Contemplation Quotes

Contemplation Quotes

Let a man always think that he has God before his eyes. - St. Philip

I stand between two eternities. I must fall either into one or the other. - St. Ambrose

Those who can enclose within the little paradise of the soul Him who created heaven and earth, may well believe they are in a good road, and that they shall not fail to arrive at length at the fountain of life, because they will make great progress in a short time. -  St. Teresa

Be assured that he who shall always walk faithfully in God's presence, always ready to give Him an account of all his actions, shall never be separated from Him by consenting to sin. - St. Thomas Aquinas

We ascend to the heights of contemplation by the steps of action. - Pope St. Gregory the Great

A pure soul is one freed from passions and constantly delighted by divine love. - St. Maximos the Confessor

Disengage thyself a while from earthly care, and give thyself for a time to think of God, and to repose a little in Him. Then, having closed the door of thy senses, say with the affection of thy soul: O Lord, behold I am in quest of Thy lovely Countenance; teach Thy poor servant how to find it. - St. Augustine

Heaven open, Hell open,---between the two is the Christian. - St. Francis

Recall yourself sometimes to the interior solitude of your heart, and there, removed from all creatures, treat of the affairs of your salvation and your perfection with God, as a friend would speak heart to heart with another. - St. Francis of Sales

As birds have their nest where to retire, and deer their brakes and thickets to which to resort, either to enjoy the cool shade in the heat of summer, or to protect and defend themselves, so ought we to choose some place every day, either on Mount Calvary or in the Wounds of Our Lord, or nigh unto Him, whither to retreat on all occasions, there to refresh and recreate, or else to defend ourselves, as in a stronghold, against temptation. Happy the soul that can truly say to Our Lord: "Thou art a house of refuge unto me; my protection from thorns, and my shadow from the heat. - St. Francis of Sales 

The greatness of contemplation can be given to none but those who love. - Pope St. Gregory the Great 

You will note that the Lord establishes as the prime good contemplation, that is the gaze turned in the direction of the things of God. Hence we say that the other virtues, however useful and good we may say they are, must nevertheless be put on a secondary level, since they are all practiced for the sake of this one. "You are full of worry and are upset over many things when actually it should be over a few or even one." In saying this the Lord locates the primary good not in activity, however praiseworthy, however abundantly fruitful, but in the truly simple and unified contemplation of Himself. - St. John Cassian

Souls who aspire to a sublime union with God by contemplation usually suffer interior purgations in one way or another. - St. Paul of the Cross

Contemplation is nothing else than a secret, peaceful, and loving infusion of God, which if admitted, will set the soul on fire with the Spirit of love. - St. John of the Cross 

'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.' - St. Paul of the Cross

We should speak to God as a friend speaks to his friend, or a servant to his master, sometimes asking a favor, sometimes accusing ourselves of our faults, sometimes laying before Him all that concerns us, our thoughts, our doubts, our projects, and our dispositions, and asking counsel from Him in all these things. - St. Ignatius

It is most important to always seek to preserve the presence of God, for it excites in us a tender love for His Divine Majesty, and gives us great purity of conscience. - St. Teresa

In the active life all the vices are first of all to be removed by the practice of good works, so that in the contemplative life a man may, with now purified mental gaze, pass on to the contemplation of the Divine Light. - St. Isidore of Seville 

There are many souls who close their ears against Him because they prefer to speak and hurry through vocal prayers as if a task had been set them to say a certain amount everyday. Do not imitate them. You are doing more by occasionally repeating a single petition of the Our Father than by repeating the whole of it many times in a hurry and not thinking [or willing] what you are saying. - St. Teresa of Jesus

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

Watch over yourself, that your heart may be always inflamed with the fire of charity. As long as oil is kept boiling, flies do not come near it, but when it cools they are drowned in it and it is spoilt. In like manner, as long as a soul glows with the fire of Divine love, the devil keeps at a distance, but when the soul becomes tepid the flies of vanity and idle thoughts enter and defile it. - Blessed Baptista Varani

St. Paul of the Cross used to say to those about him: "Stay at home; stay at home." When they asked, "What do you mean? am I never to go out of my house?" He would answer them: "Stay in the solitude of your own heart before God, and keep three lamps burning before the altar---faith, hope, and charity---before the presence of God in your heart. - St. Paul of the Cross

Some there are who visit with great devotion holy places and solemn shrines. I do not condemn their piety, but I would remind them that faith teaches us that our own interior is also a sanctuary, because it is the living temple of God, and the dwelling of the Most Holy Trinity. Let us enter, then, into this temple, and adore Our Lord there in spirit and in truth: this is a most sublime devotion. Make frequent visits to this interior sanctuary, and see that the lamps be ever burning there. These lamps are the virtues of faith, hope, and charity. Your soul is the temple in which the living God dwells by faith. - St. Paul of the Cross

By interior recollection we retire into God, or draw God within ourselves. But when and where can we have recourse to it? At all times, and in all places. Neither repast, nor company, nor change, nor occupation can hinder it, as neither does it hinder or interfere with any action. On the contrary, it is a salt which seasons every kind of meat, or a sugar which spoils no sauce. It consists only in interior looks between the soul and God. - St. Francis of Sales

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 

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