Franciscan Quote of the Day

“Do you mark all this well, King Caspian?”

“I do indeed, Sir,” said Caspian. “I was wishing that I came of a more honorable lineage.”

“You come of the Lord Adam and the Lady Eve,” said Aslan. “And that is both honor enough to erect the head of the poorest beggar, and shame enough to bow the shoulders of the greatest emperor on earth. Be content.”

~C. S. Lewis, Prince Caspian: The Return to Narnia

It’s really very simple. Am I building up the kingdom of heaven or am I building up my own kingdom? Am I putting God’s name first and proclaiming His name, or am I proclaiming my name? Am I doing everything for God’s glory, or for my glory? We have to focus on this every day. If I am going to live God’s will, it has to be because I first seek the kingdom. Then He promises everything else will fall into place.

~Fr. Larry Richards, Surrender!  The Life-Changing Power of Doing God’s Will

What stands between us and the kingdom is our arrogance; the arrogance of our intellect. Our intellect has been give by God. It is my wrong use of it that is so terrible.

~Servant of God Catherine de Hueck Doherty

Do not be eager in your heart to be angry, For anger resides in the bosom of fools.

~Ecclesiastes 7:9

To have defects is not in itself bad. The only evil lies in making a truce with them, not struggling against them, thinking that they are part and parcel of our character or our nature. Making such a truce would lead to spiritual mediocrity. Our Lord does not want this to happen to those who follow Him.

~In Conversation with God, 4:358 via ALL: American Life League.

You cannot be too gentle, too kind. Shun even to appear harsh in your treatment of each other. Joy, radiant joy, streams from the face of him who gives and kindles joy in the heart of him who receives. All condemnation is from the devil. Never condemn each other. We condemn others only because we shun knowing ourselves. When we gaze at our own failings, we see such a swamp that nothing in another can equal it. That is why we turn away, and make much of the faults of others. Instead of condemning others, strive to reach inner peace. Keep silent, refrain from judgment. This will raise you above the deadly arrows of slander, insult and outrage and will shield your glowing hearts against all evil.

~ St Seraphim of Sarov via Mind in the Heart

You see, the big thing for me is to love reality and not live in the imagination, not live in what could have been or what should have been or what can be, and somewhere, to love reality and then discover that God is present.

~Jean Vanier, via Pax Christi Facebook Page

The man who is filled with the Holy Spirit speaks in different languages. These different languages are different ways of witnessing to Christ, such as humility, poverty, patience, and obedience; we speak in those languages when we reveal in ourselves these virtues to others.

~St. Anthony (via Beauty for Ashes)

We’re terrified of not having the answers, and sometimes assert an incorrect answer rather than make peace with the fact that we don’t know.

~Kathryn Schulz (via Ad Dominum)

I asked God for strength, that I might achieve -
I was made weak, that I might learn humbly to obey.
I asked for help, that I might do greater things -
I was given infirmity, that I might do better things.
I asked for riches, that I might be happy -
I was given poverty, that I might be wise.
I asked for all things, that I might enjoy life -
I was given life, that I might enjoy all things.
I got nothing that I asked for -
But everything that I had hoped for.
Despite myself, my prayers were answered.
I am, among all men, most richly blessed.

~Prayer/poem written by an anonymous Confederate soldier during the Civil War via Michael Wade blog Execupundit

Our thorns in the flesh are not arbitrary miseries; they are personal, individual and valuable challenges. Our crowns are made from them.

~Elizabeth Scalia, “A Most small-c Catholic Drama“

But in how great an error these persons have entangled themselves, and how far they are distant from that true perfection which we seek, may easily be gathered from their lives and habits. For in every thing, whether It be great or small, they seek their own advantage, and like to be preferred before others; they are self-willed and opinionated, blind to their own faults, sharp-sighted for the faults of others, and severely condemn the sayings and doings of other men.

~Lorenzo Scupoli, The Spiritual Combat

Humility and simplicity belong together; Where we have no wish to compete with our neighbour; Where we can be open and helpful; Where we can comfort the distressed, And encourage those who are left behind. Humility is what Peter called; “The imperishable jewel of a gentle and quiet spirit”. (1 Peter 3:4)

~Third Order, Society of Saint Francis, Lenten  Reflection Day 23

I cannot discover God in myself and myself in Him unless I have the courage to face myself exactly as I am, with all my limitations, and to accept others as they are, with all their limitations.

~ Thomas Merton (Another great quote from what is quickly becoming one of my favorite web stopping places — Little Portion Hermitage)

The alarming, effervescent, energizing, and contagious freedom of the saints flows from their having learned this lesson. They no longer gauge their actions or decisions by what other people will think of them. And so they don’t live in fear, instability, and hesitancy. Rather, they have discovered that God’s love for them is as firm as the mountains (as the Psalms tell us). They don’t need to earn it; they just humbly accept it. And once they do, it propels them to echo and reflect it spontaneously and joyfully, regardless of the consequences.

~Fr John Bartunek, LC, STL, “A Question about the Litany of Humility in Lent – How can I be freed from the desire of being loved?”