Charles de Foucauld

I was recently introduced to Blessed Charles de Foucauld, who tried to imitate Christ by always taking the lowest place. He was especially interested in imitating Jesus in His hidden life, before public ministry. As you can see from this quote, he was pretty hard core.

"My God, I do not know how it is possible for some souls to see you in poverty and themselves voluntarily remain rich, to imagine themselves so much grander than their Master, their Beloved, and not want to be like him in all things – as far as it is for them to decide – and especially in your humbleness. […] I am judging no one, O God: the others are your servants and my brothers, and I cannot but love them, do good to them, pray for them. But for my own part I cannot understand love that does not seek to imitate and does not feel the need to share every cross.

"Besides, the poor man’s possessions are so great: he has nothing and loves nothing in this world, and so his soul is free. Nothing is especially important to him. It is of little significance to him whether he is sent to one place or another, for he has nothing anywhere, and wants nothing anywhere. He finds God everywhere, and God is the only one from whom he wants anything. Moreover, if he is loyal, God always gives him what is best for his soul. How free he is! How lightly his spirit mounts up into the heavens! How weightless are his wings! His prayers are little troubled by thoughts of natural things great or small (for little things, even the smallest, are as disturbing as the biggest): how little they distract his prayers! Such things do not exist for him. […]

"This is the poverty that leaves no attachments at all to temporal things, but completely empties the heart, leaving it whole and entirely free for God alone. God then refills it with himself, reigning in it alone, filling it wholly with himself, and putting into it – though not for itself, but for himself, for his own sake – love for all men, his children."

- Charles de Foucauld

Click HERE to read a few other Foucauld quotes.