God's Will Quotes

Quoteson God's Will by the Saints

Blessed the one who in accordance with God's will loves self-mastery and has not been condemned, thanks to his stomach, as a pleasure seeker and defiled, for such a one will be magnified by the Lord. - St. Ephrem of Syria

Every creature, whether it will or not, is subject to the one God and Lord; but a warning is given to us, to serve the Lord with our whole will, because the just man serves Him willingly, but the unjust serves Him as a slave. - Saint Augustine

God gives each one of us sufficient grace ever to know His holy will, and to do it fully. - St. Ignatius of Loyola

A man makes the most progress and merits the most grace precisely in those matters wherein he gains the greatest victories over self and most mortifies his will. - St. Francis de Sales

Lord what wilt Thou have me do? Behold the true sign of a totally perfect soul: when one has reached the point of giving up his will so completely that he no longer seeks , expects or desires to do ought but that which God wills. - St. Bernard

God made known to me, what true love consists in and gave light to me about how, in practice, to give proof of it to Him. True love of God consists in carrying out God's will. To show God our love in what we do, all our actions, even the least, must spring from our love of God. (279) - Diary of Saint Faustina

You well know that I preferred his company to all the delights of the world. But since it has pleased You to take him from me, I accept Your will completely. - St. Elizabeth (On the death of her husband)

A soul who is really resigned to God's will does not become attached to any created thing because he sees clearly that all things are nothing except God. - Blessed Henry Susone

All that the beginner in prayer has to do -- and you must not forget this, for it is very important -- is to labour and be resolute and prepare himself with all possible diligence to bring his will into conformity with the will of God. As I shall say later, you may be quite sure that this comprises the very greatest perfection which can be attained on the spiritual road. - St. Teresa of Jesus

More determination is required to subdue the interior man than to mortify the body; and to break one's will than to break one's bones. - St. Ignatius of Loyola

When shall it be that we shall taste the sweetness of the Divine Will in all that happens to us, considering in everything only His good pleasure, by whom it is certain that adversity is sent with as much love as prosperity, and as much for our good? When shall we cast ourselves undeservedly into the arms of our most loving Father in Heaven, leaving to Him the care of ourselves and of our affairs, and reserving only the desire of pleasing Him, and of serving Him well in all that we can? - --St. Jane Frances de Chantal

My child, make the resolution never to rely on people. 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 from 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. Such a soul gives Me glory. Such a soul fills heaven with the fragrance of her virtue. But understand that the strength by which you bear sufferings comes from frequent Communions. So approach this fountain of mercy often, to draw with the vessel of trust whatever you need. (1487 - Jesus to Suffering Souls) - --Diary of Saint Faustina

We can only learn to know ourselves and do what we can - namely, surrender our will and fulfill God's will in us.  - Saint Teresa of Avila

During our sojourn in this world, we should learn from the saints now in heaven, how to love God. The pure and perfect love of God they enjoy there, consists in uniting themselves perfectly to his will. It would be the greatest delight of the seraphs to pile up sand on the seashore or to pull weeds in a garden for all eternity, if they found out such was God’s will. Our Lord himself teaches us to ask to do the will of God on earth as the saints do it in heaven: “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. - St. Alphonsus de Ligouri

There could not be a surer sign of God's love for you than this pain which He has sent you. Adore the divine will. - St. Paul of the Cross

There are times when He Himself allows terrible sufferings, and then again there are times when He does not let me suffer and removes everything that might afflict my soul. These are His ways , unfathomable and incomprehensible to us. It is for us to submit ourselves completely to His holy will. There are mysteries that the human mind will never fathom here on earth; eternity will reveal them. (1656) - Saint Faustina

God wills only our good; God loves us more than anybody else can or does love us. His will is that no one should lose his soul, that everyone should save and sanctify his soul: “Not willing that any should perish, but that all should return to penance.” “This is the will of God, your sanctification[50].” God has made the attainment of our happiness, his glory. Even chastisements come to us, not to crush us, but to make us mend our ways and save our souls. - St. Alphonsus de Ligouri

Here the will of God is done, as God wills, and as long as God wills. - Saint Gerard Majella

If, devout soul, it is your will to please God and live a life of serenity in this world, unite yourself always and in all things to the divine will. Reflect that all the sins of your past wicked life happened because you wandered from the path of God’s will. - St. Alphonsus de Ligouri

The first end I propose in our daily work is to do the will of God; secondly, to do it in the manner he wills it; and thirdly to do it because it is his will. - Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton

I desire to suffer always and not to die. I should add: this is not my will, it is my inclination. It is sweet to think of Jesus; but it is sweeter to do His will. - Bl Mary of Jesus Crucified "The Little Arab"

The goal of all our undertakings should be not so much a task perfectly completed as the accomplishment of the will of God.  - St Therese of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face

Perfection is founded entirely on the love of God: ‘Charity is the bond of perfection;’ and perfect love of God means the complete union of our will with God’s. - St. Alphonsus de Ligouri

I will attempt day by day to break my will into pieces. I want to do God's Holy Will, not my own!  - Saint Gabriel of the Sorrowful Mother

I knew that I could not practice modesty without the virtue of mortification, so with God's grace, I bent all my forces on acquiring that, cost what it might.

In the first place, then, I strove to deprive myself of every pleasure in order to give pleasure to God. Without knowing how, I felt obliged to fulfill what was a mere proposal. My mind was faced with choosing between my pleasure and God's, and because my mind saw the glaring inequality between the two, even in the slightest matter, I would be forced to choose what then seemed more pleasing to God. I would joyfully abstain from the pleasure in question, to give pleasure to God. This is still the way it is with me in all things: eating, drinking, resting, talking, looking, hearing, going somewhere, etc.' - St. Anthony Mary Claret

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Miscellaneous Quotes II

Miscellaneous Quotes II

If, one day, I should offend God in any way, or grow remiss, though ever so little, in that which concerns His holy service and glory, I solemnly implore Him, rather let me die. - St. Ignatius of Loyola

Earth hath no sorrow that Heaven cannot heal. - St. Thomas More

Blessed is the mind which, during prayer, is insensible to all things. - St. Nilus of Sinai

We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature - trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence... We need silence to be able to touch souls. - --Blessed Mother Teresa

Meditation on Jesus Christ crucified is a precious balm which sweetens all pains. - St. Paul of the Cross

When an archer desires to shoot his arrows successfully, he first takes great pains over his posture and aligns himself accurately with his mark. It should be the same for you who are about to shoot the head of the wicked devil. Let us be concerned first for the good order of sensations and then for the good posture of inner thoughts.' - St. John Chrysostom

Our Lord Jesus has given light to all men, but those who do not trust in Him bring darkness upon themselves. - St. Thalassios the Libyan

He who speaks rightly should recognize that he receives the words from God. For the truth belongs not to him who speaks, but to God who is energizing him. - St. Mark the Ascetic

There is nothing more dangerous in the spiritual life, than to wish to rule ourselves after our own way of thinking. - St. Philip Neri

Truth always ends by victory; it is not unassailable, but invincible. - St. Ignatius of Loyola

Patient self-control and long-suffering love dry up the pleasures of soul and body. - St. Thalassios the Libyan

There is no doubt that, if man could perceive the many difficulties thrown by self-love in the way of his own good, he would no longer allow himself to be deceived by it; and its malignity is the more to be dreaded because it is so powerful that were but one grain of it in the world would be sufficient to corrupt all mankind. Wherefore I conclude that self-love is the root of all evils which exist in this world and in the other. Behold Lucifer, whose present state is the result of following the suggestions of his self-love; and in ourselves it seems to me even worse. Our father Adam has so contaminated us that to my eyes the evil appears almost incurable, for it so penetrates our veins, our nerves, our bones, that we can neither say nor think nor do anything which is not full of the poison of this love - not even those thoughts and deeds which are directed toward the purification of the spirit.' - St. Catherine of Genoa

In everything that we do God searches out our purpose to see whether we do it for Him or for some other motive. - St. Maximos the Confessor

Behold the birds of the air, for they neither sow, nor do they reap nor gather into barns; and your heavenly Father feedeth them. (Mt 6.26)

The birds are the saints, who fly to heaven on the wings of contemplation, who are so removed from the world that they have no business on earth. They do not labour, but by contemplation alone they already live in heaven. - St. Anthony of Padua

When you observe some thought suggesting that you seek human fame, you can be sure it will bring you disgrace.' - St. Mark the Ascetic

I would believe myself damned if I robbed God of one atom of His glory. I would believe myself more wicked than Lucifer if I had anything else in view but God. - St. Paul of the Cross

He who wishes for goods will never have devotion. - St. Philip Neri

When you attain true humility of heart and self-contempt ask leave of Jesus to enter His divine Heart, and you will at once obtain it. Place yourself as a victim on that altar, where the fire of divine love is ever burning. Let this sacred flame burn you to the marrow of your bones; then, if the breath of the Holy Spirit raise you to the contemplation of the divine mysteries, leave to your soul the liberty of losing herself in this holy contemplation. Oh, how pleasing to God is this practice! - St. Paul of the Cross

One must wage war against his predominant passion and not retreat until, with God's help, he has been victorious. - St. Ignatius of Loyola

The Lord has given me to understand the value of at once confessing one's sins after their commission. By so doing we are always in the state of grace. - St. Peter Julian Eymard

He who secretly mingles his own wishes with spiritual counsel is an adulterer, as the Book of Proverbs indicates (cf. Prov. 6:32-33); and because of his stupidity he suffers pain and dishonor. - St. Mark the Ascetic

He would never come and knock at the door unless He wished to enter; if He does not enter, it is we who are to blame. - St. Peter Julian Eymard

Those who refuse to work with their hands under the pretext that one should pray without ceasing, in reality do not pray either. By the very fact that they think, through idleness, to give the soul freedom from cares, they entangle it in a labyrinth of thoughts with no way out and so make it incapable of prayer. A body laboring at some piece of work keeps the thought close by, since the task of thought, like that of the eyes, is to watch over what is being done and to help the body act faultlessly; but a body at rest gives thought freedom to wander, for during rest passions are apt to be set in motion and every lustful memory entices the thought away and captures it like a slave. - St. Nilus of Sinai

What is a fruitless repentance, defiled almost immediately by new faults? - St. Bernard of Clairvaux

Just as sheep and wolves cannot feed together, so a man cannot receive mercy if he tricks his neighbor. - St. Mark the Ascetic

Blessed the one who, exalted by love, has become a city founded upon a mountain, from which the enemy, when he saw it, withdrew in fear, trembling at its security in the Lord. - St. Ephrem of Syria

There is nothing better to display the truth in an excellent light, than a clear and simple statement of facts. - St. Benedict

Not to know how to deny our soul its own wishes, is to foment a very hot-bed of vices. - St. Philip Neri

Some thoughts are simple, others are composite. Thoughts which are not impassioned are simple. Passion-charged thoughts are composite, consisting as they do of a conceptual image combined with passion. This being so, when composite thoughts begin to provoke a sinful idea in the mind, many simple thoughts may be seen to follow them. For instance, an impassioned thought about gold rises in someone's mind. He has the urge mentally to steal the gold and commits the sin in his intellect. Then thoughts of the purse, the chest, the room and so on follow hard on the thought of the gold. The thought of the gold was composite - for it was combined with passion - but those of the purse, the chest and so on were simple; for the intellect had no passion in relation to these things. And the same is true for every thought - thoughts of self-esteem, women and so on. For not all thoughts which follow impassioned thought are themselves impassioned, as our example has shown. From this, then, we may know which conceptual images are impassioned and which are not. - St. Maximos the Confessor

Do we not admire Joseph, a young man of seventeen, for enduring his temptation to the end? And God glorified him. Do we not also see Job, how he suffered to the end, and lived in endurance? Temptations cannot destroy hope in God. - St. Poemen

Be careful to give no credit to yourself for anything; if you do, you are stealing from God, to whom alone every good thing is due. - St. Vincent de Paul

The intellect freed from the passions forms conceptual images that are also passion-free, whether the body is asleep or awake. - St. Thalassios the Libyan

As for me, I cannot understand how it is possible not to be always thinking of God. - St. Paul of the Cross

Now although man is created for the possession of happiness, yet, having deviated from his true end, his nature has become deformed and is entirely repugnant to true beatitude. And on this account we are forced to submit to God this depraved nature of ours which fills our understanding with so many occupations, and causes us to deviate from the true path, in order that he may entirely consume it until nothing remains there but himself; otherwise the soul could never attain stability nor repose, for she was created for no other end. - St. Catherine of Genoa

Genuine love gives birth to the spiritual knowledge of the created world. This is succeed by the desire of all desires: the grace of theology. - St. Thalassios the Libyan

Do you know why God subjects you to so many miseries? That He may bestow on you the riches of heaven. - St. Paul of the Cross

Blessed the one who loves truth continually and has not lent his mouth as an instrument of impiety by lying, for he fears the commandment about idle speech. - St. Ephrem of Syria

Keep your heart in peace and let nothing trouble you, not even your faults. You must humble yourself and amend them peacefully, without being discouraged or cast down, for God's dwelling is in peace. - St. Margaret Mary Alacoque

My whole strength lies in prayer and sacrifice, these are my invincible arms; they can move hearts far better than words, I know it by experience. - St. Therese of Lisieux

. . . Now, observe, my daughter, the contrast between the luxurious dress of many women, and the raiment and adornments of Jesus. . . Tell me: what relation do their fine shoes bear to the spikes in Jesus' Feet? The rings on their hands to the nails which perforated His? The fashionable coiffure to the Crown of Thorns? The painted face to That covered with bruises? Shoulders exposed by the low-cut gown to His, all striped with Blood? Ah, but there is a marked likeness between these worldly women and the Jews who, incited by the Devil, scourged Our Lord! At the hour of such a woman's death, I think Jesus will be heard saying: "Cujus est imago haec et circumscripto. . . of whom is she the image?" And the reply will be: "Demonii. . . of the Devil!" Then He will say: "Let her who has followed the Devil's fashions be handed over to him; and to God, those who have imitated the modesty of Jesus and Mary." - St. Anthony Mary Claret

It is absolutely impossible at the same time to be a man of understanding and not to be ashamed to gratify the body. - St. Clement of Alexandria

In sickness we ought to ask God to give us patience, because it often happens, that when a man gets well, he not only does not do the good he proposed to do when he was sick, but he multiplies his sins and his ingratitude. - St. Philip Neri

A seed will not grow without earth and water; and a man will not develop without voluntary suffering and divine help. - St. Mark the Ascetic

I work here on borrowed money, a prisoner for the sake of Jesus Christ. And often my debts are so pressing that I dare not go out of the house for fear of being seized by my creditors. Whenever I see so many poor brothers and neighbors of mine suffering beyond their strength and overwhelmed with so many physical or mental ills which I cannot alleviate, then I become exceedingly sorrowful; but I trust in Christ, who knows my heart. And so I say, "Woe to the man who trusts in men rather than in Christ. - St. John of God

He who does not envy the spiritually mature and is merciful to the wicked has attained an equal love for all. - St. Thalassios the Libyan

A religious ought to dread more being afraid of poverty than experiencing it. - St. Ignatius of Loyola

The sixth weapon is the memory of the goods of paradise which are prepared for those who lawfully struggle by abandoning all the vain pleasures of the present life in accord with the saying of the most holy doctor Saint Augustine that it is impossible to enjoy present goods and future ones too. So, dear sisters, be content not to have in this world any pleasure or any beloved, and do not grow tired of denying your own will, remembering what our patriarch St. Francis said, that is, that the most excellent and greatest gift that God's servant can receive from God in this world is to conquer himself by denying his own will. So he said: "So great is the good that I behold / that every wound is beloved by me," in order to show how, through the memory of eternal things, he rejoiced in suffering evil.' - St. Catherine of Bologna

If, one day, I should offend God in any way, or grow remiss, though ever so little, in that which concerns His holy service and glory, I solemnly implore Him, rather let me die. - St. Ignatius of Loyola

In this life there is no purgatory; it is either hell or paradise; for to him who serves God truly, every trouble and infirmity turns into consolations, and through all kinds of trouble he has a paradise within himself even in this world: and he who does not serve God truly, and gives himself up to sensuality, has one hell in this world, and another in the next. - St. Philip Neri

St. Augustine and St. Thomas define mortal sin to be a turning away from God: that is, the turning of one's back upon God, leaving the Creator for the sake of the creature. What punishment would that subject deserve who, while his king was giving him a command, contemptuously turned his back upon him to go and transgress his orders? This is what the sinner does; and this is punished in hell with the pain of loss, that is, the loss of God, a punishment richly deserved by him who in this life turns his back upon his sovereign good. - St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

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Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori Quotes

Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori Quotes

We should only make use of life to grow in the love of God.

I Love Jesus Christ and that is why I am on fire with the desire to give Him souls, first of all my own, and then an incalculable number of others

He who trusts himself is lost. He who trusts God can do all things.

He who suffers in patience, suffers less and saves his soul.  He who suffers impatiently, suffers more and loses his soul.

To acquire courage it is very useful to read the lives of the saints, especially of those who, after living in sin, attained great sanctity.

To put into practice the teachings of our holy faith, it is not enough to convince ourselves that they are true; we must love them.  Love united to faith makes us practise our religion.

When you do a good action, have the intention of first pleasing God, and then of giving good example to your neighbor.

When the afflictions of this life overcome us, let us encourage ourselves to bear them patiently by the hope of heaven.

The more a person loves God, the more reason he has to hope in Him. This hope produces in the Saints an unutterable peace, which they preserve even in adversity, because as they love God, and know how beautiful He is to those who love Him, they place all their confidence and find all their repose in Him alone.

Let your constant practice be to offer yourself to God, that He may do with you what He pleases.

Let us thank God for having called us to  His holy faith.  It is a great gift, and the number of those who  thank God for it is small.

If, on a rare occasion, it is necessary to speak with some severity in order to make a grievous crime felt, we should always, at the conclusion of the rebuke, add some kind words. We must heal wounds, as the Samaritan did, with wine and oil. But as oil floats above all other liquors, so meekness should predominate in all our actions.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

By "the poor in spirit" is meant those who are poor in earthly desires, and desire nothing but God. These are poor in desires, but not without affection, because they live contented even in this life; and, therefore, the Lord does not say, "Theirs will be the kingdom of heaven," but "theirs is," because even in this life they are rich in spiritual blessings which they receive from God; and thus, however poor they are in temporal goods, they live content with their condition.

Let us make up for lost time. Let us give to God the time that remains to us.

Our Savior says, if you have not received the graces that you desire, do not complain to me, but blame yourself, because you have neglected to seek them from me.

They are different from the rich in earthly desires, who, in the present life, whatever riches they possess, are always poor, and live discontented; for the good things of this life do not satisfy our thirst, however much they are increased; wherefore, these persons are never contented, never attaining to the acquisition of what they desire.

Realize that you may gain more in a quarter of an hour of prayer before the Blessed Sacrament than in all other practices of the day.

"Mary being destined to negotiate peace between God and man, it was not proper that she should be an accomplice in the disobedience of Adam."

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.

He who wishes to find Jesus will do so only by having recourse to Mary.

Mary having always lived wholly detached from earthly things and united with God, death, which united her more closely to Him, was extremely sweet and agreeable to her.

By assisting them we shall not only give great pleasure to God, but will acquire also great merit for ourselves. And, in return for our suffrages, these blessed souls will not neglect to obtain for us many graces from God, but particularly the grace of eternal life. I hold for certain that a soul delivered from Purgatory by the suffrages of a Christian, when she enters paradise, will not fail to say to God: "Lord, do not suffer to be lost that person who has liberated me from the prison of Purgatory, and has brought me to the enjoyment of Thy glory sooner than I have deserved."

Woe to him who neglects to recommend himself to Mary, and thus closes the channel of grace!

There are many things which seem to us misfortunes and which we call such; but if we understood the designs of God we would call them graces.

The upright intention is the soul of our actions.  It gives them life and makes them good.

The most perfect and meritorious intention is that by which, in all our actions, we have in view only the good pleasure of God and the accomplishment of  His holy will.

We are not created for this earth. The end for which God has placed us in the world, is this, that by our good works we may merit eternal life. "The end is life everlasting." (Rom. vi. 22)'

The more a person loves God, the more reason he has to hope in Him. This hope produces in the Saints an unutterable peace, which they preserve even in adversity, because as they love God, and know how beautiful He is to those who love Him, they place all their confidence and find all their repose in Him alone.

God pardons sins; but He will not pardon the will to sin.

He who does not overcome his predominant passion is in great danger of being lost.  He who does overcome it will easily conquer all the rest.

If we would completely rejoice the heart of God, let us strive in all things to conform ourselves to His divine will. Let us not only strive to conform ourselves, but also to unite ourselves to whatever dispositions God makes of us. Conformity signifies that we join our wills to the will of God. Uniformity means more. Uniformity means that we make one will of God's will and our will. In this way we will only what God wills. God's will alone is our will.

It is folly not to think of death.  It is greater folly to think of it, and not prepare for it.

If you desire heaven, you must walk in the way which leads to heaven; if you should walk in the way which leads to hell, you will one day unhappily find yourself there.

If you pray, you are positive of saving your soul. If you do not pray, you are just as positive of losing your soul. 

Acquire the habit of speaking to God as if you were alone with Him, familiarly and with confidence and love, as to the dearest and most loving of friends. Speak to Him often of your business, your plans, your troubles, your fears— of everything that concerns you. Converse with Him confidently and frankly; for God is not wont to speak to a soul that does not speak to Him.

A soul which does not practise the exercise of prayer is very like a paralyzed body which, though possessing feet and hands, makes no use of them.

In the Great Deluge in the days of Noah, nearly all mankind perished, eight persons alone being saved in the Ark. In our days a deluge, not of water but of sins, continually inundates the earth, and out of this deluge very few escape. Scarcely anyone is saved.

The truly humble reject all praise for themselves, and refer it all to God.

We do not keep an account of the graces which God has given us, but God our Lord keeps an account of them.  He has fixed the measure thereof."

Mary was the most perfect among the saints only because she was always perfectly united to the will of God.

After the love which we owe Jesus Christ, we must give the chief place in our heart to the love of His Mother Mary.

When we feel our cross weighing upon us, let us have recourse to Mary, whom the Church calls the 'Consoler of the Afflicted.

Blessed are the actions enclosed between two Hail Marys.

The servants of Mary who are in purgatory receive visits and consolations from her.


If you persevere until death in true devotion to Mary, your salvation is certain.

Mary being in heaven nearer to God and more united to Him, knows our miseries better, compassionates them more, and can more efficaciously assist us.

The Virgin Mother, all pure and all white, will make her servants pure and white.

Let us offer ourselves without delay and without reserve to Mary, and beg her to offer us herself to God.

Such is the compassion, such the love which Mary bears us, that she is never tired of praying for us.

May the two names so sweet and so powerful, of Jesus and Mary, be always in our heats and on our lips!

Whatsoever we do, we can never be true children of Mary, unless we are humble.

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Saint Paul of the Cross Quotes

Saint Paul of the Cross Quotes

Lord, dispose of me as Thou wiliest; let me be tormented as much as Thou pleasest; I will never, on any account, separate myself from Thee. Do with me according to Thy good pleasure; I wish to draw nearer and nearer to Thee.

My heart breaks when I think of the sorrows of the most holy Virgin. Oh tender Mother, unutterable was Thy grief in finding Thyself deprived of your dear Son, and then in beholding Him dead in Thy arms! Ah! who can realize the sadness of Mary when She returned to Bethany after the burial of her Son? Jesus expires on the cross! He is dead that we may have life. All creation mourns: the sun darkens, the earth trembles, the rocks burst, and the veil of the temple is rent in twain; my heart alone remains harder than a rock!

All I say to you now is, console the poor Mother of Jesus. It is a miracle that She does not die; She is absorbed in the sufferings of Jesus. Imitate Her, and ask the Magdalen and the beloved disciple St. John what are their sentiments.

How beautiful to look upon is the starry firmament! Yet it is only the portal of the blessed country where I hope to go one day.

Build an oratory within yourself, and there have Jesus on the altar of your heart. Speak to Him often while you are doing your work. Speak to Him of His holy love, of His holy sufferings and of the sorrows of most holy Mary

Beginners in the service of God sometimes lose confidence when they fall into any fault. When you feel so unworthy a sentiment rising within you, you must lift your heart to God and consider that all your faults, compared with divine goodness, are less than a bit of tattered thread thrown into a sea of fire.

Suppose that the whole horizon, as far as you can see from this mountain, were a sea of fire; if we cast into it a bit of tattered thread, it will disappear in an instant. So, when you have committed a fault, humble yourself before God, and cast your fault into the infinite ocean of, charity, and at once it will be effaced from your soul; at the same time all distrust will disappear.

As soon as we know the will of God, we ought without delay to follow it.

O souls! seek a refuge, like pure doves, in the shadow of the crucifix. There mourn the Passion of your divine Spouse, and drawing from your hearts flames of love and rivers of tears, make of them a precious balm with which to anoint the wounds of your Saviour.

From this valley of tears, turn your gaze continually to God, ever awaiting the moment when you will be united to Him in heaven. Often contemplate heaven, and fervently exclaim: 'What a beautiful abode there is above! It is destined for us!

Sigh longingly after its possession. Sometimes say, while your eyes are moist with tears:
'Nothing in this world pleases me; I no longer care for anything but my God. Yes, I hope, yes, I wish to possess Him, and I hope this of the mercy of God, through the merits of my Saviour's Passion and the sufferings of my good Mother Mary.

When you behold a beautiful landscape, say: 'Heaven is more beautiful than that! Above there are true delights and holy pleasures!

Let us live, then, absorbed in the thought and the desire of that immense ocean of felicity which we are to enjoy in heaven.

I would believe myself damned if I robbed God of one atom of His glory. I would believe myself more wicked than Lucifer if I had anything else in view but God.

You should not pay so much attention to or dwell on certain gifts, but rather go to the Divine Source whence they proceed.

Sometimes, in prayer, God communicates to the soul, all at once, His treasures of lights and heavenly graces. Imagine that you have in your hand a golden dish, that you pour into it the extract of the rarest and most exquisite perfumes, and that you steep into it a fine cambric handkerchief; this handkerchief will yield a delicious and inexplicable odor, composed of all the perfumes. It is thus my soul feels when I receive those intimate and hidden communications.

Tell me: what would you fain have done were you to die now? Would you have lived in luxury, which usually leads to grievous sins, and be cast into hell, or would you rather have led a poor life, and wing your flight to heaven?

Oh my God! teach me how to express myself. I wish that I were all aflame with love! More than that: I wish that I could sing hymns of praise in the fire of love, and extol the marvellous mercies that uncreated Love has bestowed on us! Is it not truly a duty to thank God for His gifts? Yes, for sure, but I know not how. I wish to do so, and I know not how. To faint away with the desire to love this great God more and more is little. To consume ourselves for Him is little. What shall we do? Ah! we shall live for that divine Lover in a perpetual agony of love. But, do you think that I have said enough? No; I would say more if I knew how. Do you know what consoles me somewhat? To know that our great God is an infinite good, and that nobody is capable of loving and praising Him as much as He deserves.

Prayer is never more perfect than when it ascends from the very depth and essence of the soul; we pray, then, in the spirit of God. This is a sublime language, but when God wills, He makes even the stones speak. Let the sovereign God reign in your spirit; there ought to be a reciprocal repose: God in you, and you in God. O sweet, O divine operation!

'O amiable Goodness! O infinite Charity! O my God and my All! O supreme Sweetness! Make these aspirations, or any others, as God will inspire you; but remember that if, in making one of these short prayers of love, your soul regain her peace and recollection in God, it is unnecessary to make a second; continue, rather, this silence, this repose of the soul in God, which includes excellently all the acts that we can ever make.' - St. Paul of the Cross

Fly from the world, and commence by trampling under your feet all human respect. Do not blush to be a servant of Christ. Regard this world with the same horror that the sight of a criminal suspended from a gibbet would awaken in you. Know that the atmosphere of the world is polluted with the foul odor of thousands of sins that are constantly committed, and which can be washed away only by tears of blood.

God created the fish dumb because they are to live in the waters. By this He teaches us that he who lives amid the tempests of this world ought to be mute, as if he had no tongue, never complaining or justifying himself.

In times of aridity arouse your spirit gently, by acts of love; then rest in the will of God. It is thus that the soul gives the strongest proof of her fidelity to God. Make a bouquet of the sufferings of Jesus, and place it on the bosom of your soul, as I have told you. You can from time to time call them to mind, and say sweetly to your Saviour: 'Oh good Jesus, how swollen, bruised, and defiled with spittle do I behold Thy countenance! Oh my Love! why do I see Thee all covered with wounds? Oh Infinite Sweetness! why are Thy bones laid bare? Ah, what sufferings! what sorrows! O my God! for what are Thou all wounded! Ah, dear sufferings! dear wounds! I wish to keep you always in my heart'.

I exhort you, though you live in the world, to communicate often, but with piety.

When you are alone in your room, take your crucifix, kiss its five wounds reverently, tell it to preach to you a little sermon, and then listen to the words of eternal life that it speaks to your heart; listen to the pleading of the thorns, the nails, the precious Blood. Oh, what an eloquent sermon!

Suppose that you had fallen into the river, and that a charitable person threw himself into the water to save you. What would you say to such kindness? Moreover, suppose that, hardly drawn from the water, you had been attacked by assassins, and that your rescuer again came to your assistance, and saved your life at the risk of his own. What would you do in return for such friendship? It is certain that you would do all in your power to heal the bruises he received on your account. So ought we to act towards Christ: we must contemplate Him engulfed in an ocean of sorrows to save us from the eternal abyss; consider Him all covered with wounds and bruises to purchase for us eternal life. Then let us make His pains our own, sympathize with His sorrows, and consecrate to Him all our affections.

Make a nosegay of the sufferings of Jesus, and wear it on your bosom, or else keep yourself absorbed in God in pure faith; let your soul be rapt in the thought of His sufferings and His love. Remain in this sacred silence, in this holy admiration, which increases the love of God.

O Jesus, my Sovereign Good, when Thou wert scourged, what were the sentiments of Thy most holy Heart! O dear Spouse of my soul, how greatly did the sight of my sins and my ingratitude afflict Thee! O my Love! would that I could die for Thee!

God's ways are incomprehensible. He uses very sharp files, which penetrate the heart and remove the rust. His files are all spiritual.

On awaking, keep your heart under control, by the remembrance of God, your Love, your only Good. When God inspires you with a sentiment of love, stop and taste it, as the bee sips the honey.... Ah! when I reflect that my soul is the temple of God, that God dwells in me, how my heart rejoices! All sufferings and afflictions appear to me sweet and light.... What a fruitful source of meditation!

Live in the joy and the peace of the divine Majesty. Live lost in divine love. Live for divine love and of divine love. Oh cherished cross! Through thee my most bitter trials are replete with graces!

The Mass is the most favorable occasion to speak with the eternal Father, because then we offer Him His only Son as a victim for our salvation. Before celebrating, reflect on the sufferings of your Redeemer, commune peaceably with Him, even in the midst of dryness; carry to the altar the needs of the entire world.

The feast of the Blessed Sacrament is the feast of love. Oh, what great love! what immense charity! The moth is drawn to the light, and burns itself in it. May your soul likewise draw near to the divine Light! May it be reduced to ashes in that sacred flame, particularly during this great and sweet octave of Corpus Christi. Ah! eat, drink, run, sing, rejoice in honor of your divine Spouse.

How wonderful are the treasures which are enclosed in the divine Eucharist! I exhort you, even though you live in the world, to receive Communion often, but with piety. Holy Communion is the most efficacious means of uniting one's self to God. Always prepare yourself well for this sacred banquet. Have a very pure heart, and watch over your tongue, for it is on the tongue that the Sacred Host is laid. Carry Our Lord home with you after your thanksgiving, and let your heart be a living tabernacle for Jesus. Visit Him often in this interior tabernacle, offering Him your homage, and the sentiments of gratitude with which divine love will inspire you. Preserve carefully the sentiments of love with which you are filled after Communion.

Have you ever noticed rocks in the sea, beaten by the tempest? A furious wave dashes against the rock, another and yet another does likewise, yet the rock is unmoved. But look at it after the storm has subsided, and you will see that the flood has but served to wash and purify it of the defilement it had contracted during the calm. Hereafter I wish you to be as a rock. 

A wave dashes against you? Silence! It assails you ten, a hundred, a thousand times? Silence! Say, at most, in the midst of the storm, "My Father, my Father, I am all Thine! Oh dear, O' sweet will of God, I adore Thee !

Celebrate the feast of Christmas every day, even every moment in the interior temple of your spirit, remaining like a baby in the bosom of the heavenly Father, where you will be reborn each moment in the Divine Word, Jesus Christ. 

Wealth, unless it be devoted to good works, will become to its possessor only a source of endless torment in hell.' 

One day the Lord caused me to hear these words at the foot of the tabernacle: "My son, he who embraces Me embraces thorns." Oh, what a grace! Oh, what a gift!

The life of the servants of God is a continual death. For you are dead and your life is hid with Christ in God. I wish you to die this mystical death. We have just celebrated the birth of Our Lord, and I am confident that you are born mystically in Christ daily, more and more; and I desire you to die in Him in a mystical manner, from day to day, more perfectly, and to dissipate, in the abyss of the Divinity, all those little distractions that annoy you.

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Quotes on the Catholic Church

Quotes on the Catholic Church

I am sent to you to confute, not to embrace your heresy. The Catholic religion is the faith of all ages, I fear not death. . . Pardon my enemies, O Lord: blinded by passion they know not what they do. Lord Jesus, have mercy on me. Mary, Mother of God, succor me! - St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen, upon his death

Wherever the bishop shall appear, there let the multitude also be; even as, wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church.   -St. Ignatius of Antioch

There is but one Church in which men find salvation, just as outside the ark of Noah it was not possible for anyone to be saved.  - St. Thomas Aquinas 

There are not over a 100 people in the U.S. that hate the Catholic Church, there are millions however, who hate what they wrongly believe to be the Catholic Church. Which is, of course, quite a different thing. - Servant of God Fulton J. Sheen

The saints have always been the source and origin of renewal in the most difficult moments in the Church's history. -- Pope John Paul II

Just as in one man there is one soul and one body, yet many members; even so the Catholic Church is one body, having many members. The soul that quickens this body is the Holy Spirit; and therefore in the Creed after confessing our belief in the Holy Spirit, we are bid to believe in the Holy Catholic Church. - St. Thomas Aquinas

I will go peaceably and firmly to the Catholic Church: for if Faith is so important to our salvation, I will seek it where true Faith first began, seek it among those who received it from God Himself. - St. Elizabeth Ann Seton 

That which I fear is not the Commune of Paris - no - that which I fear is liberal Catholicism. . . I have said so more than forty times, and I repeat it to you now, through the love that I bear you. The real scourge of France is Liberal Catholicism, which endeavors to unite two principles as repugnant to each other as fire and water. - Pope Bl. Pius IX

The Church has ever proved indestructible. Her persecutors have failed to destroy her; in fact, it was during times of persecution that the Church grew more and more; while the persecutors themselves, and those whom the Church would destroy, are the very ones who came to nothing.  . . .Again, errors have assailed her; but in fact, the greater the number of errors that have arisen, the more has the truth been made manifest. . . . Nor has the Church failed before the assaults of demons: for she is like a tower of refuge to all who fight against the Devil. - St. Thomas Aquinas 

Either Christ has a Church in the world continually and until the end of the world, or else He has a Church sometimes, and sometimes not at all. Could we think that He had a Church while He was here Himself, and perhaps awhile after, but mysteriously none since? . . . No . . . that can in no way be, since He must necessarily still preserve His Church somewhere; otherwise, how could He be with His followers continually until the end of the world? - St. Thomas More

Hold firmly that our faith is identical with that of the ancients. Deny this, and you dissolve the unity of the Church. - St. Thomas Aquinas 

The extremities of the earth, and all in every part of it who purely and rightly confess the Lord look directly towards the most holy Roman Church and its confession and faith, as it were to a sun of unfailing light, awaiting from it the bright radiance of the sacred dogmas of our Fathers according to what the six inspired and holy councils have purely and piously decreed, declaring most expressly the symbol of faith. For from the coming down of the incarnate Word amongst us, all the Churches in every part of the world have held that greatest Church alone as their base and foundation, seeing that according to the promise of Christ our Saviour, the gates of hell do never prevail against it, that it has the keys of a right confession and faith in Him, that it opens the true and only religion to such as approach with piety, and shuts up and locks every heretical mouth that speaks injustice against the Most High. -St. Maximos the Confessor

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