There is no more evident sign that anyone is a saint and of the number of the elect, than to see him leading a good life and at the same time a prey to desolation, suffering, and trials.

-- St Aloysius Gonzaga

What prayer could be more true before God the Father than that which the Son, who is Truth, uttered with His own lips?

-- St. John Chrysostom

Hold firmly that our faith is identical with the ancients. Deny this, and you dissolve the unity of the Church.

-- St. Thomas Aquinas

If God had drawn the world from pre-existent matter, what would be so extraordinary in that? A human artisan makes from a given material whatever he wants, while God shows his power by starting from nothing to make all he wants.

-- St. Theophilus of Antioch, Ad Autolycum

Christ conquers, He reigns, He commands. May He defend His people from all evil.

-- Pope Sixtus V

Every moment comes to us pregnant with a command from God, only to pass on and plunge into eternity, there to remain forever what we have made of it.

-- St. Francis de Sales

Prayer should be accomplished by grace and not by artifice.

-- St Jane Frances de Chantal