1. “The kingdom of God is peace in the Holy Spirit; He will reign in you if your heart is at peace. So, be at peace, Mademoiselle, and you will honor in a sovereign way the God of peace and love.” – St. Vincent de Paul
2. “If I had known what it was when I had the temerity to enter it [the priesthood] — I would have preferred to till the soil than to commit myself to such a formidable state of life.” – St. Vincent de Paul
3. “If priests are good, the people will also be good.” – St. Vincent de Paul
4. “We should strive to keep our hearts open to the sufferings and wretchedness of other people, and pray continually that God may grant us that spirit of compassion which is truly the spirit of God.” – St. Vincent de Paul
5. “Nevertheless, when one is ill, one should be submissive to the doctor and obey him.” – St. Vincent de Paul
6. “If the Church’s ministers are good and they do their duty, all will go well. (XII: 13). We have all been called by God to work on a masterpiece.” – St. Vincent de Paul
7. “Our Lord is pleased to deprive us of temporal goods; may it please His Divine Goodness to give us spiritual ones!” – St. Vincent de Paul
8. “If we make poor use of God’s graces by neglecting our primary duties, God will take these graces from us.” – St. Vincent de Paul
9. “We should spend as much time in thanking God for his benefits as we do in asking him for them.” – St. Vincent de Paul
10. “Practice humility and patience.” – St. Vincent de Paul
11. “If the glory of the world is nothing but smoke, the contrary is solid good, when it is accepted in the right way.” – St. Vincent de Paul
12. “If there are any among us who think they are in the mission to evangelize the poor people but not to alleviate their sufferings, to take of their spiritual needs but not their temporal ones, I reply that we have to help them and have them assisted in every way, by us and by others.” – St. Vincent de Paul
13. “There is nothing good that does not meet with opposition, and it should not be valued any less because it encounters objections.” – St. Vincent de Paul
14. “That’s what our Rules engage us to do, to help poor persons, our lords and masters.” – St. Vincent de Paul
15. “Go to the poor: you will find God.” – St. Vincent de Paul
16. “We must be firm but not rough in our guidance and avoid an insipid kind of meekness, which is ineffective.” – St. Vincent de Paul
17. “He also always blesses humble beginnings much more than those accompanied by a lot of show.” – St. Vincent de Paul
18. “I hope that your past fidelity to these rules and your patience in waiting so long for them will obtain for you from the goodness of God the grace to observe them with greater ease in the future.” – St. Vincent de Paul
19. “Your soul will be blessed, Sister, if you bear patiently the troubles of mind and body His Providence sends you, or which come to you from within and without.” – St. Vincent de Paul
20. “Since you know the means of getting better, in the name of God, make use of them. Do not take on anything beyond your strength, do not be anxious, do not take things too much to heart, go gently, do not work too long or too hard.” – St. Vincent de Paul
21. “If temptations are necessary for everyone, they are also a source of merit for those to whom God grants the grace of turning all things to good.” – St. Vincent de Paul
22. “One beautiful diamond is worth more than a mountain of stones, and one virtuous act of acquiescence and submission is better than an abundance of good works done for others.” – St. Vincent de Paul
23. “God has granted me today a very particular fondness for requesting of Him that same virtue of ever choosing the worst and that which is contrary to my own liking.” – St. Vincent de Paul
24. “Charity is certainly greater than any rule. Moreover, all rules must lead to charity.” – St. Vincent de Paul
25. “God allows us to give rise to the practice of two beautiful virtues: perseverance, which leads us to attain the goal, and constancy, which helps us to overcome difficulties.” – St. Vincent de Paul
26. “If Jesus welcomed the mentally ill and fanatics, why shouldn’t we?. (XII: 78). God, grant us the grace to see things with the same eyes as you do.” – St. Vincent de Paul
27. “It is his good pleasure that we remain always in the holy joy of his love.” – St. Vincent de Paul
28. “I will always welcome joyfully any opportunity that comes my way to be of service to you.” – St. Vincent de Paul
29. “So, our vocation is to go, not just to one parish, not just to one diocese, but all over the world; and do what? To set people’s hearts on fire, to do what the Son of God did. He came to set the world on fire in order to inflame it with His love.” – St. Vincent de Paul
30. “I must be afire with love for those with whom I live and with edifying others by the exercise of love.” – St. Vincent de Paul
31. “Be acted upon rather than active. In this way, God will do through you alone what all men put together could not do without Him.” – St. Vincent de Paul
32. “Humility is nothing but truth, and pride is nothing but lying.” – St. Vincent de Paul
33. “Remember the maxim of the Romans which states that by union and counsel we can achieve anything.” – St. Vincent de Paul
34. “Experience has shown us that virtue puts down only shallow roots in those who are there for just a short time.” – St. Vincent de Paul
35. “Peace is worth more than all worldly possessions; in addition, God rewards it even in this life.” – St. Vincent de Paul
36. “Let us allow God to act; He brings things to completion when we least expect it.” – St. Vincent de Paul
37. “If you are burdened by those vows it is because you do not submit your will to the yoke of Jesus Christ.” – St. Vincent de Paul
38. “It is not easy to find perfect men in whom there is nothing to criticize.” – St. Vincent de Paul
39. “We must love our neighbor as being made in the image of God and as an object of His love.” – St. Vincent de Paul
40. “There is no act of charity that is not accompanied by justice or that permits us to do more than we reasonably can.” – St. Vincent de Paul
41. “If we divested ourselves, once and for all, of all self-will, we would then be in a position of being sure of doing the Will of God.” – St. Vincent de Paul
42. “People are made in such a way that even the holiest ones are liable to offend one another.” – St. Vincent de Paul
43. “All beginnings are somewhat strange; but we must have patience, and little by little, we shall find things, which at first were obscure, becoming clearer.” – St. Vincent de Paul
44. “The kingdom of God is peace in the Holy Spirit; he will reign in you if your heart is at peace. So, be at peace . . . and you will honor in a sovereign way the God of peace and love.” – St. Vincent de Paul
45. “If you are inclined toward evil you know that God is incomparably more inclined to do good and to do it even in and through you.” – St. Vincent de Paul
46. “Our Lord and the saints accomplished more by suffering than by acting.” – St. Vincent de Paul
47. “Naturally, everyone loves his freedom, but we must beware of this as of a broad road that leads to perdition.” – St. Vincent de Paul
48. “With whose imperfections will you bear, and what insult are you capable of enduring, if a thoughtless word from your own Superior is unbearable?” – St. Vincent de Paul
49. “If we are faithful to God, we will lack nothing.” – St. Vincent de Paul
50. “If there is any good in us and in our manner of living, it comes from God, and it is up to God to manifest it, if he thinks it advisable. As for us, however, we are poor, ignorant, sinful men, who should keep ourselves hidden, as being useless for any good and unworthy of consideration.” – St. Vincent de Paul
51. “With God’s help, you will continue to succeed in your leadership and in your duties, because Our Lord’s work is accomplished not so much by the multitude of workers as by the fidelity of the small number whom He calls.” – St. Vincent de Paul
52. “Fear not; calm will follow the storm, and perhaps soon.” – St. Vincent de Paul
53. “God always gives a great blessing to humble beginnings than to those that start with the chiming of bells.” – St. Vincent de Paul
54. “Let us be submissive to Providence, He will see to our affairs in His own time and in His own way” – St. Vincent de Paul
55. “Make it a practice to judge persons and things in the most favorable light at all times and under all circumstances.” – St. Vincent de Paul
56. “Put your trust in Him and following His example, always act humbly, graciously, and in good faith.” – St. Vincent de Paul
57. “Let us do our duty well, let us go straight to God, let us work to become very humble, very patient, very mortified, and very charitable.” – St. Vincent de Paul
58. “In order to become soundly virtuous, it is advisable to make good practical resolutions concerning particular acts of the virtues and to be faithful in carrying the out afterwards. Without doing that, one is often virtuous only in one’s imagination.” – St. Vincent de Paul
59. “Peace is worth far more than anything they might take from you.” – St. Vincent de Paul
60. “Charity is the cement which binds Communities to God and persons to one another.” – St. Vincent de Paul
61. “If the world takes something from us on the one hand, God will give us something on the other.” – St. Vincent de Paul
62. “Nature makes trees put down deep roots before having them bear fruit, and even this is done gradually.” – St. Vincent de Paul
63. “If after so much effort and prayer, the matter is not successful, it will be a clear sign that God does not will it.” – St. Vincent de Paul
64. “If necessity urges us to make haste, then let it be slowly.” – St. Vincent de Paul
65. “We should take as a maxim never to be surprised at current difficulties, no more than at a passing breeze, because with a little patience we shall see them disappear. Time changes everything.” – St. Vincent de Paul
66. “The angels would become incarnate if they could, so that they might come to earth to imitate the example and virtues of the Son of God!” – St. Vincent de Paul
67. “A sure way for a Christian to grow rapidly in holiness is a conscientious effort to carry out God’s Will in all circumstances and at all times.” – St. Vincent de Paul
68. “If God is the center of your life, no words are necessary. Your mere presence will touch hearts.” – St. Vincent de Paul
69. “I no more trust in human means for divine ends that I do in the devil.” – St. Vincent de Paul
70. “I simply ask Our Lord to be the bond of your hearts.” – St. Vincent de Paul
71. “I pray that God himself will be the strength of the weak and the virtue of the strong and the prayer of those who are unable to pray.” – St. Vincent de Paul
72. “Make an effort to serve good bread and good meat and not to sell the better wine so as to serve what is inferior.” – St. Vincent de Paul
73. “The most powerful weapon to conquer the devil is humility. For, as he does not know at all how to employ it, neither does he know how to defend himself from it.” – St. Vincent de Paul
74. “If you think something should be done, take the trouble to write to me about it, and together we will decide the time and manner of doing it.” – St. Vincent de Paul
75. “Rarely is any good done without difficulty; the devil is too subtle and the world too corrupt not to attempt to nip such a good work in the bud.” – St. Vincent de Paul
76. “Who will excuse us before God for the loss of such a great number of people, who could be saved by the slight assistance we could give them?” – St. Vincent de Paul
77. “Perfection consists in a constant perseverance to acquire the virtues and become proficient in their practice, because on God’s road, not to advance is to fall back since man never remains in the same condition.” – St. Vincent de Paul
78. “And what are we doing if we are not doing God’s Will?” – St. Vincent de Paul
79. “Always be quite simple and sincere and ask God to grant me those two virtues.” – St. Vincent de Paul
80. “Noise makes no good, good makes no noise.” – St. Vincent de Paul
81. “If God were please to give this spirit of support and adaptation to each individual, what great union and advantages would this procure for the entire body because we would regard the interest of others as our own!” – St. Vincent de Paul