Thomas à Kempis — in their own words
54 quotations, each traced to the exact paragraph it comes from. Follow any of them into the full text — free, and without an account.
The Imitation of Christ 54
The teaching of Christ is more excellent than all the advice of the saints, and he who has His spirit will find in it a hidden manna.
Many words do not satisfy the soul; but a good life eases the mind and a clean conscience inspires great trust in God.
The pure, simple, and steadfast spirit is not distracted by many labors, for he does them all for the honor of God.
Humble knowledge of self is a surer path to God than the ardent pursuit of learning.
True peace of heart, then, is found in resisting passions, not in satisfying them.
The humble live in continuous peace, while in the hearts of the proud are envy and frequent anger.
Do not think yourself better than others lest, perhaps, you be accounted worse before God Who knows what is in man.
Just men depend on the grace of God rather than on their own wisdom in keeping their resolutions.
No man rejoices safely unless he has within him the testimony of a good conscience.
No man commands safely unless he has learned well how to obey.
No man is safe in speaking unless he loves to be silent.
No man deserves the consolation of heaven unless he persistently arouses himself to holy contrition.
Happy is the man who can throw off the weight of every care and recollect himself in holy contrition.
Man’s happiness does not consist in the possession of abundant goods; a very little is enough.
The present is very precious; these are the days of salvation; now is the acceptable time.
The man who casts aside the fear of God cannot continue long in goodness but will quickly fall into the snares of the devil.
Christ will come to you offering His consolation, if you prepare a fit dwelling for Him in your heart, whose beauty and glory, wherein He takes delight, are all from within.
Place all your trust in God; let Him be your fear and your love.
A spiritual man quickly recollects himself because he has never wasted his attention upon externals.
Nothing so mars and defiles the heart of man as impure attachment to created things.
The man who is at perfect ease is never suspicious, but the disturbed and discontented spirit is upset by many a suspicion.
Consider nothing great, nothing high, nothing pleasing, nothing acceptable, except God Himself or that which is of God.
God alone, the eternal and infinite, satisfies all, bringing comfort to the soul and true joy to the body.
To glory in adversity is not hard for the man who loves, for this is to glory in the cross of the Lord.
To walk with God interiorly, to be free from any external affection—this is the state of the inward man.
Affection for creatures is deceitful and inconstant, but the love of Jesus is true and enduring.
The man who lives without Jesus is the poorest of the poor, whereas no one is so rich as the man who lives in His grace.
Let all things be loved for the sake of Jesus, but Jesus for His own sake.
Jesus Christ must be loved alone with a special love for He alone, of all friends, is good and faithful.
A man must fight long and bravely against himself before he learns to master himself fully and to direct all his affections toward God.
God does well in giving the grace of consolation, but man does evil in not returning everything gratefully to God.
Grace is always given to him who is duly grateful, and what is wont to be given the humble will be taken away from the proud.
No one understands the passion of Christ so thoroughly or heartily as the man whose lot it is to suffer the like himself.
No man is fit to enjoy heaven unless he has resigned himself to suffer hardship for Christ.
Nothing is more acceptable to God, nothing more helpful for you on this earth than to suffer willingly for Christ.
Let the eternal truth please you above all things, and let your extreme unworthiness always displease you.
Love tends upward; it will not be held down by anything low.
One who is in love flies, runs, and rejoices; he is free, not bound.
Let me love You more than myself, and let me not love myself except for Your sake.
Love is never self-seeking, for in whatever a person seeks himself there he falls from love.
The wise lover regards not so much the gift of Him Who loves as the love of Him Who gives.
The whole world will not make him proud whom truth has subjected to itself.
Not every desire is from the Holy Spirit, even though it may seem right and good.
All men desire peace but all do not care for the things that go to make true peace.
Whatever is not God is nothing and must be accounted as nothing.
The one often errs, the other trusts in God and is not deceived.
Seek true peace, not on earth but in heaven; not in men or in other creatures but in God alone.
A man’s true progress consists in denying himself, and the man who has denied himself is truly free and secure.
Man draws nearer to God in proportion as he withdraws farther from all earthly comfort.
Grace does not consider what is useful and advantageous to herself, but rather what is profitable to many.
Grace brings all things back to God in Whom they have their source.
Every day the interior man is reformed by new visitations according to the image of God.
To trust in You above all things is the strongest comfort of Your servants.
Faith is required of you, and a sincere life, not a lofty intellect nor a delving into the mysteries of God.