Matt Fradd
Spirituality/Belief • Books • Writing
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The Saints on Humility

Do not imagine that if you meet a really humble man he will be what most people call ‘humble’ nowadays: he will not be a sort of greasy, smarmy person, who is always telling you that, of course, he is nobody. Probably all you will think about him is that he seemed a cheerful, intelligent chap who took a real interest in what you said to him. If you do dislike him it will be because you feel a little envious of anyone who seems to enjoy life so easily. He will not be thinking about humility: he will not be thinking about himself at all.

If anyone would like to acquire humility, I can, I think, tell him the first step. The first step is to realise that one is proud. And a biggish step, too. At least, nothing whatever can be done before it. If you think you are not conceited, it means you are very conceited indeed.

-- C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, Book 3, Chapter 8, “The Great Sin,” Kindle location 1665


True humility consists in being content with all that God is pleased to ordain for us, believing ourselves unworthy to be called His servants. -- St. Teresa of Jesus

To be taken with love for a soul, God does not look on its greatness, but the greatness of its humility. --St John of the Cross, OCD

There is something in humility which strangely exalts the heart. --Saint Augustine

It was pride that changed angels into devils; it is humility that makes men as angels. --Saint Augustine

Be humble towards God and gentle with your neighbor. Judge and accuse no one but yourself, and ever excuse others. Speak of God always to praise and glorify Him, speak of your neighbor only with respect -- do not speak of yourself at all, either well or ill. -- St. Margaret Mary Alacoque

The truly humble reject all praise for themselves, and refer it all to God. - St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

In the difficulties which are placed before me, why should I not act like a donkey? When one speaks ill of him - the donkey says nothing. When he is mistreated - he says nothing. When he is forgotten - he says nothing. When no food is given him - he says nothing. When he is made to advance - he says nothing. When he is despised - he says nothing. When he is overburdened - he says nothing. The true servant of God must do likewise, and say with David: "Before Thee I have become like a beast of burden." -- St. Alphonsus Rodriguez

What will be the crown of those who, humble within and humiliated without, have imitated the humility of our Savior in all its fullness! -- St. Bernadette

He who wants to learn true humility should reflect upon the Passion of Jesus. (267) -- St Faustina, Divine Mercy in my Soul

The soul's true greatness is in loving God and in humbling oneself in His presence, completely forgetting oneself and believing oneself to be nothing; because the Lord is great, but He is well-pleased only with the humble; He always opposes the proud. -- St Faustina, Divine Mercy in my Soul

Let us therefore give ourselves to God with a great desire to begin to live thus, and beg Him to destroy in us the life of the world of sin, and to establish His life within us. -- St. John Eudes

To be pleased at correction and reproofs shows that one loves the virtues which are contrary to those faults for which he is corrected and reproved. And, therefore, it is a great sign of advancement in perfection. -- St. Francis de Sales

No man can attain to the knowledge of God but by humility. The way to mount high is to descend. -- Bl. Giles of Assisi

If you would rise, shun luxury, for luxury lowers and degrades. -- St John Chrysostom

Humility is the foundation of all the other virtues hence, in the soul in which this virtue does not exist there cannot be any other virtue except in mere appearance. ~ St. Augustine

Our Lord loves you and loves you tenderly; and if He does not let you feel the sweetness of His love, it is to make you more humble and abject in your own eyes. -St. Pio of Pietrelcino

A truly humble person never believes that he can be wronged in anything. Truly, we ought to be shamed to resent whatever is said or done against us; for it is the greatest shame in the world to see that our Creator bears so many insults from His creatures, and that we resent even a little word that is contradictory. - St. Teresa

Do you wish to be great? Then begin by being. Do you desire to construct a vast and lofty fabric? Think first about the foundations of humility. The higher your structure is to be, the deeper must be its foundation. -Saint Augustine

We should let God be the One to praise us and not praise ourselves. For God detests those who commend themselves. Let others applaud our good deeds. --Pope St. Clement I

If humble souls are contradicted, they remain calm; if they are calumniated, they suffer with patience; if they are little esteemed, neglected, or forgotten, they consider that their due; if they are weighed down with occupations, they perform them cheerfully. - St. Vincent de Paul

The first degree of humility is the fear of God, which we should constantly have before our eyes. -St. Louis de Blois

The most powerful weapon to conquer the devil is humility. For, as he does not know at all how to employ it, neither does he know how to defend himself from it. - Saint Vincent de Paul

Prayer must be humble: God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Here St. James tells us that God does not listen to the prayers of the proud, but resists them; while, on the other hand, he is always ready to hear the prayers of the humble: The prayer of the man that humbleth himself shall pierce the clouds, . . . and he will not depart till the Most High behold. The prayer of an humble soul at once penetrates the heavens and presents itself before the throne of God, and will not depart thence till God regards it and listens to it. However sinful such a soul may be, God can never despise a heart that repents of its sins, and humbles itself: A contrite and humbled heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise. - St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

But, my daughter, I am going a step further, and I bid you everywhere and in everything rejoice in your own abjection. Perhaps you will ask in reply what I mean by that. In Latin abjection means humility, and humility means abjection, so that when Our Lady says in the Magnificat that all generations shall call her blessed, because God hath regarded the low estate of His handmaiden, she means that He has accepted her abjection and lowliness in order to fill her with graces and favours. Nevertheless, there is a difference between humility and abjection; for abjection is the poverty, vileness and littleness which exist in us, without our taking heed to them; but humility implies a real knowledge and voluntary recognition of that abjection. And the highest point of humility consists in not merely acknowledging one's abjection, but in taking pleasure therein, not from any want of breadth or courage, but to give the more glory to God's Divine Majesty, and to esteem one's neighbour more highly than one's self. This is what I would have you do; - St. Francis de Sales

00:35:49
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Why Do We Identify with Charlie Kirk? - Fr. Gregory Pine, O.P.

In the wake of Charlie Kirk's assassination, many people have experienced a profound dismay. We didn't know him, and yet the events of the past week have really thrown us for a loop. Why exactly is that? And what is to be learned from the experience?

Also, I have a new book out. You can find it here: https://www.amazon.com/Your-Eucharistic-Identity-Sacramental-Fullness/dp/162164796X/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2ELJ81ZJUVT1G&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.HRZlgfwsmxjGFj1ePRw-OgluBhzhKL7XiQCNKyHEK_s.V0RluCVNmFRjkIZWue1otfyktDPiZN_QnWrjE_LTPtU&dib_tag=se&keywords=your+eucharistic+identity+gregory+pine&qid=1756821967&sprefix=your+eucharistic+%2Caps%2C107&sr=8-1

00:19:09
Where Should I Live? On Cultivating Intentional Community - Fr. Gregory Pine, O.P.

A lot of folks have to decide, at one point or another, where they are going to live and what parish they are going to attend. At times you might be torn between growing where you're planted and moving to where you're nourished. I was in Tulsa this past weekend with a really excellent community, and it sparked some though on the theme.

Also, I have a new book out. You can find it here: https://www.amazon.com/Your-Eucharistic-Identity-Sacramental-Fullness/dp/162164796X/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2ELJ81ZJUVT1G&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.HRZlgfwsmxjGFj1ePRw-OgluBhzhKL7XiQCNKyHEK_s.V0RluCVNmFRjkIZWue1otfyktDPiZN_QnWrjE_LTPtU&dib_tag=se&keywords=your+eucharistic+identity+gregory+pine&qid=1756821967&sprefix=your+eucharistic+%2Caps%2C107&sr=8-1

00:19:28
September 02, 2025
WATCH: Intro to Marian Consecration

Please watch this beautiful introductory video to our 33 day preparation for total consecration to Jesus through Mary which starts September 4th. We will conclude on the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, October 7th.

00:19:52
Simple NEW Lofi Song

Working on an entire album of lofi music. Here's one of those songs. Album should drop next week. THEN, a couple of weeks after that we hope to have our 24/7 stream up and running.

Simple NEW Lofi Song
December 01, 2022
Day 5 of Advent

THE ERROR OF ARIUS ABOUT THE INCARNATION

In their eagerness to proclaim the unity of God and man in Christ, some heretics went to the opposite extreme and taught that not only was there one person, but also a single nature, in God and man. This error took its rise from Arius. To defend his position that those scriptural passages where Christ is represented as being inferior to the Father, must refer to the Son of God Himself, regarded in His assuming nature, Arius taught that in Christ there is no other soul than the Word of God who, he maintained, took the place of the soul in Christ’s body. Thus when Christ says, in John 14:28, “The Father is greater than I,” or when He is introduced as praying or as being sad, such matters are to be referred to the very nature of the Son of God. If this were so, the union of God’s Son with man would be effected not only in the person, but also in the nature. For, as we know, the unity of human nature arises from the union of soul and body.

The...

Day 5 of Advent
November 27, 2022
Day 1 of Advent

RESTORATION OF MAN BY GOD THROUGH THE INCARNATION

We indicated above that the reparation of human nature could not be effected either by Adam or by any other purely human being. For no individual man ever occupied a position of pre-eminence over the whole of nature; nor can any mere man be the cause of grace. The same reasoning shows that not even an angel could be the author of man’s restoration. An angel cannot be the cause of grace, just as he cannot be man’s recompense with regard to the ultimate perfection of beatitude, to which man was to be recalled. In this matter of beatitude angels and men are on a footing of equality. Nothing remains, therefore, but that such restoration could be effected by God alone.

But if God had decided to restore man solely by an act of His will and power, the order of divine justice would not have been observed. justice demands satisfaction for sin. But God cannot render satisfaction, just as He cannot merit. Such a service pertains to one who ...

Day 1 of Advent
November 10, 2025
Meme Monday!

See! I remember ... sometimes.

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The David Wood Episode

Did you watch it? What did you think?

November 10, 2025

Prayer request for my dad. He’s back in the hospital after already having surgery twice this year tor brain bleeds. He’s already so frail I have a hard time imagining him going through the surgery again…

October 23, 2025
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It's finally here! Jesus Our Refuge 🙌

It’s finally here! 

I’ve been pouring my heart into what I truly believe is an important book—Jesus Our Refuge (get here). It’s the most personal thing I’ve ever written, and my hope is that it helps you find peace and refuge in the heart of Jesus. 

Please consider getting a copy here and reviewing!

P.S. I don’t earn anything from this book. When I wrote it, I knew it had to reach far and wide, so I partnered with a publisher who believes in that mission. Every bit of the royalties I’d have received goes into a fund to give away one million copies for free.

 

 

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What St. Thomas Means by "Curiosity"

In today's livestream I spoke about the sin of curiosity. In this article, I thought I'd sum it up for you in case I didn't do it well in the livestream.

You can read Thomas' own words here, btw. 

For Aquinas, “curiosity” is not simply the healthy desire to know the truth. He distinguishes between the virtue of studiositas—the ordered pursuit of knowledge—and the vice of curiositas, which is the disordered pursuit of knowledge.

Curiosity becomes a vice when we seek knowledge in the wrong way or for the wrong reasons: for pride, idle speculation, gossip, or knowledge that leads us away from God rather than toward Him. For example, indulging in occult practices, probing into sinful matters for fascination, or prying into things that are none of our business (all of social media, or just most?) are all ways that curiosity corrupts the good of knowledge. In other words, knowledge itself is good, but the way we desire, seek, and use it can be distorted.

Aquinas says that curiosity can show itself in several ways: when someone prefers trivial knowledge over what would truly benefit their soul (c'mon ... this is how many people live their lives), when one seeks knowledge to boast or to sin, when one is distracted by an endless hunger for new information at the expense of wisdom, or when one turns to forbidden sources of knowledge.

By contrast, the virtue of studiousness disciplines the intellect so that we seek truth for its own sake, for God’s glory, and for the service of others. Thus, Aquinas sees curiosity not as the love of learning itself, but as the disorder of that love—an appetite for knowing that forgets the proper end of knowledge, which is to lead us to truth and ultimately to God.

So here's a challenge for you and me: What is one practical way that we can avoid curiosity and grow in studiousness?

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33 Days of Preparation for Marian Consecration on Locals – Starts Sept 4

Hey everyone!

Beginning September 4th, our Locals community will enter into 33 days of spiritual preparation for total consecration to Jesus through Mary. 

We will conclude together on October 7th, the Feast of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary.

Here’s how it will unfold on Locals:

- We will be guided by Fr. Boniface Hicks’ beautiful book, The Fruit of Her Womb: 33-Day Preparation for Total Consecration to Jesus Through Mary. (I’ve received special permission from the publisher to share it with Locals members.)

- A daily meditation and prayer will be posted each day for the 33 days.

- To accompany us, Fr. Boniface will provide several exclusive videos recorded just for Locals, offering guidance and encouragement along the way.

This is an opportunity to consecrate—or renew your consecration—to Jesus through Mary in the company of a prayerful community, with the wisdom of a priest who has written deeply on this devotion.

Mark your calendar: We begin September 4th.

You can purchase a copy of the book here: https://www.amazon.com/33-Day-Preparation-Total-Consecration-Through/dp/1644138409

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