Quotations
Genesis 3:17: “… it is through hard work that you will get your food from it all your life.”
Saint Bonaventure: “If you wish to acquire virtue and the strength to overcome the enemy’s temptations, be a man of prayer.”
Saint Bonaventure: “If you want to know Satan’s deceptions and defend yourself against his traps, be a man of prayer.”
Saint Peter of Alcantara: “… the true proof of a person’s spiritual progress is not a liking for prayer, but patience in tribulation, self-denial, and the fulfillment of the divine law…”
Saint Peter of Alcantara: “… the contemplative must be deaf, blind, and mute, because the less he expresses himself outwardly, the more he will be gathered within himself.”
Saint Peter of Alcantara: “Devotion, therefore, does not consist in that tenderness of heart or in that sweet consolation that those who pray sometimes experience, but in the readiness and in the fervor with which one sets about doing good.”
Saint Peter of Alcantara: “On the Day of Judgment, we will not be asked what we have read, but what we have done; not whether we have spoken or preached well, but whether we have performed good deeds.”
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux: “The one who gives himself too much to the comforts of the world does not deserve those of the Holy Spirit.”
Matthew 24:24: “For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to deceive, if possible, even the elect.”
Matthew 24:4-5: “And Jesus answered them: Be careful that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying: I am the Christ, and will deceive many.”
Blessed Joachim of Fiore: The beast from the sea will conquer the saints through false signs, demonic deception, and cunning words.
Bishop of Annecy, 18th century: “… to speak only of the clergy, both regular and secular, how many of its members were drawn into the Revolution without wishing it, without realizing it… they understood where they were being led when it had become impossible to stop.”
Ecclesiastes 1:18: “For in much wisdom is much grief, and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.”
Matthew 6:34: “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
Matthew 6:25: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; nor about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?”
Matthew 6:19-21: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
Blessed Joachim of Fiore: “I do not condemn what is regulated concerning the just or unjust possession of temporal things; but I proclaim blessed the one who has left everything to follow Christ and His disciples.”
Matthew 5:26: “Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.”
Psalm 65:10: “For you, O God, have tested us; you have refined us like silver in the fire.”
Blessed Joachim of Fiore: “… it seems plausible that, just as the beast rising from the sea will have a great king of his sect, like Nero and as an emperor over the whole world, so the beast rising from the earth will have a great prelate, like Simon Magus, and as a universal pontiff over the whole earth; and this one will be the Antichrist of whom Paul says that he exalts himself and opposes everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sits in the temple of God, presenting himself as God (2 Thess 2:4).”
Saint Francis of Assisi: “… our Rule and manner of life will be violently opposed by some… Those who preserve their fervour and adhere to virtue with love and zeal for the truth, will suffer injuries and persecutions as rebels and schismatics.”
Saint Francis of Assisi: “The sons of the flesh will always bend the holy understanding of the Rule toward their carnal meaning. But God will separate the true sons of the Rule from the sons of carnal prudence…”
Saint Francis of Assisi: “A man only knows what he puts into practice ; he is only wise to the extent that he loves God and his neighbor.”
Saint John of the Cross: “Never listen to a single word about the weaknesses of others; and if someone comes to complain to you about their neighbor, humbly ask them not to tell you anything.”
Saint John of the Cross: “Do not suspect any evil of your brother, for suspicion tarnishes the purity of the heart.”
Matthew 5:46: “… if you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Do not even the publicans do the same?”
Saint Alphonsus de Liguori: “… the question of vocation, in the world, is considered by many people as something of little importance. It seems to them that it makes little difference whether one lives in the state to which God has called us, or in the one we have chosen according to our own ideas. From this come so many disordered lives, and so many damnations.”
Saint Alphonsus of Liguori: “If, therefore, we want to secure our salvation, we must, in choosing a state of life, obey the divine calling, in which alone God prepares for us the necessary help to save ourselves.”
Saint Alphonsus of Liguori: “… when it comes to eternal salvation, and especially to a religious vocation, we have no greater enemies than our parents…”
Wisdom 5:4-5: “We were fools to think that their lives were madness and their death a disgrace. Now they are counted among the children of God, and their share is with the saints.”
2 Corinthians 8:9: “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich.”
Luke 14:11: “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Luke 14:10: “But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when the one who invited you comes, he may say to you: Friend, move up higher. Then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at the table with you.”
1 Peter 4:8: “Above all, have constant charity for one another, for charity covers a multitude of sins.”
Saint Hugh of Saint-Victor: “All the happiness, all the sweetness, all the power, all the riches of the created world may indeed impress the human heart, but they cannot satisfy it.”
Revelations of Saint Teresa of Ávila: “Believe me, my child, the souls most cherished by my Father are those to whom He sends the greatest trials, and the greatness of these trials is the measure of His love.”
Saint Francis of Assisi: “Tribulation will come, know this, and then books, being of no use, will be thrown out the windows or relegated to some corner.”
Saint Francis of Assisi: “There are so many people who aspire to the sciences, that I consider blessed the one who knows only Jesus Christ crucified.”
Saint Leonard of Port Maurice: “It is to you that I speak, poor worldly people, whom I see all so busy: speculating, sweating, studying, wearing yourselves out, tormenting yourselves, but for what? Could it be to secure the salvation of your soul?”
Saint Leonard of Port-Maurice: “Alas! One thinks of everything, except the soul. Salvation, in the eyes of worldly people, is the concern of idle, wild, melancholic men, stirred by the ways of the world.”
Ecclesiasticus 34:7: “For dreams have led many astray, and they have fallen because they placed their hope in them.”
Ecclesiastes 5:6: “When there are many dreams, there is much emptiness and countless words; but you, fear God.”
Matthew 19:21: “Jesus said to him: If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give it to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.”
Psalm 39:18: “For me, I am a beggar and poor; but the Lord takes care of me.”
Psalm 54:23: “Cast your cares into the bosom of the Lord, and He Himself will sustain you; He will not allow the righteous to be shaken forever.”
Psalm 22:1: “The Lord guides me, and nothing will be lacking to me.”
Proverbs 3:5-6: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.”
Saint Augustine: “Since I began to serve God, I have hardly found men more perfect than those who have lived well in monasteries, just as I have not found any worse than those who have behaved badly in them.”
Saint Teresa of Ávila: “But, alas! What a different fate awaits those fathers and mothers who, forgetting that their children belong far more to the Lord than to themselves, have not raised them in His fear! When they see one another in hell, what curses will they not hurl at each other, and how great will their despair be for all eternity!”
Matthew 16:24: “Then Jesus said to his disciples: If anyone wants to come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.”
Matthew 10:38: “And whoever does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.”
1 Peter 2:21: “For this you were called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his steps.”
Proverbs 13:20: “He who walks with the wise will become wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm.”
Proverbs 15:33: “The fear of the Lord teaches wisdom, and humility comes before honor.”
Ecclesiasticus 3:20: “The greater you are, the more you must humble yourself in all things, and you will find favor before God.”
Pope Nicholas III, Exiit qui seminat, 1279: “… it was reasonable that, in a state in which one voluntarily undertakes to imitate the extreme poverty of Jesus Christ, one should strip oneself of all property, contenting oneself with the necessary use of the things one receives.”
Saint Alphonsus Liguori: “As long as one hates one’s imperfections, there is hope of becoming a saint; but if one commits faults and does not take them into account, then Saint Bernard assures that all hope of holiness is lost.”
Ephesians 5:3-4: “But let fornication, and all impurity, or greed, not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints; neither what is shameful, nor foolish talk, nor crude joking, things which are improper, but rather giving of thanks.”
Ephesians 4:29: “Let no corrupt talk come out of your mouth, but only what is good for building up the faith, so that it may give grace to those who hear it.”
1 Peter 5:8: “Stay clear-minded and watch carefully. Your enemy, the devil, moves around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to destroy.”
Saint John of the Cross: “… one may hold it as a general rule that a soul goes astray only by following its own inclinations, its tastes, its reasonings, and its personal ideas… inclining it toward what is not fitting for the service of God.”
St. John of the Cross: “… the spiritual person must be convinced that visions, revelations, heavenly feelings, and all that one can imagine as highest in this order of things are not worth the smallest act of humility.”
St. John of the Cross: “The soul that desires to have revelations commits at least a venial sin; and those who encourage this desire or consent to it likewise sin…”
John 7:24: “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”
Matthew 7:2: “… you will be judged in the same way that you judge, and the same measure you use will be used toward you.”
James 3:8-9: “… the tongue, no man can tame; it is an uncontrollable evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless God our Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the image of God.”
Saint Bonaventure: “It is beneficial for a man beset by temptations, for a man who desires to grow richer more quickly and more effectively, to be separated, at least for a time, from his family and his homeland.”
Luke 18:14: “I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”
Saint Francis of Assisi: “Hold firmly, therefore, my brothers, that poverty is the supreme path to salvation; it is like the nurse of humility and the seed of perfection. Its fruits are many, though little known.”
Saint Alphonsus of Liguori: “God gives to everyone his vocation, and chooses the state in which He wills him to be saved… How many will be found condemned on judgment day for not having followed their vocation!”
Conferences of John Cassian (5th century): “If we are disturbed by those who attack us, it is certain that humility has not yet laid firm foundations within us, and that the slightest storm can shake and ruin the structure of our soul.”
Saint John of the Cross: “If anyone were to suggest to you broad maxims, even if he performed miracles, do not believe him; rather, increase your penance and detachment from created things.”
Saint Francis of Assisi: “Those who persecute you, become angry with you, and overwhelm you with insults bring goods of more than one kind to your spirit. All are therefore your friends, and no one should be called an enemy…”
Mary of Jesus of Agreda: “… they look for doctrines and opinions that broaden the paths to eternal life, without reflecting that my most holy Son taught them that these paths were very narrow.”
Saint John of the Cross: “The soul that is not humble is easily deceived by the devil, who makes it believe a thousand lies.”
St. John of the Cross: “The poor in spirit is content with the very substance of devotion itself, and without seeking anything beyond what suffices, finds in the multiplicity of visible things nothing but fatigue and disinterest.”
Saint Francis of Assisi: “The glory I await is such that every hardship, every illness, every humiliation, every persecution, every mortification becomes a cause of joy for me.”
2 Timothy 3:12: “… all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.”
Saint Francis of Assisi: “Let us go away from here; we have nothing to gain where we are honored. Our gain is found in places where we are blamed and despised.”
Saint Francis of Assisi: “The more the brothers depart from poverty, the more the world will depart from them; they will seek, and they will not find. If they embrace poverty closely… the world will nourish them, because they have been given to the world to save it.”
Ecclesiasticus 2:1-5: “… when you come to the service of God, stand firm… and prepare your soul for trial… Bear the delays of God… and wait patiently… gold and silver are tested by fire, and those who are pleasing to God are tested in the furnace of humiliation…”
St. Francis of Assisi: “He [Jesus Christ] said to me: ‘I want you to be a new fool in the world, preaching by deed and by word the folly of my Cross.’ You, on the contrary, want to draw me toward your learning and your prudence; but your learning will end by confounding you.”
Matthew 7:12: “Therefore, all that you want people to do for you, do also the same for them; for this is the Law and the Prophets.”
Saint Francis of Assisi: “This evangelical poverty is the foundation of our Order. Upon this first base rests the whole structure of our religious life, so that it remains unshaken if the foundation is firm, and collapses from top to bottom if it is overthrown.”
Matthew 6:31-32: “Therefore do not worry, saying, What shall we eat? or What shall we drink? or What shall we wear? For the pagans are concerned with all these things…”
Revelation of Our Lord to St. Francis of Assisi: “…suppose that in the whole Order there remain only three brothers: it will still be my Order, and I will never abandon it.”
Blessed Giles of Assisi (d. 1262): “… a man is not saved merely by seeing, speaking, and hearing, but by practicing what he hears that is good; there is more distance between words and deeds than there is between heaven and earth.”
Saint Francis of Assisi: “My little children, God has entrusted me with sending you to the land of the Saracens to preach there and confess His faith, and to attack the law of Muhammad.”
Blessed Giles of Assisi (d. 1262): “The world is so corrupt that we can neither speak well of what is good, nor speak ill of what is evil.”
Matthew 5:11-12: “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me… for this is how they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
St. Francis of Assisi, talking about Juniper of Assisi: “Not only am I not ashamed of this brother’s simplicity, but I fervently wish that God would give me many men like him.”
St. Francis of Assisi: “He [Jesus Christ] revealed to me that, desiring to lead us to a perfection unknown until now in the Church, we should concern ourselves with nothing except Himself, His most pious Mother, and the apostles.”
St. Francis of Assisi: “I tell you that my first and last intention and will is, if the brothers had believed me, that none of them should have anything other than the clothing allowed by the rule, a belt and trousers.”
Saint Dominic: “Yes, truly, God takes a very special care of his holy poor, and I did not know it; but from now on, I also promise to observe the holy poverty of the Gospel; and, on behalf of God, I curse all the brothers of my Order who would claim to keep any property.”
St. Teresa of Avila, The Book of the Foundations: “… what is the true life, if not the one where neither death nor the events of this world are feared…"
Rule of Saint Francis, Chapter 6: “Wherever the Brothers may be, and whenever they meet, let them treat one another as children of the same household, so that they may confidently make known their needs to one another.”
Bernardino of Colpetrazzo, Capuchin (d. 1594): “… according to the prophecies, this is the last Reform. It will continue in this way even to the universal reform of Holy Church… Then the holy Order will be reduced and limited to just a few good men…”
Bernardino of Colpetrazzo, Capuchin (d. 1594): “Truly the Capuchin Reform was an image of the original state of the Order at the beginning. The Capuchin Reform represented the life of the holy Apostles and of Saint Francis with his Companions.”
Rule of St. Francis of Assisi, Chap. 12: “Let all those Brothers who, by the inspiration of God, wish to go among the Saracens and other Infidels…”
St. Teresa of Avila: “… if, while striving in all things to please Him who is the sole love of your hearts, you were to die of hunger, I would say: Happy, and a thousand times happy, are the Carmelites of Saint Joseph of Ávila!”
St. John of the Cross, The Spiritual Canticles: “… the one who seeks God while continuing to enjoy his rest and his comforts seeks him in the night and will not find him.”
Proverbs 11:2: “When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.”
St. Francis of Assisi: “… woe to that religious who takes pleasure in idle and empty words, and who, by them, provokes the laughter of men.”
Capuchin Constitutions, 1529, chap. 18: “… those who are appointed to this Office must remember that the principal quality of a Preacher is his virtuous life and his honest conduct.”
Rule of St. Francis of Assisi, Chap. 10: “I warn and exhort my Brothers in Our Lord Jesus Christ to be very careful of all kinds of pride, vanity, envy, greed, worldly cares and distractions, gossip, and murmuring.”
Saint Bernard: “The main reason that should keep us away from wealth is that one can never, or at least very hardly, possess it without love.”
Saint Bonaventure: “… they [the Friars Minor] do indeed make use of things that are destroyed through use, but not as masters; and in this they follow in the footsteps of the Lord…”
St. John of the Cross: “The truly spiritual person seeks bitterness rather than delights in God; he prefers suffering to consolation, the deprivation of every good to enjoyment, dryness and afflictions to the sweet communications of Heaven…”
Peter John Olivi (d. 1298), Friar Minor, some credit him with first formulation of papal infallibility: “…I do not intend… to deny that the opinions of the Doctors ought to be greatly respected, provided that they contain nothing that is manifestly contrary to the faith…”
St. Peter of Alcantara to St. Teresa: “If your zeal and fervor lead you to follow the counsels of Jesus Christ, observe them with the greatest perfection possible… If you prefer to follow the advice of learned men who do not have the Spirit of God, then seek great revenues…”
St. Francis of Assisi: “There will be such diversity of opinions and schisms among the people, the religious and the clergy, that, except those days were shortened, according to the words of the Gospel, even the elect would be led into error, were they not specially guided…”
St. Francis of Assisi: “The time is fast approaching in which there will be great trials and afflictions; perplexities and dissensions, both spiritual and temporal, will abound; the charity of many will grow cold, and the malice of the wicked will increase.”
Revelation of Our Lord to John of Medina, 16th-Century Capuchin: “… those who place all their hope and thoughts in me, and who depend entirely on my Providence, will be especially dear to me. I love them, I sustain them, and I embrace them as my most beloved children.”
Saint Bonaventure, Legends of Saint Francis of Assisi: “Seeing the community grow, the servant of God [Saint Francis] set down on paper for his brothers and for himself a rule of life whose foundation was the observance of the evangelical counsels.”
St. Francis of Assisi: “Since I know that the demons envy me because of the benefits the Lord has granted me, and since I also see that, when they cannot harm me directly, they seek to harm me through my companions.”
Bernardino of Colpetrazzo, a Capuchin friar (d. 1594), reports that Jesus Christ said to St. Francis of Assisi: “… I want the life I and my Apostles led preserved in your Order until the day of Judgement.”
St. Francis of Assisi, Testament: “When the Lord entrusted me with the care of the Brothers, no one instructed me how I ought to conduct myself; but the Most High Himself revealed to me that I should live according to the form prescribed in the Holy Gospel.”
Revelation of Our Lord to St. Francis of Assisi: “…suppose that in the whole Order there remain only three brothers: it will still be my Order, and I will never abandon it.”
Ideal Minister General according to St. Francis: “Let him regard every accusation as suspect at first, until the truth emerges through diligent examination. Let him not lend an ear to gossip; let him be especially cautious of accusers, and let him not believe them too quickly.”
St. Francis of Assisi: “…those who have sought only to know and show the way of salvation, without personal works, will appear naked and empty before the tribunal of Christ.”
Rule of St. Francis, Chap. 6: “Such is the excellence of this sublime poverty, my dearest Brothers, which has made you heirs and kings of the Kingdom of Heaven. It has stripped you of earthly goods but has made you great in virtue.”
Rule of St. Francis, Chap. 1: “The Rule and life of the Friars Minor consist in observing the holy Gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ, living in obedience, without property, and in chastity.”
Capuchin Const., 1925: “… we declare that we have in fact, whether individually or collectively, no temporal right, domain, ownership, possession, usufruct, or legal use of anything whatsoever, not even of what we are obliged to make use of, nor of the houses in which we live.”
Pope Nicholas III, 1279: “We declare that renouncing all forms of property, both individually and collectively, for the love of God, is meritorious and holy, that Jesus Christ taught it through His words and confirmed it by His example, when He showed the way of perfection…”
When some urged St. Francis of Assisi to allow common property, he turned to Christ in prayer. The Lord replied: “I will remove all possessions, both personal and shared; for I will always be ready to provide for this family, whatever its growth, and I will support it as long as it hopes in me.”
Matthew 5:44: “But I tell you: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who persecute and slander you.”
Capuchin Constitutions, Chapter 11: “… Saint Bernard assures that two things can defile and ruin religious persons: familiarity with women and the pursuit of special foods.”
Proverbs 28: “Whoever conceals their sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them will find mercy.”
St. Francis of Assisi: “Know, my Brethren, that Poverty is the straight road to salvation, the nurse of humility, the root of perfection ; its fruits are numerous, but hidden.”
Blessed Angela of Foligno: “True humility and true self-forgetting mean knowing honestly that we are not the source of any good. Anyone who truly feels this has the spirit of truth.”
Rule of St. Francis, Chap. 6: “The Brothers should have nothing of their own, no house, no place, nor any other possession, but should see themselves as travelers and strangers in this world.”
Blessed Jacopone of Todi, Friar Minor (d. 1306): True charity loves God even when He does not grant our requests, and loves others just as much when they offend us.
Psalm 33:20: “Many are the tribulations of the righteous, but God will deliver them from all these sufferings.”
Bl. Angela of Foligno: “It is by contemplating the Cross through continual prayer that one receives full knowledge of one’s sins, as well as the sorrow and contrition one ought to have for them, together with the divine light that brings into the soul deep and genuine humility.”
St. Francis of Assisi: “I do not want my brothers to be passionate about knowledge or books; I want them to be rooted in holy humility, to imitate pure simplicity, sacred prayer, and the poverty of the Lord.”
St. Francis of Assisi: “Of all the gifts of the Holy Spirit that Christ has deigned to pour out upon His servants, the greatest is to conquer oneself and to willingly endure, for love of Jesus, hardships, insults, humiliations, and the most urgent needs…”
Jeremiah 6:16: “… Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.”
Pope Pius IX, December 8, 1854, Dogma of the Immaculate Conception: “… the Blessed Virgin Mary, from the first instant of her Conception… was preserved free and exempt from all stain of original sin…”
Francis of Jesi, Friar Minor: “If we consider it carefully, the Order has never been more badly governed, nor more relaxed, nor given rise to more scandals in the world than when it was full of learned men.”
St. Francis of Assisi: “… those who allow themselves to be led by a frivolous love of knowledge will find their hands empty on the day of tribulation. That is why I would like to see all my brothers strengthen themselves in the practice of virtues…”
St. John of the Cross: “Oh! If people only knew what divine light they deprive themselves of through the darkness caused by their evil inclinations and disordered affections!”
Rule of the Third Order of St. Francis, Ch. 2: “Members of the Third Order, in their clothing and grooming, shall set aside overly luxurious elegance and observe, according to each one’s condition, the rule of modesty.”
Rule of the Third Order of St. Francis, Ch. 2: “They shall not allow into their home, nor permit to be read by those under their care, books and newspapers that could be harmful to virtue.”
Psalm 18:2: “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.”
Blessed Giles of Assisi: “I have enough of the seashore to wash my feet, my hands, and my whole body; I consider as foolish the one who torments himself trying to know its depths. Let me have knowledge enough to order my life well; I do not seek to know what is above me.”
Blessed Giles of Assisi: “Do not be overly anxious to be useful to others, but rather be eager to be useful to yourself. We sometimes wish to know many things for others, and very little for ourselves.”
Blessed Angela of Foligno: “… all our perfection consists only in these two points, that is to say, in the knowledge of God and in the knowledge of ourselves.”
Rule of the Third Order of St. Francis, Ch. 2: “They will avoid foul language and buffoonish jokes. In the evening, they will examine their conscience to see whether they have committed any fault of this kind; if they have, they will make amends for their fault through penance.”
Capuchin Constitutions, Chap. 5: “The devout Saint Bernard says that nothing is more precious than time and nothing is less valued; he also warns us that we shall be severely examined on the use we have made of it.”
Blessed Giles of Assisi: “The more a man feels full of vices, the more he needs to speak of virtue; by often speaking of virtue, he returns to it more easily and embraces it more readily.”
1 Corinthians 15:33 : “Do not be deceived: bad conversations corrupt good morals.”
St. Francis of Assisi: “Those who persecute you, become angry with you, and overwhelm you with insults bring goods of more than one kind to your spirit. All are therefore your friends, and no one should be called an enemy…”
St. Basil (d. 379): “All the actions and all the words of the Savior are a rule of piety and virtue, for He clothed Himself in our body so that we might imitate His life according to the measure of our strength.”
Blessed Giles of Assisi: “A man will know that he loves God perfectly if he shows great eagerness to turn away from vice and to grow day by day in good works.”
St. Francis of Assisi: “Their study should not be so much about knowing what to say, but about knowing what to do, so that their actions precede their words and they teach only what they themselves practice.”
Bl. Angela of Foligno: “… there is no doubt that holy souls and true friends of God grow and are perfected in such a manner through humiliations when they come to them without being their fault, and when they suffer them with patience.”
St. Francis of Assisi: “Know, my Brothers, that I have nothing sweeter or more delightful than the memory of the Passion of my Savior, which is the subject of my ordinary meditation, and if I were to live until the end of the world, I would need no other reading.”
Pope Leo XIII, Auspicato Concessum, 1882: “Apply yourselves, then, to making the Third Order known and appreciated at its true worth… teach what it is, how accessible it is to everyone, what privileges it enjoys for the salvation of souls…”