Monday, June 1, 2015

The Plague of the Present Day

'Now there are certain things that strengthen the prominence of evil thoughts in us: bad companions, bad books, a forgetfulness of daily duties, and the viscious habits that result. But of all these, bad books are the worst. They are the plague of the present day.

'A book is bad not only when it contains impure and immoral thoughts, but when it gives false ideas, pretending to be the judge of everything, to ridicule everything sacred or honorable. These sorts of books are all the worse when they are beautifully written, as they generally are. They debase the taste, making healthy food seem disgusting....

'Forgive me for saying all this; but I know your passion for reading, and all I would venture to say to you is this: don't play with poison.' 
St. Theophane Venard

Painting: Eduard von Grützner, in US public domain due to age

4 comments:

  1. I wanted you to know that there are many of us who are subscribed to receive your post and that we use them to discuss our daily walk with our Savior. Although we dont comment we read your blog and are quite passionate about it. We say thank you for your beautiful writings. Grazie mille.

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    1. Thank you, Elizabeth! This means a great deal to me; I really appreciate you taking time to let me know. Greetings to your friends! Grazie mille.

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  2. Books that debase; making healthy food seem disgusting. Awesome!!

    As for companions. I have been doing some observation on companions. I find that there are those who bring out the worst in me. It's my fault, the devil's fault, and sometimes I think jealousy from the other person?? The more I try to do better, boy! the devil likes to stir up bad thoughts.

    Great post!

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    1. That's a tough one, isn't it Patty - companions who bring out the worst in us. I just looked back up at the quote and realized the words "pretending to be the judge of everything, to ridicule everything sacred or honorable" (etc.) can be applied to people,the media, and oh so many things. May God give us grace!

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