Theme
Witnesses on body
The body prays too: weariness, hunger, vigil, pain. These witnesses never left it out.
A few words
The highest freedom is that in which one is shown to be a servant of Christ.
In my Calvary, I am not without hope. I know that at the end of the road, Jesus is waiting for me.
The secret of happiness is to live moment by moment and to thank God for all that He, in His goodness, sends to us day after day.
If God wills it, not even the devil will give me leprosy. The foul leprosy is the one within, and that one does not spread: it is washed away by charity.
No, it is a sin; God does not want this.
May the will of God be done.
All 30 witnesses on body
- Agathe de Catane The quiet refusal of whatever enslaves; freedom kept even in another's hands.
- Agnès de Rome The freedom of a given heart, untouched by threat or shame.
- Alphonsa Muttathupadathu Suffering offered in silence, without bitterness or display.
- Ann Hasseltine Judson A body worn out by what one carries for another, and the giving of oneself renewed each day.
- Anne Askew A body given over and silence kept about others; a word held to when it costs everything.
- Benedetta Bianchi Porro Joy that remains as the body comes undone, and the certainty of being awaited.
- Chundra Lela The long search, and what it costs the body.
- Damien de Molokai Staying when everyone else leaves, presence become prayer among wounded bodies.
- Eric Liddell Staying useful where one is shut in, and believing that nothing is lost.
- Fanny Crosby Gratitude that turns deprivation into song: what is missing becomes the very space of praise.
- Gianna Beretta Molla Holiness of the everyday, in a profession and a family held to the end.
- Guigues Ier le Chartreux The prayer of someone who looks his body's needs in the face without shame.
- Hanna Chrzanowska Serving Christ in the body of the sick, making care a prayer.
- Isidore Bakanja Faith held fast even in the flesh, and forgiveness offered to the torturer.
- John Bradburne The long wandering that finds at last its rest in serving the most rejected.
- José Gabriel Brochero Prayer that takes to the road toward the most distant, and shares their life.
- Julie Billiart Unshakeable trust in the goodness of God, held even through the ordeal of the body.
- Julien Nakaura The prayer of someone who gives his name when it would be wiser to keep quiet.
- Luc de Simferopol Care of bodies and souls held in a single hand, and trial passed through until it becomes purification.
- Lucie de Syracuse Keeping the heart free for God, carrying light in the middle of the night.
- Maria Goretti Purity defended to the end, forgiveness stronger than violence.
- Marie-Clémentine Anuarite Nengapeta Faithfulness kept in the body itself, and forgiveness offered to the aggressor.
- Martin de Porres Loving without making distinctions, putting compassion before all.
- Mary Prince Testimony given by the one who endured, and hope held while nothing is resolved.
- Matthias Mulumba Kalemba The patience of the body when there is nothing left to do but last.
- Paulina du Cœur agonisant de Jésus Staying beside the people no one else will look after.
- Pierre Claver Serving with one's hands before speaking, drawing near to the suffering body.
- Rafqa Suffering received and offered, without bitterness, joined to Christ's.
- Teresa de Cartagena The prayer of one who hears nothing from outside any more, and finds that silence is not a wall.
- Véronique Giuliani Love that lets itself be found at the end of the night, and the humble obedience that tells what it would rather have hidden.