“On the way of the Cross, you see, my children, only the first step is painful.  Our greatest cross is the fear of crosses.”   St. John Vianney

“We adore You, most holy Lord Jesus Christ, here and at all churches all over the world, and we bless You; because by Your holy cross You have redeemed the world.”   St. Francis

“Why not love our crosses and make use of them to take us to Heaven?”   St. John Vianney

“Woe to those who spend their entire lives studying logic, physics, or the principles of the sciences and who find nothing to savor in this knowledge.  If they were to study the wood of the cross of Christ, they would find a knowledge there that is truly salvific.”   St. Bonaventure

“The good God does not require of us the martyrdom of the body; He requires only the martyrdom of the heart, and the will … Our Lord is our model; let us take up our cross, and follow Him.”    St. John Vianney

“The Cross is the gift that God makes to His friends.”   St. John Vianney

“Love is fixed to the cross.  The cross has taken Him and will not let Him go.  I run and cling to that cross that my anguish may not drive me mad.  To flee would lead me to despair, for my name would be canceled from the book of Love.”   Jacapone Da Todi, OFM