So many things always to learn and re-learn (for how fast we forget!).
Particularly, we learn from saints:
St. Ignatius of Loyola: “The vigor with which you resist the enemy will be the measure of the reward which will follow the combat.”
Saint Thomas More: “The ordinary acts we practice every day at home are of more importance to the soul than their simplicity might suggest.”
Saint Alphonsus Liguori: “Act as if every day were the last of your life, and each action the last you perform.”
Saint Patrick: “Christ be with me, Christ within me, Christ behind me, Christ before me, Christ beside me, Christ to win me, Christ to comfort me and restore me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ in quiet, Christ in danger, Christ in hearts of all that love me, Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.”
“Whatever you do, think not of yourself, but of God,” intoned the great Saint Vincent Ferrer.
Saint John Paul II: “Have no fear of moving into the unknown. Simply step out fearlessly knowing that I am with you, therefore no harm can befall you; all is very, very well. Do this in complete faith and confidence.”
Saint Bernard: “God removes the sin of the one who makes humble confession, and thereby the devil loses the sovereignty he had gained over the human heart.”
Saint Catherine of Siena: “If you are what you should be, you will set the whole world ablaze!”
Saint Francis de Sales: “When you encounter difficulties and contradictions, do not try to break them, but bend them with gentleness and time.”
Saint John Paul II: “Pervading nationalism imposes its dominion on man today in many different forms and with an aggressiveness that spares no one. The challenge that is already with us is the temptation to accept as true freedom what in reality is only a new form of slavery.”
“We live in a world of shadows; all we need is a pinprick of Light” — anonymous.
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux: “Humility in furs is better than pride in tunics.”
Fulton Sheen: “Jealousy is the tribute mediocrity pays to genius.”
Fulton J. Sheen: “Hearing nuns’ confessions is like being stoned to death with popcorn.”
Saint Francis de Sales: “Never be in a hurry; do everything quietly and in a calm spirit. Do not lose your inner peace for anything whatsoever, even if your whole world seems upset.”
Saint Ignatius of Loyola: ““If our Church is not marked by caring for the poor, the oppressed, the hungry, we are guilty of heresy.”
The truth sets us free, but so does unselfishness.
So does handing everything over to the Will of God.
Saint Monica: “Nothing is far from God.”
Saint John Chrysosdom: “If you would rise, shun luxury, for luxury lowers and degrades.”
St. Padre Pio: “Jesus permits the spiritual combat as a purification, not as a punishment. The trial is not unto death but unto salvation.”
Words that should not be just read but upon which we should meditate.
How often do we consult Sirach or Proverbs or The Book of Wisdom?
There’s more time in summertime to do these things, and do them we should.
[resources: Michael Brown retreat, St. Augustine, May 18]