Words & Quotes of St Paul of the Cross

Sayings of Saint Paul of the Cross

Thanks to a friend I discovered an extraordinary treasure of words and sayings of St Paul of the Cross on various subjects. It is a 106 year old book entitled "Flowers of the Passion -Thoughts of St Paul of the Cross" gathered from the Letters of the Saint by Rev Louis Th de Jesus Agonisant C.P. , published by Benzinger Brothers, 1893. Thankfully, the entire book is availible online for free through Google books here:

http://books.google.com/books?id=Dq0VAAAAYAAJ&dq=Flowers%20of%20the%20Passion%20St%20Paul%20of%20the%20Cross&pg=PA1#v=onepage&q=&f=false

Here are some of these "flowers" of St Paul taken from his letters:

"In times of aridity arouse your spirit gently, by acts of love; then rest in the will of God. It is thus that the soul gives the strongest proof of her fidelity to God. Make a bouquet of the sufferings of Jesus, and place it on the bosom of your soul, as I have told you. You can from time to time call them to mind, and say sweetly to your Saviour: 'Oh good Jesus, how swollen, bruised, and defiled with spittle do I behold Thy countenance! Oh my Love! why do I see Thee all covered with wounds? Oh Infinite Sweetness! why are Thy bones laid bare? Ah, what sufferings! what sorrows! O my God! for what are Thou all wounded! Ah, dear sufferings! dear wounds! I wish to keep you always in my heart'."

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"When you are alone in your room, take your crucifix, kiss its five wounds reverently, tell it to
preach to you a little sermon, and then listen to the words of eternal life that it speaks to your heart; listen to the pleading of the thorns, the nails, the precious Blood. Oh, what an eloquent
sermon!"

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"On awaking, keep your heart under control, by the remembrance of God, your Love, your only Good. When God inspires you with a sentiment of love, stop and taste it, as the bee sips the
honey.... Ah! when I reflect that my soul is the temple of God, that God dwells in me, how my heart rejoices! All sufferings and afflictions appear to me sweet and light.... What a fruitful source of meditation!
Live in the joy and the peace of the divine Majesty. Live lost in divine love. Live for divine love and of divine love. Oh cherished cross! Through thee my most bitter trials are replete with
graces!"

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"The Mass is the most favorable occasion to speak with the eternal Father, because then we
offer Him His only Son as a victim for our salvation. Before celebrating, reflect on the sufferings of your Redeemer, commune peaceably with Him, even in the midst of dryness; carry to the altar the needs of the entire world."

"The feast of the Blessed Sacrament is the feast of love. Oh, what great love! what immense charity! The moth is drawn to the light, and burns itself in it. May your soul likewise draw near to the divine Light! May it be reduced to ashes in that sacred flame, particularly during this great and sweet octave of Corpus Christi. Ah! eat, drink, run, sing, rejoice in honor of your divine Spouse."

"How wonderful are the treasures which are enclosed in the divine Eucharist! I exhort you, even though you live in the world, to receive Communion often, but with piety. Holy Communion is the most efficacious means of uniting one's self to God. Always prepare yourself well for this
sacred banquet. Have a very pure heart, and watch over your tongue, for it is on the tongue that the Sacred Host is laid. Carry Our Lord home with you after your thanksgiving, and let your heart be a living tabernacle for Jesus. Visit Him often in this interior tabernacle, offering Him your homage, and the sentiments of gratitude with which divine love will inspire you. Preserve carefully the sentiments of love with which you are filled after Communion."

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"My heart breaks when I think of the sorrows of the most holy Virgin. Oh tender Mother, unutterable was Thy grief in finding Thyself deprived of your dear Son, and then in beholding Him dead in Thy arms! Ah! who can realize the sadness of Mary when She returned to Bethany
after the burial of her Son? Jesus expires on the cross! He is dead that we may have life. All creation mourns: the sun darkens, the earth trembles, the rocks burst, and the veil of the temple is rent in twain; my heart alone remains harder than a rock!

All I say to you now is, console the poor Mother of Jesus. It is a miracle that She does not die; She is absorbed in the sufferings of Jesus. Imitate Her, and ask the Magdalen and the beloved disciple St. John what are their sentiments."

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"From this valley of tears, turn your gaze continually to God, ever awaiting the moment when you will be united to Him in heaven. Often contemplate heaven, and fervently exclaim:
'What a beautiful abode there is above! It is destined for us!'

"Sigh longingly after its possession. Sometimes say, while your eyes are moist with tears:
'Nothing in this world pleases me; I no longer care for anything but my God. Yes, I hope, yes, I wish to possess Him, and I hope this of the mercy of God, through the merits of my Saviour's Passion and the sufferings of my good Mother Mary.'

"When you behold a beautiful landscape, say: 'Heaven is more beautiful than that! Above there are true delights and holy pleasures!'

"Let us live, then, absorbed in the thought and the desire of
that immense ocean of felicity which we are to enjoy in heaven."

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"Oh my God! teach me how to express myself. I wish that I were all aflame with love! More than that: I wish that I could sing hymns of praise in the fire of love, and extol the marvellous mercies that uncreated Love has bestowed on us! Is it not truly a duty to thank God for His gifts? Yes, for sure, but I know not how. I wish to do so, and I know not how. To faint away with the desire to love this great God more and more is little. To consume ourselves for Him is little. What shall we do? Ah! we shall live for that divine Lover in a perpetual agony of love. But, do you think that I have said enough? No; I would say more if I knew how.
Do you know what consoles me somewhat? To know that our great God is an infinite good, and that nobody is capable of loving and praising Him as much as He deserves."

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"Beginners in the service of God sometimes lose confidence when they fall into any fault. When you feel so unworthy a sentiment rising within you, you must lift your heart to God and
consider that all your faults, compared with divine goodness, are less than a bit of tattered thread thrown into a sea of fire.
Suppose that the whole horizon, as far as you can see from this mountain, were a sea of fire; if we cast into it a bit of tattered thread, it will disappear in an instant. So, when you have committed
a fault, humble yourself before God, and cast your fault into the infinite ocean of, charity, and at once it will be effaced from your soul; at the same time all distrust will disappear."

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"Have you ever noticed rocks in the sea, beaten by the tempest? A furious wave dashes against the rock, another and yet another does likewise, yet the rock is unmoved. But look at it after
the storm has subsided, and you will see that the flood has but served to wash and purify it of the defilement it had contracted during the calm. Hereafter I wish you to be as a rock.
A wave dashes against you? Silence! It assails you ten, a hundred, a thousand times? Silence! Say, at most, in the midst of the storm, "My Father, my Father, I am all Thine! Oh dear,
O' sweet will of God, I adore Thee !"

"The statue must be chiselled with very sharp tools before it is fit to be placed in the grand gallery."

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"Build an oratory within yourself, and there have Jesus on the altar of your heart. Speak to Him often while you are doing your work. Speak to Him of His holy love, of His holy sufferings and of the sorrows of most holy Mary"
-St Paul of the Cross writing a reply on Jan 9, 1760 to a busy married woman who felt that she couldn't seem to find enough time to pray.

"If, during life, we have been kind to the suffering souls in purgatory, God will see that help be not denied us after death." -St Paul of the Cross