Thursday, November 15, 2012

Apparition on Marytv.tv Thursday


Subject: Apparition on Marytv.tv Thursday

On November 15 at 5 PM Marytv.tv will stream live Marija's apparition at Notre Dame.  The Rosary will begin at 5 PM and she will have her apparition at 5:40 PM.  

Those connected through the internet will be prayed over by Our Lady during her apparition the same as those present -  
see http://www.marytv.tv/MaryTV/blessing-over-the-internet/

     

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Christian Quotes on Temptation and Evil


The traitor has turned against his friends;
he has broken his word.
His speech is softer than butter,
but war is in his heart.
His words are smoother than oil,
but they are naked swords.
--Divine Office, Psalms

"You can't dance with the devil and expect him to leave after the song is over."
--Christopher Majella Paul


"There are in truth three states of the converted: the beginning, the middle, and the perfection. In the beginning, they experience the charms of sweetness; in the middle, the contests of temptation; and in the end, the fullness of perfection."
- Pope St. Gregory the Great

"As soon as you willfully allow a dialogue with temptation to begin, the soul is robbed of peace, just as consent to impurity destroys grace."
- St. Josemaria Escriva

Guard your mind, and you will not be harassed by temptations. But if you fail to guard it, accept patiently whatever trial comes.
--St. Mark the Ascetic

"Temptation is necessary to make us realize that we are nothing in ourselves."
- St. Josemaria Escriva


St. Jean-Marie Baptiste of Vianney on Temptation, fasting, and prayer: 3.6: … let us put our confidence in God; let us fast and pray; and the devil will not be able …

3.6: … let us put our confidence in God; let us fast and pray; and the devil will not be able …
CHAPTER 5: On Temptations

WE ARE all inclined to sin, my children; we are idle, greedy, sensual, given to the pleasures of the flesh. We want to know everything, to learn everything, to see everything; we must watch over our mind, over our heart, and over our senses, for these are the gates by which the devil penetrates. See, he prowls round us incessantly; his only occupation in this world is to seek companions for himself. All our life he will lay snares for us, he will try to make us yield to temptations; we must, on our side, do all we can to defeat and resist him. We can do nothing by ourselves, my children; but we can do everything with the help of the good God; let us pray Him to deliver us from this enemy of our salvation, or to give strength to fight against him. With the Name of Jesus we shall overthrow the demons; we shall put them to flight. With this Name, if they sometimes dare to attack us, our battles will be victories, and our victories will be crowns for Heaven, all brilliant with precious stones.

See, my children, the good God refuses nothing to those who pray to Him from the bottom of their heart. St. Teresa, being one day in prayer, and desiring to see the good God, Jesus Christ showed to the eyes of her soul His Divine hands; then, another day, when she was again in prayer, He showed her His face. Lastly, some days after, He showed her the whole of His Sacred Humanity. The good God who granted the desire of St. Teresa will also grant our prayers. If we ask of Him the grace to resist temptations, He will grant it to us; for He wishes to save us all, He shed His Blood for us all, He died for us all, He is waiting for us all in Heaven. We are two or three hundred here: shall we all be saved, shall we all go to Heaven? Alas! my children, we know nothing about it; but I tremble when I see so many souls lost in these days.

See, they fall into Hell as the leaves fall from the trees at the approach of winter. We shall fall like the rest, my children, if we do not avoid temptations, if, when we cannot avoid them, we do not fight generously, with the help of the good God--if we do not invoke His Name during the strife, like St. Antony in the desert.

This saint having retired into an old sepulchre, the devil came to attack him; he tried at first to terrify him with a horrible noise; he even beat him so cruelly that he left him half dead and covered with wounds. "Well," said St. Antony, "here I am, ready to fight again; no, thou shalt not be able to separate me from Jesus Christ, my Lord and my God. " The spirits of darkness redoubled their efforts, and uttered frightful cries. St. Antony remained unmoved, because he put all his confidence in God. After the example of this saint, my children, let us be always ready for the combat; let us put our confidence in God; let us fast and pray; and the devil will not be able to separate us from Jesus Christ, either in this world or the next.




Christian Quotes on Discipline, Laziness, & Works (both labor and love)

The more recollected a man is, and the more simple of heart he becomes, the easier he understands sublime things, for he receives the light of knowledge from above. The pure, simple, and steadfast spirit is not distracted by many labors, for he does them all for the honor of God. And since he enjoys interior peace he seeks no selfish end in anything. What, indeed, gives more trouble and affliction than uncontrolled desires of the heart?
--from Imitation of Christ, 1.3

Idleness is the enemy of the soul, and therefore the brethren ought to be employed in manual labor at certain times, at others, in devout readings.
--Saint Benedict


"Many people mistake our work for our vocation. Our vocation is the love of Jesus."
- Mother Teresa

"We are unprofitable servants, we have done what we were obliged to do."
- Luke 17:10


"If you don't have time to do it right, when will you have time to do it over?."
--John Wooden


No matter what your work is, do it for Jesus
"Each one of them is Jesus in disguise."
- Mother Teresa

Let God work through you
"I am a little pencil in the hand of a writing God who is sending a love letter to the world."
- Mother Teresa

So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
1 Corinthians 10:31

Accustom yourself continually to make many acts of love, for they enkindle and melt the soul.
--Saint Teresa

Do you think it is only a little thing to possess a house from which lovely things can be seen?
--Saint Teresa

Christian Quotes on Contemplation


"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

"Seek by reading and you will find by meditating. Knock by praying, and it will be opened to you in contemplation."
- St. John of the Cross

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Christian Quotes on Suffering with Patience / Longanimity



In addition to these quotes below, also see these links on the subject:
Suffering roots out wrongful pride
Christian Quotes on Faith & Reason & Suffering
Inspiring message from Pope Benedict XVI
Inspiring message from Saint Faustina Kowalska on Suffering with Patience leads to strength

The sufferings of this life cannot be compared to the glory that will be revealed in us in the life to come, alleluia.
--Romans 8:18

 
"Many of us spend our whole lives running from feeling with the mistaken belief that you cannot bear the pain. But you have already borne the pain. What you have not done is feel all you are beyond the pain." - St. Bartholomew


"For one pain endured with joy, we shall love the good God more forever."
- St. Therese of Lisieux

“There is no ideal situation. You can’t get rid of your cross.”
--Mother Angelica

'The mercy of God is hidden in sufferings not of our choice; and if we accept such sufferings patiently, they bring us to repentance and deliver us from everlasting punishment.'
--St. Mark the Ascetic

True works of God always meet opposition and are marked by suffering. (Diary of St. Faustina # 270)

"There is no evil to be faced that Christ does not face with us. There is no enemy that Christ has not already conquered. There is no cross to bear that Christ has not already borne for us, and does not now bear with us."
- Pope John Paul II

Say not, "Why were the former days better than these?" For it is not from wisdom that you ask this.
--Ecclesiastes 7:10

"Apart from the cross, there is no other ladder by which we may get to heaven."
- St. Rosa de Lima

"Acceptance is not submission; it is acknowledgement of the facts of a situation. Then deciding what you're going to do about it."
--Kathleen Casey Theisen

"Adaptability: A wise man adapts himself to circumstances as water shapes itself to the vessel that contains it."
--unknown

"The comedy of man survives the tragedy of man."
- G.K. Chesterton

Ask God for love of crosses in your life

    "How beautiful it is to offer ourselves every morning in sacrifice to the good God, and to accept everything in expiation of our sins! We must ask for the love of crosses; then they become sweet.
     I tried it for four or five years. I was well calumniated, well contradicted, well knocked about. Oh, I had crosses indeed! I had almost more than I could carry! Then I took to asking for love of crosses, and I was happy. I said to myself, truly there is no happiness but in this! We must never think from whence crosses come: they come from God. It is always God who gives us this way of proving our love to Him."--Saint Jean Vianney


''If we suffer, we shall also reign with Him' (II Tim. 2.12). And yet many even today recoil from these words and go away, saying by their action if not with their lips, 'This is a hard saying; who can hear it?' (John 6.60). 'A generation that set not their heart aright, and whose spirit cleaveth not steadfastly unto God' (Ps. 78.8), but chooseth rather to trust in uncertain riches, it is disturbed at the very name of the Cross, and counts the memory of the Passion intolerable. How can such sustain the burden of that fearful sentence, 'Depart from Me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels'? 'On whomsoever that stone shall fall it will grind him to powder' (Luke 20.18); but 'the generation of the faithful shall be blessed' (Ps. 112.2), since, like the apostle, they labor that whether present or absent they may be accepted of the Lord (II Cor. 5.9). At the last day they too shall hear the Judge pronounce their award, 'Come, ye blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world' (Matt. 25.34).

In that day those who set not their hearts aright will feel, too late, how easy is Christ's yoke, to which they would not bend their necks and how light His burden, in comparison with the pains they must then endure.'
--St. Bernard of Clairvaux

"Some people feel guilty about their anxieties and regard them as a defect of faith but they are afflictions, not sins. Like all afflictions, they are, if we can so take them, our share in the passion of Christ."
- C.S. Lewis

'When the afflictions of this life overcome us, let us encourage ourselves to bear them patiently by the hope of heaven.'
--St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

“One cannot desire freedom from the Cross when one is especially chosen for the cross.”
--Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein), who suffered the Nazi holocaust

“Apart from the cross, there is no other ladder by which we may get to heaven.”
--Saint Rose of Lima

“Let us fear more to be deprived of sufferings than a miser fears to lose his treasures.”
--Saint Paul of the Cross

“Only those who have gone through the tunnel can know how dark the darkness can be.”
--Saint Therese of Liseux

'The first time that I had these recollections with a vision, it seemed to me that I saw, on a sudden, Our Lord with a heavy cross on His shoulders, when He invited me to take a part in that precious treasure. This invitation was given by communication rather than by words. At that instant I felt a strong desire of sufferings, and it seemed that the Lord planted the cross in my heart, giving me to understand the value of suffering. This understanding I received in the following manner. It appeared as if all sorts of torments were represented to me, and, at the same moment, I saw them transformed into jewels and precious stones, all of which were made in the figure of the cross. During this time, I was given to know that God wished pure suffering in me; and then the vision disappeared. When I came to myself, I felt a violent pain in my head, which has never since left me, and so eager was my desire of suffering, that I would willingly have faced every torment that can be conceived. From that moment I have ever had in my mouth these words, "The cross and sufferings are jewels and joys.."'

St. Veronica Guiliani


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

“They are happy who, putting all their trust in the cross, have plunged into the water of life.”
--A second century Christian, from Liturgy of the Hours (The Divine Office)

“There is no ideal situation. You can’t get rid of your crosses.”
--Mother Angelica (EWTN)

“Where there is sorrow, there is holy ground.”
--Oscar Wilde

“God’s way of dealing with those whom He intends to admit soonest after this life into the possession of His everlasting glory is to purify them in this world by the greatest afflictions and trials.”
--Saint Ignatius of Loyola

“By day and night My gaze is fixed upon him and I permit these adversities in order to increase his merit. I do not reward for good results but for the patience and hardship undergone for My sake.”
--Said by Jesus to St. Faustina on the sufferings of a priest for God’s work to be carried out.

“There are more tears shed over answered prayers than over unanswered prayers.”
--Saint Teresa of Avila

“...it is one’s response to suffering that brings either freedom or bondage.”
--Neal Lozano

“The saints suffered everything with joy, patience, and perseverance because they loved. As for us, we suffer with anger, vexation, and weariness because we do not love. If we loved God, we should love our crosses, we should wish for them, we should take pleasure in them...We should be happy to be able to suffer for the love of Him who lovingly suffered for us.”
--Saint Jean Marie Baptiste de Vianney, the Cure of Ars

“We must sacrifice ourselves to God, each day, and in everything we do, accepting all that happens to us for the sake of the Word, imitating His passion by our sufferings, and honoring His blood by shedding our own. We must be ready to be crucified.”
--Saint Gregory Nazianen

And Christ, through His own salvific suffering, is very much present in every human suffering, and can act from within that suffering by the powers of His Spirit of truth, His consoling spirit." - Pope John Paul II
"Each man, in his suffering, can also become a sharer in the redemptive suffering of Christ."
-Pope John Paul II

"The real problem is not why some pious, humble, believing people suffer, but why some do not."
--C.S. Lewis

"The distinctive mark of the Christian, today more than ever, must be love for the poor, the weak, the suffering."
--Pope John Paul II

"Jesus Christ has taken the lead on the way of the cross. He has suffered first. He does not drive us toward suffering but shares it with us, wanting us to have life and to have it in abundance."
--Pope John Paul II

'Who could ever understand fully that eternal weight of glory which a single moment spent in cheerfully carrying a cross obtains for us? Who could understand the glory gained in Heaven by a year, and sometimes a whole lifetime, of crosses and suffering.'
--St. Louis Marie de Montfort

"Comfort in tribulation can be secured only on the sure ground of faith holding as true the words of Scripture and the teaching of the Catholic Church."
- St. Thomas More

"He was strong as He was gentle. He reproved, threatened, chastised, knowing and teaching us that fear is the beginning of wisdom and that it is sometimes proper for a man to cut off an offending limb to save his body. Finally, He did not announce for future society the reign of an ideal happiness from which suffering would be banished; but, by His lesson and by His example, He traced the path of happiness in heaven: the royal way of the Cross."
--Pope St. Pius X

'To suffer is not enough: the evil one and the world have their martyrs. We must suffer and carry our cross in the footsteps of Christ.'
--St. Louis Marie de Montfort


St. Louis de Montfort on Friend of the Cross/Suffering

To the right, the little flock that follows Jesus can speak only of tears, penance, prayer and contempt for worldly things. Sobbing in their grief, they can be heard repeating: "Let us suffer, let us weep, let us fast, let us pray, let us hide, let us humble ourselves, let us be poor, let us mortify ourselves, for he who has not the spirit of Christ, the spirit of the Cross, is none of Christ's. Those who are Christ's have crucified their flesh with its concupiscence. We must be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ or else be damned!" "Be brave, " they keep saying to each other, "be brave, for if God is for us, in us and leading us, who dare be against us? The One Who is dwelling within us is stronger than the one who is in the world; no servant is above his master; one moment of light tribulation worketh an eternal weight of glory; there are fewer elect than man may think; only the brave and daring take heaven by storm; the crown is given only to those who strive lawfully according to the Gospel, not according to the fashion of the world. Let us put all our strength into the fight, and run very fast to reach the goal and win the crown." Friends of the Cross spur each other on with such divine words.


Monday, September 10, 2012

Christian Quotes on Authority

Listen to these converts to the Catholic faith speak of authority:
 "What's Your Authority" by Dr. Taylor Marshall
"What's Your Authority" by Steve Ray

Why the Catholic Church claims that Peter (Rock) was given the authority of Christ

Epistle from Ignatius to Ephesians:  "The more, therefore, you see the bishop silent, the more do you reverence him. For we ought to receive every one whom the Master of the house sends to be over His household,[11] as we would do Him that sent him. It is manifest, therefore, that we should look upon thhe bishop even as we would look upon the Lord Himself, standing, as he does, before the Lord. For "it behoves the man who looks carefully about him, and is active in his business, to stand before kings, and not to stand before slothful men."


Excerpt from Imitation of Christ

1.9 Obedience / Subjection
The Ninth Chapter
Obedience and Subjection
IT IS a very great thing to obey, to live under a superior and not to be one's own master, for it is much safer to be subject than it is to command. Many live in obedience more from necessity than from love. Such become discontented and dejected on the slightest pretext; they will never gain peace of mind unless they subject themselves wholeheartedly for the love of God.
Go where you may, you will find no rest except in humble obedience to the rule of authority. Dreams of happiness expected from change and different places have deceived many.
Everyone, it is true, wishes to do as he pleases and is attracted to those who agree with him. But if God be among us, we must at times give up our opinions for the blessings of peace.
Furthermore, who is so wise that he can have full knowledge of everything? Do not trust too much in your own opinions, but be willing to listen to those of others. If, though your own be good, you accept another's opinion for love of God, you will gain much more merit; for I have often heard that it is safer to listen to advice and take it than to give it. It may happen, too, that while one's own opinion may be good, refusal to agree with others when reason and occasion demand it, is a sign of pride and obstinacy.



A reflection by Matt Shurtliff:
Matthew 8:5-10

5 When he entered Capernaum, a centurion approached him and appealed to him,
6 saying, "Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, suffering dreadfully."
7 He said to him, "I will come and cure him."
8 The centurion said in reply, "Lord, I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof; only say the word and my servant will be healed.9 For I too am a person subject to authority, with soldiers subject to me. And I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes; and to another, 'Come here,' and he comes; and to my slave, 'Do this,' and he does it."
10 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, "Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith.
-----

"Jesus Christ is my personal Lord and Savior".

Lots of people say this. For the most part, people are "all in" on the idea of Jesus as Savior - how could you not be? He is the Lamb that takes away the sin of the world, and we all absolutely need that

But what about Jesus as Lord? When someone is Lord, they are a ruler. They have absolute, unqeustionable authority. That isn't a popular idea these days, and for us in America, it's a repulsive idea. Our country is based on the premise that we don't deal with those guys.

That wasn't the case for the centurion. He was a military man. He had people bound to his orders, and he was bound to the orders of his superiors. Completely bound, without question.

As a man who served under authority, he recognized authority when he saw it. He didn't need proof. He didn't need a demonstration. He didn't need Christ to come with him. He was absolutely, 100% sure that if Christ said the servant was healed, that he would be healed. No questions asked.

I think it's worthwhile for all Christians to take a long, hard look and determine whether or not Christ is Lord in their life. Do you believe Christ is authoritative in what He says? If so, do you submit to His authority, really and truly?
--
Matt Shurtliff
St. Patrick's Parish, Gretna NE
email: shurtliff.matt@gmail.com
Daily Message Archive: http://matt-lifeinthespirit.blogspot.com/
'See ye that I alone am, and there is no other God beside Me: I will kill and I will make to live: I will strike and I will heal, and there is none that can deliver out of My Hand.'
--Deuteronomy 32:39



Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Prayer to Take Authority (Binding Prayer)

In the name of Jesus, I take authority and I bind all powers and forces in the air, in the ground, in the water, in the underground, in the netherworld, in nature, and in fire.  You are the Lord over the entire universe, and I give You the Glory of Your creation.  In Your Name, Jesus, I bind all demonic forces that have come against us and our families and I seal all of us in the protection of Your Precious Blood that was shed for us on the Cross.  Mary, our Mother, we seek your protection and intercession with the Sacred Heart of Jesus for us and our families, and surround us with your mantle of love to discourage the enemy.  St. Michael and our guardian angels, come defend us and our families in battle against the evil ones that roam the earth.

In the name of Jesus, I bind and command all the powers and forces of evil to depart right now away from us, our homes, and our lands, and I send you to the foot of the Cross.  And we thank you, Lord Jesus, for You are a faithful and compassionate God.  Amen.  (Hail Mary...)

Thursday, August 23, 2012

Cardinal Dolan Will Give Benediction at Republican National Convention « CBS St. Louis

http://stlouis.cbslocal.com/2012/08/23/cardinal-dolan-will-give-benediction-at-republican-national-convention/

Cardinal Dolan has not and will not make an endorsement of the republican candidate, Mitt Romney, but the republicans have endorsed Cardinal Dolan by inviting the always smiling Cardinal to the republican national convention.

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Suffering roots out wrongful pride, from "Imitation of Christ"

How does God use suffering and adversity to do good?  He allows it to purify our souls, aiding us in our understanding of Who created us and to Whom we shall turn for all we need.  He is not selfish in wanting us to depend on Him.   He is a loving Father, who wants us to know Him, who is Love.  Resisting Him is no different from our children resisting us and the good we offer.  Sometimes, we have to allow our children to suffer in order for them to know what is best.  

Imitationof Christ
1.12 Why Adversity
The Twelfth Chapter
The Value of Adversity

It is good for us to have trials and troubles at times, for they often remind us that we are on probation and ought not to hope in any worldly thing. It is good for us sometimes to suffer contradiction, to be misjudged by men even though we do well and mean well. These things help us to be humble and shield us from vainglory. When to all outward appearances men give us no credit, when they do not think well of us, then we are more inclined to seek God Who sees our hearts. Therefore, a man ought to root himself so firmly in God that he will not need the consolations of men.

When a man of good will is afflicted, tempted, and tormented by evil thoughts, he realizes clearly that his greatest need is God, without Whom he can do no good. Saddened by his miseries and sufferings, he laments and prays. He wearies of living longer and wishes for death that he might be dissolved and be with Christ. Then he understands fully that perfect security and complete peace cannot be found on earth.

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Religious Liberty Talk at St. Cletus Church in St. Charles, MO. Bishop Hermann & William Federer to speak

Religious liberty talk

Bishop Robert J. Hermann and nationally known speaker and author William Federer will be the featured speakers at a presentation, "Religious Freedom Under Attack." Bishop Hermann will speak on "Christ and Courage: Is Obamacare for everyone?" and Federer will speak on "How the Catholic Church Invented Modern Healthcare."

WHEN: 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Saturday, June 16

WHERE: St. Cletus Parish, 2721 Zumbehl Road in St. Charles

SPONSOR: Body of Christ Outreach

CONTACT: Joe and Chris Wooldridge at (636) 922-4761

To see a calendar of other events in the archdiocese, visit archstl.org/liberty.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Pope Benedict XVI on prayer, the Word of God, and their importance in spiritual growth


Dear Brothers and Sisters,

In our catechesis on Christian prayer, we now consider the decision of the early Church to set aside seven men to provide for the practical demands of charity (cf. Acts 6:1-4). This decision, made after prayer and discernment, provided for the needs of the poor while freeing the Apostles to devote themselves primarily to the word of God. It is significant that the Apostles acknowledge the importance of both prayer and works of charity, yet clearly give priority to prayer and the proclamation of the Gospel. In every age the saints have stressed the deep vital unity between contemplation and activity. Prayer, nourished by faith and enlightened by God's word, enables us to see things in a new way and to respond to new situations with the wisdom and insight bestowed by the Holy Spirit. In our own daily lives and decisions, may we always draw fresh spiritual breath from the two lungs of prayer and the word of God; in this way, we will respond to every challenge and situation with wisdom, understanding and fidelity to God's will.

Pope Benedict XVI, April 25, 2012



Saturday, April 21, 2012

Fr. Michael Dwyer to speak of near death experience at St. Clement of Rome Parish in St. Louis, MO on April 24, 2012


For a brief summary of Fr. Michael Dwyer's message, click here

Christian Quotes on Sex and Purity


"The free exchange of consent properly witnessed by the Church establishes the marriage bond. Sexual union consummates it – seals it, completes it, perfects it. Sexual union, then, is where the words of the wedding vows become flesh." 
- Christopher West


"Complete abstinence is easier than perfect moderation." 
- St. Augustine


Imitation of Christ
1.6 Unbridled Affections
WHEN a man desires a thing too much, he at once becomes ill at ease. A proud and avaricious man never rests, whereas he who is poor and humble of heart lives in a world of peace. An unmortified man is quickly tempted and overcome in small, trifling evils; his spirit is weak, in a measure carnal and inclined to sensual things; he can hardly abstain from earthly desires. Hence it makes him sad to forego them; he is quick to anger if reproved. Yet if he satisfies his desires, remorse of conscience overwhelms him because he followed his passions and they did not lead to the peace he sought.
True peace of heart, then, is found in resisting passions, not in satisfying them. There is no peace in the carnal man, in the man given to vain attractions, but there is peace in the fervent and spiritual man.


'In temptations of the flesh, a Christian ought to have immediate recourse to God, make the sign of the cross over his heart three times, and say, "Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me."'
St. Philip Neri

'How beautiful is a pure soul! Our Lord showed one to St. Catherine; she thought it so beautiful that she said, "O Lord, if I did not know that there is only one God, I should think it was one." The image of God is reflected in a pure soul, like the sun in the water. A pure soul is the admiration of the Three Persons of the Holy Trinity. The Father contemplates His work: There is My creature! . . . The Son, the price of His Blood: the beauty of an object is shown by the price it has cost. . . The Holy Spirit dwells in it, as in a temple.'
--St. Jean Marie Baptiste Vianney, the Cure of Ars

'St. Peter Damian says that the altar of God receives no other fire than that of divine love. Hence he that dares to ascend the altar inflamed by the fire of impurity is consumed by the fire of divine vengeance.'
St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

Only the chaste man and the chaste woman are capable of true love." 
- Pope John Paul II

"The Church's basic moral principle regarding reproductive technologies is this: if a given technology assists the marital embrace in achieving its natural end, it can be morally acceptable, even praiseworthy. However, if it replaces the marital embrace as the means by which the child is conceived, it's not in keeping with God's design." 
- Christopher West

'In the choice of a state of life, if we wish to secure our eternal salvation, we must embrace that state to which God calls us, in which only God prepares for us the efficacious means necessary to salvation.'
--St. Alphonsus Maria de 

'The spiritual masters point out many remedies for the vice of impurity; but the principal and the most necessary are the flight of occasions, and prayer. As to the first means, St. Philip Neri used to say that in this warfare cowards, that is, they that avoid dangerous occasions, gain the victory. Let a man use all other possible means, unless he flies away he is lost. He that loveth danger shall perish in it.

As to the second means, it is necessary to know that we have not strength to resist temptations of the flesh. This strength must be the gift of God. But God grants it to those only that pray and ask for it. The only defence against this temptation, says St. Gregory of Nyssa, is prayer.'
--St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

'If you have loved virginity, you will be favored by the Lord in all things.'
--St. Ephrem of Syria

"Marriage is a living sign that truly communicates the love of Christ and the Church." 
- Christopher West

'Possess purity in an eminent degree, and jealously preserve this fragrant flower. I earnestly desire to see you shine by the brilliancy of this virtue; be like to angels, and omit no precaution to retain this treasure, which is so easily lost by imprudence. We have this treasure in earthen vessels, says the Apostle. (2 Cor. x. 5.)'
--St. Paul of the Cross


How to Conquer Temptations:
1. Think of the presence of God.
2.  Fight without fear.
3.  Avoid occasions of sin.  (Don't go to places that make it easy to sin).
4.  Guard the senses.
5.  Avoid idleness.
6.  Remove temptation promptly.
7.  Remove oneself from all--especially particular friendships
8.  Practice the spirit of mortification
9.  Reveal all temptations to your confessor.

How to preserve virtue:
1.  Humility
2.  Spirit of Prayer
3.  Modesty
4. Fidelity to the Rule
5.  Sincere devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary

Christian Quotes on Presumption

""Presumptuous devotees are sinners who give full rein to their passions or their love of the world, and who, under the fair name of Christian and servant of our Lady, conceal pride, avarice, lust, drunkenness, anger, swearing, slandering, injustice and other vices. They sleep peacefully in their wicked habits, without making any great effort to correct them, believing that their devotion to our Lady gives them this sort of liberty. They convince themselves that God will forgive them, that they will not die without confession, that they will not be lost for all eternity"
--Saint Louis de Montfort

"What will you do then, my child? Look well whence the trial comes, for we are often ourselves the cause of our own dryness and barrenness. A mother refuses sugar to her sickly child, and so God deprives us of consolations when they do but feed self-complacency or presumption. "It is good for me that I have been in trouble, for before I was troubled I went wrong." So if we neglect to gather up and use the treasures of God's Love in due time, He withdraws them as a punishment of our sloth. The Israelite who neglected to gather his store of manna in the early morning, found none after sunrise, for it was all melted. Sometimes, too, we are like the Bride of the Canticles, slumbering on a bed of sensual satisfaction and perishable delight, so that when the Bridegroom knocks at the door of our heart, and calls us to our spiritual duties, we dally with Him, loath to quit otir idle and delusive pleasures, and then He "withdraws Himself, and is gone," and "when I sought Him, I could not find Him; I called Him, but He gave me no answer." Of a truth we deserved as much for having been so disloyal as to have rejected Him for the things of this world. If we are content with the fleshpots of Egypt we shall never receive heavenly manna. Bees abhor all artificial scents, and the sweetness of the Holy Spirit is incompatible with the world's artificial pleasures."
--Introduction to the Devout Life

Christian Quotes on Prayer

"He who labors as he prays lifts his heart to God with his hands." 
- St. Benedict of Nursia

"Lack of prayer is the cause of lack of time." 
- Peter Kreeft

In the knowledge of God thou shalt find the fire of divine charity. Where shalt thou rejoice? Upon the Cross, with the Spotless Lamb, seeking His honour and the salvation of souls, through continual, humble prayer.
--Saint Catherine of Sienna

See if this grace of prayer, with which the Most High favors you, produces in you a better knowledge of your utter insufficiency.
--Saint Paul of the Cross

"We must pray without tiring, for the salvation of mankind does not depend on material success; nor on sciences that cloud the intellect. Neither does it depend on arms and human industries, but on Jesus alone." 
- St. Frances Cabrini

"No one, however weak, is denied a share in the victory of the cross. No one is beyond the help of the prayer of Christ." 
- St. Leo the Great

"Prayer is like a great love. When you start dating the silence can be awkward, but as you grow to know each other you can sit in silence for hours and just being with each other is a great comfort." 
- Matthew Kelly, The Rhythm of Life

"To make the sign of the cross is to pronounce a visible and public yes to him who died for us and who is risen, to the God who in the humility and weakness of his love is omnipotent, stronger than all the power and intelligence of the world.\" 
- Pope Benedict XVI

'But let our speech and petition when we pray be under discipline, observing quietness and modesty. Let us consider that we are standing in God's sight. We must please the divine eyes both with the habit of body and with the measure of voice.'
--St. Cyprian of Carthage

For prayer is nothing else than being on terms of friendship with God. 
--Saint Teresa 

More tears are shed over answered prayers than unanswered ones. 
--Saint Teresa 

Christian Quotes on Obedience

I know the power obedience has of making things easy which seem impossible. 
--Saint Teresa 

"Whatever you do, think not of yourself, but of God." 
- St. Vincent Ferrer

'We are preparing ourselves for the time, which will come very soon, when we shall find ourselves at the end of our journey and shall be drinking of living water from the fountain I have described. Unless we make a total surrender of our will to the Lord, and put ourselves in His hands so that He may do in all things what is best for us in accordance with His will, He will never allow us to drink of it.'
--St. Teresa of Jesus

'We have learnt to recognize as freedom that which the Lord alone confers on us when he liberates us from lusts and desires and the other passions. "He who says, I know the Lord, and does not keep his commandments, is a liar and the truth is not in him," says John.'
--St. Clement of Alexandria

Woe to the rebellious children,
says the Lord,
Who carry out plans that are not mine,
who weave webs that are not inspired by me,
adding sin upon sin.
--Isaiah 31

"We should always be disposed to believe that that which appears white is really black, if the hierarchy of the Church so decides." 
- St. Ignatius of Loyola
This level of obedience flows from absolute trust in the Apostolic authority of the Catholic Church and a very humble heart and mind.  He knows his own mind and senses are less likely to have the truth than the Church.  Haven't we all at some point thought we were absolutely certain about something, only to find that we were mistaken in the end?  It takes humility and trust to have obedience.
Here is an example of a another viewpoint:
"If all Church power vests in the clergy, then the people are practically bound to passive obedience in all matters of faith and practice; for all right of private judgment is then denied."
--Charles Hodge, Presbyterian Theologian, Princeton
Although the whole man partakes of this grace, it is first and most appropriately in the soul and later progresses to the body, inasmuch as the body of the man is capable of the same obedience to the will of God as the soul.
--William Ames, Puritan


Christian Quotes on Peace

"Since you cannot do good to all, you are to pay special attention to those who, by the accidents of time, or place, or circumstances, are brought into closer connection with you." 
- St. Augustine

"Peace begins with a smile." 
- Mother Teresa

"Do everything calmly and peacefully. Do as much as you can as well as you can. Strive to see God in all things without exception, and consent to His will joyously. Do everything for God, uniting yourself to him in word and deed. Walk very simply with the Cross of the Lord and be at peace with yourself." 
- St Francis de Sales

"The woman is at the heart of the home. Let us pray that we women realize the reason for our existence: to love and be loved and through this love become instruments of peace in the world." 
- Mother Teresa

"While you are proclaiming peace with your lips, be careful to have it even more fully in your heart." 
- St. Francis of Assisi

"Maintain a spirit of peace and you will save a thousand souls." 
- St. Seraphim of Sarov

"Peace is not just the absence of war. Like a cathedral, peace must be constructed patiently and with unshakable faith." 
- Pope John Paul II

"Do not lose your inner peace for anything whatsoever, not even if your whole world seems upset. If you find that you have wandered away from the shelter of God, lead your heart back to Him quietly and simply." 
- St. Francis de Sales

"Peace is defined as harmony among those who are divided. When, therefore, we end the civil war within our nature and cultivate peace within ourselves, we become at peace." 
- St. Gregory of Nyssa

"Peace is not just the absence of war. Like a cathedral, peace must be constructed patiently and with unshakable faith." 
- Pope John Paul II

"As soon as you willfully allow a dialogue with temptation to begin, the soul is robbed of peace, just as consent to impurity destroys grace." 
- St. Josemaria Escriva


Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Quotes on Socialism and Equality


"Democracy and socialism have nothing in common but one word, equality. But notice the difference: while democracy seeks equality in liberty, socialism seeks equality in restraint and servitude."
--Alexis de Tocqueville

"Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery."
--Winston Churchill

"If you have been voting for politicians who promise to give you goodies at someone else's expense, then you have no right to complain when they take your money and give it to someone else, including themselves."

--Thomas Sowell


What the popes say about socialism



Christian Quotes on Joy

"The fullness of joy is to behold God in everything." 
- St. Catherine of Genoa

Man cannot live without joy; therefore when he is deprived of true spiritual joys it is necessary that he become addicted to carnal pleasures.
--Saint Thomas Aquinas

"Take nothing seriously, except for God; and even then remember, He has a sense of humor too." 
- Deacon Kevin McGoldrick

"Keep the joy of loving God in your heart and share this joy with all you meet especially your family. Be holy - let us pray." 
- Mother Teresa

"There is one and only one possible road to joy: selfless love." 
- Peter Kreeft


Christian Quotes on Integrity


"Men do not differ much about what things they will call evils; they differ enormously about what evils they will call excusable." 
--G.K. Chesterton

"An excuse is worse and more terrible than a lie, for an excuse is a lie guarded." 
- Pope John Paul II

"Any goal without salvation as its ultimate end is as pointless as trying to live forever on this earth." 
--Tarek Saab, Gut Check
"In the fulfillment of your duties, let your intentions be so pure that you reject from your actions any other motive than the glory of God and the salvation of souls." 
--St. Angela Merici

"Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person." 
--Mother Teresa

"The tree that is beside the running water is fresher and gains more fruit."--Saint Teresa of Avila

"Sow a thought, reap an act. Sow an act, reap a habit. Sow a habit, reap a character. Sow a character, reap a destiny."
--Peter Kreeft, Prayer for Beginners

"The soul will not attain sanctity if it does not keep watch over its tongue."
--Saint Faustina Kowalska

"Things turn out best for those who make the best of the way things turn out."
--Jack Buck, sports announcer

"...teaching is food, even for the teacher."
--Saint Gregory Nazianzen, Bishop

"Charity begins today. Today somebody is suffering, today somebody is in the street, today somebody is hungry. Our work is for today, yesterday has gone, tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today to make Jesus known, loved, served, fed, clothed, sheltered. Do not wait for tomorrow. Tomorrow we will not have them if we do not feed them today."
--Mother Teresa

"The devil is afraid of us when we pray and make sacrifices. He is also afraid when we are humble and good. He is especially afraid when we love Jesus very much. He runs away when we make the Sign of the Cross."
--St. Anthony of the Desert

Before reading these next two quotes, it is important to note that charity, in these quotes' original languages, means Love and is the same love that the gospel writer John uses to say about God when he says, "God is love." In English, we use love in many connotations but the ancients had different words for different types of love. Charity for us now seems to mean generosity but that is not its true full meaning. Generosity is a result of charity.

"Faith and charity are the beginning and end of life. The beginning is faith; the end is charity. Both, joined in unity, lead to God, and all the rest that attains perfection and holiness follows from them." --Saint Ignatius of Antioch

"For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your: Faith with virtue, virtue with knowledge, Knowledge with self-control [temperance], self-control with steadfastness [endurance with patience], steadfastness with godliness [devotion/piety], and godliness with brotherly affection [fraternal love/mutual affection], and brotherly affection with charity."
--2 Peter, 1:5-8

"Wrong is wrong, even if everybody is doing it, and right is right, even if nobody is doing it."
--SaintAugustine

"The times are past when they closed our mouths with sausage."
--A Polish poet, a few months after the strike in August 1980, referring to their integrity not being for sale anymore.

"Managers that always promise to 'make the numbers' will at some point be tempted to make up the numbers." - Warren Buffett


Christian Quotes on Humility



'If any one thought to sweeten the vast waters of the sea with one drop of fresh water, would he not be justly regarded as a fool? So also the man who thinks or hopes to do any good without the help of God grievously deceives himself. If he claims any good as his own, God will not fail to humble and confound him; such a man could never become the Lord's instrument, nor accomplish great things for His glory.'
--St. Paul of the Cross

Imitation of Christ
1.7 False Hope & Pride
The Seventh Chapter
Avoiding False Hope and Pride

VAIN is the man who puts his trust in men, in created things.
Do not be ashamed to serve others for the love of Jesus Christ and to seem poor in this world. Do not be self-sufficient but place your trust in God. Do what lies in your power and God will aid your good will. Put no trust in your own learning nor in the cunning of any man, but rather in the grace of God Who helps the humble and humbles the proud.
If you have wealth, do not glory in it, nor in friends because they are powerful, but in God Who gives all things and Who desires above all to give Himself. Do not boast of personal stature or of physical beauty, qualities which are marred and destroyed by a little sickness. Do not take pride in your talent or ability, lest you displease God to Whom belongs all the natural gifts that you have.
Do not think yourself better than others lest, perhaps, you be accounted worse before God Who knows what is in man. Do not take pride in your good deeds, for God's judgments differ from those of men and what pleases them often displeases Him. If there is good in you, see more good in others, so that you may remain humble. It does no harm to esteem yourself less than anyone else, but it is very harmful to think yourself better than even one. The humble live in continuous peace, while in the hearts of the proud are envy and frequent anger.


"Will we fulfill God's purpose, or will we shrink back and live a comfortable, self-centered life?"
--Rick Warren

"We shall see clearly that is is greater to despise the world than to have it at one's command; that it is infinitely preferable to submit to the humblest of men for God's sake, than to command kings and princes; that a humble knowledge of ourselves surpasses the deepest sciences; in short, that greater praise is due to him who curbs his passions on the most trivial occasions, than to him who conquers the strongest cities and defeats entire armies." 
- Fr. Lorenzo Scupoli

"Without the necessary humility to worship, I subconsciously desired to be worshiped, not in a crazy Napoleanic manner, but like a modern-day celebrity." 
- Tarek Saab, Gut Check

"It is better to be the child of God than king of the whole world." 
- St. Aloysius Gonzaga

'They who when they have got a little devotion think they are some great one, are only fit to be laughed at.'
--St. Philip Neri

"We may think it humility not to realize that the Lord is bestowing gifts upon us. Let us understand very, very clearly, how this matter stands. God gives us these gifts for no merit of ours. Let us be grateful to His Majesty for them, for, unless we recognize that we are receiving them, we shall not be aroused to love Him. And it is a most certain thing that, if we remember all the time that we are poor, the richer we find ourselves, the greater will be the profit that comes to us and the more genuine our humility."--Saint Teresa of Avila

'Therefore God says to this proud man: If you seek, according to the nature of the created soul, for such great things as seem at present to be good and for that happiness which belongs to earth, know that they are not; they cannot satisfy nor afford contentment.  Seek rather in heaven, where pride is lawful, and where it is not placed in things empty and vain, but in those which are really great, which always remain and which cause a sinless pride; but if you seek after worthless things you shall never find them and shall lose those which you should have sought.'
--St. Catherine of Genoa

'I will make you appear so poor, so vile and so abject in your own eyes, and will so completely annihilate you in your own opinion, that I may be able to build up My own Self upon this nothingness.'
The Lord, to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque

"It often happens that I wake up at night and begin to think about a serious problem and decide I must tell the Pope about it. Then I wake up completely and remember that I am the Pope." 
- Pope John XXIII

"He who is the beginning and the end, the ruler of the angels, made Himself obedient to human creatures. The creator of the heavens obeys a carpenter; the God of eternal glory listens to a poor virgin. Has anyone ever witnessed anything comparable to this? Let the philosopher no longer disdain from listening to the common laborer; the wise, to the simple; the educated, to the illiterate; a child of a prince, to a peasant." 
- St. Anthony

"As in the rankest soil the most beautiful flowers are grown, so in the dark soil of poverty the choicest flowers of humanity have developed and bloomed."
--James Allen

"I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish tasks as though they were great and noble."
--Helen Keller

"If anything goes bad, I did it. If anything goes semi-good, we did it. If anything goes really good, then you did it. That's all it takes to get people to win football games for you."
--Paul Bryant

"Let us touch the dying, the poor, the lonely and the unwanted according to the graces we have received and let us not be ashamed or slow to do the humble work."
--Mother Theresa

"Because a thing seems difficult for you, do not think it impossible for anyone to accomplish."
–Marcus Aurelius

"...with God, all things are possible." 
--Matthew 19:26

"From self-knowledge flows the stream of humility, which never seizes on mere report, nor takes offense at anything, but bears every insult, every loss of consolation, and every sorry, from whatever direction they may come, patiently, with joy."
-Saint Catherine of Siena

"As waters from from the mountains down onto the valleys, so too do God's graces flow only onto humble souls."
–Saint Faustina Kowalska

"The way of a fool seems right in his own eyes, but he who listens to advice is wise."
-Proverbs 12:15

"The fool immediately shows his anger, but the shrewd man passes over an insult."
--Proverbs 12:16

"As the crucible tests silver and the furnace gold, so a man is tested by the praise he receives."
-Proverbs 27:21

"Humility is constant forgetfulness of one's achievements."
--Saint John Climacus

"Do you wish to rise? Begin by descending. You plan a tower that will pierce the clouds? Lay first the foundation of humility."
--Saint Augustine

"Humility is the virtue that requires the greatest amount of effort"
--St. Rose Philippine Duchesne

"I saw the snares that the enemy spreads out over the world and I said groaning, "What can get through from such snares?" Then I heard a voice saying to me, "Humility."
-Saint Anthony the Great

"For there is no obedience without humility, nor humility without charity."
--Saint Catherine of Siena

"Our body has this defect that the more it is provided care and comforts, the more needs and desires it finds."
–Saint Teresa of Avila

"Guard your speech from boasting and your thoughts from presumption; otherwise you may be abandoned by God and fall into sin. For man cannot do anything good without the help of God, who sees everything."
--Saint Mark the Ascetic

"How could I bear a crown of gold when the Lord bears a crown of thorns? And bears it for me!"
--Saint Elizabeth of Hungary

"Why not learn to enjoy the little things—there are so many of them."
--Saint John Chrysostom

"It is worse still to be ignorant of your ignorance."
--Saint Jerome

"Beauty, when unadorned, is adorned the most."
--Saint Jerome

"Better is a handful of quietness than two hands full of toil and a striving after wind."
--Ecclesiastes 4:6

"True humility scarcely ever utters words of humility."
--Saint Francis de Sales

"It was pride that changed angels into devils; it is humility that makes men as angels."
--Saint Augustine

"We shall see clearly that it is greater to despise the world than to have it at one's command; that it is infinitely preferable to submit to the humblest of men for God's sake than to command kings and princes; that a humble knowledge of ourselves surpasses the deepest sciences; in short, that greater praise is due to him who curbs his passions on the most trivial occasions, than to him who conquers the strongest cities and defeats entire armies."
--Fr. Lorenzo Scupoli

"Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty, my memory, my understanding, my whole will, all I have and all I possess. You gave it all to me; to you, Lord, I return it. It is all yours: do with me entirely as you will. Give me your love and your grace: this is enough for me." 
- St. Ignatius of Loyola


"Let us not be afraid to be humble, small, helpless to prove our love for God. The cup of water you give the sick, the way you lift a dying man, the way you feed a baby, the way you teach a dull child, the way you give medicine to a sufferer of leprosy, the joy with which you smile at your own at home - all this is God's love in the world today." 
-- Mother Teresa


"Let us touch the dying, the poor, the lonely and the unwanted according to the graces we have received and let us not be ashamed or slow to do the humble work." 

-- Mother Teresa