This quote comes from one of my favorite books, “The Secret Diary of Elizabeth Leseur,” a very holy woman who lived with an unbelieving husband who was not only not supportive of her Catholic religion but at times ridiculed it. She offered up her suffering in that regard for the benefit of his soul, and after her death, he converted and became a Catholic priest!!

Here is her thought on handling such hostility, which I think many of us have come upon at some point or another from someone in our lives or, like me this summer, from some man at the park while I was reading this very book!

“There is little suffering that can compare with this: to love, and to be repaid with hatred or at least hostility; to dream of doing good for someone, of giving part of oneself, and to find that this person does not appreciate you, judges you unfairly, and misunderstands everything about you. What should one do then? Not be unjust in return; remember that the Master suffered misunderstanding and contempt; and without reproaches or sorrowful thoughts of self, continue to speak, act, and love, not to gain the affection denied us, but in the higher and supernatural thought of charity.”

I recently had the privilege of interviewing Father Mitch Pacwa, S.J., about his new book “The Holy Land: An Armchair Pilgrimage” and to get his take on traveling to the Holy Land. But in the course of the interview, he said something that really struck me. I find the way he words things often makes something that, to me, is difficult or complicated, as plain as day :).

In this case he spoke about people who bring along a family member on one of his Holy Land pilgrimages that he leads each year in the hopes of their conversion to Catholicism. I think every true Catholic has someone in their lives they desire to know the joy they have found within the Church and for whom they have cajoled, prayed and done everything they know to do. Father’s take?

“I cannot engineer anybody’s conversion. Conversion is always a management issue. God is the manager. God invokes the grace of conversion. I’m simply in sales.” — Father Mitch Pacwa, S.J.

What a great quote! Funny AND it gets the point across very clearly. It’s not up to us if someone converts; it’s really not up to them either. It’s up to God alone. Pray and then trust that God has the perfect timing. And remember if St. Monica can wait patiently for 30 years for the conversion of her son St. Augustine and be rewarded, so might our patience and trust be rewarded, too.

Matthew Kelly’s “Rediscover Catholicism” was a turning point for me in my journey to Catholicism. I love the way he explains Catholicism and makes it relevant to my life today. Here is a quote I highlighted in his latest book “The Four Signs of a Dynamic Catholic” (which you can get for FREE on his website at www.dynamiccatholic.com), which encourages Catholics to get involved and make a difference in our world.

“God calls you to holiness, and everything that happens in your life, every triumph, trial, and tragedy, is an opportunity to grow in holiness. When you work hard and pay attention to the details of your work, you grow in virtue and character–and holiness. When you are patient with your little sister or a customer who drives you crazy, you become more perfectly who God created you to be–and you grow in holiness. When you develop a daily routine of prayer and practice it persistently, you develop a closer relationship with God–and you grow in holiness. Every moment has meaning. Every moment of every day presents you with an opportunity to grow in holiness by loving God, loving your neighbor, and becoming more perfectly the unique and wonderful person God created you to be.”

Here is a great quote from Mother Delores Hart, former movie star turned nun. I’m reading her biography, “The Ear of the Heart,” which is a fascinating read, especially if you are interested in how people discern calls to the religious life, as I am :).

“Sin is not so much doing something wrong; sin is not being true to who we are.”