Here are some further thoughts from the saints…
‘The reason why the lukewarm run so great a risk of being lost is because tepidity conceals from the soul the immense evil which it causes.’
St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori
‘St. Teresa, as the Roman Rota attests, never fell into any mortal sin; but still Our Lord showed her the place prepared for her in Hell; not because she deserved Hell, but because, had she not risen from the state of luke-warmness in which she lived, she would in the end have lost the grace of God and been damned.’
St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori
‘What I shall now speak of was, I believe, the beginning of great harm to me. I often think how wrong it is of parents not to be very careful that their children should always, and in every way, see only that which is good; for though my mother was, as I have just said, so good herself, nevertheless I, when I came to the use of reason, did not derive so much good from her as I ought to have done – almost none at all; and the evil I learned did me much harm. She was very fond of books of chivalry; but this pastime did not hurt her so much as it hurt me, because she never wasted her time on them; only we, her children, were left at liberty to read them; and perhaps she did this to distract her thoughts from her great sufferings, and occupy her children, that they might not go astray in other ways. It annoyed my father so much, that we had to be careful he never saw us. I contracted a habit of reading these books; and this little fault which I observed in my mother was the beginning of lukewarmness in my good desires, and the occasion of my falling away in other respects. I thought there was no harm in it when I wasted many hours night and day in so vain an occupation, even when I kept it a secret from my father. So completely was I mastered by this passion, that I thought I could never be happy without a new book.’
St. Teresa of Jesus
‘A lukewarm religious will be contented with what little he does for God; but God, who called him to a perfect life, will not be contented, and, in punishment for his ingratitude, will not only deprive him of his special favors, but will sometimes permit his fall “When you said, It is enough, then you perished,” says St. Augustine. The fig-tree of the Gospel was cast into the fire, only because it brought forth no fruit.’
St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori
'The first weapon I call zeal, that is solicitude in doing good, since the Holy Scripture condemns those who are negligent and lukewarm in the way of God (Apoc 3.15-16). The office of the Holy Spirit is to inspire in us good inspirations, while our duty is to accept them and put them into operation by waging continual violence against our sensuality which always invites us to what is contrary to what the spirit wills. Therefore, it is necessary to resist it with true diligence and not to let the time granted to us pass by without acquiring the fruit of good works, as it is written:
Whoever wishes to go up, let him rest not
From thoughts, from speaking works and doing deeds
And always exerting himself in God
but with discretion, so that when our adversary, like a wicked traitor, assails us from ambush, we can defend ourselves. By “from ambush” I mean, when under the appearance of good he wishes to kill you, for there is as much danger in too much as in too little. And so I tell you “with discretion,” aware that this virtue establishes and perfects all the other virtues according to what was said by the glorious teacher of the ancient holy fathers, that is, St. Antonio of Vienna.’
St. Catherine of Bologna
‘You have only to unite yourself in all that you do to the Sacred Heart of our Lord Jesus Christ. At the beginning of your actions, make His dispositions your own, and at the end offer His merits as satisfaction. For instance you cannot pray: Be satisfied to unite yourself with the prayer our divine Saviour makes for us in the Blessed Sacrament of the Altar, and offer His ardor to make reparation for your lukewarmness. Say before each of your actions: My God I will do or suffer this in the Sacred Heart of Thy divine Son, and according to His most holy intentions, which I offer Thee to atone for all that is imperfect in mine.’
St. Margaret Mary Alacoque
O Lord, give us a lively faith, a firm hope, a fervent charity, a love of you. Take from us all lukewarmness in meditation and all dullness in prayer. Give us fervor and delight in thinking of you, your grace, and your tender compassion toward us. Give us, good Lord, the grace to work for the things we pray for.’
St. Thomas More
‘Because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I am to vomit thee out of my mouth.’
Apocalypse 3:16
God rescue us from lukewarmness! God help us, for we are too cool… God let the fire of charity be enkindled within the souls of men…
