Keep in mind what the apostle St. James says: If any man thinks himself to be religious and does not control his tongue, that man’s religion is useless.” (James 1:26) This is to be understood of inward as well as outward chatter. -St. John of the Cross
Since a double measure of bitterness must follow the doing of your own will, do not do it even though you remain in single bitterness. – St. John of the Cross
Lord, give us light; behold, the need is greater than with the man born blind, for he wanted to see the light and couldn’t. Now, Lord, there is no desire to see. Oh, how incurable an illness! Here, my God, is where Your power must be demonstrated; here, Your mercy.…
They are too attached to their honor. . . . These souls, for the most part, grieve over anything said against them. They do not embrace the cross but drag it along, and so it hurts and wearies them and breaks them to pieces. However, if the cross is loved,…
Perseverance through all misfortunes confers strength and courage on it (the soul). The painful purification from all sensible desires and pleasures leads it to freedom of spirit in which the twelve fruits of the Holy Spirit mature. – St. Teresa Benedicta (Edith Stein)
I love Him with His own love. It is a double current between He who is and she who is not! -St. Elizabeth of the Trinity
God communicates Himself to the soul in this interior union with a love so intense that the love of a mother who tenderly caresses her child, the love of a brother or the affection of a friend bears no resemblance to it. -St. John of the Cross
Yes, it is true, God can make you a contemplative — through His goodness and mercy; but, in my opinion, one should always take the lowest place, for this is what the Lord told us to do and taught us in deed. Prepare yourself so that God may lead you…
No one can make me frightened anymore, because I know what to believe about His mercy and His love; I know that, in the twinkling of an eye, all those thousands of sins would be consumed as a drop of water cast into a blazing fire. -St. Therese
My life is but an instant, an hour that passes by; a single day that slips my grasp and quickly slides away. O well you know, my dearest God, to love you I only have today. -St. Therese