And I saw a river over which every soul must pass to reach the Kingdom of Heaven, and the name of that river was suffering…and then I saw a boat which carried souls across the river, and the name of the boat was Love. -St. John of the Cross
I wish…I could help you find consolation near the Cross. In its shadow, every kind of bitterness fades. No one has suffered like Jesus has and, from His cross, He teaches us to bear with every pain in silence and in resignation. From the cross and with open arms He…
Good works wrought in the season of spiritual dryness and hardness are like the freshness of the winter morning. What we then do for God in dryness of spirit is most precious in His eyes. It is then that we acquire abundant virtues and graces, and what we achieve with…
Courage, my sister, the yoke of a Carmelite is necessarily very light or very heavy in proportion as one’s courage bears it or one’s cowardice drags it. – Teresa of St. Augustine, OCD
Death can hold no bitterness for the soul that loves. It brings with it all the sweetness and delights of love. There is no sadness in the remembrance of it when it opens the door to all joy. -St. John of the Cross
The soul must forget about understanding, and abandon itself into the arms of love, and His Majesty will teach it what to do next… – St. Teresa of Avila
And take care about this: however sublime the contemplation, let your prayer always begin and end with self-knowledge. – St. Teresa of Avila
Our knowledge is piecemeal. When our will and action build on it alone, they cannot achieve a perfect structure. Nor can that knowledge, because it does not have complete power over the self and often collapses before reaching the goal. And so this inner shaping power that is in bondage…
Living on Love, when Jesus is sleeping, Is rest on stormy seas. Oh! Lord, don’t fear that I’ll wake you. I’m waiting in peace for Heaven’s shore… Faith will soon tear its veil. My hope is to see you one day. Charity swells and pushes my sail: I love on…
To prove to Our Lord how much you love Him, learn to forget yourself always … and be very faithful to all your duties and all your resolutions. Live by will rather than by imagination. If you feel your weakness, God wants you to make use of it in order…