Thoughts of the St. Cure of d'Ars (St. John Mary Vianney)
#31
Page 59
HOW many souls we convert by our prayers!  There are
some among them for whom one Pater and Ave would
be enough to turn the scale.
-  Zeal of M. Vianney (Sp.)
IT is impossible to meditate with devotion upon the Mysteries
of the Rosary and live in a state of sin.
-  Sermon for the Feast of the Rosary.
IF we could only see the joy of our Guardian Angel when
he sees us fighting our temptations! . . .
-  On Temptations (C.)
IF we have a burden to carry let us promptly remember that
we are following Jesus Christ carrying His Cross; let us unite
our sufferings to those of our Divine Saviour.
-  Precept (I.)
WE have only to turn to the Blessed Virgin to be heard.  Her
heart is all love.
- Catechism on the Blessed Virgin (Sp.)
IF you look for God you will find Him, and in the hour of
your death He will say to you:  "See, I am here whom you
have ever sought!"
-  On Detachment (C.)
HUMILITY is to the various virtues what the chain is to the
Rosary; take away the chain and the beads are scattered,
remove Humility and all virtues vanish.
-  Maxim (T.)
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#32
Page 60
IT is our Angels who ask God to grant us a deep sorrow for our sins.
- Sermon for the Feast of the Guardian Angels (D.).
A SOUL in which the Holy Spirit dwells is never weary in the presence of God;
it gives forth a breath of love.
-  Catechism on the Holy Spirit (Sp.)
NO prayer is ever lost.
-  On love for our Neighbor (Catechismes).
ST. TERESA had a sight of Heaven and ever after, as she tells us herself,
everything on earth seemed but as mire and dirt to her.  But we, alas!
creep along on the earth, and know not how to rise above it!
-  Sermon on the last Day of the Year (M.)
WORDLY people say it is too difficult to save one's soul.  Yet nothing is
easier.  To observe the Commandments of God and the Church and to do
good and avoid evil; that is all.
-  Catechism on Salvation (Sp.)
WHAT happiness it is to a Guardian Angel to have the care of a pure soul. 
When the soul is pure, all the Court of Heaven looks upon it with joy.
-  Catechism on Purity (M.)
TO love God with our whole mind is to make the sacrifice to Him of our
knowledge and our reason, and to believe all that He has taught.
-  Sermon on the Love of God (Sp.)

Page 61
IN the Sacraments, it is God Himself who comes to annihilate our enemy.
The devil, seeing Him in our Heart, throws himself despairingly into the
bottomless pit; which explains why he does all he can to draw us away from
them, or to make us receive them badly.
-  On the Use of the Sacraments (E.)
THERE is no one who cannot pray - and pray at all times and in all places;
by night or day, when hard at work or resting; in the country, at home, or when
travelling.
- On Prayer (Sp.)
THE saints never complain.
- Maxim (M.)
WE can, if we will, become a saint, for God will never refuse to help us to do so.
-  Sermon on Sanctity.
THE Charitable believe that other people are always better than they are.
-  Sermon on Charity.
WHEN a soul has received the Sacrament of the Eucharist worthily, it is humble,
mortified, charitable, and is capable of the most sublime sacrifices.  In short, it is
no longer the same.
-  Catechism on the Holy Eucharist (M.)
RESID|ING continually in our Tablernacles Jesus Christ is deserted, misunderstood
by ungrateful men; and yet He continues to love us; to serve us in the Sacrament of the Altar.
- Sermon on Pride
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#33
Page 62

ONE is often carried away over the sins and shortcomings of others.
It would be far better to talk less about them and to pray more.
-  On Love for our Neighbor (C.)
ALL our merit, my children, consists of cooperating with grace.
-  On Grace (Sp.)
IN Communion you have the happiness of possessing Jesus Christ
in your heart, where He is in Body and Soul, as He was on earth
during His mortal life.
-  Eucharistic Meditation 16.
ASK Our Lord for the grace to think only of Him and to desire only
to please Him in all you do during your whole life.
-  Sermon on the First Commandment 2.
HOW many moments can be lost in doing nothing, or in doing wrong,
in listening to the suggestions of the devil, or in obeying him!
-  On Sloth (Sp.)
ALL the Angels and Saints are engaged in trying to prevent us from
committing sins.
-  On Sin (C.)
OUR heart is the throne where God reposes, our thoughts, our
words, our actions, directed to Him, are His Crown.  We place the
Sceptre in His hands when we consecrate our will to Him; the love
that we have for Him is His Purple -- His royal Mantle . . . .
-  Sermon on Habitual Grace (Sp.)
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#34
Page 63
IF you invoke the Blessed Virgin when you are tempted,
she will come at once to your help, and Satan will leave you.
-  On the Sixth Commandment (C.)
OUR prayer is an incense which God receives with
extreme pleasure.
-  Catechism on Prayer (Sp.)
DO not try to please everybody.  Try to please God, the Angels,
and the Saints. - - they are your public.
-  Advice to two Writers (D.)
HAPPY is he that lives to love, receive and serve God!
-  On the Lord's Prayer (C.)
WE should daily renew our baptismal vows.
-  On the Joys of the Interior Spirit (Sp.)
YOU do not know the resources of God's providence for those
who put their trust in Him.
-  Eucharistic Meditation 25.
THE saints love everyone . . . . Their hearts, inflamed with Divine
love, are dilated in proportion to the number of souls that God
puts in their way.
[i]-  On the Joys of the Interior Life (Sp.)[/i]

Page 64
WITH what humility should we assist at Mass, if we realized that our Guardian Angel
was kneeling beside us, prostrate before the Majesty of God!  With what eagerness should
we not ask him to offer our prayers to Jesus Christ!
-  Sermon on the Feat of the Guardian Angel
WHEN God sees us coming to Him in prayer, He  leans His Heart down very low to His
little creature, like a father who bends down to listen to his child when it speaks to him.
-  Catechetical Illustration from Nature (M.)
IF the Saints were asked:  "Why are you in Heaven?" they would answer:  "For having
listened to the Holy Ghost."
-  Catechism on the Holy Ghost (Sp.)
WE must say many prayers for the souls of the Faithful Departed, for one must be so
pure to enter Heaven!
-  On Love for our Neighbor (C.)
PRIDE makes us hate our equals, because they are our equals; our inferiors, from the
fear that they may equal us; our superiors because they are above us.
-  On Envy (Sp.)
IF I make God to reign in my heart, He will make make to reign with Him in His glory.
-  Catechism on Prayer (M.)
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#35
Page 65
IF we loved Our Lord, we should have the Tabernacle, that dwelling
place of God, always before the eyes of our mind.
-  Faith of M. Vianney (Sp.)
A SAINT has told us that one day at Mass he saw Jesus Christ with His
hands full of gifts, looking for souls to whom He might give them.
-  Sermon on Mass.
WHEN we go to Communion, we experience an extraordinary feeling of
comfort which seems to envelop us entirely.  Wheat is this but Our Lord
communicating Himself to every part of our being, and making us thrill
with joy?  We are obliged to exclaim like St. John:  "It is the Lord!"
-  Inner Life of the Cure d'Ars (J.V.)
"M. LE CURE," his missionary said to him one day, "if God were to give
you your choice of going directly to Heaven, or remaining on earth to labor
for the conversion of sinners, what would you do?"  "I think I would remain
here."  "Oh! M. Le Cure, is it possible? The Saints are so happy in Heaven!" 
"That is true, but they can no longer glorify God, as we can, by sacrifices
for the salvation of souls."
-  Zeal of M.Vianney (Sp.)
GOD calls His friends to bear His Cross after Him.
-  Catechism on Suffering (M.)

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IT is God's Will that the Saints should be our protectors and our friends . . . .
They are always ready to come to our aid when we call upon them . . . .
Those whom we invoke watch over us at all times.
-  Sermon for the Feat of All Saints 2.
THE commandments of God are the guides which God gives us to show us
the road to Heaven; like the names written up at the corners of the streets,
to point out the way.
-  The Cure of Ars in his Catechisms (Sp.)
I OBSERVE this in a great many people; a single word of blame disturbs and
disquiets them . . . .  The Saints were pained if their virtues were known, and
pleased that their imperfections should be seen.
-  Catechism on Sin (M.).
ALAS!  How many neglect or omit their spiritual duties just as easily as they
would take a glass of wine.  They will not do things unless they are in the mood,
or put themselves to any onconvenience.
-  On Sloth (Sp.)
A SAINT once complained to Our Lord after a temptation was past, saying:
:Where were Thee, O my loving Jesus, during this horrible tempest?"  Our Lord
replied:  "I was in the midst of your heart, and was pleased to see you combat
so bravely.
-  Sermon on Temptations (M.)
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#36
Page 67
IF the friendship of saints living in this world fills us with love for God,
how much more then shall we gain by considering the Saints in glory,
by invoking them, and taking them for our protectors!
-  Sermon for All Saints' Dy (D.)
ST. AUGUSTINE says that he who fears death does not love God; that
is very true.  If you had been long separated from your Father, would you
not be happy to see him again?
-  Catechism Notes on the Desire for Heaven (Sp.)
IN Heaven, God will place us as an architect places the stones in a building -
each in the place fitted for it.
-  Catechism Notes on Heaven (M.)
THE Blessed Virgin is like a good mother who, not content with looking after
all her children in general, watches over each one separately.
-  Sermon for the Feast of The Nativity of Our Lady.
WITH a humble person, whether he is laughed at or esteemed, praised or
blamed, honored or despised, whether people pay attention to him or pass
him by, it is all the same to him.
-  Catechism on Pride (Sp.)

Page 68
HOW consoling it is to do everything in the company and under the eyes of God;
to know that He sees everything and takes count of all!  One never tires of such a
life, for it is like spending one's time with a friend.  The hours pass like minutes . . . .
In fact, it is a foretaste of Heaven.
-  The Cure d'Ars and Contemplation (D.)
THE Holy Spirit wants to take us to Heaven; we have only to say "Yes," and to
let Him take us there.
-  Catechism on the Holy Spirit (Sp.)
WE complain when we suffer.  We have much more reason to complain when
we do not suffer, since nothing to likens us to Our Lord as the hearing of His Cross.
-  The Cure d'Ars and the sufferings inflicted on him by men (M.)
IT is faith we want. Ask God to open the eyes of your heart.  If you say to Our Lord
sincerely, like the blind man in Jericho; "O Lord, make me to see!"  you will
certainly obtain what you desire.
-  Catechism on the Real Presence (Sp.)
MY child, we must not be afraid of doing good, even if it costs us something.
-  Counsel (T.)
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#37
Page 69
THE Saints were filled with the love of God . . . . When you love a person,
you show him more or less affection, according as the ardor of your love
for him is more or less great.
-  Sermon on the Love of God (Sp.)
WHEN we come from our Communions, if anyone said to us:  "What are you
taking home with you?" we should be able to reply :  "I am carrying away Heaven!"
-  Catechism on the Blessed Sacrament (D.)
SEE, my children, the grace of God converts everything into gold; all our actions,
even the most indifferent of them, if animated by His Spirit, become works
meritorious for eternal life.
-  Sermon on Habitual Grace (Sp.)
TRY and labor to destroy in yourself all that displeases Jesus Christ, and you will
see how your Communions will make you walk with great strides on your way to Heaven.
-  E. M. 12.
GOD does not require of us the martyrdom of the body; He requires only the martyrdom
of the heart, and the will.
-  Catechism on Suffering (Sp.)
O MY children, how beautiful will that soul be in eternity, who makes frequent and
good Communions!
-  Le Cure d'Ars et le Don d'Intelligence.
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#38
Page 70
THE reward is so great for such a little effort. What have we to hear?
Some humiliations, losses, sickness, sharp words? .  . . But they will not
kill us!  The martyrs suffered much more than that . . . Or temptations?
But, by confidence in God and distrust of ourselves, we can overcome them.
-  On Salvation (C.)
TO pray well we need not speak much.
-  On the Joys of the Interior Life (Sp.)
IF we had faith, we should discern God hidden in the person of the priest,
like a light behind a glass.
-  Catechism on the Holy Eucharist (M.)
IT is a wonderful thing to have a heart and, little as it is, to be able to make
use of it in loving God.
-  Catechism on Purity (Sp.)
WHAT joy will there be at the judgment for those who will learn from
Jesus Christ that the kindness they showed to the poor was kindness shows
to Him.  "Yes," He will say to them, "it was I Myself that you came to see in
that poor person; it was to Me that you rendered that service; it was to Me
that you gave alms at your door."
-  Sermon on Almsgiving (D.)
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#39
Page 71
THOSE who run after vanities of the world which pass away like the
wind give a great deal for very little profit; they give their eternity
for the miserable smoke of the world.
-  Catechism on Sin (Sp.)
HAVE some pictures or statues of the Saints in your home, and prize
them with your crucifix, more than any of your possessions.  Often
it only needs a glance at a picture to bring to our minds the characteristics
of the Saints during their life on earth . . . . We learn from them lessons
of faith, courage, penitence, and the love of God.
-  Sermon for All Saints Day (F.)
LIKE the Saints, let us be very zealous in fulfilling all our duties; let the
devil never find us doing nothing, lest we should yield to temptation.
-  Sermon on Sloth (Sp.)
AH!  How sweet and full of comfort are the moments spent before the
Blessed Sacrament!  Are you in any trouble?  Come and throw yourself
at His feet . . . . Do people speak badly of you?  Come to Him and you
will find a good friend who will never fail you.
-  Style of the Cure d'Ars (P.)
"O MY GOD, why have Thee sent me into the world?"
"To save your soul."  "And why do Thee wish me to save my soul?"
"Because I love you."
-  Catechism on Salvation (Sp.)
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#40
Page 72

IF you really love God, you will greatly desire to see Thee loved by all the World.
-  Signs of true Love for God (A.)
WHEN we cannot come to church, let us turn towards the Tabernacle and make
a spiritual Communion.  A wall cannot separate us from God.
-  Catechism on Frequent Communion (Sp.)
WHEN we do some act of charity, let us direct our intention by saying:  "My God,
receive this gift or this service I am about to render, in prayer for such and such
a grace."
-  On the Sanctification of Daily Life (E.)
IF you set out to meet God, He will come to meet you.
-  Advice to an unbeliever (M.)
ARE you falsely accused, or loaded with insults?  All the better!  It is a good sign;
don't worry about it.  You are on the road which leads to Heaven.
-  The Strength of the Cure d'Ars in Suffering (D.)
DO your work, not in order to grow rich or to win the approval of men, but for
God's sake.
-  Sermon on Sloth.
WE ought to pray like little children of four years old, who have no guile.
They tell their Mother everything . . .

-  On Humility (C.)
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