Search the Archive

"Brighten up your houses through the recitation of the Qur’an, and do not make them like graves, similar to what the Jews and Christians have done ."

"Nothing is in the intellect that was not first in the senses."

"With regard to the abuse of authority, this also may come about in two ways. First, when what is ordered by an authority is opposed to the object for which that authority was constituted (if, for exam…"

"The order of authority derives from God, as the Apostle says [in Romans 13:1-7]. For this reason, the duty of obedience is, for the Christian, a consequence of this derivation of authority fro…"

"Jesus Christ: Bene scripsísti de me, Thoma; quam ergo mercédem accípies? Aquinas: Non áliam, Dómine, nisi teípsum."

"Raynalde, non possum, quia omnia quae scripsi videntur mihi palae. Replying to Reginald of Piperno: Videntur mihi palae respectu eorum quae vidi et revelata sunt mihi."

"Omne verum a quocumque dicatur a Spiritu Sancto est."

"If … the motion of the earth were circular, it would be violent and contrary to nature, and could not be eternal, since … nothing violent is eternal.… It follows, therefore, that the earth is not move…"

"The reason, however, why the philosopher may be likened to the poet is this: both are concerned with the marvellous."

"O saving Victim, opening wideThe gate of heaven to man below,Our foes press on from every side,Thine aid supply, Thy strength bestow."

"Thus Angels' Bread is madeThe Bread of man today:The Living Bread from HeavenWith figures doth away:O wondrous gift indeed!The poor and lowly mayUpon their Lord and Master feed."

"Down in adoration falling,Lo! the sacred Host we hail;Lo! o'er ancient forms departing,Newer rites of grace prevail;Faith for all defects supplying,Where the feeble senses fail."

"Pange, lingua, gloriosiCorporis mysteriumSanguinisque pretiosi,Quem in mundi pretiumFructus ventris generosiRex effudit gentium."

"Why should the Devil have all the best tunes?"

"It is difficult to realize that three years have elapsed since Your Holiness announced that you planned to convene an Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church--the first in almost a hundred years. Du…"

"It is with great pleasure that I have learned of your election as Supreme Pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church. I join with other Americans in extending my congratulations on your elevation to this hi…"

"[In Pope John XXIII] the novelty did not concern doctrine, but rather the way of expounding it and perhaps sometimes interpreting it, without ever betraying or modifying it. And of applying it to conc…"

"When he was cardinal and patriarch of Venice, the future pope was talking with a wealthy city resident and told him, "You and I have one thing in common: money. You have a lot and I have nothing at al…"

"Not long after he was elected pope, John was walking in the streets of Rome. A woman passed him and said to her friend, "My God, he's so fat!" Overhearing what she said, he turned around and replied, …"

"When a cardinal complained that a rise in Vatican salaries meant a particular usher earned as much as the cardinal, the pope remarked: "That usher has 10 children; I hope the cardinal doesn't.""

"Visiting a hospital he asked a boy what he wanted to be when he grew up. The boy said either a policeman or a pope. "I would go in for the police if I were you," the Holy Father said. "Anyone can beco…"

"John XXIII, when asked "How many people work in the Vatican?" replied, "Probably about half"."

"[Pacem esse] dicimus in veritate positam, ad iustitiae praecepta constitutam, caritate altam et expletam, libertate postremo auspice effectam."

"Weak arguments are often thrust before my path; but although they are most unsubstantial, it is not easy to destroy them. There is not a more difficult feat known than to cut through a cushion with a …"

"The word grace evidently implies that there is no antecedent merit. And in this way the apostle to the Romans appears to argue, when he says, 'And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise g…"

"Let me look at the foulness and ugliness of my body. Let me see myself as an ulcerous sore running with every horrible and disgusting poison."

"The jihad against the soul is the foundation for the Jihad against the disbelievers and hypocrites."

"If you desire purification of the heart then shut your eye from the corporeal world. This is the hole through which heart is defiled."

"But, that we may complete what is still wanting, I will give my explanation respecting the men who are esteemed wise. Minos, who has been thought to excel in every kind of wisdom, and mental acuteness…"

"When a woman's heart is flowing over for the first time with deep and passionate love, she is all love. Every faculty of her soul rushes together in the intensity of the one feeling; thought, reflecti…"

"Now let us consider how many relics of the true cross there are in the world. An account of those merely with which I am acquainted would fill a whole volume, for there is not a church, from a cathedr…"

"If any want to become my followers," Jesus says. Following him is not something that is self-evident, even among the disciples. No one can be forced, no one can be expected to follow him. … "If any wa…"

"In recent times, we are becoming increasingly more aware of the cosmic dimension of salvation. The destiny of humankind and that of the cosmos are inextricably intertwined. In the past, Christians oft…"

"The non-aggressive, moral and philosophical system expounded by the Buddha, which demands no blind faith from its adherents, expounds no dogmatic creeds, encourages no superstitious rites and ceremoni…"

"I'm not always right, but I'm never in doubt."

"As the Prophet of Islam so beautifully stated, we must love for others, what we love for ourselves."

"When help is needed it is only God, Who has the real power to help, and He provides it."

"Through faith we are restored to paradise and created anew."

"All will surely realize God. All will be liberated. It may be that some get their meal in the morning, some at noon, and some in the evening; but none will go without food. All, without any exception,…"

"I am entirely of the opinion that the papacy is the Antichrist. But if anyone wants to add the Turk, then the Pope is the spirit of the Antichrist, and the Turk is the flesh of the Antichrist. They he…"

"When a man sought knowledge, it would not be long before it could be seen in his humbleness, his sight, upon his tongue and his hands, in his prayer, in his speech and in his disinterest in worldly al…"

"The learned man understands the ignorant for he was once ignorant for he was once ignorant himself."

"Of Anger the Dhamnapada says, "He who holds back rising anger like a rolling chariot, him I call, a real driver, other people are but holding the reins."

"The term spirituality is misleading. It gives the impression that we are concerned only with the soul and its activities like prayer and contemplation. The realm of the spirit is thought of as distinc…"

"Merit is a work for the sake of which Christ gives rewards. But no such work is to be found, for Christ gives by promise. Just as if a prince should say to me, "Come to me in my castle, and I will giv…"

"The good will is all — and all the talents are ways to fulfill it."

"Friendship is the balm and cordial of life, and without it, ’tis a heavy load not worth sustaining."

"Many things are still unintelligible to us, and the hieroglyphic language of antiquity records but half of the mind's unconscious intentions. Yet more and more the image of man, in whatever clime we m…"

"It was not by dialectic that it pleased God to save His people."

"I'm afraid I do believe that all earthly love can die - since man is mortal, why not also his most human feature? - and for me pretensions such as love that dies was never love, etc. belong to schoolg…"

"There is nothing either created or in servitude in the Trinity; nor anything superinduced, as if at some former period it was non-existent."

"Silence is a door among the doors of wisdom - indeed, silence begets and attracts love, it is the proof of all the beneficiences."

"We may talk of the best means of doing good; but, after all, the greatest difficulty lies in doing it in a proper spirit. Speak- the truth in love, "in meekness instructing those that oppose themselve…"

"A Muslim should be alert against insanity, against running amok; that is a plot of satan. Satan wants to drag people into Hell. It wants to drag people to its side. A Muslim should not accept that bec…"

"The one from among the Muslims who recites the Qur'an but in the end finds his way to hell, is considerd to be among those that have taken the word of Allah in jest."

"Charity is helping others to overcome their needs."

"His eyes were rolling in their sockets, and his face had taken on the colour and expression of a devout tomato. I could see he loved like a thousand bricks."

"The overthrow of a democratically elected government is a very serious crime and those involved — great or small — must face the consequences. Otherwise we will continue to see a repetition of coups a…"

"Cling to truth and it turns into falsehood. Understand falsehood and it turns into truth. Truth and falsehood are two sides of the same coin. Neither accept one nor reject the other."

"Simply keep putting everything down, and know that that is what you are doing. You don't need to be always checking up on yourself, worrying about things like "How much samādhi"—it will always be the …"