Ijournal entry 032017 #11 March, month of St. Joseph. The rule of St. Benedict. 3rd Week of Lent. Quotes by St. Teresa of Avila, St. Augustine of Hippo, and St. Francis De sales. CATCH EXCELLENCE, by Fr. Richard Heilman. (Book: Church Militant Field Manual: Special Forces Training for the Life in Christ). Article: "70 SAINTS’ QUOTES TO ELEVATE YOUR GAME!", by Fr. Richard Heilman. Audio presentation: Fr. Larry Richards pre Lenten retreat video at St. Clement of Rome Church.
"Remember, O most pure spouse of the Virgin Mary, my beloved Patron, that never it has been heard that anyone invoked your patronage and sought your aid without being comforted. Inspired by this confidence I come to you and fervently commend myself to you. Despise not my petition, O dearest foster father of our Redeemer, but accept it graciously. Amen"
Lent week 3
St. John Paul II: "In reality, only in silence does man succeed in hearing in the depth of his conscience the voice of God, which really makes him free"
MC= Find some moments of silence and seize an opportunity to use the Crown of Thorns on the tongue
MC= Find some moments of silence and seize an opportunity to use the Crown of Thorns on the tongue
The Rule of St. Benedict
"Before all things and above all things care must be taken of the sick, so that they may be served in very deed as Christ himself; for he said: I was sick and ye visited me; and, what ye did to one of these least ones ye did unto me. But let the sick on their part consider that they are being served for the honour of God, and not provoke their brethren who are serving them by their unreasonable demands. Yet they should be patiently borne with, because from such as these is gained a more abundant reward. Therefore let the abbot take the greatest care that they suffer no neglect. For these sick brethren let there be assigned a special room and an attendant who is God-fearing, diligent and careful. Let the use of baths be afforded to the sick as often as may be expedient; but to the healthy, and especially to the young, let them be granted seldom. Moreover, let the use of flesh meat be granted to the sick who are very weak, for the restoration of their strength; but, as soon as they are better, let all abstain from flesh meat as usual. Let the abbot take the greatest care that the sick not be neglected by the cellarers and attendants; for he must answer for all the misdeeds of his disciples."
MC= It's to remember that there is a time for everything. At one time we may be the one needing help, at another time we may the one serving as caretaker. In all things let Jesus reign as Lord.
"Before all things and above all things care must be taken of the sick, so that they may be served in very deed as Christ himself; for he said: I was sick and ye visited me; and, what ye did to one of these least ones ye did unto me. But let the sick on their part consider that they are being served for the honour of God, and not provoke their brethren who are serving them by their unreasonable demands. Yet they should be patiently borne with, because from such as these is gained a more abundant reward. Therefore let the abbot take the greatest care that they suffer no neglect. For these sick brethren let there be assigned a special room and an attendant who is God-fearing, diligent and careful. Let the use of baths be afforded to the sick as often as may be expedient; but to the healthy, and especially to the young, let them be granted seldom. Moreover, let the use of flesh meat be granted to the sick who are very weak, for the restoration of their strength; but, as soon as they are better, let all abstain from flesh meat as usual. Let the abbot take the greatest care that the sick not be neglected by the cellarers and attendants; for he must answer for all the misdeeds of his disciples."
MC= It's to remember that there is a time for everything. At one time we may be the one needing help, at another time we may the one serving as caretaker. In all things let Jesus reign as Lord.
🌑 "He who does not advance on the way of perfection falls back, for, love cannot continue in the same degree". St. Teresa of Avila
⚪️ "The practice of mercy is twofold: when vengeance is sacrificed and when compassion is shown. The Lord included both of these in his brief sentence: 'Forgive, and you shall be forgiven; give, and it shall be given to you.' This work has the effect of purifying the heart, so that, even under the limitations of this life, we are enabled with pure mind to see the immutable reality of God. There is something holding us back, which has to be loosed so that our sight may break through to the light. In connection with this the Lord said, 'Give alms, and behold, all things are clean to you". By St. Augustine of Hippo
🎾 "We can never attain to perfection while we have an affection for any imperfection". By St. Francis De sales
⚪️ "The practice of mercy is twofold: when vengeance is sacrificed and when compassion is shown. The Lord included both of these in his brief sentence: 'Forgive, and you shall be forgiven; give, and it shall be given to you.' This work has the effect of purifying the heart, so that, even under the limitations of this life, we are enabled with pure mind to see the immutable reality of God. There is something holding us back, which has to be loosed so that our sight may break through to the light. In connection with this the Lord said, 'Give alms, and behold, all things are clean to you". By St. Augustine of Hippo
🎾 "We can never attain to perfection while we have an affection for any imperfection". By St. Francis De sales
First came the inspiration to compose this poem in Holy Hour. Then later that evening the reading from the book: “The Ascetical Homilies of St. Isaac the Syrian",a part of my Lenten regimen, was a confirmation to the poem. To complete the triptych was a post by Fr. Richard Heilman
serving as the potato dish in this Ijournal entry. If was quite evident that the entry planned was to be put on the back burner for another week. Hope to be following the lead of the Holy Spirit, because nothing else really matters.
After reading from the book by St. Issac, it gave me a good idea of how unmerciful you can consider me to be.
St. Isaac: "To give the poor from one's own possessions, and to cover the naked on seeing them, to love the neighbour as one self, not to do iniquity or falsehood, are things commanded also by the old law. But perfection in behaviour, according to the new covenant, commands thus: If a man takes from thee, do not demand back ; give every one who asks from thee. And not only hast thou to suffer gladly iniquitous dealing in possessions and other outward things, but thou hast even to give thyself in behalf of thy neighbor.”
“Merciful is he, who shows his compassion towards his neighbor not only in gifts, but who after hearing or seeing anything that causes suffering to any one, cannot withhold his heart from burning; who, even if he receives a blow on his cheek from his brother, does not venture to repay him even with a word and so cause him to suffer intellectually.”
With skewed vision one in death will be able to see see the nothingness of what we thought was something, and it may be apparent how poorly the spiritual life was lived. This is not to discourage anyone, but a call to abandon ourselves to the Lord, be consecrated to the Blessed Mother, begging the saints, angels, and departed souls to assist us daily. It is to see how we must desire, strive, and get serious, not just going along the merry way thinking we are not like the rest and doing ok. Our "ok" may very well not be God's "ok". Being repentant, going to Confession, opening our heart to truth, humbling ourselves from it being: "our way or the high way", will make for a person treading the path that leads to eternal life.
If that wasn't enough, the Vigil Mass unexpectedly attended at St. Clement of Rome, allowed me to record the audio that is the dessert dish, and speaks again of excellence.
serving as the potato dish in this Ijournal entry. If was quite evident that the entry planned was to be put on the back burner for another week. Hope to be following the lead of the Holy Spirit, because nothing else really matters.
After reading from the book by St. Issac, it gave me a good idea of how unmerciful you can consider me to be.
St. Isaac: "To give the poor from one's own possessions, and to cover the naked on seeing them, to love the neighbour as one self, not to do iniquity or falsehood, are things commanded also by the old law. But perfection in behaviour, according to the new covenant, commands thus: If a man takes from thee, do not demand back ; give every one who asks from thee. And not only hast thou to suffer gladly iniquitous dealing in possessions and other outward things, but thou hast even to give thyself in behalf of thy neighbor.”
“Merciful is he, who shows his compassion towards his neighbor not only in gifts, but who after hearing or seeing anything that causes suffering to any one, cannot withhold his heart from burning; who, even if he receives a blow on his cheek from his brother, does not venture to repay him even with a word and so cause him to suffer intellectually.”
With skewed vision one in death will be able to see see the nothingness of what we thought was something, and it may be apparent how poorly the spiritual life was lived. This is not to discourage anyone, but a call to abandon ourselves to the Lord, be consecrated to the Blessed Mother, begging the saints, angels, and departed souls to assist us daily. It is to see how we must desire, strive, and get serious, not just going along the merry way thinking we are not like the rest and doing ok. Our "ok" may very well not be God's "ok". Being repentant, going to Confession, opening our heart to truth, humbling ourselves from it being: "our way or the high way", will make for a person treading the path that leads to eternal life.
If that wasn't enough, the Vigil Mass unexpectedly attended at St. Clement of Rome, allowed me to record the audio that is the dessert dish, and speaks again of excellence.
~ In The Spiritual Life The Goal Is To Do Exceedingly Well ~ It Should Not Be Just About Avoiding Hell ~
🎓Aren't you interested in being the Val?
🎓Even not bad, it would be to end up as the Sal
🎓Yes, the spiritual valedictorian
🎓Quite possible by seriously following God's tried and true curriculum
🎓Constant busyness & frivolous chit chat
🎓Won't in the least help you in your quest to achieve that
🎓Cooperation with the Holy Spirit makes this an obtainable goal
🎓By grace it is earned, with no one being able to say that it was something you stole
🎓Not only in worldly things should we be trying to make the best grade
🎓Where it really counts and makes a big difference, about heavenly things A's should be made
🎓Hallaluia, Praise the Lord, Jesus grades on a curve
🎓And with the Holy Virgin Mary's assistance we'll get a better grade than we truly deserve.
🎓Let that be fuel for fire and something to greatly inspire
🎓Therefore let nothing displace, in the forefront of the mind, this heavenly desire
🎓Availing ourselves to The Precious Blood is one thing that will be of help to pick up the slack
🎓Taking care of shortcomings or whatever else it is that we might lack
🎓Living in obedience and being wedded to the Sacrament of Reconciliation in repentance
🎓Really vital elements in the spiritual life that are of upmost importance
🎓Never proceed according to your own way as seems so right to your own eyes
🎓That is behavior that is so, so, so unwise
🎓Truly praying, and it is my heartfelt wish
🎓That none of us, to our demise, end up being that foolish
🎓No need to ever be useful to the enemy as his tool
🎓Allowing him to churn up fool after fool
🎓It's to live in God's power, knowing the goal was obtained by the Saints of old
🎓And stands obtainable today for everyone that is now or who will be a member of Christ's fold
🎓With ears, if you will please listen, let's us hear what Scripture have to say,
🎓Very helpful that will be in keeping the darkness at bay
🎓Allowing one to adhere and live in the light
🎓Keep the goal even sight, ready to always for a good grade to fight the good fight
tmm/TruGIG
™
🎓Aren't you interested in being the Val?
🎓Even not bad, it would be to end up as the Sal
🎓Yes, the spiritual valedictorian
🎓Quite possible by seriously following God's tried and true curriculum
🎓Constant busyness & frivolous chit chat
🎓Won't in the least help you in your quest to achieve that
🎓Cooperation with the Holy Spirit makes this an obtainable goal
🎓By grace it is earned, with no one being able to say that it was something you stole
🎓Not only in worldly things should we be trying to make the best grade
🎓Where it really counts and makes a big difference, about heavenly things A's should be made
🎓Hallaluia, Praise the Lord, Jesus grades on a curve
🎓And with the Holy Virgin Mary's assistance we'll get a better grade than we truly deserve.
🎓Let that be fuel for fire and something to greatly inspire
🎓Therefore let nothing displace, in the forefront of the mind, this heavenly desire
🎓Availing ourselves to The Precious Blood is one thing that will be of help to pick up the slack
🎓Taking care of shortcomings or whatever else it is that we might lack
🎓Living in obedience and being wedded to the Sacrament of Reconciliation in repentance
🎓Really vital elements in the spiritual life that are of upmost importance
🎓Never proceed according to your own way as seems so right to your own eyes
🎓That is behavior that is so, so, so unwise
🎓Truly praying, and it is my heartfelt wish
🎓That none of us, to our demise, end up being that foolish
🎓No need to ever be useful to the enemy as his tool
🎓Allowing him to churn up fool after fool
🎓It's to live in God's power, knowing the goal was obtained by the Saints of old
🎓And stands obtainable today for everyone that is now or who will be a member of Christ's fold
🎓With ears, if you will please listen, let's us hear what Scripture have to say,
🎓Very helpful that will be in keeping the darkness at bay
🎓Allowing one to adhere and live in the light
🎓Keep the goal even sight, ready to always for a good grade to fight the good fight
tmm/TruGIG
™
CATCH EXCELLENCE ,by Fr. Richard Heilman. (Book: Church Militant Field Manual: Special Forces Training for the Life in Christ)
Excerpts from book:
"The desire to enter the fight is a desire to enter into a genuine training in holiness, pursuing the goal of becoming one of God's champions. St. Paul put it this way:
Excerpts from book:
"The desire to enter the fight is a desire to enter into a genuine training in holiness, pursuing the goal of becoming one of God's champions. St. Paul put it this way:
1 Corinthians 9:24-27 " "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize" |
St. Paul talks about a strict training and a desire to run in such a way as to win. The famous Green Bay Packer coach, Vince Lombardi, would have heard these words from St. Paul many times in his life, as he went to Mass every day. In fact, he admitted, "I derive my strength from daily Mass and Communion." As Coach Lombardi describes what it takes to be number one, see if you do not recognize a bit of St. Paul in his words:
"And in truth, I've never known a man worth his salt who in the long run, deep down in his heart, didn't appreciate the grind, the discipline. There is something in good men that really yearns for discipline and the harsh reality of head to head combat. I don't say these things because I believe in the 'brute' nature of men or that men must be brutalized to be combative. I believe in God, and I believe in human decency. But I firmly believe that any man's finest hour - his greatest fulfillment to all he holds dear - is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle - victorious."
Sadly, far too many people have become conditioned to cower when they hear the words, "strive for perfection." In the coddled culture in which we live, the reflex response is, "I will never be perfect." Yet, Coach Lombardi said, "Perfection is not attainable. But if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence."
Article: "70 SAINTS’ QUOTES TO ELEVATE YOUR GAME!", by Fr. Richard Heilman
Info from this site: https://www.romancatholicman.com/70-saints-quotes-to-elevate-your-game/
"From the moment Christ handed Peter the keys, the Roman Catholic Church has played an essential role in pulling the world up from savagery and barbarism to reach new heights as a civilization of love. Wherever the Roman Catholic Church flourishes, the culture thrives. No longer is man subject to his base wants and lusts and desires, but is released to strive for the summit of perfection.
Pope Benedict wrote:
“Thanks to Tradition, guaranteed by the ministry of the apostles and their successors, the water of life that flowed from the side of Christ and his saving blood comes to the women and men of all times. In this way, Tradition is the permanent presence of the Savior who comes to meet, redeem and sanctify us in the Spirit through the ministry of his Church for the glory of the Father.”
The saints who have gone before us are the witness, par excellence, to this tethering to Truth that enlightens and inspires and elevates mankind. These 70 quotes are but a glance at the 2,000 year history of the “Heroes in Holiness.” Let us allow their impressive lives inspire ours.
🙏1. If you are what you should be, you will set the whole world ablaze! -St. Catherine of Sienna
🙏2. This is the very perfection of a man, to find out his own imperfections. -St. Augustine
🙏3. To live is to change, and to be perfect is to have changed often. -Bl. John Henry Cardinal Newman
🙏4. He who climbs never stops going from beginning to beginning, through beginnings that have no end. He never stops desiring what he already knows. –St. Gregory of Nissa
🙏5. Let us begin in earnest to work out our salvation, for no one will do it for us, since even He Himself, Who made us without ourselves, will not save us without ourselves. -St. Margaret Mary Alacoque
🙏6. It was pride that changed angels into devils; it is humility that makes men as angels. -Saint Augustine
🙏7. To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no explanation is possible. -St. Thomas Aquinas
🙏8. Our hearts were made for You, O Lord, and they are restless until they rest in you. -St. Augustine of Hippo
🙏9. Pray, Hope, and Don’t Worry -St. Pio of Pietrelcino
🙏10. 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
🙏11. Pray as though everything depended on God. Work as though everything depended on you. -St. Augustine
🙏12. Love to be real, it must cost—it must hurt—it must empty us of self. -Mother Teresa
🙏13. To love God is something greater than to know Him. -St. Thomas Aquinas
🙏14. We are to love God for Himself, because of a twofold reason; nothing is more reasonable, nothing more profitable. -St. Bernard of Clairvaux
🙏15. It is not hard to obey when we love the one whom we obey. -St. Ignatius of Loyola
🙏16. You cannot be half a saint; you must be a whole saint or no saint at all. -St. Therese of Lisieux
🙏17. The most powerful weapon to conquer the devil is humility. For, as he does not know at all how to employ it, neither does he know how to defend himself from it. -Saint Vincent de Paul
🙏18. Teach us to give and not count the cost. -St. Ignatius de Loyola
🙏19. Charity is no substitute for justice withheld – St. Augustine
🙏20. The source of justice is not vengeance but charity. -Saint Bridget of Sweden
🙏21. Fortitude is the disposition of soul which enables us to despise all inconveniences and the loss of things not in our power. –St. Augustine
🙏22. I know well that the greater and more beautiful the work is, the more terrible will be the storms that rage against it. -St. Faustina
🙏23. Moreover, Christians are born for combat, whereof the greater the vehemence, the more assured, God willing, the triumph: ‘Have confidence; I have overcome the world’ (John 16:33) –Pope Leo XIII
🙏24. Temperance is a disposition that restrains our desires for things which it is base to desire. –St. Augustine
🙏25. Our body has this defect that, the more it is provided care and comforts, the more needs and desires it finds. –St. Teresa of Avila
🙏26. If you would rise, shun luxury, for luxury lowers and degrades. -St John Chrysostom
🙏27. Dost thou hold wisdom to be anything other than truth, wherein we behold and embrace the supreme good? –St. Augustine
🙏28. Let your old age be childlike, and your childhood like old age; that is, so that neither may your wisdom be with pride, nor your humility without wisdom. -St. Augustine
🙏29. God gives each one of us sufficient grace ever to know His holy will, and to do it fully. -St. Ignatius of Loyola
🙏30. Understanding is the reward of faith. Therefore seek not to understand that thou mayest believe, but believe that thou mayest understand. –St. Augustine
🙏31. Understanding is the sure and clear knowledge of some invisible thing. –St. Bernard
🙏32. Thus understanding and love, that is, the knowledge of and delight in the truth, are, as it were, the two arms of the soul, with which it embraces and comprehends with all the saints the length and breath, the height and depth, that is the eternity, the love, the goodness, and the wisdom of God. –St. Bernard
🙏33. Listen and attend with the ear of your heart -St. Benedict
🙏34. We judge all things according to the divine truth. – St. Augustine
🙏35. A scrap of knowledge about sublime things is worth more than any amount about trivialities. –St. Thomas Aquinas
🙏36. In so far as divine love beautifies our souls. And makes us pleasing to His divine Majesty, it is called grace; in so far as it gives us strength to do good, it is called charity; but when it reaches such a degree of perfection, that it makes us not only do the good, but do so carefully, frequently and readily, then it is called devotion. –St. Francis de Sales
🙏37. Charity and devotion differ no more, the one from the other, than the flame from the fire. –St. Francis de Sales
🙏38. Devotion is a certain act of the will by which man gives himself promptly to divine service. –St. Thomas Aquinas
🙏39. It is better to say one Our Father fervently and devoutly than a thousand with no devotion and full of distraction. — St. Edmund
🙏40. For I have learnt for a fact that nothing so effectively obtains, retains and regains grace, as that we should always be found not high-minded before God, but filled with holy fear. –St. Bernard
🙏41. We must fear God out of love, not love Him out of fear. -Saint Francis de Sales
🙏42. Our hearts were made for You, O Lord, and they are restless until they rest in you. -St. Augustine
🙏43. The fruits of charity are joy, peace, and mercy; charity demands beneficence and fraternal correction; it is benevolence; it fosters reciprocity and remains disinterested and generous; it is friendship and communion: Love is itself the fulfillment of all our works. There is the goal; that is why we run: we run toward it, and once we reach it, in it we shall find rest. –St. Augustine
🙏44. Charity brings to life again those who are spiritually dead. –St. Thomas Aquinas
🙏45. Charity is the form, mover, mother, and root of all virtues. –St. Thomas Aquinas
🙏46. Joy is a net of love by which we catch souls. -Mother Teresa
47. Joy is very infectious; therefore, be always full of joy. –Mother Teresa
🙏48. Let the brothers ever avoid appearing gloomy, sad, and clouded, like the hypocrites; but let one ever be found joyous in the Lord, gay, amiable, gracious, as is meet. –St. Francis
🙏49. But above all preserve peace of heart. This is more valuable than any treasure. In order to preserve it there is nothing more useful than renouncing your own will and substituting for it the will of the divine heart. In this way his will can carry out for us whatever contributes to his glory, and we will be happy to be his subjects and to trust entirely in him. -St Margaret Mary Alacoque
🙏50. Who except God can give you peace? Has the world ever been able to satisfy the heart? -Saint Gerard Majella
🙏51. Patience is the companion of wisdom. –St. Augustine
52. Be kind to all and severe to thyself. –St. Teresa of Avila
🙏53. To convert somebody go and take them by the hand and guide them. -St. Thomas Aquinas
🙏54. Be a good child, and God will help you. -St. Joan of Arc
🙏55. To attribute to God, and not to self, whatever good one sees in oneself; but to recognize always that the evil is one’s own doing, and to impute it on one’s self. –St. Benedict
🙏56. This, in short, is the difference between us and others who know not God, that in misfortune they complain and murmur, while the adversity does not call us away from the truth of virtue and faith, but strengthens us by its suffering. –St. Cyprian
🙏57. Nothing appeases an enraged elephant so much as the sight of a little lamb. –St. Francis de Sales
🙏58. When you encounter difficulties and contradictions, do not try to break them, but bend them with gentleness and time. –St. Francis de Sales
🙏59. He who can preserve gentleness amid pains, and peace amid worry multitude of affairs, is almost perfect. –St. Francis de Sales
🙏60. For Faith is the beginning and the end is love, and God is the two of them brought into unity. After these comes whatever else makes up a Christian gentleman. –St. Ignatius of Antioch
🙏61. Faith means battles; if there are no contests, it is because there are none who desire to contend. –St. Ambrose
🙏62. Faith does not quench desire, but inflames it. –St. Thomas Aquinas
🙏63. A faint faith is better than a strong heresy. –St. Thomas More
🙏64. It is not the actual physical exertion that counts toward a man’s progress, nor the nature of the task, but the spirit of faith with which it is undertaken. -St. Francis Xavier
🙏65. The dress of the body should not discredit the good of the soul. St. Cyprian
🙏66. The purpose of clothing is to keep warm in winter and to cover your nakedness, not to serve your vanity. St. Cyril of Jerusalem
🙏67. He who is chaste in flesh should not be proud, for he should know that he owes the gift of continence to another. –Pope St. Clement I
🙏68. I thought that continence was a matter of our own strength, and I knew that I had not the strength: for in my utter foolishness I did not know the word of Your Scripture that none can be continent unless You give it. –St. Augustine
🙏69. Great are those two gifts, wisdom and continence: wisdom, forsooth, whereby we are formed in the knowledge of God; continence whereby we are not conformed to this world. –St. Augustine
🙏70. Do not say that you have chaste minds if you have unchaste eyes, because an unchaste eye is the messenger of an unchaste heart. –St. Augustine"
Info from this site: https://www.romancatholicman.com/70-saints-quotes-to-elevate-your-game/
"From the moment Christ handed Peter the keys, the Roman Catholic Church has played an essential role in pulling the world up from savagery and barbarism to reach new heights as a civilization of love. Wherever the Roman Catholic Church flourishes, the culture thrives. No longer is man subject to his base wants and lusts and desires, but is released to strive for the summit of perfection.
Pope Benedict wrote:
“Thanks to Tradition, guaranteed by the ministry of the apostles and their successors, the water of life that flowed from the side of Christ and his saving blood comes to the women and men of all times. In this way, Tradition is the permanent presence of the Savior who comes to meet, redeem and sanctify us in the Spirit through the ministry of his Church for the glory of the Father.”
The saints who have gone before us are the witness, par excellence, to this tethering to Truth that enlightens and inspires and elevates mankind. These 70 quotes are but a glance at the 2,000 year history of the “Heroes in Holiness.” Let us allow their impressive lives inspire ours.
🙏1. If you are what you should be, you will set the whole world ablaze! -St. Catherine of Sienna
🙏2. This is the very perfection of a man, to find out his own imperfections. -St. Augustine
🙏3. To live is to change, and to be perfect is to have changed often. -Bl. John Henry Cardinal Newman
🙏4. He who climbs never stops going from beginning to beginning, through beginnings that have no end. He never stops desiring what he already knows. –St. Gregory of Nissa
🙏5. Let us begin in earnest to work out our salvation, for no one will do it for us, since even He Himself, Who made us without ourselves, will not save us without ourselves. -St. Margaret Mary Alacoque
🙏6. It was pride that changed angels into devils; it is humility that makes men as angels. -Saint Augustine
🙏7. To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no explanation is possible. -St. Thomas Aquinas
🙏8. Our hearts were made for You, O Lord, and they are restless until they rest in you. -St. Augustine of Hippo
🙏9. Pray, Hope, and Don’t Worry -St. Pio of Pietrelcino
🙏10. 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
🙏11. Pray as though everything depended on God. Work as though everything depended on you. -St. Augustine
🙏12. Love to be real, it must cost—it must hurt—it must empty us of self. -Mother Teresa
🙏13. To love God is something greater than to know Him. -St. Thomas Aquinas
🙏14. We are to love God for Himself, because of a twofold reason; nothing is more reasonable, nothing more profitable. -St. Bernard of Clairvaux
🙏15. It is not hard to obey when we love the one whom we obey. -St. Ignatius of Loyola
🙏16. You cannot be half a saint; you must be a whole saint or no saint at all. -St. Therese of Lisieux
🙏17. The most powerful weapon to conquer the devil is humility. For, as he does not know at all how to employ it, neither does he know how to defend himself from it. -Saint Vincent de Paul
🙏18. Teach us to give and not count the cost. -St. Ignatius de Loyola
🙏19. Charity is no substitute for justice withheld – St. Augustine
🙏20. The source of justice is not vengeance but charity. -Saint Bridget of Sweden
🙏21. Fortitude is the disposition of soul which enables us to despise all inconveniences and the loss of things not in our power. –St. Augustine
🙏22. I know well that the greater and more beautiful the work is, the more terrible will be the storms that rage against it. -St. Faustina
🙏23. Moreover, Christians are born for combat, whereof the greater the vehemence, the more assured, God willing, the triumph: ‘Have confidence; I have overcome the world’ (John 16:33) –Pope Leo XIII
🙏24. Temperance is a disposition that restrains our desires for things which it is base to desire. –St. Augustine
🙏25. Our body has this defect that, the more it is provided care and comforts, the more needs and desires it finds. –St. Teresa of Avila
🙏26. If you would rise, shun luxury, for luxury lowers and degrades. -St John Chrysostom
🙏27. Dost thou hold wisdom to be anything other than truth, wherein we behold and embrace the supreme good? –St. Augustine
🙏28. Let your old age be childlike, and your childhood like old age; that is, so that neither may your wisdom be with pride, nor your humility without wisdom. -St. Augustine
🙏29. God gives each one of us sufficient grace ever to know His holy will, and to do it fully. -St. Ignatius of Loyola
🙏30. Understanding is the reward of faith. Therefore seek not to understand that thou mayest believe, but believe that thou mayest understand. –St. Augustine
🙏31. Understanding is the sure and clear knowledge of some invisible thing. –St. Bernard
🙏32. Thus understanding and love, that is, the knowledge of and delight in the truth, are, as it were, the two arms of the soul, with which it embraces and comprehends with all the saints the length and breath, the height and depth, that is the eternity, the love, the goodness, and the wisdom of God. –St. Bernard
🙏33. Listen and attend with the ear of your heart -St. Benedict
🙏34. We judge all things according to the divine truth. – St. Augustine
🙏35. A scrap of knowledge about sublime things is worth more than any amount about trivialities. –St. Thomas Aquinas
🙏36. In so far as divine love beautifies our souls. And makes us pleasing to His divine Majesty, it is called grace; in so far as it gives us strength to do good, it is called charity; but when it reaches such a degree of perfection, that it makes us not only do the good, but do so carefully, frequently and readily, then it is called devotion. –St. Francis de Sales
🙏37. Charity and devotion differ no more, the one from the other, than the flame from the fire. –St. Francis de Sales
🙏38. Devotion is a certain act of the will by which man gives himself promptly to divine service. –St. Thomas Aquinas
🙏39. It is better to say one Our Father fervently and devoutly than a thousand with no devotion and full of distraction. — St. Edmund
🙏40. For I have learnt for a fact that nothing so effectively obtains, retains and regains grace, as that we should always be found not high-minded before God, but filled with holy fear. –St. Bernard
🙏41. We must fear God out of love, not love Him out of fear. -Saint Francis de Sales
🙏42. Our hearts were made for You, O Lord, and they are restless until they rest in you. -St. Augustine
🙏43. The fruits of charity are joy, peace, and mercy; charity demands beneficence and fraternal correction; it is benevolence; it fosters reciprocity and remains disinterested and generous; it is friendship and communion: Love is itself the fulfillment of all our works. There is the goal; that is why we run: we run toward it, and once we reach it, in it we shall find rest. –St. Augustine
🙏44. Charity brings to life again those who are spiritually dead. –St. Thomas Aquinas
🙏45. Charity is the form, mover, mother, and root of all virtues. –St. Thomas Aquinas
🙏46. Joy is a net of love by which we catch souls. -Mother Teresa
47. Joy is very infectious; therefore, be always full of joy. –Mother Teresa
🙏48. Let the brothers ever avoid appearing gloomy, sad, and clouded, like the hypocrites; but let one ever be found joyous in the Lord, gay, amiable, gracious, as is meet. –St. Francis
🙏49. But above all preserve peace of heart. This is more valuable than any treasure. In order to preserve it there is nothing more useful than renouncing your own will and substituting for it the will of the divine heart. In this way his will can carry out for us whatever contributes to his glory, and we will be happy to be his subjects and to trust entirely in him. -St Margaret Mary Alacoque
🙏50. Who except God can give you peace? Has the world ever been able to satisfy the heart? -Saint Gerard Majella
🙏51. Patience is the companion of wisdom. –St. Augustine
52. Be kind to all and severe to thyself. –St. Teresa of Avila
🙏53. To convert somebody go and take them by the hand and guide them. -St. Thomas Aquinas
🙏54. Be a good child, and God will help you. -St. Joan of Arc
🙏55. To attribute to God, and not to self, whatever good one sees in oneself; but to recognize always that the evil is one’s own doing, and to impute it on one’s self. –St. Benedict
🙏56. This, in short, is the difference between us and others who know not God, that in misfortune they complain and murmur, while the adversity does not call us away from the truth of virtue and faith, but strengthens us by its suffering. –St. Cyprian
🙏57. Nothing appeases an enraged elephant so much as the sight of a little lamb. –St. Francis de Sales
🙏58. When you encounter difficulties and contradictions, do not try to break them, but bend them with gentleness and time. –St. Francis de Sales
🙏59. He who can preserve gentleness amid pains, and peace amid worry multitude of affairs, is almost perfect. –St. Francis de Sales
🙏60. For Faith is the beginning and the end is love, and God is the two of them brought into unity. After these comes whatever else makes up a Christian gentleman. –St. Ignatius of Antioch
🙏61. Faith means battles; if there are no contests, it is because there are none who desire to contend. –St. Ambrose
🙏62. Faith does not quench desire, but inflames it. –St. Thomas Aquinas
🙏63. A faint faith is better than a strong heresy. –St. Thomas More
🙏64. It is not the actual physical exertion that counts toward a man’s progress, nor the nature of the task, but the spirit of faith with which it is undertaken. -St. Francis Xavier
🙏65. The dress of the body should not discredit the good of the soul. St. Cyprian
🙏66. The purpose of clothing is to keep warm in winter and to cover your nakedness, not to serve your vanity. St. Cyril of Jerusalem
🙏67. He who is chaste in flesh should not be proud, for he should know that he owes the gift of continence to another. –Pope St. Clement I
🙏68. I thought that continence was a matter of our own strength, and I knew that I had not the strength: for in my utter foolishness I did not know the word of Your Scripture that none can be continent unless You give it. –St. Augustine
🙏69. Great are those two gifts, wisdom and continence: wisdom, forsooth, whereby we are formed in the knowledge of God; continence whereby we are not conformed to this world. –St. Augustine
🙏70. Do not say that you have chaste minds if you have unchaste eyes, because an unchaste eye is the messenger of an unchaste heart. –St. Augustine"
Fr. Larry Richards pre Lenten retreat video at St. Clement of Rome church
Link to my Box file:
app.box.com/s/e01rc5170wpbx1rdpebd5nw6i9j88wq8
Link to my Box file:
app.box.com/s/e01rc5170wpbx1rdpebd5nw6i9j88wq8