Various Quotes: On Clay and Vessels

'Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it: What art thou making? If clay should dare to say to the potter, Why hast thou formed me thus? the potter ought to answer: Be silent: it is not your business to inquire what I do, but to obey and to receive whatever form I please to give you.'

St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

'St. John Chrysostom said: Silentium, quod lutem prabet figulo, idem ipse prabe conditori tuo. Oh, what a sentence! He would say, "As the clay is silent in the hands of the potter, so do you be silent in the hands of your Creator." The clay remains silent whether the potter forms it into a vessel of honor or of ignominy, whether he breaks it or flings it among the rubbish; it is content to be cast aside or to be placed in an art gallery. Impress this lesson on your memory.'

St. Paul of the Cross

'But you will say to me, Why does he still make us responsible? who is able to go against his purpose? But, O man, who are you, to make answer against God? May the thing which is made say to him who made it, Why did you make me so? Or has not the potter the right to make out of one part of his earth a vessel for honour, and out of another a vessel for shame? What if God, desiring to let his wrath and his power be seen, for a long time put up with the vessels of wrath which were ready for destruction. . .'

Romans 9:19-22

'This thought of yours is perverse: as if the clay should think against the potter, and the work should say to the maker thereof: Thou madest me not: or the thing framed should say to him that fashioned it: Thou understandest not.'

Isaiah 29: 16

'The vessel is launched on the sea, without sail or oar, but she is guided by the captain, who will conduct her safely to port. She is battered by wind and tempest, but this displays only the better the capability and wisdom of her captain. May Jesus Christ ever reign in our hearts, Who hath given us the strength to suffer all things for His love.'

St. Paul of the Cross

'The Lord revealed to St. Gertrude that our confidence so constrains him that he cannot possibly refuse to hear us in everything we seek of him. The same thing was said by St. Climachus: "Prayer exerts a holy violence upon God." Every prayer offered with confidence, as it were, forces God; but this force is acceptable and pleasing to him. Therefore, St. Bernard writes that the divine mercy is like a vast fountain, from which whoso ever brings a larger vessel of confidence carries away a larger abundance of graces. And this is according to what the Psalmist wrote, Let Thy mercy be upon us, O Lord, according as we have put our trust in Thee?'

St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

'Possess purity in an eminent degree, and jealously preserve this fragrant flower. I earnestly desire to see you shine by the brilliancy of this virtue; be like to angels, and omit no precaution to retain this treasure, which is so easily lost by imprudence. We have this treasure in earthen vessels, says the Apostle. (2 Cor. x. 5.)'

St. Paul of the Cross

'As the light of the sun cannot enter into a vessel filled with earth, so the light of God cannot shine into a soul habituated to sins of the flesh: her vices shall continue to sleep with her till death.'

St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

'The lord of this world is a rod of chastisement and a scourge to beginners in the spiritual life. Yet, as has been said, he brings them great glory and added honor because of the afflictions and trials they endure. In this way he helps them to attain the state of perfection, while he prepares even greater and harsher punishment for himself. In short, something most beneficial is brought about through him: as has been said, evil, while intending what is not good, contributes to the good. For, in souls whose intention is sound, even that which appears harmful results in something good. As St. Paul says: 'All things work together for good to them that love God.' (Rom. 8:28)

It is on this account that the rod of chastisement was permitted, so that through it, as in a furnace, the vessels might be more rigorously fired; but those unequal to the test, being easily broken, are rejected as faulty, since they cannot endure the heat of the fire. Being a servant and the Lord's creation, the devil tests and afflicts people, not as he thinks fit or desires, but to the extent that his Master allows him. Knowing the exact nature of everything, God permits each person to be tested according to his strength. As St. Paul puts it: 'God is to be trusted not to let you be tried beyond your strength, but with the trial He will provide a way out, so that you are able to bear it.' (1 Cor. 10:13)'

St. Symeon Metaphrastis

'We must be continually upon our guard, for we are engaged in a perpetual war; unless we take care, the enemy will surprise us, when we are least aware of him. A ship sometimes passes safe through hurricanes and tempests, yet, if the pilot, even in a calm, has not a great care of it, a single wave, raised by a sudden gust, may sink her. It does not signify whether the enemy clambers in by the window, or whether all at once he shakes the foundation, if at last he destroys the house. In this life we sail, as it were, in an unknown sea. We meet with rocks, shelves, and sands; sometimes we are becalmed, and at other times we find ourselves tossed and buffeted by a storm. Thus we are never secure, never out of danger; and, if we fall asleep, are sure to perish. We have a most intelligent and experienced pilot at the helm of our vessel even Jesus Christ himself, who will conduct us safe into the haven of salvation if, by our supineness, we cause not our own perdition.'

St. Syncletica

'She was truly pure, for it was not fitting for the King of glory to lie in any but the purest, cleanest, and most select vessel among angels and men. . . She is the pure vessel in which lay the bread of angels and in which all sweetness and beauty is found.'

St. John the Baptist to St. Bridget of Sweden in a vision, describing the Blessed Virgin Mary