Quotes About Reflection

Where we see the same faults followed regularly by the same misfortunes, we may reasonably think that if we could have known the first we might have avoided the others.

But what is government itself, but the greatest of all reflection on human nature?

What is government itself but the greatest of all reflections on human nature? If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary.

But what is government itself but the greatest of all reflections on human nature.

Cool and candid people will at once reflect, that the purest of human blessings must have a portion of alloy in them; that the choice must always be made, if not of the lesser evil, at least of the GREATER, not the PERFECT, good.

when one finds oneself participating in an endeavor entirely without merit, one withdraws.

Everything I have described so far seems to have happened to somebody else—to somebody else's father. But the death of a parent happens to you, and, once it starts, it never stops. It dislodges everything.

When John O'Malley was a Jesuit novice, an older priest told him three things to remember when living in community: First, you're not God. Second, this isn't heaven. Third, don't be an ass.

Religion can provide a check to my tendency to think that I am the center of the universe, that I know better than anyone about God, and that God speaks most clearly through me.

Great works are often quiet works.

Fully human and fully divine" is, to use a loaded word, a mystery. Something not to be solved, but to be pondered.

Therefore the problem of sanctity and salvation is in fact the problem of finding out who I am and of discovering my true self. —Thomas Merton, New Seeds of Contemplation

Gehenna is lovely these days.

The traditional first step is gratitude. You recall the good things that happened to you during the day, and you give thanks for any "benefits," as Ignatius wrote.

The second step in the examen is asking for the grace to "know my sins," to see where you have turned away from the deepest part of yourself, the part that calls you to God. Where did you act contrary to your better judgment or to God's voice inside you, to the divine spark within?

The Seven Storey Mountain,

Every Sunday night in the novitiate our community gathered for "faith sharing," which meant speaking to one another about our spiritual lives: where we had experienced God in our daily lives and what our prayer was like. There were two rules. First, everything was confidential. Second, no comments were allowed after someone spoke, unless it was a question asked to clarify something.

GOD COMMUNICATES WITH US in many ways. But prayer is a special time when God's voice is often heard most clearly because we are giving God our undivided attention. Whether in Ignatian contemplation, lectio divina, the colloquy, the examen, or any other practice, the "still small" voice can be heard with a clarity that can delight, astonish, and surprise you. So when you pray, however you pray, and feel that God is speaking to you—pay attention.

Maybe one reason that the work seems dull is because you're not bringing it up before God in prayer,

The fourth step of the examen is asking for forgiveness from God for anything sinful that you've done during the day.

Finally, in the last step of the examen you ask for the grace of God's help during the next day, and you can close with any prayer you like. Ignatius suggests the Our Father.

True prayer wants others to flourish. If any still have a hard time praying for church leaders, they might use a prayer that I find helpful when I am struggling with another person. My prayer is to see that person as God sees him or her.

Discernment, says Lonsdale, is about the "spiritual interpretation and evaluation of feelings, and particularly with the direction in which we are moved by them.

Looking at our personal relationships can help us get our prayer life in order.