Franz Hunolt

“ He offers me far more precious treasures than you or the whole city of Rome can give; His beauty is incomparable, His power irresistible, His wisdom inscrutable, His riches inexhaustible; at His nod sun, moon, stare, the earth, the heavens, the angels stand in awe, ready to obey Him. What are you thinking of? The treasure you offer me is a stone dug out of the earth, what my Beloved will give to me is an eternal good; the honor you promise me is a breath of vapor that passes, while my Bridegroom will give mean unfading crown of glory ”

“ Heroic martyrs who have suffered so much for the honor of Jesus Christ, I admire your patience under torments when I consider the racks on which you were flayed alive, the ice-cold water in which you were drowned, the arrows and spears with which you were pierced, the swords and axes with which you were beheaded, the crosses and wheels on which you were fixed, the lions and tigers whose teeth mangled and tore you; and I ask myself in amazement: How is it possible for weak flesh and blood in such a frail nature to bear all this so bravely, and to overcome it with patience and joy? ”

“ All is grief and lamentation. So shall it be when the end of the world approaches, and the human race, the head of this household of the world is at the last gasp; all nature shall be stricken with fear and consternation; the sky shall lose its luminaries and put on the sable garb of night; the elements shall, as it were, weep, and become quite bewildered, while the atmosphere resounding with thunder and violent hurricanes shall be, so to speak, the death- knell of the dying world. ”

“ And how great shall then be the glory of the elect, when they see themselves justified from the calumnies they suffered so patiently on earth, while their persecutors are put to shame in the sight of the whole world! What a consolation it is even during this life to see truth sometimes prevailing and injured innocence protected! What joy there will then be on that day for the pious, when their holiness and virtue are made manifest to all, and when they see what treasures of merit they gained by their patient silence, and how their good name and honor are amply restored to them! ”

“ I will continue, with Thy grace, as I have begun, to sacrifice my understanding and will to Thee by obedience, my goods by poverty, my body by chastity, my whole self by a long martyrdom, renouncing any hope and desire of worldly honors and pleasures. It is indeed little to offer such a great Lord; but it is all I have; all Thou hast given me. I expect no reward except, with St. Agnes, Thee, my Beloved. Oh, what a consolation for a soul! ”

“ The mother looking on at the martyrdom of her sons, not like the mothers of to-day who weep and moan if the least accident happens their children, kept on crying out to them full of joy and consolation: Raise your eyes to heaven, my dear children! let them burn and maim you as they will: “The Creator of the world, He will restore to you again in His mercy both breath and life, as now you despise yourselves for the sake of His laws.” ”

“ Oh, what a cruel, and, at the same time, what a glorious spectacle it must have been to behold those gray-haired old men, venerable matrons, tender virgins, young boys, mothers with their children, running with joyful cries out of their houses, vying with each other in offering themselves to the points of the swords and spears, contending with pious zeal who should be the first to hasten to the slaughter, as if it were a wedding-feast, and suffering death with every sign of joy and exultation! ”

“ I should joyfully welcome death; but who shall assure me of that? How many there are whom death sends from temporal misery into eternal suffering! And that is the very thing I fear most of all; that is what makes me tremble; for on my last moment depends a twofold eternity of happiness or misery, and I know not which shall fall to my lot. Is that all? Have you nothing else to be afraid of? Then I shall not have much trouble with you; your fear helps me to prove my proposition that there is nothing in death itself or its circumstances that is terrible, except a bad conscience. ”

“ The whole life of the Christian," says St. Augustine, " if he lives according to the gospel, is a cross and a martyrdom." Thus live, dear children; thus die; it is the way to heaven. Oh, if you only knew what indescribable joys we experience here, how richly we are repaid and rewarded for the little we have endured for Christ, you would stretch forth both hands with eagerness to the cross and to suffering. More than blessed pains and torments, what a short time you lasted! what a long, immeasurable eternity of happiness you have won for us! ”

“ Am I not blind and mad to allow myself to be captivated by love for such a mass of corruption, whose deformity and stench will in a short time fill me with horror? Ah, it is evident I have not thought enough of these things before! No, says a holy hermit with reason, "there is no better way of taming the living flesh than by thinking what it will be when dead. Truly, whenever I am tempted to impure love by another's beauty, all I need do to conquer the temptation is to fly for refuge to death, and represent to myself what that beauty will be like in a short time. ”

“ This great festival brings before our minds a daughter of Treves who has brought more honor and glory to this city than all the heroes, princes, and kings who were born or have dwelt here, namely, that dear mother of Treves who now in heaven holds her careful and protecting hands over you, bearing the cross in her arms the great and holy Empress Helen. This is that blessed woman who has laid hold of the tree of life and retained it to her great good fortune. A renown for her than which none can be greater; a treasure for us and all Christians than which none can be more precious! ”

“ Behold, I must again say to you, children of Treves, what great ancestors you have, how noble your descent! They are saints crowned in heaven, whom men now honor above all the kings and emperors of the world. You are children of the saints; oh, what a great honor and glory! O holy ancestors, now citizens of the heavenly Jerusalem, what thanks do not your children and descendants owe you, since you have prepared for them such a glorious road to heaven! In what honor should we not hold you and your relics that we have amongst us, which have brought us such a great name and renown! ”

“ Our life is the way to the place of execution, on which we are really led to death. Our life and body is that building that is eaten away by the rushing river; time constantly gnaws at and undermines the foundation; every moment we live takes away a piece of our lives that we shall never get back again; every breath we draw forces on another breath, until we come to the last. ”

“ Be ashamed at being overcome by a senseless thing such as I am, in obedience to God! Al mighty God, the waves will cry out as they rise towards heaven, show forth Your justice against sinners, and since they have not wished to live in the ocean of Your mercy and find their salvation, let them now sink into the deep abyss of Your justice, and feel the weight of Your avenging arm ! ”

“ Is that the sin that deserved such a long and cruel penance? Was that the fault that had to be atoned for by such fasting, watching, scourging, and shedding your own blood? Oh, if so, wo to me! wo to all poor sinners! What ought I not to do, then, to atone for my many and grievous sins! Ah, quickly, Bernard, give me thy garb of penance, thy iron girdle, the rods and scourges with which thou didst arm thy hands. All the torments of the martyrs are not enough to atone for my sins if thy faults had to be punished so severely. And hadst thou not in thy youth done penance enough for them? ”

“ Matthew, "and all the angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the seat of His majesty: and all nations shall be gathered together before Him." All without exception, from every country in the world great and small, rich and poor, men and women, all who have ever lived on earth shall meet there. In the four quarters of the globe shall be heard the awful sound of that trumpet which re-echoed in the ears of St. Jerome day and night: Arise, you dead, and come to judgment! Arise, you princes and kings, who ruled the world! away with you to the tribunal of your Supreme Lord! ”

“ Of what good is it to me to be a great lord, to rule over lands and people, if I am blind, deaf, lame, deformed, and dare not show myself in public? What use can I make of the most delicate food, the most agreeable company, the most pleasant conversation, if my body is writhing in pain, if sickness gives me a disgust for every thing? No; a healthy man with his piece of dry bread is far better off, and leads a far more pleasant life, than a sick man seated at a royal table groaning under the costliest viands. In a word, in this mortal life health is more valuable than anything else. ”

“ By what sign can I find that you believe in the resurrection of the body? By the diligence you show in heaping up merits and good works for the next life? No; we see no such thing in you; quite the contrary; all your care is devoted to temporal goods to which your heart is fettered, as if you had to spend a long eternity here on earth. Perhaps in the patience you show in bearing crosses and trials? in the voluntary penances you practise in the hope of receiving an exceeding great reward for them in the next life? ”

“ Does it not cost a deal of trouble to bear an angry look with patience, to overcome the love, fear, or respect for a mere mortal, to hold our own passions in check, so that they may not go too far? Ah, even lesser difficulties are sometimes powerful enough to take from us all strength and courage, so that we forget the laws of our faith, God, and heaven. What resolution, then, should we come to if we saw the instruments of torture ready, displayed before our eyes, and a painful death awaiting us? ”

“ Who has told you when your last hour will come? Do you think death will approach you like a post-rider, blowing a horn from time to time to give notice of his coming? Not by any means! You must know that not only does our eternal destiny depend on a single moment, but also it is quite uncertain when that moment will come. Any minute of our lives may be the last. ”

“ Thou hast by thy sufferings on earth honored thy Saviour and thy God; rejoice now, happy soul; everlasting shall be the honor and glory that thou shalt receive as a reward in heaven! For all eternity shalt thou see and experience in thyself the truth of the words of the divine promise: " Who soever shall glorify Me him will I glorify."
Not the soul alone of this glorious disciple, but his body also received this reward; for as it had suffered and fought so well for Him, Our Lord endowed it with extraordinary glory in recompense for the torments it endured. ”

“ Come, you demons, and take my soul into everlasting fire! death of the sinner! misery of all miseries! in which there is neither comfort or help from heaven, on earth, from nature, from grace, from God, nor from man! Call out, Prophet! in the ears of all men: " The death of the wicked is very evil; " it is the most terrible of all.
Be not frightened, pious Christians! I have been speaking only of one who is hardened in sin to the end, of the impenitent sinner, of the sinner on his death-bed. ”

“ Our ancestors are saints of God; what a shame if their children should be wicked! Our ancestors were martyrs of Christ; what a shame if their children should be martyrs of the world, the flesh and the devil! Our ancestors did not allow a cruel death to make them deviate from the path of rectitude, from the love of God; what a shame for their children if human respect and the fear of a slight loss, not to speak of the fear of death, should make them renounce God by sin! Our ancestors, to gain heaven, to save their souls, sacrificed life, and goods, and all they possessed ”