Pope Francis released his latest apostolic exhortation today: Guadete et Exsultate: on the Call to Holiness in Today’s World. The full text (a quick 98-pages) is worth a read.
To whet your appetite, here are some inspiring quotes from the Holy Father:
1.“The Lord asks everything of us, and in return he offers us true life, the happiness for which we were created. He wants us to be saints and not to settle for a bland and mediocre existence.” §1
2. “Every saint is a message which the Holy Spirit takes from the riches of Jesus Christ and gives to his people.” §21
3. “We need ‘to acknowledge jubilantly that our life is essentially a gift, and recognize that our freedom is a grace. This is not easy today, in a world that thinks it can keep something for itself, the fruits of its own creativity or freedom’.” §5
4. “[T]here is a hierarchy of virtues that bids us seek what is essential. The primacy belongs to the theological virtues [faith, hope, charity], which have God as their object and motive. At the centre is charity.” §60
5. “We must never forget that when the New Testament tells us that we will have to endure suffering for the Gospel’s sake, it speaks precisely of persecution.” §92
6. “Those who really wish to give glory to God by their lives, who truly long to grow in holiness, are called to be single-minded and tenacious in their practice of the works of mercy.” §107
7. “Humility can only take root in the heart through humiliations. Without them, there is no humility or holiness. If you are unable to suffer and offer up a few humiliations, you are not humble and you are not on the path to holiness.” §118
8. “The Christian life is a constant battle. We need strength and courage to withstand the temptations of the devil and to proclaim the Gospel. This battle is sweet, for it allows us to rejoice each time the Lord triumphs in our lives.” §158
9. “When, in God’s presence, we examine our life’s journey, no areas can be off limits.” §175
10. “Mary our Mother does not need a flood of words. She does not need us to tell her what is happening in our lives. All we need do is whisper, time and time again: “Hail Mary…” §176
