The Imitation of Christ: A Timeless Classic for Contemporary Readers

by A'Kempis, Thomas

• ISBN13: 9780870612312
• ISBN10: 087061231X
• Edition: Revised
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2003-12-01
• Publisher: Christian Classics

Table of Contents

Preface	8	(3)
Introduction	11	(19)
Book 1 Useful Reminders for the Spiritual Life
Of the Imitation of Christ	30	(1)
Of Having a Humble Opinion about Yourself	31	(1)
Of the Teaching of Truth	32	(2)
Of Thinking before You Act	34	(1)
Of Reading Holy Writings	35	(1)
Of Confused Feelings	35	(1)
Of Avoiding Empty Hope and Self-Praise	36	(1)
Of Avoiding Inappropriate Intimacy	37	(1)
Of Obedience for Those under Religious Vows	37	(1)
Of Avoiding Unnecessary Talk	38	(1)
Of Finding Peace and Making Spiritual Progress	39	(1)
Of Putting Troubles to Use	40	(1)
Of Resisting Temptations	41	(2)
Of Avoiding Hasty Judgments	43	(1)
Of Works Done Out of Love	43	(1)
Of Putting Up with Others' Faults	44	(1)
Of the Monastic Life	45	(1)
Of the Examples of the Holy Fathers	46	(1)
Of the Training of a Good Religious Person	47	(2)
Of the Love of Solitude and Silence	49	(2)
Of Heartfelt Remorse	51	(2)
Of Human Misery	53	(2)
Of Thinking about Death	55	(2)
Of Judgment and Punishment	57	(2)
Of Improving Our Lives	59	(5)
Book 2 Suggestions Drawing One toward the Inner Life
Of God Speaking within You	64	(2)
Of Placing Your Life in God's Hands	66	(1)
Of the Good and Peaceful Person	67	(1)
Of Pure Feelings and Simple Intentions	68	(1)
Of Paying Attention to One's Self	69	(1)
Of the Joy of a Good Conscience	70	(1)
Of Loving Jesus above All Else	71	(1)
Of Intimate Friendship with Jesus	72	(1)
Of Emptiness	73	(2)
Of Gratitude for God's Grace	75	(2)
Of the Few Who Love Jesus's Cross	77	(1)
Of the Royal Road of the Holy Cross	78	(6)
Book 3 Of Inner Comfort
Of Christ Speaking in Your Own Heart	84	(1)
That Truth Speaks Quietly to the Heart	85	(1)
That We Should Listen to God's Words with Deep Humility and Serious Intent	86	(2)
That We Should Live in God's Presence in Truth and Humility	88	(1)
Of the Wonderful Effects of God's Love	89	(2)
Of the Proof of a True Lover	91	(2)
Of Protecting Grace with Humility	93	(2)
Of Humility before God	95	(1)
That All Things Come from God and Must Return to God	96	(1)
Of How Good It Is to Serve God	97	(1)
That Feelings May Not Always Be What They Seem	98	(1)
Of Patience	99	(1)
Of Obedience and Humility	100	(1)
Of Seeing Ourselves through God's Eyes	101	(1)
Of What We Are to Do and Say about All Our Desires	102	(1)
That We Are to Seek True Comfort in God Alone	103	(1)
That We Should Take All Our Cares to God	104	(1)
That We Should Bear Our Hardships Patiently after Christ's Example	105	(1)
Of Bearing Injuries and the Proof of True Patience	106	(1)
Of Admitting Our Own Weaknesses	107	(2)
That We Should Rest in God above All Else	109	(2)
Of Remembering God's Many Blessings	111	(1)
Of Four Things that Bring Great Peace	112	(2)
Of Avoiding Curiosity about Other People's Lives	114	(1)
Of True Peace of Heart	115	(1)
That True Freedom Comes More from Humble Prayer than from Much Reading	116	(1)
That Self-love Blocks Us from Attaining the Highest Good	117	(2)
Of Those Who Speak against Us	119	(1)
Of How We Should Bless God in Times of Trial	119	(1)
Of Asking for God's Help	120	(2)
Of Setting Aside All Created Things that We May Find the Creator	122	(1)
Of Growing beyond Self	123	(1)
Of Our Changing Hearts, and of Focusing Our Sight on God	124	(1)
That the Person Who Loves God Enjoys Him above All and in All	125	(1)
That There Is No Freedom from Temptation in This Life	126	(1)
That You Should Not Worry about What Other People May Say about You	127	(1)
Of Gaining a Free Heart through Total Self-Surrender	128	(1)
Of Controlling Our Behavior, and of Running to God in Time of Danger	129	(1)
That a Person Must Not Be Overly Eager in His Affairs	130	(1)
That All a Person's Goodness Comes from God, Not from Himself	131	(1)
Of Seeing All Worldly Honor as Nothing	132	(1)
That Peace Does Not Depend on Other People	133	(1)
Against Arrogant Learning	134	(1)
Of Minding Our Own Business	135	(1)
That We Should Not Believe Everything We Hear and of How Easy It Is to Speak Ill of Others	136	(1)
Of Having Confidence in God when Sharp Words Attack Us	137	(2)
That All Burdens Are to Be Endured for the Sake of Eternal Life	139	(1)
Of Life and of Eternity	140	(2)
Of Longing for Eternal Life and of the Promise It Holds	142	(3)
How a Lonely Person Should Place Himself in God's Hands	145	(2)
That We Must Perform Humble Works When We Are Unable to Perform Higher Ones	147	(1)
That We Should Not Think Ourselves Worthy of Comfort but Deserving of Correction	148	(1)
That God's Grace Does Not Mix with the Wisdom of the World	149	(1)
Of the Differing Movements of Nature and Grace	150	(3)
Of Fallen Nature and the Effect of Divine Grace	153	(1)
That We Should Turn from Ourselves and Imitate Christ by Way of the Cross	154	(2)
That We Should Not Be Too Dejected When We Fail	156	(1)
Of Not Prying into Things That Are beyond Our Understanding	157	(3)
That All Hope and Trust Should Be Fixed on God Alone	160	(4)
Book 4 The Book on the Sacrament
With What Great Reverence Christ Should Be Received	164	(4)
What Great Goodness and Love God Shows to Us in This Sacrament	168	(2)
How It Is Helpful to Receive Communion Often	170	(1)
That Many Good Things Are Given to Those Who Devoutly Receive Communion	171	(2)
Of the Dignity of the Sacrament and of the Priesthood	173	(1)
The Question of Preparing before Communion	174	(1)
Of Examining One's Conscience, and of Planning to Change for the Better	175	(1)
Of Christ's Offering on the Cross, and of Our Own Self-Surrender	176	(1)
That We Ought to Offer Ourselves and All That Is Ours to God, and That We Ought to Pray for All Others	177	(2)
That Holy Communion Is Not to Be Lightly Omitted	179	(2)
That the Body of Christ and the Holy Scriptures Are Most Necessary to the Faithful Soul	181	(2)
That Receiving Christ in Holy Communion Requires Preparation	183	(2)
That a Devout Soul Should Wish Wholeheartedly to Be United with Christ in the Sacrament	185	(1)
Of the Ardent Desire of Some Devout People to Receive the Body of Christ	186	(1)
That the Grace of Devotion Is Gained by Humility	187	(1)
That We Should Make Our Needs Known to Christ and Ask for His Help	188	(1)
Of Burning Love and the Strong Desire to Receive Christ	189	(2)
That We Should Not Pry into This Sacrament Out of Curiosity	191