Church Fathers 
Writings of the Church Fathers
We have everything from Him
Let us consider, then, brethren, of what matter we were formed, who we are, and with what nature we came into the world, and how He Who formed and created us brought us into His world from the darkness of a grave, and prepared his benefits for us before we were born. Since, therefore, we have everything from Him,… Read More ›
Cassian’s advice on anger
. . . When we are angry with others we should not seek solitude on the grounds that there, at least, no one will provoke us to anger, and that in solitude the virtue of long-suffering can easily be acquired. Our desire to leave our brethren is because of our pride, and because we do not… Read More ›
Take a survey of your abilities, and consult God
It is the opinion of St. Gregory the Great that the world is to some persons so full of ambushes and snares, or dangerous occasions of sin, that they cannot be saved but by choosing a safe retreat. Yet there are some who find the greatest dangers in solitude itself; so that it is necessary… Read More ›
Surmounting Temptation
What does it mean to surmount temptations, and what is the cure for them? The answer is this: you must never grow weary but pray to God with your whole heart, praising him and being patient in all circumstances; and then the temptation will leave you. Thus was Abraham tested, and he emerged victorious from… Read More ›
The Sign of God Working in Souls
With this in mind, then, you understand how it is in the spiritual life that the first fruits of the Holy Spirit give joy to those whose hearts he sees to be pure, and yet after bestowing this joy and sweetness on them the Spirit holds aloof and forsakes them. The explanation is this: he… Read More ›
The noxious weed: the love of money
Now nothing is more effective against the devil’s wiles, dearly beloved, than tender compassion and unselfish love; by these every sin can be either avoided or conquered. But such a degree of virtue cannot be attained until its contrary is overcome; and there is surely nothing so hostile to mercy and works of charity as… Read More ›
St. Augustine: There is no doubt the dead are aided by our prayers
There is an ecclesiastical discipline, as the faithful know, when the names of the martyrs are read aloud in that place at the altar of God, where prayer is not offered for them. Prayer, however, is offered for other dead who are remembered. It is wrong to pray for a martyr, to whose prayers we… Read More ›
A Year with the Church Fathers: Patristic Wisdom for Daily Living
Book written by: Mike Aquilina Charlotte, NC: Saint Benedict Press, 2010, 388 pages, Imitation Leather, $44.95, ISBN: 1935302353. Mike Aquilina has staked a pretty good claim to being the unofficial family historian of the Catholic Church. His 20 or so books — from the essential trilogy, “The Fathers of the Church,” (1999), “The Way of… Read More ›
St. Augustine: The Conversion
28. Now when deep reflection had drawn up out of the secret depths of my soul all my misery and had heaped it up before the sight of my heart, there arose a mighty storm, accompanied by a mighty rain of tears. That I might give way fully to my tears and lamentations, I stole… Read More ›
Without God, man falls into idolatry
Vatican City, Jun 15, 2011 / 01:02 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- “When God disappears, man falls into the slavery of idolatry,” Pope Benedict XVI said at the June 15 General Audience in St. Peter’s Square. This phenomenon, he said, is clearly “shown by the totalitarian regimes of our time and with various forms of nihilism,… Read More ›