You will know your vocation by the joy that it brings you.
—Dorothy Day

The alternate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge . . . is itself a frightful despotism.
—George Washington

The Lord was baptized . . . to cleanse waters, so that those waters . . . might have the power of Baptism.
—Saint Ambrose of Milan

Service which is rendered without joy helps neither the servant nor the served. But all other pleasures and possessions pale into nothingness before service which is rendered in a spirit of joy.
—Mahatma Gandhi

The essential thing is always to begin again, despite everything and against everything, and never to be discouraged.
—Blessed Maurice Tornay

One true king knew when to step aside and give up the reins of power—to remove his crown and relinquish his kingdom—all for the sake of glimpsing, just once in a lifetime, the face of a holy child.
—Vera Nazarian

We returned to our places, these kingdoms, / But no longer at ease here, in the old dispensation, / With an alien people clutching their gods.
—T. S. Eliot, Journey of the Magi

Stars cross the sky, wise men journey from pagan lands, Earth receives its savior in a cave. Let there be no one without a gift to offer, no one without gratitude as we celebrate the salvation of the world, the birthday of the human race.
—Basil the Great

A child needs both to be hugged and unhugged. The hug lets her know she is valuable. The unhug lets her know that she is viable.
—Polly Berrien Berends

Humanity is never so beautiful as when praying for forgiveness, or else forgiving another.
—Jean Paul

We have spouses and children and parents and colleagues and friends, because someone has to know us better than we know ourselves.
—Richard Russo

"Virtue,” as the ancients called it, is defined on the level of “that which depends on us.”
—Simone de Beauvoir

I’ve learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.
—Maya Angelou

I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year.
—Charles Dickens

To say “they shall call him Emmanuel” means nothing else than they shall see God among us. Admittedly God has always been among us, but never before so openly.
—Saint John Chrysostom

Patience is the companion of wisdom.
—Saint Augustine

Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies.
—Mother Teresa

Jesus must become the heart of my heart, the fire of my life, the love of my soul, the bridegroom of my spirit. He must become my only thought, my only concern, my only desire.
—Henri Nouwen

Patience attains all that it strives for.
—Saint Teresa of Ávila

The God who creates justice for those who suffer violence . . . that is the God of hope for the new world of righteousness and justice and peace.
—Jürgen Moltmann 

John the Baptist was supposed to point the way to the Christ. He was just the voice, not the Messiah. So everybody’s calling has dignity to it and God seems to know better than we do what is in us that needs to be called forth.
—James Green Somerville

Advent is patience. God has made us a people of promise in a world of impatience.
—Stanley Hauerwas

If you want peace, work for justice.
—Pope Paul VI

To prepare the way means to pray well; it means thinking humbly of oneself.
—Saint Augustine of Hippo

It is Advent again. We call this time Advent because it reminds us what comes from God for the creation of his Kingdom on Earth.
—C. F. Blumhardt

God’s intervening into human history came about with an almost frightening quietness and self-effacement, and . . . he will come again with the same silence and the same devastating humility into any heart ready to receive him.
—J. B. Phillips

To pay attention, this is our endless and proper work.
—Mary Oliver

May you be content knowing you are a child of God. Let this presence settle into your bones and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise, and love.
—Teresa of Ávila

A leader . . . is like a shepherd. He stays behind the flock, letting the most nimble go out ahead, whereupon the others follow, not realizing that all along they are being directed from behind.
—Nelson Mandela