Quote for the Night

[Shin]

'If I am to speak the truth, whatever can be expressed in human words is less than the praise given by Heaven; for Mary has been excellently preached and praised by divine and angelic heralds, foretold by prophets, foreshadowed by patriarchs, in types and figures, set forth and described by Evangelists, worthily and officially saluted by Angels.'

St. Jerome

[Shin]

'Having arrived at that house, she saluted her cousin: "She entered into the house of Zachary, and saluted Elizabeth." And as St. Ambrose remarks, Mary was the first to salute Elizabeth: "Prior salutavit." But the visit of the blessed Virgin was not like the visits of the worldly, which, for the most part, consist in ceremonies and false display; the visit of Mary brought into that house an abundance of graces. For at her first entrance, and at that first salutation, Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and John was delivered from guilt and sanctified, and therefore gave that sign of joy, exulting in the womb of his mother; for he wished in this way to make known the grace received by means of the blessed Virgin; as Elizabeth herself declared: "As soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy."

St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

[Shin]

'Oh, blessed is he that converses with Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, in this holy solitude of the manger.'

St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

[Shin]

'O God! who would not feel compassion if he saw a little prince, the son of a monarch, born in such poverty as to be left to lie in a damp, cold cavern, not having bed, servants, fire, or clothes sufficient to warm him? Ah, my Jesus, Thou art the Son of the Lord of heaven and earth, and yet Thou liest in this cold grotto without other cradle than a manger, with nothing but straw for Thy bed, and miserable rags to cover Thee. The angels stand round Thee and sing Thy praises, but they do not relieve Thy poverty. My dear Redeemer, the poorer Thou art, the more amiable Thou dost render Thyself in our eyes, because Thou hast embraced so great a poverty for this end, to make us love Thee more. If Thou hadst been born in a palace, if Thou hadst had a cradle of gold, if Thou hadst been assisted by the first princes of the earth, Thou wouldst have acquired more respect from men, but less love; but this stable where Thou dost sleep, these miserable rags that cover Thee, this straw that serves as Thy bed, this manger that is Thy only cradle, oh, how do they attract our souls to love Thee, because Thou hast made Thyself thus poor in order to become more dear to us! "The viler he was for me," says St. Bernard, "the dearer he is to me." Thou hast made Thyself poor to enrich us with Thy riches; that is, with grace and glory: He became poor, that through His poverty you might be rich.'

St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

[Shin]

'"O solitude," says St. Jerome, "in which God speaks and converses familiarly with his servants;" O beautiful solitude, in which God speaks and converses with his chosen souls, not as a sovereign, but as a friend, as a brother, as a spouse! Oh, what a paradise it is to converse alone with the Infant Jesus in the little grotto of Bethlehem!

St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

[Shin]

'This testimony is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith;'

Titus 1:13

[Shin]

'To judge rightly of the goodness and perfection of any one's prayer, it is sufficient to know the disposition he takes to it, and the fruits he reaps from it.'

St. Vincent de Paul

[Shin]

'Jesus has for us a love so incomprehensible that He does not wish to do anything without making us His co-operators. He wills that we should have a part with Him in the salvation of souls.'

St. Therese of Lisieux

[Shin]

'Angel of God and well-beloved brother, I trust myself to your beneficence and implore you humbly to intercede for me with my Spouse, so that He may forgive me my sins, strengthen me in well-doing, help me by His grace to correct my faults, and lead me to Paradise, there to taste the fruition of His presence and to possess eternal life. Amen.'

St. Lydwine of Schiedam

[Shin]

'We ought to hate no one, for God never comes where there is no love of our neighbours.'

St. Philip Neri

[Shin]

'Jesus gives all to those who surrender all.'

St. Bernadette Soubirous

[Shin]

'Prayer purifies us, reading instructs us. Both are good when both are possible. Otherwise, prayer is better than reading.'

St. Isidore of Seville

[Shin]

'Let me lie on the ground, for if I do not rise, I shall not be able to fall!'

Bl. Giles of Assisi

[Shin]

'The kingdom of God is within you. Reanimate your faith often when you study, work, or eat; when you retire to rest, or rise in the morning. Make some loving aspirations to God, such as: "O Infinite Goodness!" or other prayer, and let your soul be penetrated by these pious sentiments as by a precious balm. This great God is nearer to you, so to speak, than you are to yourself.'

St. Paul of the Cross

[Shin]

'Let your modesty be known to all men: the Lord is nigh.'

Philippians 4:5

[Shin]

'For all that is in the world is the concupiscence of the flesh and the concupiscence of the eyes and the pride of life, which is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world passeth away and the concupiscence thereof: but he that doth the will of God abideth for ever.'

1 John 2:16-2:17