6 Quotes by Francisco De Osuna

There is no better way of defending yourself against unkind words than to treat them as a joke. I know someone personally who laughingly passed off such remarks as said in fun, and silenced his enemies with a witty rejoinder They soon lost their bad temper and made light of what they had said in earnest. The humble know all these tactics, but the proud take offence at everything and are never at peace.

God enters the soul better when it is closed to all but Him, to whom it renders itself wholly with a fervent longing that is taught by no knowledge gained from any creatures, for it is above them all.

The chief characteristic of this spiritual exercise is to recollect the heart. This is the highest effect left by grace received by this means in the soul, from which it casts out all superfluous cares and idle thoughts which distract men and drive them outside themselves. Recollection brings them back and calms and pacifies them.

The first class of men are those who have begun to build a house without finishing it. These are such as have entered the house of the religious Order they prefer and have, as it were, built it for themselves by choosing it, but by the non-observance of the minor practices proper to beginners, they have not finished the building. These people are unsuitable for the conflict of recollection, because as one of the saints declares: “He must not ask for greater perfection who despises the leaser.

To understand why the angels praise God as fervently when he condemns as when he saves a man, you must know that there are two chief reasons for blessing him which include all others. The first is his mercy, the second his justice. If he saves a soul, the angels praise him for his mercy; if he condemns it, they bless him for his justice. Thus, for diverse reasons, they thank him equally for all he does.

Be warned, brother: solder your heart and adorn it; join the pieces, which are your cares, so that with all your faculties you may draw near to God. Cover the vase of your heart lest the dust of idle thoughts should fall into it.