrer (1350. - 1419.)

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

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

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

“ Where there is no obedience, there is no virtue, where there is no virtue, there is no goodness, no love, and where there is no love, God is not there and without God we do not go to Paradise.

These form a stairway and if one step is missing from the stairway we fall down.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

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)

“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!”   -  Saint John Paul II

"The law that runs through Nature is there is never a sacrament without a sacrifice. Nothing contributes to our living except through something that has experienced dying. Here is the fallacy of those who would reduce the Eucharist to a meal - what meat is ever put on a dish except through death? It seams a hard law, but it is true; we live by what we slay. We slew Him by our sins. But through His Mercy we live by what we have slain. There is a Communion because there has been a Consecration; there is a oneness with the Holiness of His Priesthood because there is a Cross on our Victimhood."    Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Those Mysterious Priests)

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

Beneath the light and heat of the sun, plants flourish on earth and bring forth fruit. Beneath the radiant inspirations of the sun that is Mary, good thoughts flourish in souls.    - Pope Pius XII

“Sickness is not an evil which we should fear, but a most efficacious means of sanctifying our souls. To murmur when God sends it is to complain of his having done us good.”   – St. Vincent de Paul

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

“Do not befoul your intellect by clinging to thoughts filled with anger and sensual desire. Otherwise you will lose your capacity for pure prayer and fall victim to the demon of listlessness.”    St. Maximos the Confessor (c. 580 - 662)

Our Guardian Angels are our most faithful friends!   - St.John Vianney

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

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 

“Remember Jesus, "meek and humble of heart". "Be angry and don't sin" is of the saints. I have never regretted being gentle, but I have had qualms of conscience and had to confess when I was a bit severe. But when I say gentleness I do not mean permissiveness. That no! I mean the gentleness that makes discipline pleasant which must never be neglected.”   St. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina

Tell sinners that no one shall escape My Hand; if they run away from My Merciful Heart, they will fall into My Just Hands.   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA   (Diary 1728)

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

“Darkness may be creative, for it is there that God plants his seeds to grow and his bulbs to flower.  It is at night that the sheep that are scattered are gathered into the unity of the sheepfold, when the children come home to their mother and the soul back to God.  Daylight deceives us, but as we awake at night, we get a new sense of values; darkness seems to tell the awful truth.  As the psalmist puts it: ‘Day to day pours forth speech and night to night declares knowledge’ (Ps 19:2).  Night has its wonders, as well as day; darkness is not final, except to those who are without God”    Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Cross-Ways)

“We should be satisfied with striving to omit nothing which can advance God’s work and not blame others for the delay.”   – St. Vincent de Paul

"The soul feels a strange delight in the breathing of the Holy Spirit... in which it is sovereignly glorified and taken with love."    - St. John of the Cross

"We have nothing of our own but our will. It is the only thing which God has so placed in our own power that we can make an offering of it to Him."    - St John Vianney.

“Pride and boastfulness are characterized by hypocrisy, guile, trickery, pretence and, worst of all, falsity. These characteristics are aided and abetted by envy, strife, anger, resentment and rancor.”   -  St. Thalassios the Libyan

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

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

“ Charity, wherever it comes from, is always the daughter of the same mother, that is, Providence.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcins

“Through Mary, we come to her Son more easily.”   - Pope St. John Paul II

"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".  WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA   (Diary, 1520)

“He came on His own, and His own received Him not.  As a symbol of the world’s contradiction of His life-giving message, they gave Him a Cross, in which one bar is at contradiction with another.  The Horizontal bar symbolizing death for all, for all death is flat and prostrate, the vertical bar symbolizing life, for all life is upright and erect.  By a Divine act, He made the sign of contradiction the sign of Redemption, and converted the Cross into the Crucifix.  The Cross is the problem of pain and death, but the Crucifix is its solution, for once the God-man ennobled it by His Presence He reveals that pain is the condition of pleasure, death the prelude to life and that unless we take up our cross and follow Him we cannot be His disciple.”     Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Stations of the Cross)

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

“Our days are numbered and we cannot add a moment of life to the last one God has determined for us.”   – St. Vincent de Paul

“The works of penance abound in such delights and joys that once they have been tasted, nothing will ever again root them out of the soul…. Only the first steps are difficult for those who eagerly choose this path.”    - St John Vianney.

It was pride that changed angels into devils;
it is humility that makes men as angels.
-St. Augustine of Hippo

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

“ To lack charity is to wound the pupil of God's eye. What is more delicate than the pupil of the eye? To lack charity is like sinning against nature.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

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

When I went for adoration, I heard these words: My beloved daughter, write down these words, that today My Heart has rested in this convent [the Cracow house]. Tell the world about My mercy and My love.
The flames of mercy are burning me. I desire to pour them out upon human souls. Oh, what pain they cause Me when they do not want to accept them!
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. 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)

“To enjoy we must love; and to love we must sacrifice.”   – St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

"How God will judge my life I know not, but I trust He will see me with mercy and compassion. I am only certain there will be three surprises in Heaven. First of all, I will see some people whom I never expected to see. Second, there will be a number whom I expected who will not be there. And - even relying on God's mercy - the biggest surprise of all may be that I will be there. When the record of any human life is set down, there are three pairs of eyes who see it in a different light. 1. As I see it. 2. As others see it. 3. As God sees it."    Archbishop Fulton Sheen

“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 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

'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)

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

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

Today, I was talking with the Lord, and He said to me, There are souls with whom I can do nothing. They are souls that are continuously observing others, but know nothing of what is going on within their own selves. They talk about others continually, even during times of grand silence, which is reserved for speaking only with Me. Poor souls, they do not hear My words; their interior remains empty. They do not look for Me within their own hearts, but in idle talk, where I am never to be found    WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA    (Diary,  1717).

“Even when reprimanding one must be courteous and gentle.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

“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.”   -  St. Alphonsus Liguori

“Every person has a little corner in his heart he never wants anyone to venture into, even with a candle.  That is why we deceive ourselves and why our neighbors know us better than we know ourselves.”    Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Peace of Soul)

“We are lost in admiration at seeing how Providence thinks of your concerns and provides for all that you need.”   – St. Vincent de Paul

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

“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

"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

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

St John Vianney on Grace:
O my children! St. Augustine says, and it is very true, that God seeks in us what deserves that He should abandon us, and finds it; and that He seeks what would make us worthy of His gifts, and finds nothing, because, in fact, there is nothing in us - we are nothing but ashes and sin. All our merit, my children, consists in cooperating with grace. See, my children, a beautiful flower has no beauty nor brilliancy without the sun; for during the night it is all withered and drooping. When the sun rises in the morning, it suddenly revives and expands. It is the same with our soul, in regard to Jesus Christ, the true Sun of justice; it has no interior beauty but through sanctifying grace. In order to receive this grace, my children, our soul must turn to the good God by a sincere conversion: we must open our hearts to Him by an act of faith and love. As the sun alone cannot make a flower expand if it is already dead, so the grace of the good God cannot bring us back to life if we will not abandon sin.

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

“ By all means seek solitude, but do not lack charity with your neighbor.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

"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, 36)

"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

“We are living at the end of Christendom – not the end of Christianity.  By Christendom is meant the political, economic and social order pervaded by the Gospel ethic.  We no longer live in a Christian civilization.  Christendom refers only to the world and its institutions; Christianity refers to Christ and His Mystical Body in its evident outreach to the world.  The era of Faith was succeeded by the era of Reason, which, in turn, has given way to our Sensate Age.  Christianity is considered off the reservation.”     Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Those Mysterious Priests)

“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

“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’.”   - Pope Innocent III (1198), Sermon IV

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

"Let us be one with Jesus ... let us make our life a continual sacrifice, a martyrdom of love to console Jesus."   -St. Therese of Lisieux

I can’t stop praying for poor sinners who are on the road to hell. If they come to die in that state, they will be lost for all eternity. What a pity! We have to pray for sinners! Praying for sinners is the most beautiful and useful of prayers because the just are on the way to heaven, the souls of purgatory are sure to enter there, but the poor sinners will be lost forever. All devotions are good but there is no better one than such prayer for sinners.”“What souls we can convert by our prayers. The one who saves a soul from hell saves this soul and his own as well.”“One can offer himself as a victim for 8-15 days for the conversion of sinners. One can suffer cold, heat, deprive oneself of looking at something, go visit someone who would appreciate it, make a novena, attend daily Mass for this intention in places where it is possible. Not only would one contribute to God’s glory by this holy practice of praying for sinners, but one would obtain an abundance of grace.”

“I am only content when I’m praying for sinners. The good God has made me see how much he loves that I pray for poor sinners. … I don’t know if it were really a voice I heard or a dream, but, whatever it was, it woke me up and told me that to save a soul in the state of sin is more pleasing to God than all sacrifices. For that reason, I do all my resolutions for penance.”   -St. John Vianney  on praying for sinners

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

Write, My daughter, that I am mercy itself for the contrite soul. A soul’s greatest wretchedness does not enkindle Me with wrath; but rather, My Heart is moved towards it with great mercy.   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA   (Diary, 1739)

“I would prefer to be stabbed with a steel blade, rather than make someone suffer.”   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 II

“The more Christian we become, the more God fearing we are, the more we insist on morality in education, family life and politics, the more we will be regarded with suspicion and with hate.  Our very existence will be regarded as a danger.  We need do nothing to bring a reaction against us, any more than the early Christians of Rome, who were good citizens, were guilty of any other crime than that of refusing to call Nero god.”     Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Seven Pillars of Peace)

“Grace is necessary to begin, and we need more to persevere to the end.”   – St. Vincent de Paul

“You must accept your cross. If you bear it courageously it will carry you to heaven.”   - St. Jean-Baptiste Marie Vianney

The Name of Mary contains within itself the brilliance of the virtues, the sweet refulgence of modesty, and the sacrifice that is pleasing to God. It is the sign of hospitality and the center of holiness.    -St. Francis Xavier

"What most draws down Graces from our dear Lord is gratitude, for if we thank Him for a gift, He is touched and hastens to give us ten more; and if we thank Him again with the same sincerity, what an incalculable multiplication of Graces! I have experienced this: try it and you will see. My gratitude for all that He gives me is boundless, and I prove this to Him in a thousand ways."   - St. Therese of Lisieux

Christ remains primary in your life only when he enjoys the first place in your mind and heart. Thus you must continuously unite yourself to him in prayer.... Without prayer there can be no joy, no hope, no peace. For prayer is what keeps us in touch with Christ.    Pope St. John Paul II

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

On a certain occasion, the Lord said to me, I am more deeply wounded by the small imperfections of chosen souls than by the sins of those living in the world. It made me very sad that chosen souls make Jesus suffer, and Jesus told me, These little imperfections are not all. I will reveal to you a secret of My Heart: what I suffer from chosen souls. Ingratitude in return for so many graces is My Heart’s constant food, on the part of [such] a chosen soul. Their love is lukewarm, and My Heart cannot bear it; these souls force Me to reject them.   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA    (Diary, 580).

“ Abandon yourself in the hands of Mary. She will take care of you.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

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

“It was poverty of spirit raised to its sublimest peak which made the death of our Lord so easy.  He had no ties to earth. His treasure was with the Father and His soul followed the spiritual law of gravitation.  God, like dire, falls; charity, like fire, rises: “Father, into Your hands I comment my Spirit”    Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Seven Capital Sins)

“Affability and meekness are very powerful virtues in gaining souls to God.”   – St. Vincent de Paul

“Nothing great is ever achieved without much enduring.”    -St. Catherine of Siena,

This is the very perfection of a man, to find out his own imperfections.    -St. Augustine of Hippo

You can pray by putting yourself quite simply in touch with God. When one finds nothing more to say to Him but just knows He is there – that in itself is the best of prayers.”

“There is one thing everyone can do, whether they find it hard to meditate or not, and that is to make up their mind in the morning to cultivate some particular virtue during the day, to practice the interior Presence of God, and to live their life in union with Him.”   - St John Vianney on Prayer

“Mary's sorrow was less when she saw her only Son crucified, than it is now at the sight of man offending Him by sin.”   St. Ignatius of Loyola (1491.-1556.)

“Actions speak louder than words; let your words teach and your actions speak.”   - St. Anthony of Padua

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

I saw Jesus in the usual way, and He spoke these words to me: Lay your head on My shoulder, rest and regain your strength. I am always with you. Tell the friend of My Heart that I sue such feeble creatures to carry out My work. After a while my spirit was strengthened with great power. Tell him that I had let him see your weakness during your confession to show him what you are of yourself.   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA   (Diary, 498)

“ Make a particular effort to practice sweetness and submission to the will of God, not only in extraordinary matters, but even in the little things that occur daily. Make these acts not only in the morning, but also during the day and in the evening, with a tranquil and joyful spirit. And if you should fail in this, humble yourself, make a new resolution, get up and continue on your way.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

“After the love which we owe Jesus Christ, we must give the chief place in our heart to the love of His Mother Mary.”     - St. Alphonsus Liguori

"Character is not revealed when life shows its best side, but when it shows its worst."    Archbishop Fulton Sheen

“It is better to go beyond the limits of charity than to fail in it.”   – St. Vincent de Paul

The Name of Mary refreshes her devoted clients. It is music to their ears, honey in their mouths, and joy for their hearts.   - St. Anthony of Padua

Prayer gives us strength for great ideals, for keeping up our faith, charity, purity, generosity; prayer gives us strength to rise up from indifference and guilt, if we have had the misfortune to give in to temptation and weakness. Prayer gives us light by which to see and to judge from God's perspective and from eternity. That is why you must not give up on praying!
Pope St. John Paul II

"O my God! I offer Thee all my actions of this day for the intentions and for the glory of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. I desire to sanctify every beat of my heart, my every thought, my simplest works, by uniting them to Its infinite merits; and I wish to make reparation for my sins by casting them into the furnace of Its Merciful Love.

O my God! I ask of Thee for myself and for those whom I hold dear, the grace to fulfill perfectly Thy Holy Will, to accept for love of Thee the joys and sorrows of this passing life, so that we may one day be united together in heaven for all Eternity." Amen.  St Thérèse of the Child Jesus (of Lisieux)

On Suffering:
"There are two ways of suffering - to suffer with love, and to suffer without love. The saints suffered everything with joy, patience, and perseverance, because they loved. As for us, we suffer with anger, vexation, and weariness, because we do not love. If we loved God, we should love crosses, we should wish for them, we should take pleasure in them. . . . We should be happy to be able to suffer for the love of Him who lovingly suffered for us. Of what do we complain? Alas! the poor infidels, who have not the happiness of knowing God and His infinite loveliness, have the same crosses that we have; but they have not the same consolations. You say it is hard? No, it is easy, it is consoling, it is sweet; it is happiness. Only we must love while we suffer, and suffer while we love."     - St John Vianney.

Whoever, wishes for the fruit, must go to the tree;  Whoever wishes for Jesus must go to Mary;  and he who finds Mary, certainly also finds Jesus.   - St. Alphonsus Ligouri

We must, then, disengage ourselves from everything so as to approach God interiorly and even in the midst of occupations withdraw within ourselves.   St Teresa of Jesus of Avila   The Way of Perfection - chapter 29 : 5

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.  WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA    (Diary, 1520).

“The most beautiful credo is the one that bursts forth from your lips in darkness, in sacrifice, in pain, in the supreme effort of an unbending will for good; this is what dispels, like a flash of lightning, the gloom of your soul, it is what leads you to God in the fury of the storm.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

“Perseverance is a great grace. To go on gaining and advancing every day, we must be resolute, and bear and suffer as our blessed forerunners did. Which of them gained heaven without a struggle?”   – St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

"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

How can such episodes of such savage cruelty happen? The heart of man is an abyss out of which sometimes emerge plots of unspeakable ferocity capable of overturning in an instant the tranquil and productive life of a people.     - Pope St. John Paul II

“For we never give more honor to Jesus than when we honor his Mother, and we honor her simply and solely to honor him all the more perfectly. We go to her only as a way leading to the goal we seek — Jesus, her Son.”    - St. Louis Marie de Montfort

“He who with fear of God admonishes or corrects a man who has sinned, gains the virtue that is opposite to that sin. But he who reproaches him out of rancor and ill will becomes subject to a similar passion, according to the spiritual law.”   St. Mark the Ascetic

I am sure you do not want to experience any refusal on God’s part toward you. Then do not offer Him anything—neither good works nor prayers—without entrusting them into the hands of Mary.    - St. Bernard

"Believe also in the Son of God, one and only, our Lord Jesus Christ, Who was begotten God of God, begotten Life of Life, begotten Light of Light, who is in all things like to Him that begat, Who received not His being in time, but was before all ages eternally and incomprehensibly begotten of the Father: the Wisdom and the Power of God, and His Righteousness personally subsisting: Who sitteth on the right hand of the Father before all ages."   St. Cyril of Jerusalem

He is very merciful, and He never fails persons who are afficted and despised if they trust in Him alone.   St Teresa of Jesus of Avila   The Way of Perfection - chapter 29 : 2

“ I bless God with all my heart who made me meet truly good souls. I also told these souls that they are God's vineyard. The water-supply is faith; the tower is hope; the wine-press is holy charity, and the hedge is the law of God that separates them from the children of the world.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

"I desire that priests proclaim this great mercy of Mine towards souls of sinners. Let the sinner not be afraid to approach Me. The flames of mercy are burning Me - clamoring to be spent; I want to pour them out upon these souls."   WORDS OF JESUS TO ST. FAUSTINA   (Diary, 50)

“How liable we are to err in our judgments respecting others unless we thoroughly know the motives of their actions.”   – St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

“Given a freedom which is independent of God, independent of moral law, independent of inalienable rights as the endowment of the Divine Spirit, and America could note itself out of democracy tomorrow. How can we continue to be free unless we keep the traditions, the grounds, and the roots upon which freedom is founded? We could not call our soul our own unless God exists. Why, we would not even have a soul! Democracy has within itself no inherent guarantee of freedom; these guarantees are from without. That is why I say our Declaration of Dependence on God is the condition of a Declaration of Independence of Dictatorship."    Archbishop Fulton Sheen

“Mortification in eating is the alphabet of a spiritual life; and they who do not know how to subdue their gluttony will find it no easy matter to triumph over other vices which are much more difficult to conquer.”   – St. Vincent de Paul

"Do not pray for easy lives, pray to be stronger people."    - Blessed Father Solanus Casey

St John Vianney on the Cross:
"It is by the Cross that we go to Heaven. Illnesses, temptations, troubles, are so many crosses which take us to Heaven. All this will soon be over. . . . Look at the saints, who have arrived there before us. . . . The good God does not require of us the martyrdom of the body; He requires only the martyrdom of the heart, and of the will. . . . Our Lord is our model; let us take up our cross, and follow Him. Let us do like the soldiers of Napoleon. They had to cross a bridge under the fire of grapeshot; no one dared to pass it. Napoleon took the colors, marched over first, and they all followed. Let us do the same; let us follow Our Lord, who has gone before us."

Whoever, wishes for the fruit, must go to the tree;  Whoever wishes for Jesus must go to Mary;  and he who finds Mary, certainly also finds Jesus.    - St. Alphonsus Ligouri

Your kingdom is not here below and of how quickly all things come to an end.   St Teresa of Jesus of Avila   The Way of Perfection - chapter 29 : 1

The Lord said to me, My daughter, do not tire of proclaiming My mercy. In this way you will refresh this Heart of Mine, which burns with a flame of pity for sinners. Tell My priests that hardened sinners will repent on hearing their words when they speak about My unfathomable mercy, about the compassion I have for them in My Heart. 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)2

“Give me and preserve in me that ardent faith which makes me believe and work for Your love alone. This is the first gift I present to You and, prostrate at Your feet, together with the holy Magi, I declare, with no human respect for the whole world, that You are our true and only God.”   St. Pio of Pietrelcina

“It was only fitting that the Virgin to whose care God the Father was pleased to confide His only Son should shine with a dazzling purity surpassing all but that of God Himself."   - St. Anselm

His was not the frivolous skepticism of indifference of hostility to truth; he wanted knowledge in order to have faith.  Thomas’ doubts arose, for the most part, from his despondency and from the depressing influence of sorrow and isolation; for he was a man apart from his fellows.  Sometimes a man who misses a meeting misses much.  If the minutes of the first meeting were written they would have contained the tragic words of the Gospel: “Thomas was not there.”  The rebuking words of Our Lord to Thomas – to be doubting no longer – also contained an exhortation to belief and to shake off his gloom, which was his besetting sin.” Venerable Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Life Of Christ)

“We should delay for several hours, and reflect will in the presence of God, before we correct by reproof, especially when the fault is great and the person is little disposed to receive correction.”   – St. Vincent de Paul

where there is no humility, all that we have is rotten.   - St John of the Ladder

FOLLOW ONE MASTER ONLY
"What a sad life does he lead who wants both to please the world and to serve God! It is a great mistake to make, my friends. Apart from the fact that you are going to be unhappy all the time, you can never attain the stage at which you will be able to please the world and please God. It is as impossible a feat as trying to put an end to eternity. Take the advice that I am going to give you now and you will be less unhappy: give yourselves wholly to God or else wholly to the world. Do not look for and do not serve more than one master, and once you have chosen the one you are going to follow, do not leave him. You surely remember what Jesus Christ said to you in the Gospel: you cannot serve God and Mammon; that is to say, you cannot follow the world and the pleasures of the world and Jesus Christ with His Cross. Of course you would be quite willing to follow God just so far and the world just so far! Let me put it even more clearly: you would like it if your conscience, if your heart, would allow you to go to the altar in the morning and the dance in the evening; to spend part of the day in church and the remainder in the cabarets or other places of amusement; to talk of God at one moment and the next to tell obscene stories or utter calumnies about your neighbour; to do a good turn for your next-door neighbour on one occasion and on some other to do him harm; in other words, to do good and speak well when you are with good people and to do wrong when you are in bad company."    - St John Vianney.