Saint Augustine of Hippo

[Bernard]

Der Mensch wird durch das Leid erst gehärtet, um das Glück ertragen zu können; so wie der Ton im Feuer gebrannt wird, um Wasser fassen zu können. 

 

                                               

[Bernard]

Der Tod, den die Menschen fürchten, ist die Trennung der Seele vom Körper. Den Tod aber, den die Menschen nicht fürchten, ist die Trennung von Gott.

Смрт које се људи плаше је одвајање душе од тела. Али смрт, које се људи не боје, је одвајање од Бога.

 

                                                              

[Bernard]

                                            

 

" Amour sui usque ad contemptum Dei."

[Bernard]

                                

 

“The time which interposes between the death of a man and the final resurrection holds souls in hidden retreats, accordingly as each is 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒇 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒐𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑, 𝒊𝒏 𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘 𝒐𝒇 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒕 𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒊𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒉. Nor can it be denied that the souls of the dead find relief through the 𝒑𝒊𝒆𝒕𝒚 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒇𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒔 and relatives who are still alive, when the Sacrifice of the Mediator is 𝒐𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎, or when 𝒂𝒍𝒎𝒔 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒏 in the Church. But these things are of profit to those who, when they were alive, merited that they might afterward be able to be helped by these things. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝒄𝒆𝒓𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒏𝒆𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒐 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒐 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒔𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒑𝒔 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉, 𝒏𝒐𝒓 𝒚𝒆𝒕 𝒔𝒐 𝒘𝒊𝒄𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒔𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒑𝒔 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒏𝒐 𝒂𝒗𝒂𝒊𝒍 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉” (Handbook on Faith, Hope, and Charity 29:109)

 

“But by the prayers of the holy church, and by the salvific sacrifice, and by the alms which are given for their spirits, there is no doubt that the dead are aided, 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒅 𝒎𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒍 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒊𝒇𝒖𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒔 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒆. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒆 𝑪𝒉𝒖𝒓𝒄𝒉 𝒐𝒃𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒑𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒄𝒉 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒅 𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒃𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑭𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒔: that it prays for those who have died in the communion of the body and Blood of Christ, when they are commemorated in their own place in the sacrifice itself; and the sacrifice is offered also in memory of them, on their behalf. If, then, works of mercy are celebrated for the sake of those who are being remembered, who would hesitate to recommend them, on whose behalf prayers to God are not offered in vain? It is not at all to be doubted that such prayers are of profit to the dead; but for such of them as lived before their death in a way that makes it possible for these things to be useful to them after death.” (Sermons 172:2)

St. Augustine of Hippo