“We are now standing in the face of the greatest historical confrontation humanity has gone through. I do not think that wide circles of the American society or wide circles of the Christian community realize this fully. We are now facing the final confrontation between the Church and the anti-Church, of the Gospel and the anti-Gospel. This confrontation lies within the plans of divine providence. It is a trial which the whole Church… must take up.” Karol Cardinal Wotyla (Sept. 1976)

Monday, August 4, 2008

Favorite Quote from a Specific Saint

Today is the feast day of St. Jean Vianney, one of my favorite saints and a holy priest who infuriated the devil by never giving in to demonic temptations despite even physical assaults. He is a great role model for modern our times.

He was the 19th Century's version of Padre Pio. His incorrupted body lies this very day on display in Ars, France, 150 years after he died.

In keeping with my "Favorite Quotes from Specific Saint" series, here are some of my favorites from the Cure of Ars:

"When we handle something fragrant, our hands retain the perfume to whatever they touch. Let our prayers pass through the hands of the Holy Virgin, as her holiness and purity will perfume them whild presenting them to God."

"You cannot please both God and the world at the same time, They are utterly opposed to each other in their thoughts, their desires, and their actions… You either belong wholly to the world or wholly to God."

"To suffer lovingly is to suffer no longer..."

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Pardon my ignorance, but is there a reason why the bodies of particular Saints remain incorrupted while others don't?

Or is this a Father Joe question?

A Voice in the Crowd said...

Scott Hahn's answer:

http://www.catholic-pages.com/church/splendour.asp

"I just recently came across a book by Joan Carroll Cruz entitled, Eucharistic Miracles and another one entitled, The Incorruptibles.

The incorruptibles! I never heard of the incorruptibles. These incorrupt Saints like St. Catherine of Genoa or St. Francis Xavier whose bodies are not decomposing.

God shows how supernatural grace can transcend the decomposition and the degradation of death in the natural order in the bodies of His Saints. St. Francis Xavier has actually parts of his beard in his cheek, in flesh, centuries and centuries after he should have been nothing but dust. He's without his right arm, though, because those Catholics took it off to carve it up for relics. What a religion we've got! What glory!"