Thoughts and Counsels of the Saints for Every Day of the Year

Part 2

Chapter 24,253 wordsPublic domain

Let us have recourse to Mary; for of all creatures she is the highest, the purest, the most beautiful, and the most loving.--BL. HENRY SUSO.

Let the name of Mary be ever on your lips, let it be indelibly engraven on your heart. If you are under her protection, you have nothing to fear; if she is propitious, you will arrive at the port of salvation.-- ST. BERNARD.

Know that of all devotions the most pleasing to Mary is to have frequent recourse to her, asking for favors.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

Let the servants of Mary perform every day, and especially on Saturday, some work of charity for her sake.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

June

CAN WE, amongst all hearts, find one more amiable than that of Jesus? It is on His Heart that God looks with special complacency--ST. ALPHONSUS.

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

An act of perfect conformity to the will of God unites us more to Him than a hundred other acts of virtue.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

The love of God inspires the love of our neighbor, and the love of our neighbor serves to keep alive the love of God.--ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

Live always in the certainty that whatever happens to you is the result of divine Providence; because nothing hard or laborious falls to your lot without the Lord permitting it.--VEN. LOUIS DE BLOIS.

Whatsoever good work you undertake, pray earnestly to God that He will enable you to bring it to a successful termination.--ST. BENEDICT.

What is a fruitless repentance, defiled almost immediately by new faults?--ST. BERNARD.

You propose to give up everything to God; be sure, then, to include yourself among the things to be given up.--ST. BENEDICT.

If you can find a place where God is not, go there and sin with impunity.--ST. ANSELM.

He can not err who is constantly with the visible Head which Jesus Christ has left to His Church, as its foundation, rule, teacher, and defender of the Faith.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

The more numerous the gifts we have received from God, the greater the account we must render to Him.--ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

True penance consists in regretting without ceasing the faults of the past, and in firmly resolving to never again commit that which is so deplorable.--ST. BERNARD.

We are not raised the first day to the summit of perfection. It is by climbing, not by flying, that we arrive there.--ST. BERNARD.

What we do for ourselves during life is more certain than all the good we expect others to do for us after death.--ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

Idleness begets a discontented life. It develops self-love, which is the cause of all our misery, and renders us unworthy to receive the favors of divine love.--ST. IGNATIUS.

Have death always before your eyes as a salutary means of returning to God.--ST. BERNARD.

If the devil tempts me by the thought of divine justice, I think of God's mercy; if he tries to fill me with presumption by the thought of His mercy, I think of His justice.--ST. IGNATIUS.

In time of temptation continue the good thou hast begun before temptation.--ST. VINCENT FERRER.

In the eyes of the sovereign Judge the merit of our actions depends on the motives which prompted them.--ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

The benefits to be derived from spiritual reading do not merely consist in impressing on the memory the precepts set forth, but in opening the heart to them, that they may bear fruit.--VEN. LOUIS DE BLOIS.

As clouds obscure the sun, so bad thoughts darken and destroy the brightness of the soul.--VEN. LOUIS OF GRANADA.

To judge rightly of the goodness and perfection of any one's prayer, it is sufficient to know the disposition he takes to it, and the fruits he reaps from it.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

To commence many things and not to finish them is no small fault; we must persevere in whatever we undertake with upright intention and according to God's will.--BL. HENRY SUSO.

The perfect champion is he who establishes complete control over his mind by overcoming temptations and the inclination of his nature to sin.--VEN. JOHN TAULER.

If the love of God is in your heart, you will understand that to suffer for God is a joy to which all earthly pleasures are not to be compared.--ST. IGNATIUS.

The world around us is, as it were, a book written by the finger of God; every creature is a word on the page. We should apply ourselves well to understand the signification of the volume.--VEN. BARTHOLOMEW OF MARTYRS.

A man of prayer is capable of everything. He can say with St. Paul, "I can do all things in Him who strengthened me."--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

Whilst here below our actions can never be entirely free from negligence, frailty, or defect; but we must not throw away the wheat because of the chaff.--VEN. JOHN TAULER.

Strive always to preserve freedom of spirit, so that you need do nothing with the view of pleasing the world, and that no fear of displeasing it will have power to shake your good resolutions.--VEN. LOUIS DE BLOIS.

Wo to us poor sinners if we had not the Divine Sacrifice to appease the Lord!--ST. ALPHONSUS.

July

HOW few there are who avail themselves of the precious blood of Jesus to purchase their salvation!--ST. IGNATIUS.

O Queen of heaven and earth! Thou art the gate of mercy ever open, never closed. The universe must perish before he who invokes thee from his heart is refused assistance.--BL. HENRY SUSO.

Our Faith will never be true unless it is united to that of St. Peter and the Pontiff, his successors.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

Short pleasures and long sufferings are all the world can give.--VEN. JOHN TAULER.

Learn to be silent sometimes for the edification of others, that you may learn how to speak sometimes.--ST. VINCENT FERRER.

Gratitude for graces received is a most efficacious means of obtaining new ones.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

To a useless question we should answer only by silence.--ST. VINCENT FERRER.

We should not judge things by their exterior or appearance, but consider what they are in the sight of God, and whether they be according to His good pleasure.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

Preserve purity of conscience with care, and never do anything to sully it or render it less agreeable to God.--ST. THOMAS AQUINAS.

Give not thyself too much to any one. He who gives himself too freely is generally the least acceptable.--BL. HENRY SUSO.

Affliction strengthens the vigor of our soul, whereas happiness weakens it.--ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

To acquire purity of the soul, it is necessary to guard against passing judgment on our neighbor, or useless remarks on his conduct.--ST. CATHERINE OF SIENA.

Turn away the eyes of thy body and those of thy mind from seeing others, that thou mayest be able to contemplate thyself.--ST. VINCENT FERRER.

The brightest ornaments in the crown of the blessed in heaven are the sufferings which they have borne patiently on earth.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

We are not innocent before God if we punish that which we should pardon, or pardon that which we should punish.--ST. BERNARD.

Is there any one in the world who has invoked thee, O Mary, without having felt the benefit of thy protection, which is promised to those who invoke thy mercy?--ST. BERNARD.

It is the key of obedience that opens the door of paradise. Jesus Christ has confided that key to His vicar, the Pope, Christ on earth, whom all are obliged to obey even unto death.--ST. CATHERINE OF SIENA.

It is true that God promises forgiveness if we repent, but what assurance have we of obtaining it to-morrow?--VEN. LOUIS DE BLOIS.

We should offer ourselves and all we have to God, that He may dispose of us according to His holy will, so that we may be ever ready to leave all and embrace the afflictions that come upon us.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

No one has a right to mercy who can not himself show mercy.--VEN. LOUIS DE GRANADA.

We should reflect on all our actions, exterior and interior, and before we commence, examine well if we are able to finish them.--VEN. JOHN TAULER.

The reason why the lukewarm run so great a risk of being lost is because tepidity conceals from the soul the immense evil which it causes.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

We should learn of Jesus Christ to be meek and humble of heart, and ask Him unceasingly for these two virtues. We ought, particularly, to avoid the two contrary vices which would cause us to destroy with one hand what we seek to raise with the other.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

The sufferings endured for God are the greatest proof of our love for Him.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

It is in vain that we cut off the branches of evil, if we leave intact the root, which continually produces new ones.--ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

How little is required to be a saint! It suffices to do in all things the will of God.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

Wouldst thou know what thou art? Thou art that to which thy heart turns the most frequently.--VEN. BARTHOLOMEW OF MARTYRS.

When you covet that which delights you, think not only of the sweet moments of enjoyment, but of the long season of regret which must follow.--ST. BERNARD.

They who voluntarily commit sin show a contempt for life eternal, since they willingly risk the loss of their soul.--ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

It suffices not to perform good works; we must do them well, in imitation of Our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom it is written, "He doeth all things well."--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

Put not off till to-morrow what you can do today.--ST. IGNATIUS.

August

CHRIST Himself guides the bark of Peter. For this reason it can not perish, although He sometimes seems to sleep.--ST. ANTONINUS.

Prayer teaches us the need of laying before God all our necessities, of corresponding with His grace, of banishing vice from our heart and of establishing virtue in it.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

Take this to heart: Owe no man anything. So shalt thou secure a peaceful sleep, an easy conscience, a life without inquietude, and a death without alarm.--VEN. LOUIS DE GRANADA.

If you would know whether you have made a good confession, ask yourself if you have resolved to abandon your sins.--ST. BERNARD.

He who does that which is displeasing to himself has discovered the secret of pleasing God.--ST. ANSELM.

An ordinary action, performed through obedience and love of God, is more meritorious than extraordinary works done on your own authority--VEN. LOUIS DE BLOIS.

Vigilance is rendered necessary and indispensable, not only by the dangers that surround us, but by the delicacy, the extreme difficulty of the work we all have to engage in the work of our salvation.--VEN. LOUIS DE GRANADA.

Among the different means that we have of pleasing God in all that we do, one of the most efficacious is to perform each of our actions as though it were to be the last of our life.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

I have to seek only the glory of God, my own sanctification, and the salvation of my neighbor. I should therefore devote myself to these things, if necessary, at the peril of my life.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

Idleness is hell's fishhook for catching souls.--ST. IGNATIUS.

Whoever imagines himself without defect has an excess of pride. God alone is perfect.--ST. ANTONINUS.

As we take the bitterest medicine to recover or preserve the health of the body, we should cheerfully endure sufferings, however repugnant to nature, and consider them efficacious remedies which God employs to purify the soul and conduct it to the perfection to which He called it.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

To give up prayer because we are often distracted at it is to allow the devil to gain his cause.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

Curb the desire of display, and do nothing from human respect.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

O Mary, vessel of purest gold, ornamented with pearls and sapphires, filled with grace and virtue, thou art the dearest of all creatures to the eyes of eternal Wisdom.--BL. HENRY SUSO.

We must be careful not to omit our prayers, confession, communion, and other exercises of piety, even when we find no consolation in them.--ST. VINCENT FERRER.

Let us leave to God and to truth the care of our justification, without trying to excuse ourselves, and peace will truly spring up within us.-- VEN. JOHN TAULER.

Read good and useful books, and abstain from reading those that only gratify curiosity.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

So great is the goodness of God in your regard, that when you ask through ignorance for that which is not beneficial, He does not grant your prayer in this matter, but gives you something better instead.--ST. BERNARD.

Men can use no better arms to drive away the devil, than prayer and the sign of the cross.--ST. TERESA.

He who knows well how to practise the exercise of the presence of God, and who is faithful in following the attraction of this divine virtue, will soon attain a very high degree of perfection.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

One of the most admirable effects of holy communion is to preserve the soul from sin, and to help those who fall through weakness to rise again. It is much more profitable, then, to approach this divine Sacrament with love, respect, and confidence, than to remain away through an excess of fear and scrupulosity.--ST. IGNATIUS.

Let us remember that every act of mortification is a work for heaven. This thought will make all suffering and weariness sweet.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

Correction should be given calmly and with discernment, at seasonable times, according to the dictates of reason, and not at the impulse of anger.--VEN. LOUIS DE GRANADA.

There is nothing more certain, nothing more agreeable, nothing richer than a good conscience.--VEN. BARTHOLOMEW OF MARTYRS.

God, to procure His glory, sometimes permits that we should be dishonored and persecuted without reason. He wishes thereby to render us conformable to His Son, who was calumniated and treated as a seducer, as an ambitious man, and as one possessed.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

All that God gives us and all that He permits in this world have no other end than to sanctify us in Him.--ST. CATHERINE OF SIENA.

If you can not mortify your body by actual penance, abstain at least from some lawful pleasure.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

One whose heart is embittered can do nothing but contend and contradict, finding something to oppose in every remark.--VEN. JULIENNE MOREL.

Without prayer we have neither light nor strength to advance in the way which leads to God.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

I have never gone out to mingle with the world without losing something of myself.--BL. ALBERT THE GREAT.

September

HE who perseveres with constancy and fervor will, without fail, raise himself to a high degree of perfection.--BL. HENRY SUSO.

An upright intention is the soul of our actions. It gives them life, and makes them good.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

You wish to reform the world: reform yourself, otherwise your efforts will be in vain.--ST. IGNATIUS.

Let all thy care be to possess thy soul in peace and tranquillity. Let no accident be to thee a cause of ill-humor.--ST. VINCENT FERRER.

Humility is a fortified town; it repels all attacks. The sight of it obliges the enemy to turn and flee.--VEN. LOUIS OF GRANADA.

The world is deceitful and inconstant. When fortune forsakes us, friendship takes flight.--BL. HENRY SUSO.

Perform all your actions in union with the pure intention and perfect love with which Our Lord did all things for the glory of God and the salvation of the world.--ST. MECHTILDIS.

An air of meekness and a modest speech are pleasing alike to God and men.--VEN. JOHN TAULER.

The saints owed to their confidence in God that unalterable tranquillity of soul, which procured their perpetual joy and peace, even in the midst of adversities.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

Look not to the qualities thou mayest possess, which are wanting to others; but look to those which others possess and which are wanting to thee, that thou mayest acquire them.--VEN. LOUIS DE GRANADA.

Your heart is not so narrow that the world can satisfy it entirely; nothing but God can fill it.--ST. IGNATIUS.

If you wish to raise a lofty edifice of perfection, take humility for a foundation.--ST. THOMAS AQUINAS.

It ordinarily happens that God permits those who judge others, to fall into the same or even greater faults.--ST. VINCENT FERRER.

Raise thy heart and thy love toward the sweet and most holy cross, which soothes every pain!--ST. CATHERINE OF SIENA.

Often read spiritual books; then, like a sheep, ruminate the food thou hast taken, by meditation and a desire to practise the holy doctrine found therein.--ST. ANTONINUS.

Love others much, but visit them seldom.--ST. CATHERINE OF SIENA.

God sends us trials and afflictions to exercise us in patience and teach us sympathy with the sorrows of others.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

Armed with prayer, the saints sustained a glorious warfare and vanquished all their enemies. By prayer, also, they appeased the wrath of God, and obtained from Him all they desired.--VEN. LOUIS DE GRANADA.

All souls in hell are there because they did not pray. All the saints sanctified themselves by prayer.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

The thought of the presence of God renders us familiar with the practice of doing in all things His holy will.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

If we consider the number and excellence of the virtues practised by the saints, we must feel the inefficiency and imperfection of our actions.-- ST. VINCENT FERRER.

Prayer without fervor has not sufficient strength to rise to heaven.-- ST. BERNARD.

The path of virtue is painful to nature when left to itself; but nature, assisted by grace, finds it easy and agreeable.--VEN. LOUIS OF GRANADA.

Always give the preference to actions which appear to you the most agreeable to God, and most contrary to self-love.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

As the branch separated from the roots soon loses all life and verdure, so it is with good works which are not united with charity.--ST. GREGORY THE GREAT.

We should constantly thank the Lord for having granted us the gift of the true faith, by associating us with the children of the holy Catholic Church.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

We should not spare expense, fatigue, nor even our life, when there is a question of accomplishing the holy will of God.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

Some are unable to fast or give alms; there are none who can not pray.-- ST. ALPHONSUS.

We meet with contradictions everywhere. If only two persons are together they mutually afford each other opportunities of exercising patience, and even when one is alone there will still be a necessity for this virtue, so true it is that our miserable life is full of crosses.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

We should bear our sufferings in expiation for our sins, to merit heaven, and to please God.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

October

ALWAYS give good example: teach virtue by word and deed. Example is more powerful than discourse.--BL. HENRY SUSO.

If thou wouldst glory, let it be in the Lord, by referring everything to Him, and giving to Him all the honor and glory.--VEN. LOUIS DE GRANADA.

There is nothing more holy, more eminently perfect, than resignation to the will of God, which confirms us in an entire detachment from ourselves, and a perfect indifference for every condition in which we may be placed.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

Prayer consists not in many words, but in the fervor of desire, which raises the soul to God by the knowledge of its own nothingness and the divine goodness.--BL. HENRY SUSO.

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

When thou feelest thyself excited, shut thy mouth and chain thy tongue.--BL. HENRY SUSO.

If it was necessary that Christ should suffer and so enter by the cross into the kingdom of His Father, no friend of God should shrink from suffering.--VEN. JOHN TAULER.

We should grieve to see no account made of time, which is so precious; to see it employed so badly, so uselessly, for it can never be recalled.--BL. HENRY SUSO.

Every time that some unexpected event befalls us, be it affliction, or be it spiritual or corporal consolation, we should endeavor to receive it with equanimity of spirit, since all comes from the hand of God.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

There are some who sin through frailty, or through the force of some violent passion. They desire to break these chains of death; if their prayer is constant they will be heard.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

"Thy will be done!" This is what the saints had continually on their lips and in their hearts.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

He who would be a disciple of Jesus Christ must live in sufferings; for "The servant is not greater than the Master."--VEN. JOHN TAULER.

He who submits himself to God in all things is certain that whatever men say or do against him will always turn to his advantage.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

If he be blind who refuses to believe in the truths of the Catholic faith, how much blinder is he who believes, and yet lives as if he did not believe!--ST. ALPHONSUS.

There is no affliction, trial, or labor difficult to endure, when we consider the torments and sufferings which Our Lord Jesus Christ endured for us.--ST. TERESA.

Outside of God nothing is durable. We exchange life for death, health for sickness, honor for shame, riches for poverty. All things change and pass away.--ST. CATHERINE OF SIENA.

If you would keep yourself pure, shun dangerous occasions. Do not trust your own strength. In this matter we can not take too much precaution.-- ST. ALPHONSUS.

After knowing the will of God in regard to a work which we undertake, we should continue courageously, however difficult it may be. We should follow it to the end with as much constancy as the obstacles we encounter are great.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

In your prayers, if you would quickly and surely draw upon you the grace of God, pray in a special manner for our Holy Church and all those connected with it.--VEN. LOUIS DE BLOIS.

Prayer is our principal weapon. By it we obtain of God the victory over our evil inclinations, and over all temptations of hell.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

We should never abandon, on account of the difficulties we encounter, an enterprise undertaken with due reflection.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

Being all members of the same body, with the same head, who is Christ, it is proper that we should have in common the same joys and sorrows.-- VEN. LOUIS DE GRANADA.

We should be cordial and affable with the poor, and with persons in humble circumstances. We should not treat them in a supercilious manner. Haughtiness makes them revolt. On the contrary, when we are affable with them, they become more docile and derive more benefit from the advice they receive.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

Let not confusion for thy fault overwhelm thee with despair, as if there were no longer a remedy.--ST. CATHERINE OF SIENA.

As all our wickedness consists in turning away from our Creator, so all our goodness consists in uniting ourselves with Him.--ST. ALPHONSUS.

That which we suffer in the accomplishment of a good work, merits for us the necessary graces to insure its success.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

We ought to have a special devotion to those saints who excelled in humility, particularly to the Blessed Virgin Mary, who declares that the Lord regarded her on account of her humility.--ST. VINCENT DE PAUL.

He who wishes to find Jesus should seek Him, not in the delights and pleasures of the world, but in mortification of the senses.--ST. ALPHONSUS.