Patristics reading plan by Boniface Ramsey OP

•Didache
•First Epistle of Clement of Rome
•Epistles of Ignatius of Antioch
•Epistle to Diognetus
•Martyrdom of Polycarp
•Odes of Solomon
•Justin Martyr's First Apology
•On the Pasch by Melito of Sardis
•Proof of the Apostolic Preaching by Irenaeus
•Tertullian's 'Apology' and 'On Baptism'
•The Apostolic Tradition by Hippolytus
•Didascalia Apostolorum
•Origen 'On First Principles', 'On Prayer', 'Exhortation to Martyrdom', 'Against Celsus' and 'Commentary on the Song of Songs'
•Cyprian of Carthage's Epistles and 'On the Unity of the Catholic Church'
•Eusebius's Ecclesiastical History
•Athanasius 'On the Incarnation' and 'Life of Anthony'
•Catechetical Lectures of Cyril of Jerusalem
• Theological Orations of Gregory Nazianzen
•Gregory of Nyssa's 'Great Catechetical Oration' and 'Life of Moses'
•John Chrysostom's 'On the Priesthood'
•Ambrose 'On the Duties of the Clergy' and 'On Virgins'
•'Life of St Martin' by Sulpicius Severus
•Jerome's Epistles and 'Against Jovinian'
•Augustine's 'Confessions', 'On Christian Doctrine' and 'City of God's
•Vincent of Lerin's 'Commonitory'
•Rule of St Benedict
•Gregory the Great's Pastoral Care
•Maximus the Confessor 'Four Centuries on Charity'
•John Damascene 'On the Orthodox Faith'

Source: Beginning to Read the Fathers

Just as the senses can neither grasp nor perceive the things of the mind, just as representation and shape cannot take in the simple and the shapeless, just as corporal form cannot lay hold of the intangible and incorporeal, by the same standard of truth beings are surpassed by the infinity beyond being, intelligences by that which is beyond intelligence.

Indeed the inscrutable One is out of the reach of every rational process. Nor can any words come up to the inexpressible Good, this One, this Source of all unity, this supra-existent Being. Mind beyond mind, word beyond speech, it is gathered up by no discourse, by no intuition, by no name. It is and it is as no other being is. Cause of all existence, and therefore itself transcending existence, it alone could give an authoritative account of what it really is.

Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite, On the Divine Names, 1-1

There is no reason to suppose that any such confrontation of Plato's ideas with our own notions of truth will yield only harmony and reciprocal confirmation. We must be prepared for the fact that profound disagreements may also come to light. But we should not be too hasty about defining those disagreements. Quite often we discover that even where we cannot fully accept Plato's literal statements, we find that they capture and express an aspect of reality which might otherwise have remained hidden from us.

Josef Pieper, Love and Inspiration, p91-92

When we hear the word "spirit" it is impossible for us to conceive of something whose nature can be circumscribed or is subject to change or variation, or is like a creature in any way

Instead, we are compelled to direct our thoughts on high, and to think of an intelligent being, boundless in power, of unlimited greatness, generous in goodness, whom time cannot measure.

All things thirsting for holiness turn to Him; everything living in virtue never turns away from Him. He waters them with His life-giving breath and helps them reach their proper fulfillment.

He perfects all other things, and Himself lacks nothing; He gives life to all things, and is never depleted. He does not increase by additions, but is always complete, self-established, and present everywhere.

He is the source of sanctification, spiritual light, who gives illumination to everyone using His powers to search for the truth – and the illumination He gives is Himself.

His nature is unapproachable; only through His goodness are we able to draw near it. He fills all things with His power, but only those who are worthy may share it. He distributes His energy in proportion to the faith of the recipient, not confining it to a single share.

He is simple in being; His powers are manifold: they are wholly present everywhere and in everything. He is distributed but does not change. He is shared, yet remains whole.

St Basil the Great, On the Holy Spirit, 22

The principle of unity in our lives is quite simply God's will, transforming our will into his own. This is the answer to the problem, so vexed in all the manuals of spirituality, how to combine love of God with love of neighbour. The problem is illusory. The fundamental thing is not my love at all, but God's love.

My love for God is a function of his own divine love; my love for other people is a function of his love for them. "The love of me,' as the Lord said to St Catherine, 'and the love of your neighbour are one and the same thing, and to the extent that the soul loves me, it loves him too, because its love towards him emanates from me.'"

In everything it is God who works in us 'both to will and to work' (Philippians 2:13). So, just as in prayer we must seek to pray the prayers that God gives us, so in action we must seek to do the good works that God has prepared for us to walk in' (Ephesians 2:10). This is the love that validates our prayer and our activities; it is not a matter of our motivation, but of the reality of Jesus Christ, who is the Will of the Father.

Fr Simon Tugwell OP, Did you receive the Spirit?, p79

Joseph Ratzinger - Theological Commentary on the Third SecretIncludes a great treatment of the theology of public vs private revelation

https://www.piercedhearts.org/hearts_jesus_mary/apparitions/fatima/commentary_cardinal_ratzinger_third_secret.html

"What, then, are we asking when we say, Hallowed be thy name? We beg that God’s name be held holy among people who until now have not regarded him as holy by reason of their unbelief, though of himself and in himself, and in his saints, he is always holy... In him may they find their joy, as straightforward men and women in their straightforward Lord; for how good God is to Israel! But only to those of straightforward hearts*."*
— St. Augustine, Exposition 1 of Psalm 103

Pope Benedict XVI, Introduction to Christianity, preface to the new edition

This thought also converted a wicked woman who dared to tempt St. Ephrem; the saint told her that if she wished to sin she must meet him in the middle of the city. But, said she, how is it possible to commit sin before so many persons? And how, replied the saint, is it possible to sin in the presence of God, who sees us in every place? At these words she burst into tears, and falling prostrate on the ground asked pardon of the saint and besought him to point out to her the way of salvation. [...]

My God, place me in Your presence; that is, remind me in every place that You see me, and then let all my enemies assail me: I shall always defeat them. Hence St. Chrysostom concludes: "If we keep ourselves always in the presence of God, the thought that he sees all our thoughts, that he hears all our words, and observes all our actions will preserve us from thinking any evil, from speaking any evil, and from doing any evil."

St Alphonsus Liguori, The Presence of God

Today is the Feast of the Conversion of St Paul. Sancte Paule ora pro nobis.