Friday 7 September 2012

THE IMITATION OF CHRIST (Edwin Mugwe)


Name:             Edwin I. Mugwe, CM.
Reg. No.         11057T
Book Title.     THE IMITATION OF CHRIST By THOMAS Á KEMPIS
                        Translated and Edited by William C. Creasy

About the Author
Thomas á Kempis was born around 1379 in Kempen, Germany and died in 1471 aged 92 years old. He sought education in Deventer in the years of 1392-1397 as he tried to follow in the footsteps of his elder brother Jan (John). His brother had apparently joined the Brethren of Common Life at Windesheim. Thomas however got a chance to study under the arrangement of Master Florentius a follower of Gerhard Groote’s New Devotion (Devotio moderna). After his education Thomas went to visit his brother Jan who was by then the prior of the monastery of Mount St. Agnes in Zwolle. While in Zwolle, Thomas who had by then encountered the spirituality of the Brethren of Common Life desired to join and was granted admission to the community. He was vested in habit and formally accepted into the Congregation of the Canons Regular of St. Augustine in 1406, pronounced vows in 1408, and ordained priest in 1413. While in the community, he served as a sub-prior in 1425 and also in instructing young aspirants and novices. It is most probable that he wrote treatises of The Imitation between 1425 and 1427 while he actively served in the said capacities. Thomas lived entirely in Mount St. Agnes Monastery except for some period of time when the community went in exile out of crises in the home diocese. Besides The Imitation, Thomas copied The Bible and wrote several hymns and other devotional works. He also wrote biographies of his masters. He died on 1471 while working for the history text of his monastery. His text The Imitation has remained a timeless classic for contemporary readers.

My motivation about this text
It provides me with insights into life
I came across the book The Imitation when I was in the novitiate two years ago. It was one of the books my spiritual director suggested and consequently my formation director highly recommended for a beginner. This book provided me with great insights into the life of deepened spirituality as well as movement towards interior life of prayer. The book is well organized with very attractive topics that continually invite the reader to a life of spirit. It is worthwhile to note that the modern secular world can easily make persons lose themselves in the confusion it presents. For this purpose the text has both psychological and spiritual approaches in providing counsel particularly in managing discipline and seeking true wisdom. Thomas is a favorite for many readers and particularly for those contemplating a religious vocation. He has made remarkable inspiration to my growth especially on those times when I got distracted by crises in human development, spiritual growth and community life. I find the emphasis on scripture in reading The Imitation as well as presence of Jesus’ own counsel as great ingredients to a better spiritual life. This text continually makes the heart of her readers’ burn and yearns for Christ in very special ways.


Reflection: General Counsel Kit for Spiritual Pilgrims (1st October)
After reading the first part of the text, that is, Book 1 of the Imitation, I have come to admire the emphasis expressed on ‘growing in spiritual life’. The author designs the first twenty-five chapters in a way so as to provide counsel for living spiritual life. The counsels can as well be termed as reminders of spiritual living. I consider the various advices proposed by Thomas as the starters every single person who is considering a deepened spiritual life ought to observe and reflect on. Of course they are general prescriptions which might seem very obvious to any reader. However a keen reader will notice the themes of discipleship, and gradual mortification. Thomas exemplifies his text with characteristic behaviors a person is supposed to adopt for the love of Christ. I find persistent call to gradual practice of asceticism especially with regard to habitual discipline towards attainment of spiritual life.

Although Thomas incredibly champions personal efforts in attaining spiritual life, there are quite a number of undertones that greatly suggest reliance on Grace of God as way to ultimately attain deepened spirituality. Of course great emphasis is on training the body and mind in responding to discipleship through articulate actions, practice of good deeds, spiritual reading, prayers and following examples of those who have perfected in their spiritual lives. This first part of the book is an inspiration to multitude of Christians particularly those pursuing special vocation in religious life so that they may grab the impetus to join in the way of spiritual growth but more importantly train themselves to steer gradually to a more perfected spiritual life.


Reflection: Feeding the Soul with ‘Love for God’ (5th November)
The second book on “The Imitation of Christ” has profound suggestions on how one can turn towards the inner life in search for the Divine. While Thomas ends his first book by indicating how the life of a spiritual person should pursue holiness by improving human behaviors and practices, in the second one he introduces the reader to another dimension that is, purely focused on journeying towards inner life with God. For Thomas God is dwelling in the quiet hearts of his faithful people. For anyone who wants to live with God, he must love him and yearn for him so that he shall ultimately enjoy in his kingdom. He says, “If you put God first, you will see his kingdom blossom within you, for the kingdom of God is living in peace and joy with the Holy Spirit, a thing not given to those who do not yearn for him with all their heart”.[1]
In the journey of deepening one’s spiritual life, there is need to build up peace with Christ. That peaceful moment with Jesus is a manifestation of some gradual intimacy with the Divine. This intimate relationship is being characterized with purity of heart and mind, experience of a healthy conscience, and humble acceptance of Jesus and his cross. For the latter, Thomas insists that cross is our way of life in God; an expression of our embrace of God who showed highest form of love by carrying and dying on the cross.[2] Ultimately all comes to us as gifts from God. We should be grateful for the Grace we receive and show how dependent or helpless we are before God. This journey towards God is a journey that starts from the heart and ends when one is fully united with God in Glory.
It is of utmost importance to consider making a home for Christ in our hearts. This provides life for our souls. At the same time we are able to live happily with our neighbors while sharing the gifts of the Divine dwelling in our hearts. Therefore love for God is ultimately the food for our souls, and acceptance to have him translates to the very benefits of spiritual experience




[1] T. Á Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, William C. Creasy, edt., 64.
[2] Cf. T. Á Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, William C. Creasy, edt., 64-80.


Summary and Reflection

1.0  Introduction
In this paper I seek to synthesis in a short summary some important thoughts of a classical author Thomas á Kempis from his classical text The Imitation of Christ. I also put forward a personal reflection based on my reading of the text while integrating some of my experiences in pastoral work as well as prayer life.
2.0 A Summary on The Imitation of Christ by Thomas á kempis
The book The Imitation of Christ is acknowledged as a timeless classic for contemporary readers. Reading from William Creasy’s version of the classic text, I acknowledge its richness in infusing spirituality with life an element desperately sought in the world today. Thomas á Kempis wrote some treatises in early 15th century which were compiled to form the classical text. The treatises are four sections or books which have been featured in a number of good editions. William Creasy uses the following titles for his version; Useful Reminders for the Spiritual Life, Suggestions Drawing One toward the Inner Life, Of Inner Comfort, and The Book on the Sacrament.
Book one which has the title of Useful Reminders for the Spiritual Life is a general kit that offers advice on renouncing the excitement and temptations of the sensual world and proposes humility as a way of attaining truth, interior spiritual life, and ultimately eternal life. The author designs the twenty-five chapters of book one as a counsel kit for living spiritual life. I consider the various advices proposed by Thomas as starters every single person who is considering a deepened spiritual life ought to observe and reflect on. He starts with the topic ‘on imitating Christ’ where he points out that, “Anyone who wishes to understand Christ’s words and to savor them fully should strive to become like him in every way”.[1] This invitation progresses as a mission for mortification against worldly needs and the vain self-glory. It also calls for a focus in self-discipline, reading the scriptures and imitating the saints while gradually looking into interior human experiences such as death, solitude, remorse, suffering, and judgment as elements that improve our lives.        
Book two which takes the title of Suggestions Drawing One toward the Inner Life has profound suggestions on how one can turn towards the inner life in search of the Divine who dwells in the quiet hearts of his faithful people. Anyone who wants to live with God must love him and yearn for him so that he shall ultimately enjoy in his kingdom. He says, “If you put God first, you will see his kingdom blossom within you, for the kingdom of God is living in peace and joy with the Holy Spirit, a thing not given to those who do not yearn for him with all their heart”.[2] This part strongly upholds humble submission and listening to God as ways to reach interior life with Christ. It also praises peaceful, simple, and pure mind as environments we should possess while entering into interior life with Christ. For him “If you were inwardly good and pure, then you would see and understand all things without difficulty. A pure heart penetrates both heaven and hell”.[3] There is great praise on intimate friendship with Christ which is exemplified in embracing the emptiness of the cross of Jesus. Yet through this cross comes immense graces. Thomas insists; “In the cross is salvation; in the cross is life; in the cross is protection; in the cross is heavenly sweetness; in the cross is strength of mind; in the cross is spiritual joy; in the cross is supreme virtue; in the cross is perfect holiness”.[4]
The third book of the classic has the title of Inner Comfort. It is the longest of the treatises with 59 titles. This part uses immense language as expressed in a stylistic dialogue between the disciple and Jesus. It is clear that the correspondence has very intimate characteristic where words like love and grace appear more frequent. It is a moment when the disciple in his dialogue seems to abandon himself completely to the Lord who instructs him on ways to live and maintain an interior comfort in the divine.
In this part, Jesus seems to embrace the disciple and shepherd him in truthful ways, towards a rich union with God. The dialogue between Jesus and the disciple progresses gradually and takes a spiritual dimension where experiences of life beyond the cross are discussed. Like Jesus, the disciple says at last, “In you, my God, Father of mercies, I place my trust. Bless my soul and make it holy with your heavenly blessing; let it become your holy dwelling”.[5]  All the dialogues exhibit admirable values such as humility, simplicity of heart, truth, service of others, peace, and prayer.
The fourth and last book is titled The Book on Sacrament. As it appears, and as the name suggests, this section of the classic is the summit of Thomas’s reflection. This part which also appears in form of a dialogue suggests the significance of receiving Communion of Christ’s gifts of His Body and Blood. Reception of Eucharist is beautifully described as one that nourishes the soul of the human person while on earth and unites him with the divine. Thomas says, “In this sacrament spiritual grace is granted, the soul’s lost strength is restored, and its beauty, often disfigured by sin, returns again”.[6] Elsewhere he notes, “Grant me, O Lord, God of my salvation, that by frequently receiving your mysteries the intensity of my love and devotion to you may ever increase”.[7] These wonderful expressions in the whole of book four reveals the great importance of the sacrament of Body and Blood of Christ in a disciple’s life or those who chose to follow Christ. Alongside this is the Holy Scriptures that gives light to the pilgrim. Thomas describes the Holy Scriptures as the other part of the table as he says, “The other table is the divine law, containing holy teachings that show us the correct interpretation of faith and lead us onward through the inner veil into the Holy of Holies”.[8]
Lastly Thomas has great appreciation and shows his gratitude by exhorting priest and those who partake of the Holy Body and Blood of Christ to do so with utmost reverence. From him these words captures his joy; “Thanks be to you, Creator and Redeemer of us all, who, to declare your love to the whole world, have prepared a great supper in which you have set before us not a figurative lamb, but your most sacred Body and Blood”.[9]
3.0 Reflection on The Imitation of Christ
After reading the whole classic, I have realized the enormous spiritual richness which Thomas presents to his readers. The title of this text attracts me greatly since it is a reflection of what Christian life is all about, that is, imitating Christ. Reading the contents of the entire text reveals diverse ways in which we can approach this essential activity of Christianity. To configure with Christ means to depend on him entirely and to abide by his word.
One of the great experiences I have had as a religious person is experiencing the love of Christ through evangelization of the poor which happens to be our society’s charism. While in engaging pastoral activities I have encountered people with so much yearning and thirst for God. They communicate something spiritual to me and I can now readily connect some details after reading this text. I particularly acknowledge detachment from material wealth as a great strength for those who seek interior spiritual life. It is a great challenge amid the growing materialistic world. But some people have shown that it is possible to live the gospel faithfully and have shown dependency on God and not the passing world.
A great emphasis is put on making a home for Christ. In the text it shows that it is people who have wandered away from the home of Christ. The invitation is to get back on track by observing values that enhance health of the soul. The soul is hereby fed by both physical ascetical exercises and spiritual exercises. My own experiences of this are that though I have embraced Christ the evangelizer of the poor and I have consequently made a decision to follow him, I also need to free my bodily or sensual desires so that I can be faithful to the demands of my calling. Therefore mortification is a great virtue that I have to continually learn and exercise. It is not only killing my appetites for material goods and pleasures but also about avoiding sin of pride and self-praise.
Throughout the text I have noted that one cannot claim to have an intimate friendship with Jesus if there is no effective and affective communication. Therefore prayer is a great component which not only enhances my spiritual health, but offers me a chance to listen to Jesus the master. Prayer also disciplines the course of discipleship and offers the serenity and peace after a rigorous moment in daily activities. I can testify that many people that I have encountered who show great spirituality have been men and women of prayer. Our founder always insisted that with men of prayer he could do anything. Prayer ensures that we are not dependent on who we are, or what we have, but that we put God first and He becomes central to our lives. Thomas who was for many years a contemplative monk has also testified in his text the presence of prayer as the life of those seeking interior life with God.
I have also realized that there is great emphasis on the meditation of the cross of Jesus. It seems to me that suffering and human limitations are realities we might need to cope up with and even see them as moments where we can encounter Jesus. God is present to those who may suffer shame, persecution, denial, and even discrimination for the sake of gospel values and truth. What is more important is that those who choose to follow Christ and enter into interior life should nourish their souls with good deeds, and most importantly the Holy Eucharist. For the latter, it is the pilgrim’s meal that unites him with God. The focus in the whole pilgrimage of earthly life is to be with God in eternal happy union. There a full imitation of Christ will be realized.
Selected Reference
Á Kempis, T., The Imitation of Christ, edt., William C. Creasy, Indiana: Ave Maria Press 1989.




[1] Thomas Á Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, 30.
[2] Thomas Á Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, 64.
[3] Thomas Á Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, 68.
[4] Thomas Á Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, 78.
[5] Thomas Á Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, 160.
[6] Thomas Á Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, 167.
[7] Thomas Á Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, 173.
[8] Thomas Á Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, 183.
[9] Thomas Á Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, 183.

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