The Imitation of Christ by Thomas à Kempis

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I’ve been meaning/wanting to read this book for 5 years, so I just ordered one.

I’d love to hear comments from any readers who are familiar.
 
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Great book to pray with !

However, keep in mind that Thomas Kempis wrote it for religious mostly and some things may be confusing for you.

Also, it’s not a book you read cover to cover, but more like the Bible in that you read where you opened it up to.

Otherwise, great spiritual work !
 
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I didn’t much like it at first because it emphasizes, to me over-emphasizes, what awful worms we are in the sight of God. While I agree with the basic premise, I don’t think reminding a person of that over and over is very helpful to building a relationship with God. It kind of fosters the “I’m no good” mentality, which many people including myself in the past have suffered from, rather than fostering the “God doesn’t make junk and God loves you though he does not love your sinful acts” mentality.

However, having used it for extended prayer programs a couple of times, I have softened a bit towards it. I would not recommend it to anybody new to the faith or newly reverted as being the first spiritual book they start out with though.
 
I’d found out about this book while reading one about St Therese de Lisieux, while going through RCIA about 6 years ago. I’d bought and lost 2 copies back then, never got past first few pages. I now wish to complete what I started and never finished, so I just got a 3rd copy I’ll keep a hold on…
 
I have a really old copy somewhere that I got randomly at a church rummage sale (on the last day when you fill a bag for a dollar - I would usually load up on all kinds of books, probably cleaned out of deceased parishioners’ homes, any old thing that looked even mildly interesting). I don’t quite know where it is now, but since I usually read such old, public domain works online, and the Imitation of Christ (Catholic version) is freely available online, I just use the online version, for example when I need to use it to renew Marian consecration according to the de Montfort method.
 
I use to read a chapter at every adoration hour

As Tis-Bearself said, it gets very negative.

Also, if taken too literally, you’d have to wonder why God bothered with us at all

Eventually, I transitioned to Thomas Merton’s, “Thoughts In Solitude.” It’s more contemporary in language and helps us understand the mercy God has for us.
 
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I listened to the entire audiobook during a long road trip.

It was spiritually and emotionally exhausting, like running a bottle of drain cleaner through my soul. I loved it and it’s amazingly written but it’s not the kind of light reading to cozy up to by a fire imo.
 
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I find it helpful to read both the Imitation of Christ and some of the more modern and less harsh stuff like William Barry, SJ’s meditations on having a “friendship with God”, or Merton as you said, or Luisa Piccaretta, etc.
 
I feel duly advised that the work is not uplifting to the spirit, thanks for that.

Also just did a little biographical reading about the author. That was itself somewhat intense.

Merton I’m somewhat familiar with, but haven’t read. Didn’t he write The (x?) Mile Mountain" or something of the sort? My spiritual advisor recommended Merton some years back, but I did not take his advice that time. I was, then, spending lots of time reading (not studying) the Summa by Aquinas, so had more than enough material to do me…

Presently, I’m working on the Collected Works of St John of the Cross, so will likely switch back and forth between that and the Imitation.

Had no clue this was available online. I wanted the hardcopy, so I bought it. Regardless, I just googled it up and read the intro and half of the first chapter.
I can see why some of the comments that have been made were made on the book. But, honestly, based on the chapter I just read, it looks like a lot of good advice about how to “walk the walk” and not just “talk the talk” of a good Christian life. I think it will do me well to consider the text well as I read it…

Thx for the replies ya all!

Blessings,
 
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One of the more interesting phrases of that little book is:
Far safer is it to live in subjection than in a place of authority.
Many are in obedience from necessity rather than from love;
these take it amiss, and repine for small cause.
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– Imitation, Ch. IX
 
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I didn’t mean to leave the impression that Thomas a Kempis’ Imitation of Christ is a bad book. Some people I know who struggle a lot with pride find writings like his to be immensely helpful and humbling. Also, he was a product of his culture. That’s how holy people thought then. That in and of itself makes it interesting.

His death story horrified me as a high schooler. I understand Snopes has said maybe it didn’t happen just that way, but how would they know? They weren’t there.
 
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Tis_Bearself said:
I didn’t mean to leave the impression that Thomas a Kempis’ Imitation of Christ is a bad book.
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I didn’t get that impression at all.

but, the aggregate textually expressed sentiments about the book are that it is not uplifting. I would call what I saw of it so far, “Instructive.”

Am just now finishing the biography part of collected works, St J of the Cross, and boy oh boy that guy had a rough go of it. I’m moving through that one slowly. It is so big it can either be read, or used as a weapon…thankfully nobody here needs bopped on the noggin’
 
You’re correct, there may be people who benefit from it.

I don’t feel I personally get much out of that approach, although I get more out of it now than when I was newly returned to the Church. When I was first 'back", I already felt like garbage for a variety of reasons, for a very long time, and dwelling on the subject might have caused me to fall back out of the Church rather than encouraging me to continue.
 
My copy of “Imitation” has special meaning for me because I inherited it from my aunt who passed away when she was only 50, before I got the chance to have an adult conversation with her about her faith. She did not attend mass regularly but the fact that she owned this book now gives me some insight into her spirituality that I had assumed was quite shallow. (But I was much younger then and not in a good position to judge whose faith was shallow, if indeed I ever will be.) Also this edition was the 1954 edition illustrated by “the noted Armenian Artist, Ariel Agemian,” as it says in the Forward. Each chapter has its own illustration, which I think ties into the essence of the chapter in a striking way. For example the illustration for chapter 12 - “The Utility of Adversity” shows a mother and young son clearly worried about the father who is in the military, as his picture with his uniform is prominent. The boy has opened a book or newspaper about war, showing a picture of an atom bomb exploding. This being the early 1950’s, memory of World War II was still fresh, and new fears of an atomic war with Russia were looming. The mother and son are together praying the rosary, apparently for the safety of the father. The subtitle of the illustration is “Perfect security and full peace cannot be found in this world.” which is an excerpt from the text of that chapter.

I actually found the book very meaningful for a non-clergy person. I prefer to read only one chapter a day (about 2 pages), slowly, stopping to think often. I know there have been more recent translations of this classic, but this particular translation is like a snapshot in time during which my aunt was forming her faith.
 
Tis_Bearself said:
I didn’t much like it at first because it emphasizes, to me over-emphasizes, what awful worms we are in the sight of God. While I agree with the basic premise, I don’t think reminding a person of that over and over is very helpful to building a relationship with God. It kind of fosters the “I’m no good” mentality, which many people including myself in the past have suffered from, rather than fostering the “God doesn’t make junk and God loves you though he does not love your sinful acts” mentality.
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I really dislike it. I know - bad me. But coming from the perspective of one who struggles with self-condemnation, the times I’ve tried to read it sometimes made me almost despair. Although I understand the purpose for the writer’s tone, for me it felt like perpetual condemnation. I have others that I prefer.
 
It is introspective and leads to humility. For that reason alone it is well worth reading. We do not like to hear much of what the holy man wrote - but we need to hear it.
 
Luisa Piccaretta’s writings are questionable and are likely heretical. Servant of God, Father John Hardon (among others) read her writings and reached that conclusion: http://www.transporter.com/Apologia/cuf_ltr.htm

Here’s a thread from a couple of years ago that’s relevant to this:
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What is the name of this heresy concerning Eucharist? Apologetics
I’ve run across something I know is a heresy. The heresy: “When you consume the Eucharist, you literally become a Living Host. By consuming the Host you literally become Transubstantiated into a Living Host and essentially become a walking Sacrament.” ** Two Questions:** 1) What is the name of this heresy? 2) Where can I find a written reference to it? ** **I’m writing an essay and need to have a reference. Thank you smart Apologetics people! God Bless!
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