Favorite Vocation Quotes

[DominicanPhilosophy]

"Virtues grow together." -Sr. Mary Brigid, OP
"Pray hard and cling to the name of Jesus." -Sr. Miriam, OP

Neither are really vocation-specific quotes, but are vital quotes, I believe, when referring to discernment in general. Also, I really love the quote in my signature, because for me, I suffer with spiritual dryness a lot, but to remember to express our love to Jesus no matter how we *feel* is something that will make us grow in holiness and therefore closer to Him! Once we are able to triumph over our feelings - which are very human - with complete confidence in Christ, we will be able to clearly discern His will for us.

Then, regarding vocations:

Hos 2:16, 17c-18, 21-22

Thus says the LORD:
I will allure her;
I will lead her into the desert
and speak to her heart.
She shall respond there as in the days of her youth,
when she came up from the land of Egypt.

On that day, says the LORD,
She shall call me “My husband,”
and never again “My baal.”

[i]I will espouse you to me forever[/i]:
I will espouse you in right and in justice,
in love and in mercy;
I will espouse you in fidelity,
and you shall know the LORD.

Okay, so technically not a quote, per se, but The Quote! So beautiful!

[johnnydigit]

I will come to you in the silence
I will lift you from all your fear
You will hear My voice
I claim you as My choice
Be still, and know I am near

I am hope for all who are hopeless
I am eyes for all who long to see
In the shadows of the night,
I will be your light
Come and rest in Me

Chorus:
[b]Do not be afraid, I am with you
I have called you each by name
Come and follow Me
I will bring you home
I love you and you are mine [/b]

You are Mine
By David Haas

[johnnydigit]

i consider this song my "vocation song". it is "All For You" by Starfield. it's about abandoning yourself to God and letting it all go. the part in bold is what really tugs at me. i finally decided to let go when i was on pilgrimage in Italy, on a 22-hour bus ride while crossing into Poland.. *sniff*


Nothing compares to
Life I have in You
Nothing of this world satisfies
So, I want to let go
I want to let You know
All that I have to give is Yours

Here I am
As gold to the fire
I will surrender to Your hand
To this place
Lord, I have come ready for Your touch

It's all for You
It's all for You
I'm letting go
I'm letting go

What is it in me
That hangs on for so long
Why do I fight the tears that come?
I work so hard to
Keep in control when
All that I want is to let go

I'll take this life
And lay it down
I'm letting go
I'm letting go
[b]My hopes and dreams
Here at Your feet
I'm letting go
I'm letting go

And I am ready for Your life
And I am ready for You now[/b]

[johnnydigit]

"[b]A monk is he who directs his gaze towards God alone, and who, being at peace with God, becomes a source of peace for others.[/b]" -St. Theodore Studite

[johnnydigit]

The Benjamin Gate - "The Calling"

I see the fire in your eyes
And I hope for the world that it never dies
I felt the softness of your inner core
All your intentions so pure and so raw

I hear you calling
Don't look away
We hear you callling
Don't turn away

[b]I see what you could become
I know that your doubt will be undone
And as time brings a change
There'll be no holding you back again[/b]

I heard you whisper gently
But it's only when you stand on your own that you'll be free

I hear you calling
We hear you calling
Isolation won't be your protection

======

ok that's all for now.

[doe-jo]

[quote name='FSM Sister' post='1593835' date='Jul 7 2008, 12:28 PM']Pray like it is all up to God, but work like it is all up to you.
-anon[/quote]
I've heard the same quote but it was worded differently.

"Work as if everything depended on you. Pray as if everything depended on God."

[nowak.chris]

"To be a ring-bearer is to be alone." ~LotR

"When you become a priest, if you ever have the great misfortune of getting rich, I will not even pay you a visit!" ~ Don Bosco's mother (found in "Come & Follow Me" by Fr Manelli, FI.)

[Rising_Suns]

A few serious quotes;

"If anyone saith that the marriage state is to be preferred before the state of virginity, let him be anathema." -Council of Trent

"They [religious] live more purely, they fall more rarely, they rise more speedily, they are aided more powerfully, they live more peacefully, they die more securely, and they are rewarded more abundantly." -Saint Bernard of Clairvaux

"Though I could not at first bend my will to be a nun, I saw that the religious state was the best and safest. And thus, by little and little, I resolved to force myself into it. The struggle lasted three months. [ ... ] When I took the habit, Our Lord at once made me understand how He helps those who do violence to themselves, in order to serve Him, I was filled with a joy so great that it has never failed me to this day." - Saint Teresa of Avila

"If a person thinks of embracing a secular life, he should ask and desire more evident signs that God calls him to a secular life, than if there were question of embracing the evangelical counsels; for Our Lord Himself has evidently exhorted us to embrace His counsels." - Saint Ignatius

[url="http://www.religious-vocation.com/"]http://www.religious-vocation.com/[/url]


Blessings.

Edited July 10, 2008 by Rising_Suns

[johnnydigit]

[quote name='Rising_Suns' post='1596781' date='Jul 9 2008, 11:51 PM']A few serious quotes;

"If anyone saith that the marriage state is to be preferred before the state of virginity, let him be anathema." -Council of Trent

"They [religious] live more purely, they fall more rarely, they rise more speedily, they are aided more powerfully, they live more peacefully, they die more securely, and they are rewarded more abundantly." -Saint Bernard of Clairvaux

"Though I could not at first bend my will to be a nun, I saw that the religious state was the best and safest. And thus, by little and little, I resolved to force myself into it. The struggle lasted three months. [ ... ] When I took the habit, Our Lord at once made me understand how He helps those who do violence to themselves, in order to serve Him, I was filled with a joy so great that it has never failed me to this day." - Saint Teresa of Avila

"If a person thinks of embracing a secular life, he should ask and desire more evident signs that God calls him to a secular life, than if there were question of embracing the evangelical counsels; for Our Lord Himself has evidently exhorted us to embrace His counsels." - Saint Ignatius

[url="http://www.religious-vocation.com/"]http://www.religious-vocation.com/[/url]
Blessings.[/quote]

great site with some very practical advice. i discovered the site and read those quotes when i saw this vocation video [url="http://www.gloria.tv/?video=dd6kdreyqi7c2mletdly"]http://www.gloria.tv/?video=dd6kdreyqi7c2mletdly[/url]


Pope John Paul II , Vita Consecrata, no. 32
“As a way of showing forth the Church's holiness, it is to be recognized that the consecrated life, which mirrors Christ's own way of life, has an objective superiority. Precisely for this reason, it is an especially rich manifestation of Gospel values and a more complete expression of the Church's purpose, which is the sanctification of humanity. The consecrated life proclaims and in a certain way anticipates the future age, when the fullness of the Kingdom of Heaven, already present in its first fruits and in mystery,[62] will be achieved and when the children of the resurrection will take neither wife nor husband, but will be like the angels of God (cf. Mt. 22:30)”


Pope Pius XII, Sacra Virginitas, no. 32
“This doctrine of the excellence of virginity and of celibacy and of their superiority over the married state was, as we have already said, revealed by our Divine Redeemer and by the Apostle of the Gentiles; so too, it was solemnly defined as a dogma of divine faith by the holy council of Trent, and explained in the same way by all the holy Fathers and Doctors of the Church."


Catechism of the Catholic Church, p. 916
"The state of the consecrated life is thus one way of experiencing a "more intimate" consecration, rooted in Baptism and dedicated totally to God. In the consecrated life, Christ's faithful, moved by the Holy Spirit, propose to follow Christ more nearly, to give themselves to God who is loved above all and, pursuing the perfection of charity in the service of the Kingdom, to signify and proclaim in the Church the glory of the world to come."


I Corinthians Chp. VII
"It is a good thing for a man not to touch a woman. [v.1] Indeed, I wish that everyone were like I am [celibate]. [v.7] I should like you to be free from anxieties. An unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord; how he may please the Lord. But a married man is anxious about the things of the world; how he may please his wife, and he is divided. [v.32] Are you free of a wife? Then do not look for a wife. If you marry, however, you do not sin, nor does an unmarried woman sin if she marries; but such people will experience affliction in their earthly life, and I would like to spare you that." [v.28] (see also Mark 12:18-27, Mtt 19:10-12, 2 Timothy Ch. 2:3)

[RosaMystica]

"Love expands you. The more you love, the more you have the capacity to love." - Mother Assumpta, OP

[DominicanPhilosophy]

YES! DSMME, former Nashville Dominican -- love M. Assumpta, and a very wise quote!

[Rising_Suns]

"To be a mother means to love and to suffer. To be a nun means to love and to suffer more."
-St. Teresa of Avila

[Thomist-in-Training]

[list]
[*]"Sometimes, someone will ask me: 'Father, what would you have been if you hadn't been a priest?' And I answer: 'Oh... ...nothing useful.'"

--Fr. Terra, FSSP, explaining how one is made to fit one's vocation.


[*]On the Marian Vow which the Franciscans of the Immaculate make according to the manner of St. Kolbe:

"If Our Lady wants me to fly a plane, I will fly a plane!"
--Sr. Maria Cristiana, FSI
[/list]

[johnnydigit]

from [u]Confessions[/u] by St. Augustine (Book 6, Ch. 7):

[indent]Why, therefore, do I delay in abandoning my hopes of this world and giving myself wholly to seek after God and the blessed life?

"But wait a moment. This life also is pleasant, and it has a sweetness of its own, not at all negligible. We must not abandon it lightly, for it would be shameful to lapse back into it again. See now, it is important to gain some post of honor. And what more should I desire? I have crowds of influential friends, if nothing else; and, if I push my claims, a governorship may be offered me, and a wife with some money, so that she would not be an added expense. This would be the height of my desire. Many men, who are great and worthy of imitation, have combined the pursuit of wisdom with a marriage life."

..

(Book 6, Ch.12)
I quoted against him the examples of men who had been married and still lovers of wisdom, who had pleased God and had been loyal and affectionate to their friends. I fell far short of them in greatness of soul, and, enthralled with the disease of my carnality and its deadly sweetness, I dragged my chain along, fearing to be loosed of it. Thus I rejected the words of him who counseled me wisely, as if the hand that would have loosed the chain only hurt my wound.
[/indent]

[Thomist-in-Training]

God does not choose a young woman because she is good, but because He is so good.

The one who thinks herself qualified to be a great success in the cloister is probably the one who will fail, whereas the one who is confused and humbled at the idea that God should look towards such poor material as herself for the fashioning of a contemplative nun is likely to persevere.

Mother Mary Francis, PCC (Poor Clare Colettine)

[Laudem Gloriae]

"A Carmelite, my darling, is a soul who has gazed on the Crucified, who has seen Him offering Himself to His Father as a Victim for souls and, recollecting herself in this great vision of the charity of Christ, has understood the passionate love of His soul, and has wanted to give herself as He did! And on the mountain of Carmel, in silence, in solitude, in prayer that never ends, for it continues through everything, the Carmelite already lives as if in Heaven: 'by God alone.'"

Bl. Elizabeth of the Trinity L133





"If anyone is seeking God, know that the Beloved is seeking that person much more."

St. John of the Cross, The Living Flame of Love 3:28



"That is the whole life of Carmel, to live in Him. Then all sacrifices, all immolations become divine, for through everything the soul sees Him whom it loves, and everything leads it to Him; it is a continual heart-to-heart! You see you can already be a Carmelite in soul. Love silence and prayer, for that is the essence of Carmelite life."

Bl. Elizabeth of the Trinity L136


"In Carmel we find many sacrifices of this kind, but they are so sweet when the heart is wholly taken by love. I will tell you what I do when I feel a little tired: I look at the Crucified, and when I see how He delivered Himself up for me, it seems to me that I can do no less for Him than spend myself, wear myself out in order to repay Him a little of what He has given me!"

Bl. Elizabeth of the Trinity L156

[doe-jo]

I'm loving the quotes... keep 'em comin'!

[Rising_Suns]

"Let no soul, even the most miserable, fall prey to doubt; for, as long as one is alive, each one can become a great saint, so great is the power of God's grace. It remains only for us not to oppose God's actions."

- [url="http://www.religious-vocation.com/discerning_religious_vocation.html"]Diary of Saint Faustina, p.134[/url]

Edited July 18, 2008 by Rising_Suns

[Domine ut Videam]

"Do not be afraid of Christ! He takes nothing away and He gives you everything. When we give ourselves to Him, we receive a hundred-fold in return. Yes, open, open wide the doors to Christ - and you will find true life." -Pope Benedict XVI

"Drop everything and go...and when you do be not afraid." -Fr.Thomas Cook

[laetitia crucis]

I like this thread.


And wanted to add this:

[quote]A vocation is so very sacred that one does not like to speak of it; I never mentioned it to anyone -- my classmates, my parents, nor to the priests (except Father Kelly, a curate in the cathedral parish). Always associated with that sense of the gift of a treasure was the frailty of the earthenware pot which was to house it. I would often drive it out of my mind, only to have it come back again. For the most part, the religious vocation is rather a silent but insistent whisper, yet one that demands a response; no violent shaking of bedposts or loud noises in the night. Just "you are called to be a priest."

Neither is the vocation so imperative that it makes acceptance a necessity rather than a willing obedience. In the Old Testament story, when God spoke to young Samuel, there was no voice audible to anyone but the child. Nor was there anything to prove it was divine; that is why Samuel twice went to Eli after his name was called, believing that it was Eli who had summoned him. The experience of the aged priest, Eli, was necessary finally to convince the boy of the divinity of the speaker: "Eli, perceived that the Lord had called the child." Samuel did not at first know it was the voice of the Lord. Neither do most of us, when first we are called, recognize it as such except by its persistence and the calmness and peace with which it possesses the soul.

-- Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, [i]Treasure in Clay[/i] [/quote]