"The practice of the Presence of God is the shortest and easiest Way to attain Christian perfection: it is the Form and Life of Virtue, it is the great Preservative from Sin. The practice will become easy, if we have but courage and a good will." Source: Brother Lawrence, The Practice of the Presence [...]
"By the consecration the transubstantiation of the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ is brought about. Under the consecrated species of bread and wine Christ himself, living and glorious, is present in a true, real, and substantial manner: his Body and his Blood, with his soul and his divinity (cf. Council [...]
"Prominent among the many aspects of the Eucharist is that of 'memorial'...this is not the mere commemoration of a past that is no more, but a zikkarôn, that is, a 'memorial'. It 'is not merely the recollection of past events, but the proclamation of the mighty works wrought by God for men. In the liturgical [...]
"I see that God never tries us beyond what we are able to suffer. Oh, I fear nothing; if God sends such great suffering to a soul. He upholds it with an even greater grace, although we are not aware of it. One act of trust at such moments gives greater glory to God than [...]
"The monk who observes others instead of attending to himself will begin before long to see some as his superiors and others as his inferiors; in some he will see things to envy, in others, things to despise. The eyes have wandered and the mind soon follows." Source: St. Bernard of Clairvaux, The Steps [...]
"Dear brothers and sisters, the Eucharist is at the root of every form of holiness, and each of us is called to the fullness of life in the Holy Spirit." Source: St. Alphonsus Liguori, Visits to the Most Holy Sacrament
"The Apostle, however, goes further: according to him, a sin against the body is also a 'profaning of the temple.' What is decisive for the dignity of the human body, in Paul’s eyes, is not only the human spirit, thanks to which man is constituted as a personal subject, but much more so the supernatural [...]
"The washing of the hands is done in the celebration of mass out of reverence for this sacrament; and this for two reasons: first, because we are not wont to handle precious objects except the hands be washed; hence it seems indecent for anyone to approach so great a sacrament with hands that are, even [...]
"Mary’s greatness consists in the fact that she wants to magnify God, not herself. She is lowly: her only desire is to be the handmaid of the Lord (cf. Lk 1:38, 48). She knows that she will only contribute to the salvation of the world if, rather than carrying out her own projects, she places [...]
"In espousing Jesus, you espouse His state of poverty. The bride assumes the rank of the bridegroom. Now, Jesus is poor in His clothing, in His nourishment, in His abode, in His labor. You will live, then, as He does, as His Blessed Mother, as dear Saint Joseph, His loving foster-father. They were happy in [...]