University of Virginia Library

CONTENTS

Book I: Admonitions Profitable for the Spiritual Life

                          

Chap.		Page
I.	Of the Imitation of Christ, and of Contempt of the World and all its Vanities.	3
II.	Of Thinking Humbly of Oneself.	4
III.	Of the Knowledge of Truth	6
IV.	Of Prudence in Action.	8
V.	Of the Reading of the Holy Scripture	9
VI.	Of Inordinate Affections	10
VII.	Of Fleeing from Vain Hope and Pride	11
VIII.	Of the Danger of too much Familiarity	12
IX.	Of Obedience and Subjection	12
X.	Of the Danger of Superfluity of Words	13
XI.	Of Speaking Peace of mind, and of Spiritual Progress	14
XII.	Of the Uses of Adversity	16
XIII.	Of Resisting Temptation	17
XIV.	On Avoiding Rash Judgment	19
XV.	Of Works of Charity	20
XVI.	Of Bearing with the Faults of Others	21
XVII.	Of a Religious Life	22
XVIII.	Of the Example of the Holy Fathers	23
XIX.	Of the Exercises of a Religious Man	25
XX.	Of the Love of Solitude and Silence	28
XXI.	Of Compunction of Heart	31
XXII.	In the Contemplation of Human Misery	33
XXIII.	Of Meditation upon Death	36
XXIV.	Of the Judgment and Punishment of the Wicked	39
XXV.	Of the Zealous Amendment of our Whole Life	42

Book II: Admonitions Concerning the Inner Life

            

I.	Of the Inward Life	49
II.	Of Lowly Submission	52
III.	Of the Good, Peaceable Man	53
IV.	Of a Pure Mind and Simple Intention	54
V.	Of Self-Esteem	55
VI.	Of the Joy of a Good Conscience	56
VII.	Of Loving Jesus above all Things	58
VIII.	Of the Intimate Love of Jesus	59
IX.	Of the Lack of all Comfort	61
X.	Of Gratitude for the Grace of God	64
XI.	Of the Fewness of Those who Love the Cross of Jesus	66
XII.	Of the Royal Way of the Holy Cross	68

BOOK III: On Inward Consolation

                                                          

I.	Of the inward Voice of Christ to the Faithful Soul	77
II.	What the Truth saith inwardly without Noise of Words	78
III.	How all the Words of god are to be heard with Humility, and how Many consider Them not.	79
IV.	How we must walk in Truth and Humility before God	82
V.	Of the Wonderful Power of the Divine Love	83
VI.	Of the Proving of the True Lover	86
VII.	Of Hiding our Grace under the Guard of Humility	88
VIII.	Of a Low Estimation of Self in the Sight of God	91
IX.	That all Things are to be Referred to God, as the Final End	92
X.	That it is Sweet to Despise the World and to Serve God	93
XI.	That the Desires of the Heart are to be Examined and Governed	95
XII.	Of the InwardGrowth of Patience, and of the Struggle against Evil Desires	96
XIII.	OF the Obedience of One in Lowly Subjection after the Example of Jesus Christ	98
XIV.	Of Meditation upon the Hidden Judgments of God, that We may not be Lifted up because of our Well-doing	99
XV.	How We must Stand and Speak, in Everything that We Desire	101
XVI.	That True Solace is to be Sought in God Alone	102
XVII.	That all Care is to be Cast upon God	104
XVIII.	That Temporal Miseries are to be Borne Patiently after the Example of Christ	105
XIX.	Of Bearing Injuries, and who shall be Approved as truly Patient	106
XX.	Of Confession of our Infirmity and of the Miseries of this Life	108
XXI.	That Wemust Rest in God above all Goods and Gifts	110
XXII.	Of the Recollection of God's Manifold Benefits	112
XXIII.	Of Four Things which bring Great Peace	114
XXIV.	Of Avoiding of Curious Inquiry into the Life of Another	116
XXV.	Wherein Firm Peace of Heart and True Profit Consist	117
XXVI.	Of the Exaltation of a Free Spirit which Humble Prayer more Deserveth than doth Frequent Reading	119
XXVII.	That Personal Love greatly Hindereth from the Highest Good	120
XXVIII.	Against the Tongues of Detractors XXIX.	How when Tribulation cometh We must call upon and Bless God	123
XXX.	Of Seeking Divine Help, and the Confidence of Obtaining Grace	124
XXXI.	Of the Neglect of Every Creature, that the Creator may be Found	126
XXXII.	Of Self-Denial, and the Casting away of all Selfishness	128
XXXIII.	Of Instability of the Heart, and of Directing the Aim towards God	129
XXXIV.	That to Him who Loveth God is Sweet above All Things and in All Things	130
XXXV.	That there is no Security against Temptation in this Life 132
XXXVI.	Against Vain Judgments of Men 134
XXXVII.	Of Pure and Entire Resignation of Self, for the Obtaining Liberty of Heart	135
XXXVIII.	Of a Good Government in External Things, and of having Recourse to God in Dangers	136
XXXIX.	That Man must not be immersed in Business	137
XL.	That Man hath no Good in Himself, and Nothing whereof to Glory	138
XLI.	Of Contempt of all Temporal Honour	140
XLII.	That our Peace is not to be Placed in Men	141
XLIII.	Against Vain and Worldly Knowledge	142
XLIV.	Of Not Troubling Ourselves about Outward Things	143
XLV.	That We must not Believe Everyone, and that We are Prone to Fall in Our Words	144
XLVI.	Of Having Confidence in God when Evil Words are Cast at Us	146
XLVII.	That all Troubles are to be Endured for the Sake of Eternal Life	149
XLVIII.	Of the Day of Eternity and of the Straitness of this Life	149
XLIX.	Of the Desire after Eternal Life, and how Great Blessings are Promised to Those who Strive	153
L.	How a Desolate Manought to COmmit Himself into the Hands of God	156
LI.	That We must give Ourselves to Humble Works when We are unequal to Those that are Lofty	159
LII.	That a Man Ought not to Reckon Himself Worthy of Consolation, but more Worthy of Chastisement	160
LIII.	That the Grace of God does not join Itself to Those who mind Earthly Things	162
LIV.	Of the Diverse of Nature and of Grace	164
LV.	Of the Corruption of Nature and the Efficacy of Divine Grace	167
LVI.	That We ought to Deny Ourselves and to Imitate Christ by Means of the Cross	170
LVII.	That a Man must not be too much Cast Down, when He Falleth into Some Faults	172
LVIII.	Of Deeper Matters,a dn God's Hidden Judgments which are not to be Inquired into	173
LIX.	That all Hope and Trust is to be Fixed in God Alone	177

BOOK IV: Of the Sacrament of the Altar
A Devout Exhortation to the Holy Communion

                  

I.	With how Great Reverence Christ must be Received	181
II.	That the Great Goodness of Charity is Shown to Men in the Sacrament	186
III.	That it is Profitable to Communicate often	188
IV.	That many Good Gifts are Bestowed upon Those who Communicate Devoutly	191
V.	Of the Dignity of this Sacrament, and of the Office of the Priest	193
VI.	An Inquiry Concerning Preparation for Communion	195
VII.	Of the Examination of Conscience, and Purpose of Amendment	196
VIII.	Of the Oblation of Christ upon the Cross, and of Resignation of Self	198
IX.	That We Ought to offer Ourselves abd all that is ourse to god, and to Pray for all	198
X.	That Holy Communion is not lightly to be Omitted	199
XI.	That the Body and the Blood and the Holy Scriptures are most Necessary to a Faithful Soul	201
XII.	That He who is about to Communicate with Christ Ought to Prepare Himself with Great Diligence	204
XIII.	That the Devout Soul ought with the Whole Heart to Yearn after Union with Christ in the Sacrament	207
XIV.	Of the Fervent Desire of certain Devout Persons to Receive the Body and the Blood of Christ	211
XV.	That the Grace of Devotion is Acquired by Humility and Self-Denial	212
XVI.	That We ought to lay Open our Necessities to Christ and to Require His Grace	214
XVII.	Of Fervent Love and Vehement Desire of Receiving Christ	215
XVIII.	That a Man should not be a Curious Searcher of the Sacrament, but a Humble Imitator of Christ, Submitting his Sense to Holy Faith	217

INTRODUCTORY NOTE

The treatise "Of the Imitation of Christ" appears to have been originally written in Latin early in the fifteenth century. Its exact date and its authorship are still a matter of debate. Manuscripts of the Latin version survive in considerable numbers all over Western Europe, and they, with the vast list of translations and of printed editions, testify to its almost unparalleled popularity. One scribe attributes it to St. Bernard of Clairvaux; but the fact that it contains a quotation from St. Francis of Assisi, who was born thirty years after the death of St. Bernard, disposes of this theory. In England there exist many manuscripts of the first three books, called "Musica Ecclesiastica," frequently ascribed to the English mystic Walter Hilton. But Hilton seems to have died in 1395, and there is no evidence of the existence of the work before 1400. Many manuscripts scattered throughout Europe ascribe the book to Jean le Charlier de Gerson, the great Chancellor of the University of Paris, who was a leading figure in the Church in the earlier part of the fifteenth century. The most probable author, however, especially when the internal evidence is considered, is Thomas Haemmerlein, known also as Thomas a Kempis, from his native town of Kempen, near the Rhine, about forty miles north of Cologne. Haemmerlein, who was born in 1379 or 1380, was a member of the order of the Brothers of Common Life, and spent the last seventy years of his life at Mount St. Agnes, a monastery of Augustinian canons in the diocese of Utrecht. Here he died on July 26, 1471, after an uneventful life spent in copying manuscripts, reading, and composing, and in the peaceful routine of monastic piety.

With the exception of the Bible, no Christian writing has had so wide a vogue or so sustained a popularity as this. And yet, in one sense, it is hardly an original work at all. Its structure it owes largely to the writings of the medieval mystics, and its ideas and phrases are a mosaic from the Bible and the Fathers of the early Church. But these elements are interwoven with such delicate skill and a religious feeling at once so ardent and so sound, that it promises to remain, what it has been for five hundred years, the supreme call and guide to spiritual aspiration.