June
June 1
When you hear anyone spoken ill of, consider the accusation doubtful if you can do so justly. If you cannot, excuse the intention of the accused party. If that cannot be done, express sympathy for him or her. Or change the subject of conversation, recalling that those who do not fall into sin owe it all to God's grace. Correct the slanderer in a mild way by telling of some good deed of the offended party, if you know of any. (INT. Part III, Ch. 29; O. III, p. 243)
June 2
The process of the purification of our souls is never finished, and will end only with our death. We must not be upset by our imperfections; instead, we must recognize them and learn to combat them. And it is in fighting against our imperfections without being discouraged by them that our very perfection consists. (INT. Part I, Ch. 5; O. III, p. 27)
June 3
The glorious and seraphic lover, Saint Francis of Assisi, was for a long time moved by ardent desire to praise God. In the last years of his life, having been assured of his eternal salvation by a special revelation, he could not contain his joy. He wasted away from day to day as if his life and soul were on fire. Like incense, he burned with such an ardent desire to see his Master that he praised Him unceasingly. This desire increased each day until his soul left his body to fly to Heaven. Divine Providence willed that he should die while saying the words, "Lead me forth from prison, that I may give thanks to your name." [Ps 142:8] Oh my God, Theotimus, how sweet and how lovely was that death! A death that was a holy end; a death that was happy and loving. (T.L.G. Book 5, Ch. 10; O. IV, pp. 290-291)
June 4
Far from preventing us from praying, sickness should in no way weaken our union with God. It can even bring us closer to Him if we truly conform our will to His. All that matters, whether in health or in sickness, is that we maintain and increase our relationship with Him. We can find God in sacrifice as well as in prayer. If we truly desire whatever He wills, sickness is as pleasing as anything else. The very acceptance of sickness is the most worthy offering we can make to Him Who has suffered so much to redeem us. (Letters 553; O. XIV, p. 168)
June 5
When inspiration, like a sacred wind, impels us into the air of holy love, it takes hold of our will and moves it by a sentiment of heavenly delight. It expands and unfolds that natural inclination which the will has for good, so that this same inclination captures the soul. All this, as I have already said, is done in us but without us, for it is God's favor that prepares us in this way. (T.L.G. Book 2, Ch. 13; O. IV, p. 130)
June 6
How happy those souls who live only to do God's will! Ah, if we could only get a taste of this at meditation, our heart would experience great delight from the acceptance of the Divine Will. Such souls, even in the midst of crosses, are completely fused with the will of God. What a blessing it is to subject all our affections humbly and entirely to the most pure love of God! (Letters 1076; O. XVI, p. 364)
June 7
With foresight, the divine heart of Christ merited and ordered all the favors which we have received, disposing them for each of us in particular. How our hearts would be inflamed with love for so many favors! Consider that they were destined for us by the will of the Father, to be borne in the heart of the Savior, Who earned them for us by His sufferings, above all by His passion. (T.L.G. Book 6, Ch. 12; O. V, pp. 344-345)
June 8
It seems to some that perfection is an art which can be learned quickly. They think that it is easy once you have found its secret. They fool themselves completely. In fact, the only way to perfection is to work hard and struggle faithfully in the exercise of the love of God. One must unite oneself solely with Him. (Spiritual Treatises IX; O. VI, p. 152)
June 9
You have certainly heard that in General Councils there are great disputations and investigations, establishing the truth after discussion, reasoning and theological argument. At the conclusion of the debates, the pope, who is the chief bishop, together with the other bishops who are the fathers of the council, draws conclusions and resolutions on the subject at hand. Once the final statements have been made, each person accepts them in full agreement. This is done, not out of regard for the reasons advance in the preceding discussion and investigation, but in virtue of the authority of the Holy Spirit. For it is the Holy Spirit Who invisibly presides over councils, judging, determining and concluding matters under discussion through His servants whom He has chosen as pastors of the Christian community. (T.L.G. Book 2, Ch. 14; O. IV, p. 135)
June 10
What will we do one day when, in eternal glory, we see the most adorable heart of Jesus through the holy wound in His side, all aflame with the love He bears for us - a heart in which, written in characters of fire, all of us will be inscribed? Ah! We will then say to the Savior, "Is it... possible that You have loved me so much that You have even written my name in your heart?" (Sermons 57; O. X, pp. 243-244)
June 11
May the Holy Spirit enlighten our intellect with the consciousness of the gravity of our sins. By them, we have offended the infinite goodness of God. May He stir up our heart with this knowledge. Then repentance will grow little by little in us, and we will experience an affective and warm desire to return to God's grace. This will lead to an intense love, which, like a sacred fire, is set aflame by repentance. (T.L.G. Book 2, Ch. 20; O. IV, p. 157)
June 12
Charity spreads delight throughout the soul, which is rendered beautiful, pleasing and lovable by God's goodness. If the soul were a kingdom where the Holy Spirit is kind, charity would be its queen... and if the soul were a queen, a spouse of Heaven's great King, then charity would be the crown of royalty adorning her head; if the soul, together with the body, were a little world, then charity would be the sun giving it light, warmth and life. (T.L.G. Book 2, Ch. 22; O. IV, p. 165)
June 13
Complain as little as possible about the wrongs you suffer; the one who complains usually commits a sin. Self-love feels that injuries are worse than they really are. Above all, do not complain to irascible or fault-finding people. If you feel it necessary to complain to someone, do so to those who are even-tempered and who really love God. Otherwise you will find that those to whom you complain upset you still more, instead of calming you. (INT. Part III, Ch. 3; O. III, p. 136)
June 14
Always walk in the presence of God, because His shade is healthier than the rays of the sun. There is nothing wrong in trembling before the face of Him whose very presence makes the angels tremble as they contemplate the Supreme Majesty. This is on the condition, however, that love predominates in all your actions as the principle and goal of your motivation. (Letters 837; O. XV, p. 319)
June 15
The virtue of fortitude and moral strength is never acquired in time of peace, when we are not tested by the contrary temptation. Some people are very meek when they do not have to suffer any contradiction, but when they are tested they quickly change. This shows quite clearly that their meekness was not a true and solid virtue. There is a big difference between the absence of a vice and the presence of a virtue. Many people seem to be virtuous but do not actually possess a virtue because they have not had to fight to acquire it. It often happens that our passions are dormant or are stifled, and if throughout those times, we do not build a good supply of fortitude to combat them, we will collapse when we are attacked. (Spiritual Treatises XVI; O. VI, p. 294)
June 16
When man shall have finished, says Scripture, then he will begin. All that we have done so far is good, but what we are about to begin is better. And when we have finished that, we will begin something else which will be better still, and then the next thing will seem even more fruitful...right up until the time we leave this life to begin another that will never end; and we will not be able to commence anything better than that. (Letters 1049; ). XVI, p. 312)
June 17
Among all the precepts that God has given us, nothing can be emphasized more than the practice of the love of one's neighbor. This is not because it takes precedence over the love of God, but because our nature finds the love of neighbor difficult and so we are in need of particular encouragement. Therefore, we ought to love one another with all the affection of our hearts in order to please the Heavenly Father; but let us love one another in an orderly way, remembering that reason teaches us to love the soul more than the body. (Sermons 59; O. X, p. 279)
June 18
The heavenly food of the Eucharist is a spiritual food that diffuses and communicates itself to all parts of the soul and the body in such a way that we have Jesus Christ in our mind, our hearts, our breasts, our eyes, on our tongues, in our ears, hands, feet... and the sweet Savior redresses, purifies and enlivens all our being. He lives in our heart, understands in our mind, strengthens us in our breasts, helps us to see with our eyes, speaks with our tongue, and so for all the rest. In summary, He does everything in our whole being. And so it is no longer we who live, but Jesus Christ lives in us. [cf. Gal 2:20] (Letters 430; O. XIII, p. 358)
June 19
When the soul is completely restored to health by that balm of charity which the Holy Spirit places in its heart, then it can go forward and stand on its own feet, although this is still by virtue of its new health and the sacred medicine of holy love. For this reason, although it can walk by itself, it must still render all the credit to God, who has... given it such vigorous and sturdy health. In fact, whether the Holy Spirit strengthens us by movements that He impresses on our hearts or supports us by the charity He infuses into them; whether He saves us by lifting us up and carrying us forward or strengthens our hearts with His invigorating and entwining love, it is always in Him and by Him that we live, move and work. (T.L.G. Book 3, Ch. 3; O. IV, p. 176)
June 20
Very often we do not abandon ourselves entirely into the hands of God because it seems to us that God will not take very much notice of us, since we consider ourselves good for nothing. The world like-wise has little use for us. On the contrary, a courageous spirit relies on faith, grows in courage amid difficulties, and knows quite well that God loves, supports and helps those in need when they confide and hope in Him. (Letters 1197; O. XVII, pp. 205-206)
June 21
Mount Calvary is the mount of lovers. All love that does not take its origin from the Savior's passion is foolish and perilous. Unhappy is death without the Savior's love; unhappy is love without the Savior's death. Love and death are so mingled in the Savior's passion that we cannot have the one in our heart without the other. Upon Mount Calvary we cannot have life without love, or love without the Redeemer's death. (T.L.G. Book 12, Ch. 13; O. V, p. 346)
June 22
The great work of devotion consists in the exercise of spiritual recollection and ejaculatory prayers. It can supply the lack of all other prayers, but its loss can hardly be repaired by other means. Without this exercise we cannot properly lead the contemplative life, and we can but poorly lead the active life. Without it, rest is mere idleness and labor is drudgery. Hence, I exhort you to take up this practice with all your heart and never give it up. (INT. Part III, Ch. 13; O. III, p. 100)
June 23
Love of God does not consist either in consolations or displays of tender affection; otherwise, Our Lord would not have loved His Father when, sad even unto death, He cried out, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" [Mk 15:34] Yet it was then that He exercised the greatest act of love that you could imagine! We want to have a spoonful of sugar in our spiritual food; namely, the experience of love and even more so of consolation. In the same way, we want to be free of all imperfections, but we have to put up with our human nature and not imagine that we have an angelic one. (Letters 1402; O. XVIII, pp. 171-172)
June 24
I have often wondered what was the greatest mortification practiced by the saints, and, after serious reflection, I discovered this: Saint John the Baptist went out into the desert when he was five years old, knowing that his Redeemer had been born and was living not far from him. God alone knows how the heart of Saint John loved his cousin, Jesus, and how much he would have enjoyed His company. All the same, he remained for twenty-five years in the desert without once coming out. Then, after he had left the desert, he settled down to preaching without going to see Jesus, but waited until the Lord came to him. Even after he had baptized Him, he carried on with his mission! He had his spirit entirely detached from everything so as to do God's will and to serve Him. (Letters 234; O. XIII, pp. 366-367)
June 25
We must not only leave alone what is not our business, but even be detached from our own will that we so often favor as if it were our own mother! God is not satisfied with our gifts if they are not accompanied by a generous disposition of our heart. Because of this, the Divine Majesty first of all demands our hearts...and then as a consequence all our gifts will be accepted. (Sermons 16 O. IX. pp. 136-137)
June 26
Humbly and sincerely reveal to your confessor and spiritual director all the feelings, affections and suggestions that proceed from your sadness. At these times seek the company of spiritual persons and spend as much time with them as you can. Resign yourself into God's hands and be ready to suffer this distressing sadness patiently as a just punishment for your vain joys. Do not doubt that after God has put you on trial He will deliver you from this evil. (INT. Part IV, Ch. 12; O. III, pp. 315-316)
June 27
Pure love of God is the precious pearl found by all who are in search of Heaven; in exchange for it they are ready to sell all they possess. In fact, we notice that the first Christians were not content with observing the commandments of God. They also put into practice the counsels, abandoning everything with a true spirit of detachment. Hence it can be truly said that they were "of one heart and one mind." [Acts 4:32] The words "mine" and "thine" no longer existed for them. (Sermons 20; O. IX, p. 173)
June 28
How can we recall that Jesus was crucified for love of us and still love anything but Him? How many times have we repeated, written, sung and sighed, "May Jesus reign!" Yet on other occasions we have cried out, "Crucify Him!" [Jn 19:15] My God, how strong we would be if we were closely bound with the holy ties of love purpled by your blood as our Savior! (Letters 2001; O. XXI, p. 44)
June 29
In some passage of Sacred Scripture we read that the Holy Spirit offered a prayer. Surely this cannot mean that He prayed because, as God, He is equal to the Father and the Son. We must simply understand that He inspired men and women to pray. (Sermons 8; O. IX, p. 52)
June 30
When human prudence... gets involved in our desires, it is difficult to silence because it is persistent and, to our disadvantage, insinuates itself into all that we do. How, then, can we purify our intention? Let us see whether our desire can be considered just and holy. If it is, we should follow it, not just to obey human prudence but to carry out the will of God. (Letters 1871; O. XX, p. 222)
Used with permission.
Text taken from the book: "Every Day with SAINT FRANCIS DE SALES"
Edited by Francis J. Klauder, S.D.B.
Library of Congress Card Catalogue Number 85-72838
ISBN 0-89944-082-7
