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Spirituality
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Prayer ~
From Paul of the Cross' Letters and Teresa of Avila's Way of PerfectionHumility | Love | Temptations | Desire | Journey
"...Continue your prayer in pure faith, lost in God in a spirit of humility and annihilation. Carry on the bosom of your soul a corsage of the pains of Jesus and the sorrows of Mary..." ~Paul of the Cross to Agnes Grazi (61st letter on August 2, 1733 in Vol. 1 on Page 83)
"...Humility says, “I am nothing, I have nothing.” Charity says, “I desire nothing but Jesus.” You must never lose these two companions, neither will they consent to be separated from each other, for they agree lovingly together, and the deeper you establish yourself in humility the higher you will advance in charity, for the more you see and feel yourself to be nothing the more ardently you will see and love Jesus, that by Him who is All you may become something..." ~Henry Suso The Parable of the Pilgrim in Eternal Wisdom
"...May the sweetest Jesus live always in our hearts. The pure love of Jesus and the effects of divine grace be always in our hearts. Amen..." ~Paul of the Cross to Frances Lucci (4th letter on February 8, 1736 in Vol. 1 on Page 120)
"...until you have and feel that you have the love of Jesus, although you think you have done ever so many good deeds, spiritually and worldly, you have nothing, for nothing but the love of Jesus will abide in and fill your soul... cast aside and forget all other things in order that you may have that which is the best of all..." ~Henry Suso The Parable of the Pilgrim in Eternal Wisdom
"...What can we do, my daughter, to be grateful to our sweet Jesus? Oh! how I wish that such a great fire of love would come to us, even as a sign to burn those who pass close to us. And not only those who pass close, but also distant peoples, tongues, nations, tribes, in a word, all creatures, so that all might know and love the Supreme Good..." ~Paul of the Cross to Agnes Grazi (145th letter on July 22 in Vol. 1 on Page 427)
"...to shun such temptations renounce all vain thoughts and think of Jesus only, resolving to know and love Him. After you have accustomed yourself to think of Him alone, any thoughts not relating to Him will be unwelcome and painful to you... any work you are obliged to do for yourself or neighbor fail not to do it as soon and as well as you can, lest by delay it may distract your thoughts from Jesus. If it is unnecessary work do not think about it, but dismiss it from your thoughts saying, “I am naught, I can do naught, I have naught, and I desire naught but Jesus and His love..." ~Henry Suso The Parable of the Pilgrim in Eternal Wisdom
"...I am invoking the Holy Spirit to obtain his light. First, I tell you that all these reflections, all these desires, and the anxieties they bring with them are useless. You need to allow them to disappear in the Divine Good Pleasure, and you ought to let them die in the flame of holy love. Hold on to one single desire, that of pleasing God and doing his Holy Will, being the same in suffering as in joy, and continuing to live in your state devoutly..." ~Paul of the Cross to Thomas Fossi (84th letter on June 4, 1757 in Vol. 2 on Page 558)"...your principal aim, and indeed only business, is to give your thoughts to the desire of Jesus, and to strengthen this desire by daily prayer and other spiritual works. And whatever you find suitable to increase that desire, be it praying or reading, speaking or being silent, working or resting, make use of it as long as your soul finds delight in it, and as long as it increases the desire of having and enjoying nothing but the love of Jesus... safely to the end of your pilgrimage..."
~Henry Suso The Parable of the Pilgrim in Eternal Wisdom"...As long as I live, you will be with me at all times and on all occasions, and we will sing together on our journey: “How great is the glory of the Lord.” ~Paul of the Cross to Francis (21st letter on September 1, 1741 in Vol. 1 on Page 341)
"...to proceed on this journey, it is necessary to do, inwardly and outwardly, such works as are suitable to your condition, and such as will help to increase in you the gracious desire that you have to love Jesus only. No matter what your works are, whether thinking, reading, preaching, laboring, etc., if you find that they draw your mind from worldly vanity and strengthen your heart and will more to the love of Jesus, it is good and profitable for you to pursue them..." ~Henry Suso The Parable of the Pilgrim in Eternal Wisdom
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