If we wish to discern what belongs to God and that which is our own, it is sufficient for us to reflect that by rendering to God all that is His, nothing is left to ourselves but nothingness, so that we can truly say with the Prophet: “I am brought to nothing.”

ride was the first sin committed. It was the sin of Lucifer. It was also the root of the Original Sin committed by Adam and Eve. Pride is the greatest of sins because it is the summit of self-love and is directly opposed to submission to God. It is, therefore, the sin most hated by God,

All the children of Israel actually departed from Egypt, but they did not all depart heartily, wherefore in the desert some of them regretted the flesh, the melons, the leeks, and onions of Egypt. (Num. 11). And so some penitents, though they forsake sin outwardly,

It is thus that on this memorable day [Feast of Corpus Christi] faith triumphs, hope is enhanced, charity shines, piety exults, our temples re-echo with hymns of exultation, pure souls tremble with holy joy, the faith of the lukewarm is awakened, whilst infidelity and heresy are confounded. It cannot be doubted,

Christ: My Son, hear My words, words most sweet, exceeding all the learning of the philosophers and of the wise men of this world. My words are spirit and life (John 6:69), and not to be estimated by the sense of man. They are not intended to gratify a vain self-complacency,

If our readers were to admit now that the doctrine put forward in this book is a matter of considerable importance, we would already achieve a good result; but that is not enough.The real purpose of this work is to get the reader to resolve:

Five years after Saints Louis and Zélie Martin entered the covenant of marriage, another couple would do so across the Atlantic Ocean: Bernard and Ellen Casey, who would become the parents of Blessed Solanus Casey. Connections can play a significant role in forming marriages.

One of the great women of the Catholic Church, Saint Gertrude the Great, born in Germany in the year 1256, was a Benedictine mystic, writer, and intellect, but most especially she was a great lover of both Jesus and Mary. Her literary masterpiece, Herald of Divine Love,

Sensible devotion is sometimes produced by dispositions of our nature, sometimes by artifices of the devil, and sometimes by an influx of grace. You may discern its origin in a particular case by studying the effects; for if no amendment follows,

Wisdom is something which we all naturally value, desire, and seek in this present life. Yet our wisdom in this present life, even for the most learned and astute of people, is always partial, fragmentary, and uncertain. But in the next life,

“The sins that sprout forth from sloth are contempt for commands, and because one throws himself into the prey of vice, he despairs of doing good, and as a result they become rancorous against those that strive to avoid sin and take up a good life.” – St. Robert Bellarmine

There remains, Dear Reader, one more subject to treat of before my task is ended: It is unworthy Communion. It is not so agreeable a subject as those with which we have been hitherto engaged; but reverence for our Divine Saviour, as well as zeal for the salvation of souls, require that the truth should be told.

The Apostles wrote that part of Revelation which is contained in the Scriptures, while their disciples wrote what the Apostles preached, taught or instituted in the Church, but which had not been written by the Apostles.

In the preceding Part, we considered the supernatural, mysterious union with God which grace effects in us. We saw how it makes us living temples of the Holy Ghost and of the entire Holy Trinity and begets divine life in our soul. We saw how it procures for our soul the ineffable dignity of a child,

Although a true servant of Jesus Christ, aspiring to the heights of perfection, should set no limits to his spiritual advancement, he should nevertheless exercise prudence as regards those excesses of fervor to which he is prone, and which at first seem feasible.

Preparation 1. Place thyself in the presence of God. 2. Prostrate thyself before Him, and seek His aid.

Once the Emperor Henry besieged a certain city for a considerable time. The inhabitants were unwilling to surrender; so he notified them that he would give orders to his soldiers to take the city by assault, and massacre all its inhabitants to a man, even the little children.

Saint Louis de Montfort, the apostle of Our Lady, wrote in True Devotion, “God the Father made an assemblage of all the waters and he named it the sea (mare). He made an assemblage of all the graces and he called it Mary (María).”1 She is full of grace. This means, therefore, that she lacks no grace, as God filled her living cavities with grace.

In a preceding chapter I treated of the great love which Jesus Christ has shown us in the institution of the Holy Eucharist, and because love demands love in return, I went on to prove how this condescension of His places us under the obligation of visiting Him frequently and of paying reverence to Him in this Sacrament of His love.

An eminent but unbelieving statesman once said to us: “If the Church could find a way to impress more deeply on the hearts of men the testament of her Founder, “Love one another,” she would become the one great power indispensable to all nations.” Might we not also apply the same thought to several other virtues?

Christ: MY SON, hear My words, words most sweet, exceeding all the learning of the philosophers and of the wise men of this world. My words are spirit and life (John 6:69), and not to be estimated by the sense of man. They are not intended to gratify a vain self-complacency, but are to be heard in silence and received with all humility and great affection.