Harvesting The Fruits of Contemplation

Pondering Tidbits of Truth is my simple and inadequate way of providing nuggets of spiritual wisdom for you to chew on from time to time. Father Anthony J. Paone, S.J.   “My Child, if you desire to make progress along the way to Heaven, keep in your heart a holy fear of the Divine Justice. It is only reasonable that you should be afraid to hurt yourself. When you bring sin into your life, you are making yourself an object of My justice. I, the Eternal Truth, cannot accept you as good if you have become bad by sin. Therefore, keep your earthly desires under control and refuse to surrender yourself to unnecessary or dangerous pleasures. This holy fear of My justice will help you to stay free of the slavery of earthly attractions… If your love of Me is not yet strong enough to hold you back from doing wrong, then let your fear of hell keep you from sinning. A man who lacks this wise and holy fear will not go on doing good things for long. He will soon fall into Satan's snares a...

Pondering Tidbits of Truth is my simple and inadequate way of providing nuggets of spiritual wisdom for you to chew on from time to time. Rev. Father Raymond, O.C.S.O. “We need God.  Without Him we can do nothing. But God also needs us. He needs us to bear witness to the fact that He exists; that God became man; that God died; that God rose again; that men can become like God. God needs us to be animated Gospels and give the world the almost unbelievable ‘Good News’ that God is our Father, and we are heirs to all that almighty God possesses.” (From God. A Woman and the Way )     Father Jean-Pierre de Caussade, S.J. "The divine activity permeates the whole universe, it pervades every creature; wherever they are it is there; it goes before them, with them, and it follows them; all they have to do is to let the waves bear them on. Would to God that ... all men could know how very easy it would be for them to arrive at a high degree of sanctity. They would only h...

(Image Source: Wikimedia Commons ) “We have forgotten that there is eloquence in the silent simplicity of doing one’s ordinary duty. We have forgotten that there is power and terrific impact in example. A child of six was about to undergo a tonsillectomy. The surgeon, a fallen away Catholic, to ease all tension, playfully and paternally told the little girl that he was going to help her go to sleep for a while. Whereupon the child knelt on the operating table saying: 'If I’m going to sleep, I must first say my night prayers.’ In all simplicity and with the full charm of innocent childhood she folded her hands and said what you and I have said again and again in our youth. Now I lay me down to sleep; To God I give my soul to keep. And if I die before I wake, To God I give my soul to take. That night a fallen away Catholic came back to Christ.   We forget that silence speaks, that our mere presence gives testimony to the truth – or evidence of our untruth!”  (Rev. ...