Has anybody ever heard of a guy named… *remembering name*… Anselm?
Well, one time while I was flipping through my history book in Mrs. Syms class and I saw a quote from him that I really liked. Then I never found it again. Then after searching the book carefully, I found it again. I haven’t been able to find the exact same quote, unfortunately since I turned my book in, but I will soon. Here are a few of his AWESOME quotes. (I have put them into this form; it’s not really poetry). Just take a look at what this awesome man of God put into writing… Please, just take a moment and reflect on your life…
Lord our God,
Grant us grace to desire Thee with our whole heart,
That, so desiring,we may seek,
And seeking find Thee,
And so finding Thee may love Thee,
And loving Thee, may hate those sins
From which Thou hast redeemed us.
A Song of Anselm
Jesus, as a mother you gather your people to you
You are gentle with us as a mother with her children
Often you weep over our sins and our pride
Tenderly you draw us from hatred and judgement
You comfort us in sorrow and bind up our wounds
In sickness you nurse us, and with pure milk you feed us
Jesus, by your dying we are born to new life
By your anguish and labour we come forth in joy
Despair turns to hope through your sweet goodness
Through your gentleness we find comfort in fear
Your warmth gives life to the dead
Your touch makes sinners righteous
Lord Jesus, in your mercy heal us
In your love and tenderness remake us
In your compassion bring grace and forgiveness
For the beauty of heaven may your love prepare us
I acknowledge, Lord,
And I give thanks
That you have created your image in me,
So that I may remember you,
Think of you,
Love you.
But this image is so obliterated
And worn away by wickedness,
It is so obscured by the smoke of sins,
That it cannot do what it was created to do,
Unless you renew and reform it.
I am not attempting, O Lord,
To penetrate your loftiness,
For I cannot begin to match my understanding with it,
But I desire in some measure to understand your truth,
Which my heart believes and loves.
For I do not seek to understand
In order that I may believe,
But I believe in order to understand.
For this too I believe,
That “unless I believe, I shall not understand” (Isaiah 7:9)
O, Lord, through your Son you command us, no, you counsel us to ask,
And you promise that you will hear us so that our joy may be complete
Give me then what you promise to give through your Truth.
You, O God, are faithful; Grant that I may receive my request
So that my joy may be complete.
No one will have any other desire in heaven than what God wills;
And the desire of one will be the desire of all;
And the desire of all and of each one will also be the desire of God.
O God,
Let me know you and love you
So that I may find joy in you;
And if I cannot do so fully in this life,
Let me at least make some progress every day,
Until at last that knowledge, love and joy
Come to me in all their plenitude*
While I am here on earth let me know you fully;
Let my love for you grow deeper here,
So that there I may love you fully.
On earth then I shall have great joy in hope,
And in heaven complete joy in the fulfillment of my hope.
*Plenitude- the quality or state of being full or abundant
St. Anselm of Canterbury, 1033-1109
Wow.
Amen