Catholic Bible 101

 Catholicbible101 Quotes from the Saints 1

"Ignorance of scripture is ignorance of Christ."

"Not 100 in the United States hate the Roman Catholic Church, but millions hate what they mistakenly think the Roman Catholic Church is."

"Those who commit these types of scandals are guilty of the spiritual equivalent of murder. While those who give scandal are guilty of the spiritual equivalent of murder, those who take scandal- who allow scandals to destroy faith- are guilty of spiritual suicide."

“Make friends with the angels, who though invisible are always with you. Often invoke them, constantly praise them, and make good use of their help and assistance in all your temporal and spiritual affairs.”

“Have patience with all things, but chiefly have patience with yourself. Do not lose courage in considering your own imperfections, but instantly set about remedying them -- every day begin the task anew -”

“If the heart wanders or is distracted, bring it back to the point quite gently and replace it tenderly in its Master's presence. And even if you did nothing during the whole of your hour but bring your heart back and place it again in Our Lord's presence, though it went away every time you brought it back, your hour would be very well employed.”

“The test of a preacher is that his congregation goes away saying, not 'What a lovely sermon' but, 'I will do something!'”

“Marital intercourse is certainly holy, lawful and praiseworthy in itself and profitable to society, yet in certain circumstances it can prove dangerous, as when through excess the soul is made sick with venial sin, or through the violation and perversion of its primary end, killed by mortal sin; such perversion, detestable in proportion to its departure from the true order, being always mortal sin, for it is never lawful to exclude the primary end of marriage which is the procreation of children.”

“Never be in a hurry; do everything quietly and in a calm spirit. Do not lose your inner peace for anything whatsoever, even if your whole world seems upset.”

"The proof of love is in the works. Where love exists, it works great things. But when it ceases to act, it ceases to exist."

"Few souls understand what God would accomplish in them if they were to abandon themselves unreservedly to Him and if they were to allow His grace to mold them accordingly."

"It is better to say one Our Father fervently and devoutly than a thousand with no devotion and full of distraction."

"If there be a true way that leads to the Everlasting Kingdom, it is most certainly that of suffering, patiently endured."

"At the end of our life, we shall all be judged by charity."

"When shall it be that we shall taste the sweetness of the Divine Will in all that happens to us, considering in everything only His good pleasure, by whom it is certain that adversity is sent with as much love as prosperity, and as much for our good? When shall we cast ourselves undeservedly into the arms of our most loving Father in Heaven, leaving to Him the care of ourselves and of our affairs, and reserving only the desire of pleasing Him, and of serving Him well in all that we can?"

"He who walking on the sea could calm the bitter waves, who gives life to the dying seeds of the earth; he who was able to loose the mortal chains of death, and after three days' darkness could bring again to the upper world the brother for his sister Martha: he, I believe, will make Damasus rise again from the dust."

"Charity may be a very short word, but with its tremendous meaning of pure love, it sums up man's entire relation to God and to his neighbor."

"What will be the crown of those who, humble within and humiliated without, have imitated the humility of our Savior in all its fullness!"

"Celebrate the feast of Christmas every day, even every moment in the interior temple of your spirit, remaining like a baby in the bosom of the heavenly Father, where you will be reborn each moment in the Divine Word, Jesus Christ."

"It is better to be the child of God than king of the whole world."

"Nothing is far from God."

"To keep a lamp burning we have to keep putting oil in it."

"If we wish to keep peace with our neighbor, we should never remind anyone of his natural defects."

"Not the goods of the world, but God. Not riches, but God. Not honors, but God. Not distinction, but God. Not dignities, but God. Not advancement, but God. God always and in everything."

"Whatever you do, think not of yourself, but of God."

Christ said, "I am the Truth"; he did not say "I am the custom."

"Love consumes us only in the measure of our self-surrender."

"Charity unites us to God... There is nothing mean in charity, nothing arrogant. Charity knows no schism, does not rebel, does all things in concord. In charity all the elect of God have been made perfect."

"My daughter, I see more Pharisees among Christians than there were around Pilate."

"Let us therefore give ourselves to God with a great desire to begin to live thus, and beg Him to destroy in us the life of the world of sin, and to establish His life within us."

"Confession heals, confession justifies, confession grants pardon of sin. All hope consists in confession. In confession there is a chance for mercy. Believe it firmly. Do not doubt, do not hesitate, never despair of the mercy of God. Hope and have confidence in confession."

"To love God is something greater than to know Him."

"Prayer reveals to souls the vanity of earthly goods and pleasures. It fills them with light, strength and consolation; and gives them a foretaste of the calm bliss of our heavenly home."

"It is by the path of love, which is charity, that God draws near to man, and man to God. But where charity is not found, God cannot dwell. If, then, we possess charity, we possess God, for "God is Charity"."

"Who except God can give you peace? Has the world ever been able to satisfy the heart?"

"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."

"Nothing seems tiresome or painful when you are working for a Master who pays well; who rewards even a cup of cold water given for love of Him."

"When you feel the assaults of passion and anger, then is the time to be silent as Jesus was silent in the midst of His ignominies and sufferings."

"My confidence is placed in God who does not need our help for accomplishing his designs. Our single endeavor should be to give ourselves to the work and to be faithful to him, and not to spoil his work by our shortcomings."

"The saints have always been the source and origin of renewal in the most difficult moments in the Church's history."

"I greet you from Smyrna together with the Churches of God present here with me. They comfort me in every way, both in body and soul. My chains, which I carry about on me for Jesus Christ, begging that I may happily make my way to God, exhort you: persevere in your concord and in you community prayers."

"You must ask God to give you power to fight against the sin of pride which is your greatest enemy - the root of all that is evil, and the failure of all that is good. For God resists the proud."

"No earthly pleasures, no kingdoms of this world can benefit me in any way. I prefer death in Christ Jesus to power over the farthest limits of the earth. He who died in place of us is the one object of my quest. He who rose for our sakes is my one desire. Do not talk about Jesus Christ as long as you love this world."

"To be pleased at correction and reproofs shows that one loves the virtues which are contrary to those faults for which he is corrected and reproved. And, therefore, it is a great sign of advancement in perfection."

"Virtues are formed by prayer. Prayer preserves temperance. Prayer suppresses anger. Prayer prevents emotions of pride and envy. Prayer draws into the soul the Holy Spirit, and raises man to Heaven."

"You cannot please both God and the world at the same time, They are utterly opposed to each other in their thoughts, their desires, and their actions."

"It is not the actual physical exertion that counts toward a man's progress, nor the nature of the task, but the spirit of faith with which it is undertaken"

"Love God, serve God: everything is in that."

"Mary was raised to the dignity of Mother of God rather for sinners than for the just, since Jesus Christ declares that he came to call not the just, but sinners."

"Stop entertaining those vain fears. Remember it is not feeling which constitutes guilt but the consent to such feelings. Only the free will is capable of good or evil. But when the will sighs under the trial of the tempter and does not will what is presented to it, there is not only no fault but there is virtue."

"The Holy Rosary is the storehouse of countless blessings."

"The devil strains every nerve to secure the souls which belong to Christ. We should not grudge our toil in wresting them from Satan and giving them back to God."

"God gave Himself to you: give yourself to God."

"Those whose hearts are pure are temples of the Holy Spirit."

"When I am before the Blessed Sacrament I feel such a lively faith that I can't describe it. Christ in the Eucharist is almost tangible to me...When it is time for me to leave, I have to tear myself away from His sacred presence."

"The Blessed Eucharist is the perfect Sacrament of the Lord's Passion, since It contains Christ Himself and his Passion."

"Go forth in peace, for you have followed the good road. Go forth without fear, for he who created you has made you holy, has always protected you, and loves you as a mother. Blessed be you, my God, for having created me."

"He alone loves the Creator perfectly who manifests a pure love for his neighbor."

"We always find that those who walked closest to Christ were those who had to bear the greatest trials."

"We are at Jesus' disposal. If he wants you to be sick in bed, if he wants you to proclaim His work in the street, if he wants you to clean the toilets all day, that's all right, everything is all right. We must say, "I belong to you. You can do whatever you like." And this ..is our strength, and this is the joy of the Lord."

"All the wealth in the world cannot be compared with the happiness of living together happily united."

"If you want God to hear your prayers, hear the voice of the poor. If you wish God to anticipate your wants, provide those of the needy without waiting for them to ask you. Especially anticipate the needs of those who are ashamed to beg. To make them ask for alms is to make them buy it."

"Human progress planned as alternatives (to God's plan) introduce in justice, evil and violence rising against the divine plan of justice and salvation. And despite transitory and apparent successes, they are reduced to simple machinations destined to dissolution and failure."

"The faith of those who live their faith is a serene faith. What you long for will be given you; what you love will be yours for ever. Since it is by giving alms that everything is pure for you, you will also receive that blessing which is promised next by the Lord: the Godhead that no man has been able to see. In the inexpressible joy of this eternal vision, human nature will possess what eye has not seen or ear heard, what man's heart has never conceived"

"For me prayer is a surge of the heart, it is a simple look towards Heaven, it is a cry of recognition and of love, embracing both trial and joy."

O Priest! Take care lest what was said to Christ on the cross be said to you: "He saved others, himself he cannot save!"

"Fly from bad companions as from the bite of a poisonous snake. If you keep good companions, I can assure you that you will one day rejoice with the blessed in Heaven; whereas if you keep with those who are bad, you will become bad yourself, and you will be in danger of losing your soul."

"Good example is the most efficacious apostolate. You must be as lighted lanterns and shine like brilliant chandeliers among men. By your good example and your words, animate others to know and love God."

"Think well. Speak well. Do well. These three things, through the mercy of God, will make a man go to Heaven."

The great method of prayer is to have none. If in going to prayer one can form in oneself a pure capacity for receiving the spirit of God, that will suffice for all method.

"You will not see anyone who is really striving after his advancement who is not given to spiritual reading. And as to him who neglects it, the fact will soon be observed by his progress."

"We cultivate a very small field for Christ, but we love it, knowing that God does not require great achievements but a heart that holds back nothing for self."

"Hear Mass daily; it will prosper the whole day. All your duties will be performed the better for it, and your soul will be stronger to bear its daily cross. The Mass is the most holy act of religion; you can do nothing that can give greater glory to God or be more profitable for your soul than to hear Mass both frequently and devoutly. It is the favorite devotion of the saints."

"Pray with great confidence, with confidence based upon the goodness and infinite generosity of God and upon the promises of Jesus Christ. God is a spring of living water which flows unceasingly into the hearts of those who pray."

"O Sacrament of Love! O sign of Unity! O bond of Charity! He who would have Life finds here indeed a Life to live in and a Life to live by."

"It is because of faith that we exchange the present for the future."

"No man can attain to the knowledge of God but by humility. The way to mount high is to descend."

"And they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by the signs that attended it."

"If you would rise, shun luxury, for luxury lowers and degrades."

"Earthly riches are like the reed. Its roots are sunk in the swamp, and its exterior is fair to behold; but inside it is hollow. If a man leans on such a reed, it will snap off and pierce his soul."

"He loves, He hopes, He waits. If He came down on our altars on certain days only, some sinner, on being moved to repentance, might have to look for Him, and not finding Him, might have to wait. Our Lord prefers to wait Himself for the sinner for years rather than keep him waiting one instant."

"This my goodness does to endow the souls of the just more fully with spiritual riches when for my love they are stripped of material goods because they have renounced the world and all its pleasures and even their own will. These are the ones who fatten their souls, enlarging them in the abyss of my charity. Then I become their spiritual provider. The Holy Spirit becomes their servant."

"O Jesus, if I but considered attentively your immense solicitude for me, how greatly should I not excel in every virtue? Pardon me, O Jesus, so much carelessness, pardon such great ignorance. My God, Jesus my Love, Increated Goodness, what would have become of me if you had not drawn me to yourself? Open your heart to me, open to me your sacramental breast; I open mine to you."

"He who labors as he prays lifts his heart to God with his hands."

"If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives to all men generously and without reproaching, and it will be given him."

‎"When you look at the crucifix, you understand how much Jesus loved you then. When you look at the Sacred Host, you understand how much Jesus loves you now."
        -- Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta

"Few souls understand what God would effect in them if they should give themselves entirely into his hands and allow his grace to act."

        -- St. Ignatius of Loyola

"Things were in God’s plan which I had not planned at all. I am coming to the living faith and conviction that – from God’s point of view – there is no chance and that the whole of my life, down to every detail, has been mapped out in God’s divine providence and makes complete and perfect sense in God’s all-seeing eyes."

         --St. Edith Stein

"We shall steer safely through every storm so long as our heart is right, our intention fervent, our courage steadfast, and our trust fixed on God."

         -- St. Francis de Sales

"We always find that those who walked closest to Christ were those who had to bear the greatest trials."

        -- St. Teresa of Avila

"He is a sane man who can have tragedy in his heart and comedy in his head."

        -- GK Chesterton

Fallacies do not cease to be fallacies because they become fashions."

       -- GK Chesterton

"The modern mind will accept nothing on authority, but will accept anything on no authority. Say that the Bible or the Pope says so and it will be dismissed without further examination. But preface your remark with “I think I heard somewhere,” or, try but fail to remember the name of some professor who might have said “such-and-such,” and it will be immediately accepted as an unshakable fact. "

       -- GK Chesterton

"At least five times with the Arian and the Albigensian, with the Humanist sceptic, after Voltaire and after Darwin, the Faith has to all appearance gone to the dogs. In each of these five cases it was the dog that died."

       -- GK Chesterton

"Power isn’t having the world at your fingertips; it is having the world at your fingertips and being able to give it up!"

       -- Tarek Saab

       -- Janet Smith

"Life is like a cash register, in that every account, every thought, every deed, like every sale, is registered and recorded."
      -- Archbishop Fulton Sheen

"Never measure your generosity by what you give, but rather by what you have left."
      -- Archbishop Fulton Sheen

"Make frequent visits to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament and the devil will be powerless against you."
      -- St. John Bosco

"Take care of your body as if you were going to live forever; and take care of your soul as if you were going to die tomorrow."
      -- St. Augustine

"Beauty is indeed a good gift of God; but that the good may not think it a great good, God dispenses it even to the wicked."
      -- St. Augustine

"Holy Communion is the shortest and safest way to Heaven."

      -- Pope St. Pius X

"The spiritual combat in which we kill our passions to put on the new man is the most difficult struggle of all. We must never weary of this combat, but fight the holy fight fervently and perseveringly."     

         -- St. Nilus

"As iron is fashioned by fire and on the anvil, so in the fire of suffering and under the weight of trials, our souls receive that form which our Lord desires them to have."

"Do not think that your present state is a punishment from Heaven, because you would be wrong, but be certain that your present state is willed by God for the salvation of your soul."

"There is a practice that is most powerful in keeping us united with God. That practice is the constant recollection of His presence."

        -- St. Alphonsus Liguori

"It is right that you should begin again every day. There is no better way to complete the spiritual life than to be ever beginning it over again."

        -- St. Francis de Sales

"As to be holy is nothing else than to will what God wills, so to be wise is nothing else than to judge of things as God judges of them."

        -- St. Vincent de Paul

"It should be observed that perfect love of God consists not in those delights, tears and sentiments of devotion that we generally seek, but in a strong determination and keen desire to please God in all things, and to promote His glory."

        -- St. Teresa of Avila

"Your life consists in drawing nearer to God. To do this you must endeavor to detach yourself from visible things and remember that in a short time they will be taken from you."

          -- Blessed John of Avila

"We should perform our penance overwhelmed with joy at being able to satisfy God, whom we have offended, and at finding such an easy means of effacing our sins which should have earned eternal sufferings for us."

          -- St. John Vianney

"True charity consists in putting up with all one's neighbor's faults, never being surprised by his weakness, and being inspired by the least of his virtues."

          -- St. Therese of Lisieux

"Ah, how true it is that we love ourselves too much and proceed with too much human prudence, that we may not lose an atom of our consideration! Oh, what a great mistake that is! The Saints did not act thus."

           -- St. Teresa of Avila

"Humility is the only virtue that no devil can imitate. If pride made demons out of angels, there is no doubt that humility could make angels out of demons."

           -- St. John Climacus

"No matter how good food is, if poison is mixed with it, it may cause the death of him who eats it. So it is with conversation. A single bad word, an evil action, an unbecoming joke, is often enough to harm one or more young listeners, and may later cause them to lose God's grace."

          -- St. John Bosco

"To those who are scandalized and rebel against what happens to them: Everything comes from love, all is ordained for the salvation of man, God does nothing without this goal in mind."

           -- St. Catherine of Sienna

"If I can succeed in saving only a single soul, I can be sure that my own will be saved."

            -- St. Dominic Savio

"The value of our life does not depend on the place we occupy. It depends on the way we occupy that place."

            -- St. Theresa of the Child Jesus

"In all the events of life, you must recognize the divine will. Adore and bless it, especially in the things which are the hardest for you."

             -- St. Padre Pio

"An act of renunciation is an act of union with God. The Divine Master looks lovingly upon a person who gains a victory over self."

            -- St. Madeleine Sophie Barat

"They deceive themselves who believe that union with God consists in ecstasies or raptures, and in the enjoyment of Him. For it consists in nothing except the surrender and subjection of our will - with our thoughts, words and actions - to the will of God."

            -- St. Teresa of Avila

"That we may not be deceived by self-love, in considering matters that concern us, we ought to look at them as if they belonged to others, and our only business with them was to give our judgement - not from interest, but in the cause of truth; and in the same way we should look on others' affairs as our own."

           --St. Ignatius Loyola

"Consult not your fears but your hopes and your dreams. Think not about your frustrations, but about your unfulfilled potential. Concern yourself not with what you tried and failed in, but with what it is still possible for you to do."

           -- Pope John XXIII