“Love does not need words.”
The Power of Silence: Against the Dictatorship of Noise
Cardinal Robert Sarah, Nicolas Diat
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So if a man does not watch himself well, he may begin some activity with the sole purpose of pleasing the Lord, but later, little by little, introduce into it a self-interest, which makes him find in it also a satisfaction of his own desires, and this to such an extent that the will of God becomes completely forgotten. Then he becomes so tightly bound by enjoyment of the work, that if God Himself were to hinder him in this practice, either through some illness, or through temptations from men or demons, or by some other means, he is filled with indignation, often blames one man or another for having interfered in the course of things he so loves, and sometimes even murmurs against God Himself. This is a sure sign that the disposition of his heart did not come from God, but has sprung from the rotten and corrupted root of self-love.
Unseen Warfare
Lorenzo Scupoli -
“There is your brother, naked, crying, and you stand there confused over the choice of an attractive floor covering.”
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Now while the blood is hot you should make your way with vigor to better things. In this kind of life you will find much that is worth your study: the love and practice of the virtues, the forgetfulness of the passions, the knowledge of how to live and die, and a life of deep tranquility.
Indeed the state of all who are preoccupied is wretched, but the most wretched are those who are toiling not even at their own preoccupations, but must regulate their sleep by another’s, and their walk by another’s pace, and obey order in those freest of all things, loving and hating. If such people want to know how short their lives are, let them reflect how small a portion is their own.
So, when you see a man repeatedly wearing the robe of office, or one whose name is often spoken in the Forum, do not envy him: these things are won at the cost of life.
—Seneca, On the Shortness of Life: Life Is Long if You Know How to Use It -
Feeble old men pray for a few more years; they pretend they are younger than they are; they comfort themselves by this deception and fool themselves as eagerly as if they fooled Fate at the same time. But when at last some illness has reminded them of their mortality, how terrified do they die, as if they were not just passing out of life but being dragged out of it. They exclaim that they were fools because they have not really lived, and that if only they can recover from this illness they will live in leisure. Then they reflect how pointlessly they acquired things they never would enjoy, and how all their toil has been in vain. But for those whose life is far removed from all business it must be amply long. None of it is frittered away, none of it scattered here and there, none of it committed to fortune, none of it lost through carelessness, none of it wasted on largesse, none of it superfluous: the whole of it, so to speak, is well invested. So, however short, it is fully sufficient, and therefore whenever his last day comes, the wise man will not hesitate to meet death with a firm step.
—Seneca, On the Shortness of Life: Life Is Long if You Know How to Use It -
A desert hunter saw Abba Antony having fun with the brothers. He was shocked and expressed his dismay because of their frivolity. The old man said to the hunter, “Put an arrow in your bow and shoot it.” When he did so, Antony said, “Now shoot another.” Again, the hunter complied.
Then the old man asked him to shoot a third arrow. The hunter hesitated. “If I bend my bow too many times, I will weaken and break it.”
Antony said to him, “It is the same with God’s work. If we stretch the brothers beyond measure, they will weaken and break.”
By Way of the Desert: 365 Daily Readings
SO GOOD QUOTES 