Image credit: detail of mosaic at San Lorenzo fuori le mura, photo by Lorenzo, OP.
From St. Claude de la Colombiere, spiritual director to St. Margaret Mary, to whom the Sacred Heart appeared (writing not to her here, but to someone else):
You think you would be less distracted if you were away from the circumstances in which God has placed you; I think, on the contrary, that you would have fewer distractions if you accepted things with more conformity to God's will....Think more of making good use of your crosses than of getting rid of them under pretext of having more liberty with which to serve God.
The spirit of God inclines us to fervor, but this fervor is calm and causes no trouble either to ourselves or to others; when it meets with obstacles it knows how to stop and submit to God's will. Its only arms are patience and gentleness. You want to be a martyr; you have a daily martyrdom which you endure unwillingly and without resignation! I see nothing reasonable in such a desire and nothing which looks like an inspiration.
