Wednesday, March 18, 2026

Prayer and Works of Charity

When I see people very anxious to know what sort of prayer they practice, covering their faces and afraid to move or think, unless they should lose any slight tenderness and devotion they feel, I know how little they understand how to attain union with God, since they think it consists in such things as these. No. Our Lord expects works from us! If you see someone sick whom you can relieve, never fear losing your devotion; have compassion on her; if she is in pain, feel it as if it were your own, and when there is need, fast so that she may eat, not so much for her sake as because you know your Lord asks it of you. This is the true union of our will with the will of God. If you possess fraternal charity, I assure you that you will attain the union I have described.


ST. TERESA OF JESUS