St. Paul makes it clear that love is essential:
If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. (1 Cor 13:1-3 RSVCE)
What else do the saints have to tell us about love? Here are ten saint quotes on love.
Saint Quotes on Love
Be inspired by these Catholic quotes on love.
The important thing is not to love Me for your own sake, or yourself for your own sake, or your neighbor for your own sake, but to love Me for Myself, yourself for Myself, and your neighbor for Myself. Divine love cannot suffer to share with any earthly love.
St. Catherine of Siena recording Jesus' words to her
The Knight of the Immaculata does not confine his heart to himself, nor to his family, relatives, neighbors, friends, or countrymen, but embraces the whole world, each and every soul, because, without exception, they have all been redeemed by the blood of Jesus. They are all our brothers. He desires true happiness for everyone, enlightenment in faith, cleansing from sin, inflaming of their hearts with love toward God and love toward neighbor, without restriction.
St. Maximillian Kolbe
The truth is I can love a person in this life only so far as he strives to advance in the service and praise of God our Lord; for he who loves anything for itself and not for God, does not love God with his whole heart.
St. Ignatius of Loyola
The interior life is like a sea of love in which the soul is plunged and is, as it were, drowned in love. Just as a mother holds her child's face in her hands to cover it with kisses, so does God hold the devout man.
St. John Vianney
For we shall see truly in Heaven, without end, that we have grievously sinned in this life, and notwithstanding this, we shall see that we were never hurt in His love, nor were less of price in His sight. For hard and marvelous is that love which may not, nor will not be broken by trespass.
Bl. Julian of Norwich
The more we know of men, the less we love them. It is the contrary with God; the more we know of Him, the more we love Him.
St. John Vianney
When you receive a letter from a friend, dearest son, you should not delay to embrace it as a friend. For it is a fine consolation among the absent that if one who is loved is not present, a letter may be embraced instead.
St. Isidore of Seville
You cannot imagine how much I love you when I see you covered with persecutions! If only someone could arrange for me to see you and let me put my arms around your neck, the way a little boy hangs on to his dear father.
St. Anthony Mary Claret to the Bishop of Palencia
Souls well-beloved of my soul, my eyes ardently desire to behold you; my arms expand to embrace you; my lips sigh for your kisses; all the life that remains to me is consumed with waiting for you. How can I forget those whom I have placed like a seal upon my heart?
St. Anselem of Canterbury to his family
How fine it would be, father, if one day you could say, "Gemma was love's victim, and it was purely of love that she died."
St. Gemma Galgani
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