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(Photo©Michael Seagriff)
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St. Pius X
"When vice runs wild, when persecution hangs heavy, when error is so cunning that it threatens her destruction by snatching many children from her bosom (and plunges them into the whirlpool of sin and impiety) - then, more than ever, the Church is strengthened from above. Whether the wicked will it or not, God makes even error aid in the triumph of Truth whose guardian and defender is the Church. He puts corruption in the service of sanctity, whose mother and nurse is the Church. Out of persecution He brings a more wondrous 'freedom from our enemies.' For these reasons, when worldly men think they see the Church buffeted and almost capsized in the raging storm, then she really comes forth fairer, stronger, purer, and brighter with the luster of distinguished virtues."
(From Encyclical Editae Saepe)
(From Finding God's Will For You)
St. John Marie Vianney, (The Curé d'Ars)
St. Francis de Sales
“Yes, Lord, Your will be done, on
earth where we have no pleasure without admixture of pain, no roses without
thorns, no day without a night to follow, no spring without a winter that went
before; on earth, Lord, where consolations are rare and trials are countless.
Still, O God, Your will be done, not only in the fulfillment of Your
commandments, counsels and inspirations, which must be done by us, but also in
the suffering of afflictions and punishments, which must be accepted by us, to
the end that by us, for us, in us, and with us, Your will may do all that is
pleasing to it.”
(From Finding God's Will For You)
St. John Marie Vianney, (The Curé d'Ars)
“If we are suffering pain and
discomfort He will lighten our burden and comfort us. If we succumb to illness,
either He will provide a remedy or He will give us the strength to suffer it
for the sake of eternal life. If we find ourselves at war with the devil and
our passions, He will supply us with arms for the battle so that we can resist
and ultimately be victorious. If we are poor, He will enrich us with all kinds
of good things in this life and in etenity.”
(From Sermon on Maundy Thursday)
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St. Francis de Sales has such a way with words.
ReplyDeleteI can never get enough of him. God used His "Introduction to a Devout Life" to penetrate my hard heart. His wisdom always challenges me.
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