Tag Archives: St. John Paul II

Wonder & Whimsy: our identity, mission, and merciful Love

A weekly curation of quotations I come across in my reading life (or on random condiment jars) — from the inspirational to the miscellaneous. Perhaps one inspires you or catches your fancy too…

Our identity…

“We are not the sum of our weaknesses and failures. We are the sum of the Father’s love for us.” – St. John Paul II

Our mission…

“We have been called to heal wounds, to unite what has fallen apart, and to bring home those that have lost their way.” St. Francis of Assisi

Our merciful Love…

“Love bade me welcome: yet my soul drew back,

     Guilty of dust and sin.

But quick-eyed Love, observing me grow slack

From my first entrance in,

Drew nearer to me, sweetly questioning,

If I lack’d anything.

 

A guest, I answer’d, worthy to be here:

Love said, You shall be he.

I the unkind, ungrateful? Ah my dear,

I cannot look on thee.

Love took my hand, and smiling did reply,

Who made the eyes by I?

 

Truth Lord, but I have marr’d them: let my shame

Go where it doth deserve.

And know you not, says Love, who bore the blame?

My dear, then I will serve.

You must sit down, says Love, and taste my meat:

So I did sit and eat.”

(“Love” by George Herbert)

 

Wonder & Whimsy: God’s Heart, Happiness & Being Chosen

A weekly curation of quotations I come across in my reading life (or on random condiment jars) — from the inspirational to the miscellaneous. Perhaps one inspires you or catches your fancy too…

At home in God’s Heart…

“This is and has been the Father’s work from the beginning — to bring us into the home of His heart.” – George MacDonald

The happiness you seek…

“It is Jesus you seek when you dream of happiness; he is waiting for you when nothing else you find satisfies you; he is the beauty to which you are attracted; it is he who provokes you with that thirst for fullness that will not let you settle for compromise; it is he who urges you to shed the masks of a false life.” – St. John Paul II

Before you start your work…

“Whenever you begin any good work you should first of all make a most pressing appeal to Christ our Kind to bring it to perfection.” – From the Rule of St. Benedict (His memorial is today! Read this quote in context in the Office of Readings for the Liturgy of the Hours.)

What being “chosen” means…

“To be chosen as the Beloved of God is something radically different. Instead of excluding others, it includes others. Instead of rejecting others as less valuable, it accepts others in their own uniqueness. It is not a competitive, but a compassionate choice.” – Henri Nouwen, Life of the Beloved.

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