Charity the Measure

Sunday, August 19, 2012

Charity the Measure

"'To do little things

 with great purity of intention and a strong will

to please God is to do them excellently, 

and then they greatly sanctify us.' 

 The more our works are motivated by the love of God,

the greater their value becomes.

    Some persons weigh the merit of their actions

 by their appearance or difficulty.

 They prize only showy virtues or gifts,

without considering

 that the use they make of God's gifts

derives value only from the motive and aim of their actions.

Charity must be the only measure."

(text from In the Midst of the World, Sister Joanna Marie Wenzel VHM using writings of Sr. Francis de Sales, Brooklyn Visitation, 1985, p. 9)

(painting 1893, in US public domain)