St. Thomas Aquinas says: “Praise be to Jesus.”

“You have been asking Heaven, in your heart, the difference between the heart and the spirit. The heart is the vessel which holds all virtue or lack of virtue. The spirit is the essence of what is in the heart. Let me explain it to you in this way.”

“If the heart was an exotic perfume, the spirit would be the fragrance of the perfume. Or, if the heart was a beautiful garden with a lovely array of plants and birds, babbling brooks and more, the spirit would be the peace that one feels walking through the garden.”

“The spirit is the invisible aura around a person that decries what is in the person's heart. Thus, you say, ‘He is a joyful person–a peaceful person.' Or, on the other hand, ‘He is an angry person,' and so on. It is always free will which determines what is in the heart and, therefore, what is reflected in the spirit.”

“Just as a mirror portrays truthfully all that is placed before it, the spirit reflects truthfully what is in the heart.”

“A fine wine cannot exude a false bouquet; neither can the spirit exude anything but what is contained in the heart.”