Blaise-ing Beyond The Boundaries of Banality
- Small minds are concerned with the extraordinary, great minds with the ordinary.
- Unless we love the truth we cannot know it.
- Nothing is as approved as mediocrity, the majority has established it and it fixes its fangs on whatever gets beyond it either way.
- We are only falsehood, duplicity, contradiction; we both conceal and disguise ourselves from ourselves.
- We never do evil so effectually as when we are led to do it by a false principle of conscience.
- Nothing is more dastardly than to act with bravado toward God.
- God only pours out his light into the mind after having subdued the rebellion of the will by an altogether heavenly gentleness which charms and wins it.
- Christian piety annihilates the egoism of the heart; worldly politeness veils and represses it.
- The power of a man's virtue should not be measured by his special efforts, but by his ordinary doing.
- God instituted prayer to communicate to creatures the dignity of causality.
- Man is nothing but insincerity, falsehood, and hypocrisy, both in regard to himself and in regard to others. He does not wish that he should be told the truth, he shuns saying it to others; and all these moods, so inconsistent with justice and reason, have their roots in his heart.
- The more I see of mankind, the more I prefer my dog.
- Nature has perfections, in order to show that she is the image of God; and defects, to show that she is only his image.
- Not only do we know God through Jesus Christ, we only know ourselves through Jesus Christ.
- All the maxims have been written. It only remains to put them into practice.
Popular Posts
Tertullian (d. ca. 250) In all our travels and movements, in all our coming in and going out, in putting on our shoes, at the bath, at the table, in lighting our candles, in lying down, in sitting down, whatever employment occupies us, we mark our foreheads with the Sign of the Cross (De corona, 30). The Sign of the Cross is both a prayer and a ritual blessing. The way in which a worshipper makes the Sign of the Cross can say a lot about a person's intentions and practice of the Faith. Is the gesture deliberate and reverent, or careless and rushed? Is the gesture lazy or haphazard? Does someone look like they're swatting flies? Are some words omitted? Picture any of the above scenarios, but replace ‘Sign of the Cross’ with a loving gesture toward a spouse. Now imagine it as a half-hearted kiss, a limp hug, or even a weak handshake with a friend. The way the gesture is carried out can say a lot about what the other person may or may not be feeling and thinking. What do we want t...
Are you thirsty for solid Catholic content? Do you seek to raise your children in a vibrant Catholic culture that helps them become faithful adults? Are your hungry for truth, goodness and beauty? Are you tired of parish programs that waste resources and do little to feed the soul? Are you seeking to learn how you can help build up the Body of Christ? Introducing Brian Holdsworth. If you haven't watched this articulate, insightful and faithful fellow share a thoroughly Catholic understanding of the Faith, then you are invited to start by watching one of his videos. Visit Mr. Holdsworth's main site at: https://www.brianholdsworth.ca/ Brian Holdsworth, a Catholic convert, resides in Edmonton, Alberta, with his wife and seven children. His videos are rich with genuine Catholic content, revealing a deep faith. Far from being just another "influencer" or social media personality, he is a true man of God, passionately advocating for truth, goodness, and beauty within the C...
Ever wonder what the curious pointed oval shape in religious art is called, the shape that is also used in various designs adopted by guilds and religious groups? That almond shape is called the mandorla, the Italian word for almond. The mandorla is a significant symbol in Christian art and theology, characterized by its almond shape, which is formed by the intersection of two circles. This shape has deep theological implications and is often used to represent the divine presence, particularly in relation to Christ and the Virgin Mary. Symbolic Meanings Divine Presence. The mandorla is frequently depicted as a radiant shape surrounding Christ in His glory, particularly in scenes of the Transfiguration or the Ascension. It symbolizes the divine light and glory that emanates from Christ, emphasizing His dual nature as both God and man. The use of the mandorla in art serves to highlight the sacredness of the figure it surrounds, marking a clear distinction between the divine and the eart...
DURANDUS | NLM Evensong is a liturgy of the Daily Office where psalms and other biblical passages are sung or said, usually close to sunset. The Latin word vesperas was rendered as aefensang by Old English speakers, and this became "evensong" in modern English. https://singtheoffice.com/ | Music companion for chanting the Office. Variable audio support available. A very useful site! Structure The office of Vespers normally includes psalms, the Magnificat , a hymn, and other prayers. By the Early Middle Ages, it became common for secular clergy to combine Vespers and Compline . By the sixteenth century, worshippers in western Europe conceived 'evensong' as Vespers and Compline performed without break. Modern Byzantine services advertised as 'vespers' often similarly conclude with Compline . Background The Anglican archbishop Thomas Cranmer created choral evensong as a component of the Book of Common Prayer (1549) during the Edwardian Reformation, drawing on t...
Two copies of the St. Gregory's Prayer Book (SGPB) arrived a few days ago. It is a lovely work replete with beautiful devotions drawn from the English Patrimony. Both Ordinariate and diocesan Catholics would do well to acquire a copy to access its riches. The SGPB is "a collaborative venture" of the three personal ordinariates and the Anglicanorum Coetibus Society . A blurb from the Ignatius Press site where one can go to purchase copies: https://www.ignatius.com/St-Gregorys-Prayer-Book-P3228.aspx The St Gregory's Prayer Book is a beautifully produced leatherette prayer book compiled by the Ordinariates established by Pope Benedict XVI and drawing on the riches of the Anglican liturgical heritage and the exquisite Cranmerian language of the Book of Common Prayer to further enrich the panoply of Catholic liturgy and devotion. The text includes ancient English collects, introits and hymns available together for the first time for the whole Church...
St John Henry Newman, Victoria, BC | Betrothal Rite The Ordinariate is blessed with a patrimonial treasure of tremendous beauty and goodness. The Solemn Rite of Betrothal might be familiar to more than a few Anglicans. It is a beautiful gift that helps couples enter more fully into their emerging communion in Christ and provides an acknowledgement of the path ahead, ornamented with avenues through which a couple may dispose themselves to God's grace. Betrothal betroth (v.) | Online Etymology Dictionary c. 1300, betrouthen , "to promise to marry (a woman)," from be- , here probably with a sense of "thoroughly," + Middle English treowðe "truth," from Old English treowðe "truth, a pledge". It is attested from 1560s as "contract to give (a woman) in marriage to another, affiance." Middle English also had a verb truth ( treuthen ) "become betrothed" (c. 1300). -al suffix forming nouns of action from verbs, mostly from Latin an...
PSALM 37
Keep innocency, and take heed unto the thing that is right : for that shall bring a man peace at the last.
POPE LEO XIV
The right to freedom of expression, freedom of conscience, religious freedom, and even the right to life are being restricted in the name of other so-called new rights, with the result that the very framework of human rights is losing its vitality and creating space for force and oppression. This occurs when each right becomes self-referential, and especially when it becomes disconnected from reality, nature, and truth.
ST AUGUSTINE
The truth is like a lion; you don’t have to defend it. Let it loose; it will defend itself.
SAINT PHILIP NERI
The greatness of our love of God must be tested by the desire we have of suffering for His love.
MARCUS AURELIUS
There is but one thing of real value - to cultivate truth and justice, and to live without anger in the midst of lying and unjust men.
MARK TWAIN
If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything.
ARTHUR SCHOPENHAUER
All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident.
Comments
Post a Comment
Your comments will be appreciated and posted if 1) they are on topic and 2) preserve decorum.
Stand by your word.