God knows Himself and every created thing perfectly. Not a blade of grass or the tiniest insect escapes His eye.
Mother Angelica
We live in an age of technology and science that demands proof, and yet we desire mystery. But when God gives us mystery, we seek to destroy it by gross indifference or childish reasoning.
Each angel that God created was in himself a masterpiece. Each one possessed his own degree of intelligence and his own beauty.
Our lack of forgiveness makes us hate, and our lack of compassion makes us hard-hearted. Pride in our hearts makes us resentful and keeps our memory in a constant whirlwind of passion and self-pity.
When we begin to build walls of prejudice, hatred, pride, and self-indulgence around ourselves, we are more surely imprisoned than any prisoner behind concrete walls and iron bars.
Saints are ordinary people who do what they do for the love of Jesus, say what they must say without fear, love their neighbor even when they are cursed by him, and live without regret over yesterday or fear of tomorrow.
Every time I say 'no' to a small temptation, I strengthen my will to say 'no' to a greater one.
Holiness of life is not the privilege of a chosen few - it is the obligation, the call, and the will of God for every Christian.
I am not like a pebble on the beach - a grain of sand on the seashore or just one of millions of human beings past, present and future. No, I am a unique human being loved by God as if I were an only child - the only fruit of his creative powers.
Every moment of life is like a sacrament in which we can receive God. It is a channel through which God speaks to us, forms us, and directs us.
I do not ask for the riches that perish or the fame that fades away like a morning mist.
Men climb mountains, scale heights, venture into the unexplored to prove to other men it can be done.
Obedience is a strong virtue, capable of making me master of my emotions by giving me more strength to conquer my pride as I submit to those above me out of respect for their God-given authority and those below me out of love.
A sacrament is a visible sign of an invisible reality.
Saints are ordinary people who love Jesus, try to be like him, are faithful to the duties of their state in life, sacrifice themselves for their neighbor, and keep their hearts and minds free of this world.
Salvation brings the soul a deep awareness of God's love. Life takes on more meaning, for it now has a purpose.
Our memories are our own, and we cannot blame anything or anyone in the past for any pain dwelling there. If we open the door to them or keep hashing over past incidents in our minds, we have only ourselves to blame.
I must not permit the evil capabilities of human nature to sour my faith in the tremendous good that is possible despite the frailty of that nature.
The Christian experiences and lives a paradox. He possesses joy in sorrow, fulfillment in exile, light in darkness, peace in turmoil, consolation in dryness, contentment in pain and hope in desolation.
God's grace is at its best in weakness, so we need never fear our weakness. In fact, these weaknesses will determine in what way we shall glorify God for all eternity.
The woman is a gentle, loving bond who encourages, consoles, builds, reconciles, and makes all things new and vibrant. The woman is strength in time of suffering, courageous in failure, intuitive in time of danger. A woman is ingenuous when all fails, resourceful in times of want, and a true helpmate for man.
The wisdom of God is so great that He also knows exactly what I would think and do under every possible circumstance and situation, and he placed me in that state of life and situation best suited for my salvation.
Every retarded, deformed, crippled, handicapped, or senile person, who has been baptized, is a powerhouse for good in a wicked world by reason of the grace of God that dwells in his soul.
Love has been defined, analyzed, explained and excused. It has been the cause of wars, feuds, heroism, martyrdom, inordinate passion, and beautiful friendships. It pulls two people of opposite temperaments together into a married state and permits them to live happily. It makes friends understand each other without the necessity of words.
Many of us use God's love like the manna in the desert. We take what we need for particular situations and then go our own way - thinking we can handle other situations ourselves.
Love is an emotional feeling on a human level and a faith experience on a supernatural level.
Jesus asks me to go to him when I am overburdened. He did not promise to take away those burdens, for I must carry mine as he carried his.
No matter what Jesus did, someone found fault with it.
Love fills and empties simultaneously. It makes us reach out to God, ready to be pruned, recklessly desiring whatever the cost. It soothes the aching heart and then makes it thirst for more.
Humility is preserved when I give credit where credit is due - to God.
When our weaknesses affect health and friendship, we are very much aware of their existence.
I must listen as God speaks to my soul through good thoughts, inspirations, and intuitions.
We often forget that everything we see, animate or inanimate, is a visual manifestation of the work of our invisible God. We have become so accustomed to trees, mountains, sky, air, water, flowers, animals, vegetables and people that we no longer see them for what they are - God's work.
Two of man's basic needs are to love and to share. Both of these needs are satisfied in greater or lesser degree by friendship.
We resemble computers intellectually and animals emotionally.
Mary's life was a perfect imitation of Jesus. She was humble, hidden, sorrowful and afflicted, but she also knew joys that never entered the heart of man. She is all things to all men that she might understand their failings, though she failed not.
The sinner who suddenly realizes God's love for him and then looks at his rejection of that love feels a loss similar to the death of a loved one. A deep void is created in the soul and a loneliness akin to the agony of death.
We live in an age that stresses personal goals, careers, happiness, work and religion. The emphasis is on the individual and how best that individual can satisfy himself.
Jesus made Himself available to everyone. Unlike former prophets and the religious men of His day, who often kept themselves aloof, Jesus was easy to approach and always ready to give his help.
Healing and miracles have been a mystery to men of all times. To some, the phenomenon is frightening, while others find it exhilarating.
When anyone arouses my anger, I will immediately pray for them and regain my peace of soul.
Is detachment the answer to freedom? No, because detachment is negative - it is to be without. The answer must be positive - I must replace what I have with something better.
To a pagan, there is no purpose to suffering. As a result, he lives a life of loneliness and frustration.
My life is such a contradiction. My soul yearns for holiness and then runs from the mortification necessary to attain it.
God has always worked wonders through his prophets to increase the faith of His chosen people or to correct their disobedience.
Religious life is an encounter with the living God. Sometimes that encounter is preceded by a kind of soul-searching agony that tries desperately not to hear, runs in the opposite direction, and frantically tries to reason itself out of answering the invitation.
It is good to have an intellectual awareness of our dependence upon God - to understand how great He is and how very small we are in His sight.
Every individual we meet is different than we are. Members of the same family differ one from the other. Friend differs from friend, husband from wife, sister from brother, nation from nation. All these differences make 'feeling' love difficult and isolated to specific individuals according to our tastes and their personalities.
From the time of Adam and Eve, man has tried to escape suffering in any form.
At Baptism, I received grace - that quality that makes me share in the very nature of God.
