Quotes & Themes – The Love of God
The Love of God
The love of God is the end, the perfection and the excellence of the universe. (Treatise on the Love of God, Book 10, Chapter 1)
The love of God is a love without peer, because the goodness of God is a peerless goodness. (Treatise on the Love of God, Book 10, Chapter 6)
It is the great good of our souls to be “to God”, and the greatest good to be only “to God.” (Letters to Persons in the World, I, 16)
The love of men toward God takes its ring, progress and perfection from the eternal love of God toward men. (Treatise on the Love of God, Book 4, Chapter 6)
That which is not God is for us nothing. (Letters to Persons in Religion, III 18)
We retire to God because we aspire to Him, and we aspire to Him in order to retire to Him. (Introduction to the Devout Life, Part II, Chapter 13)
He who most loves will be most loved. (Letters to Persons in Religion, III, 43)
Charity is a love of friendship. (Treatise on the Love of God, Book 2, Chapter 22)
The love of complacency draws God into our hearts, but the love of benevolence casts our hearts into God. (Treatise on the Love of God, Book 8, Chapter 2)
Happy is the heart that loves God without pretense of any other pleasure than that it takes in pleasing God! (Treatise on the Love of God, Book 9, Chapter 11)
We must seek in God only the love of His beauty, not the pleasure which is in the beauty of this love. (Treatise on the Love of God, Book 10, Chapter 10)
Truth which is not charitable springs from a charity which is not true. (The Spirit of St. François de Sales, II 12)
He who communicates according to the spirit of the Spouse annihilates himself and says to our Lord: annihilate me and convert me into Thee. (Letters to Persons in Religion, IV 12)
God looks at the intention of the heart rather than the gifts He is offered. (The Spirit of St. François de Sales, XV, 9)
All is made for charity, and charity for God. (Treatise on the Love of God, Book 8, Chapter 6)
There is nothing small in the service of God. (Letters to Persons in Religion, III 26)
When the house is on fire, people are ready to throw everything out of the window; when the heart is full of God’s love, people are certain to look upon all else as of little worth. (The Spirit of St. François de Sales, III 1)
Those whose one desire is to please the divine Lover, have neither inclination nor leisure to turn back upon themselves. (Spiritual Conferences, 12)
How happy are we to be slaves of God, who made Himself a slave for us! (Letters to Persons in Religion, II 8)
Charity is the pure gold which makes us rich in eternal wealth. (The Spirit of St. François de Sales, V 2)
Charity never enters the heart without lodging there all the other virtues in its train. (Introduction to the Devout Life, Part III, Chapter 1)
Charity is amongst the virtues, as the sun amongst the stars; she distributes to all their lustre and beauty. (Treatise on the Love of God, Book 9, Chapter 9)
It is not right to keep the humanity of Jesus Christ and at the same time have this admirable wine of heaven—the Holy Spirit. (Letters to Persons in Religion, VI 16)
We must sometimes leave our Lord in order to please others for the love of Him. (Letters to Persons in the World, II 6)
Never does any love take away our hearts from God, save that which is contrary to Him. (Treatise on the Love of God, Book 10, Chapter 3)
Let everything be in confusion, not only around us but even within us, yet always the highest point of our heart must look unceasingly toward the love of God. (Introduction to the Devout Life, Part IV, Chapter 13)
The most certain sign that we love God only in all things is when we love Him equally in all things. (The Spirit of St. François de Sales, I, 8)
Charity is much stronger and more assiduous than mere natural affection. (Spiritual Conferences, 21)
We leave charity for a moment, and this imperfect habit of human love is thrust upon us, and we content ourselves with it as if it were true charity, till some clear light shows us that we have been deceived. (Treatise on the Love of God, Book 4, Chapter 10)
Do much for God, and do nothing without love; apply all to this love; eat and drink for it. (Letters to Persons in the World, III, 11)
North American Salesian Network
The North American Salesian Network (NASN) is an organization of both lay and religious groups that live the Salesian teachings of St. Francis de Sales and St. Jane de Chantal. NASN facilitates the sharing of Salesian resources, educational services, vocational efforts, and a variety of resources, bringing this optimistic, joy-filled spirituality to people throughout the world.