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{{Short description|Devotional book by Thomas à Kempis}}
{{About|the 15th-century book by Thomas à Kempis|other uses|Imitation of Christ (disambiguation)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}}
{{Infobox book
| name              = The Imitation of Christ
| title_orig        = De Imitatione Christi
| translator        = 
| image             = Thomas à Kempis - De Imitatione Christi.gif
| caption           = The manuscript of ''De Imitatione Christi''. Koninklijke Bibliotheek, Brussels, Belgium
| author            = [[Thomas à Kempis]]
| country           = [[Holy Roman Empire]]
| illustrator       = 
| genre             = [[Christian devotional literature]]
| cover_artist      = 
| language          = Latin
| subject           = 
| publisher         = 
| pub_date          = c. 1418–1427
| orig_lang_code    = la
| native_wikisource = 
| wikisource        = Of the Imitation of Christ
| dewey             = 242
| congress          = BV4821 .A1
}}

'''''The Imitation of Christ''''', by [[Thomas à Kempis]], is a [[Christian devotional literature|Christian devotional book]] first composed in [[Medieval Latin]] as {{Lang|la|De Imitatione Christi}} {{c.}} 1418–1427.<ref name="espin">''An introductory Dictionary of Theology and Religious studies'', by Orlando O. Espín, James B. Nickoloff 2007 {{ISBN|0-8146-5856-3}}, p. 609.</ref><ref name=Miola/> The devotional text is divided into four books of detailed spiritual instructions: (i) "Helpful Counsels of the Spiritual Life", (ii) "Directives for the Interior Life", (iii) "On Interior Consolation", and (iv) "On the Blessed Sacrament". The devotional approach of ''The Imitation of Christ'' emphasises the interior life and withdrawal from the mundanities of the world, as opposed to the active imitation of Christ practised by other friars.<ref name="espin"/> The devotions of the books emphasize devotion to the [[Eucharist]] as the key element of spiritual life.<ref name=espin />

''The Imitation of Christ'' is a handbook for the spiritual life arising from the [[Devotio Moderna]] movement, which Thomas followed.<ref>{{cite book |author=Van Engen |first=John H. |title=Devotio Moderna |publisher=Paulist Press |year=1988 |isbn=978-0-8091-2962-1 |pages=7–12}}</ref> The ''Imitation'' is perhaps the most widely read Christian devotional work after the [[Bible]],<ref name="Miola">{{Harvnb|Miola|2007|p=285}}.</ref><ref name="Cathency">{{Cite web |title=CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Imitation of Christ |url=https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07674c.htm |access-date=2024-03-29 |website=www.newadvent.org}}</ref> and is regarded as a devotional and religious classic.<ref name="Keen">{{Harvnb|Keen|2004|p=175}}.</ref> The book was written anonymously in Latin in the [[Netherlands]] c. 1418–1427. Its popularity was immediate, and after the first printed edition in 1471{{endash}}1472, it was printed in 745 editions before 1650.<ref>{{cite book |last=von Habsburg |first=Maximilian |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3BppyUmrY5QC |title=Catholic and Protestant Translations of the Imitatio Christi, 1425–1650: from Late Medieval Classic to Early Modern Bestseller |publisher=Ashgate |year=2011 |isbn=9780754667650}}</ref> Apart from the Bible, no book had been translated into more languages than the ''Imitation of Christ'' at the time.<ref name="WPAnd">''A Journey Through Christian Theology'' by William P Anderson and Richard L. Diesslin 2000 {{ISBN|0-8006-3220-6}}, p. 98.</ref>

== Background and history ==

===Background===
{{Main article|Imitation of Christ}}
[[File:Zwolle Windesheim Klooster.jpg|thumb|upright=1|Modern photo of [[Congregation of Windesheim|Windesheim]] (Netherlands), where [[Devotio Moderna]] took root]]
The ideal of the [[imitation of Christ]] has been an important element of Christian theology, ethics and spirituality.<ref name="Bowden285">''The Westminster Dictionary of Christian Theology'' by Alan Richardson, John Bowden 1983 {{ISBN|978-0-664-22748-7}}, pp. 285–286.</ref><ref name="Phyllis">''Holy people of the world: a cross-cultural encyclopedia, Volume 3'' by Phyllis G. Jestice 2004 {{ISBN|1-57607-355-6}}, pp. 393–394.</ref> References to this concept and its practice are found in the earliest Christian documents, such as the [[Pauline Epistles]].<ref name=Phyllis />

The imitation of Christ is the subject of some of [[Gregory of Nyssa]]'s Latin ascetical works: ''Ad Harmonium quid nomen professione christianorum sibi velit''<ref>{{cite web |url=https://mercaba.org/Rialp/G/gregorio_niseno_san.htm|title=Saint Gregory the Great|language =es|archive-url=https://archive.today/20250404152626/https://mercaba.org/Rialp/G/gregorio_niseno_san.htm|archive-date=April 4, 2025 |url-status=live}} </ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.deutsche-digitale-bibliothek.de/item/VP2MKU4ICSJLABY2YEVTQHCJATVP4USK|title=Digitalized copy}}</ref> ("To Harmonius, that is, what matters the name and profession of a Christian"); ''Ad Olympium monachum et qualem oporteat esse Christianum''<ref>{{cite web |url=https://catholiclibrary.org/library/view?docId=/Fathers-OR/Gregory_of_Nyssa__De_perfectione_Christiana_ad_Olympium_monachum.gr.html&chunk.id=00000013|title= Perfectione Christiana, ad Olympium Monachum}} (in [[ancient Greek]]) </ref> ("To the monk Olympius, what a Christian should be").<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.diocesi.catania.it/diaconato/sites/diocesi.catania.it.diaconato/files/Ascensione%20-%20Gregorio%20di%20Nissa.pdf|title=Ascension according to Gregory of Nyssa|website=Cronaca Oggi Quotidiano, [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Catania]] |date=2022-05-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240517214637/http://www.diocesi.catania.it/diaconato/sites/diocesi.catania.it.diaconato/files/Ascensione%20-%20Gregorio%20di%20Nissa.pdf |language=it-IT|access-date=2024-05-28 |archive-date=17 May 2024 }}</ref>

[[Augustine of Hippo|Saint Augustine]] viewed the imitation of Christ as the fundamental purpose of Christian life, and as a remedy for the imitation of the sins of [[Adam and Eve|Adam]].<ref>''Augustine's early theology of the church'' by David C. Alexander 2008 {{ISBN|978-1-4331-0103-8}}, p. 218.</ref><ref>''Augustine'' by Mary T. Clark 2005 {{ISBN|978-0-8264-7659-3}}, p. 48.</ref> Saint [[Francis of Assisi]] believed in the physical as well as the spiritual imitation of Christ, and advocated a path of poverty and preaching like Jesus who was poor at birth in the manger and died naked on the cross.<ref name="Miles160">''The Word made flesh: a history of Christian thought'' by Margaret Ruth Miles 2004 {{ISBN|978-1-4051-0846-1}}, pp. 160–161.</ref><ref name="Goff">''Saint Francis of Assisi'' by Jacques Le Goff 2003 {{ISBN|0-415-28473-2}}, p. 44.</ref> The theme of imitation of Christ existed in all phases of [[History of theology#Byzantine theology|Byzantine theology]], and in the 14th-century book ''Life in Christ,'' [[Nicholas Cabasilas]] viewed "living one's own personal life" in Christ as the fundamental Christian virtue.<ref name="Collins">''A concise dictionary of theology'' by [[Gerald O'Collins]], Edward G. Farrugia 2004 {{ISBN|0-567-08354-3}}, p. 115.</ref><ref name="Phyllis661">''Holy people of the world: a cross-cultural encyclopedia, Volume 3'' by Phyllis G. Jestice 2004 {{ISBN|1-57607-355-6}}, p. 661.</ref>

Against this backdrop, the [[Devotio Moderna]] movement was started by [[Geert Groote]] who was highly dissatisfied with the state of the Church and what he perceived as the gradual loss of monastic traditions and the lack of moral values among the clergy.<ref name="Corota">''The Reception of the Church Fathers in the West: From the Carolingians to the Maurists, Volume 1'' by Irena Dorota Backus 1997 {{ISBN|90-04-09722-8}}, pp. 405–415.</ref> The initial focus of Devotio Moderna was the rediscovery of genuine pious practices and conversion and re-conversion of the lukewarm clergy.<ref name="Bremmer">''Paradigms, poetics, and politics of conversion'' by [[Jan N. Bremmer]], [[Wout van Bekkum|Wout Jac. van Bekkum]], Arie L. Molendijk 2006 {{ISBN|90-429-1754-7}}, pp. 59–62.</ref><ref name="WestDict">''The Westminster Dictionary of Christian Spirituality'' by Gordon S. Wakefield 1983, pp. 113–114.</ref> The ''Imitation'' was written within the Devotio Moderna community, as it was flourishing in Northern Europe, but grew far beyond that movement which came to an end with the [[Protestant Reformation]].<ref name= WestDict />

===History===
The ''Imitation'' was written anonymously in Latin in the [[Netherlands]] c. 1418–1427,<ref name=espin /><ref name=Miola/><ref name="Creasy-xii">{{Harvnb|Creasy|2007|p=xiii}}.</ref> and until the seventeenth century, was attributed without much dispute to Thomas à Kempis who, according to [[Jean Mabillon|Mabillon]], was still assumed to be the author in 1651. Taking advantage of the anonymous nature of the book, however, and driven by an esprit de corps exaggerated by national sentiment, Italian Benedictines attributed the ''Imitation'' to [[Giovanni Gersen]], the abbot of Saint Etienne de Verceil c. 1250, and French scholars claimed it to be the work of [[Jean Gerson]], the renowned chancellor of the University of Paris. Other scholars attributed it to [[Bonaventure]], [[Bernard of Clairvaux]], [[Henry of Kalkar|Henri Kalkar]] or [[Ludolph of Saxony]]. These controversies have led some critics to allege that the ''Imitation'' was merely an impersonal compilation of various mystical authors of the Middle Ages.<ref>{{Cite book |last=à Kempis |first=Thomas |title=L'Imitation de Jésus-Christ |publisher=Bonne Presse |year=1890 |edition=Pagès |pages=17–18 |language=fr |translator-last=Lamennais |translator-first=Félicité de}}</ref> Nevertheless, [[Thomas à Kempis]] is generally accepted as the author by modern scholars<ref name="Creasy-xix">{{Harvnb|Creasy|2007|p=xix}}.</ref> and several sources of authority, including members of his own order, name Kempis as the author. Furthermore, various contemporary manuscripts, including one autograph codex, bear his name.<ref name="CathKempis">{{Cite web |title=CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Thomas a Kempis |url=https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14661a.htm |access-date=2024-03-29 |website=www.newadvent.org}}</ref>

[[File:Imitation1874.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.6|An 1874 edition from [[Tours]], France]]
Joseph N. Tylenda, S.J., writes that the book's anonymous composition is "not surprising" since the author writes in the ''Imitation'' that one should "love to be unknown" (Book 1, Ch.&nbsp;2).<ref>{{Harvnb|Tylenda|1998|p=xxviii}}.</ref> Regarding the anonymity of the work, William C. Creasy also notes that the author of the ''Imitation'' wrote, "Do not let the writer's authority or learning influence you, be it little or great, but let the love of pure truth attract you to read. Do not ask, 'Who said this?' but pay attention to what is said" (Book 1, Ch.&nbsp;5).<ref>{{Harvnb|Creasy|2007|p=xvii}}.</ref>

By 1471, the [[manuscripts]] of the book were so frequently hand-copied and passed across monasteries, that there are around 750 extant manuscripts of the ''Imitation''.<ref name="Tylenda 1998 xxvii">{{Harvnb|Tylenda|1998|p=xxvii}}.</ref> Thomas à Kempis's 1441 autograph manuscript of the book is available at the Bibliothèque Royale in Brussels.<ref>{{Harvnb|Creasy|2007|p=ix}}</ref> The first printed edition appeared in [[Augsburg]] c. 1471–72.<ref name="Tylenda 1998 xxvii"/> By the end of the 15th century, the book had more than 100 printed editions and translations in Italian (1480), Catalan (1482), German (1486), French (1488), Low German (1489), Spanish (1490), Portuguese and Dutch (1496).<ref>{{harvnb|Creasy|2007|p=xi}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Habsburg |first1=Maximilian von |title=Catholic and Protestant Translations of the Imitatio Christi, 1425–1650: From Late Medieval Classic to Early Modern Bestseller |date=8 April 2016 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-317-16929-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ExrtCwAAQBAJ |access-date=19 December 2023 |ref=Habsburg |language=en}}</ref>

The book received an enthusiastic response from the very early days, as characterized by the statement of [[George Pirkhamer]], the prior of [[Nuremberg]], regarding the 1494 edition: "Nothing more holy, nothing more honorable, nothing more religious, nothing in fine more profitable for the Christian commonwealth can you ever do than to make known these works of Thomas à Kempis."<ref name=CathKempis />

The number of counted editions exceeds 2,000; 1,000 different editions are preserved in the [[British Museum]]; 770 in the [[Biblioteca de Catalunya]] Kempis Collection;<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bnc.cat/Fons-i-col-leccions/Cerca-Fons-i-col-leccions/Col-leccio-Kempis|title = Col·lecció Kempis / Cerca Fons i col·leccions / Fons i col·leccions / Inici - Biblioteca de Catalunya}}</ref> the Bullingen collection, donated to the city of [[Cologne]] in 1838, contained at the time 400 different editions. De Backer<ref>Backer, Augustin de R. P. ''Essai Bibliographique sur le livre De imitatione Christi'', 1864.</ref> enumerates 545 Latin and about 900 French editions. A [[Textual criticism|critical edition]] was published in 1982.<ref>''De Imitatione Christi'', Edizione critica a cura di Tiburzio Lupo, S.D.B, 1982, Libreria Editrice Vaticana, Città del Vaticano, {{ISBN|88-209-1365-8}}. Latin text with apparatus and front matter in Italian.</ref>

== Teachings ==
''The Imitation of Christ'' is divided into four books which provide detailed spiritual instructions.<ref name="Keen"/><ref>{{cite book|last=Jestice|first=Phyllis G.|title=Holy people of the world: a cross-cultural encyclopedia|year=2004|publisher=ABC-CLIO|page=394|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H5cQH17-HnMC&q=imitation%20of%20christ%20devotion%20work&pg=PA394|isbn=9781576073551}}</ref>

=== Book One ===
[[File:Imitation of Christ Chap1 Chapman and Hall 1878.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Chap. 1 from ''The Imitation of Christ'', Chapman & Hall (1878)]]
Book One of the ''Imitation'' is titled "Helpful Counsels of the Spiritual Life". ''The Imitation'' derives its title from the first chapter of Book I, "The Imitation of Christ and contempt for the vanities of the world" (Latin: "{{Lang|la|De Imitatione Christi et contemptu omnium vanitatum mundi}}").<ref name="Tylenda-xxxvi"/> The ''Imitation'' is sometimes referred to as ''Following of the Christ'', which comes from the opening words of the first chapter—"Whoever follows Me will not walk into darkness."<ref name="Tylenda-xxxvi"/> Book One deals with the withdrawal of the outward life—so far as positive duty allows and emphasizes an interior life by renouncing all that is vain and illusory, resisting temptations and distractions of life, giving up the pride of learning and to be humble, forsaking the disputations of theologians and patiently enduring the world's contempt and contradiction.<ref name="Tylenda-xxxvi">{{harvnb|Tylenda|1998|pp=xxxv-xxxvi}}.</ref><ref name="Sherlock">{{Harvnb|Sherlock|1908}}.</ref>

Kempis stresses the importance of [[solitude]] and [[silence]], "how undisturbed a conscience we would have if we never went searching after ephemeral joys nor concerned ourselves with affairs of the world..." Kempis writes that the "World and all its allurements pass away" and following sensual desires leads to a "dissipated conscience" and a "distracted heart" (Chap. 20).<ref>{{harvnb|Tylenda|1998|pp=27–28}}.</ref> Kempis writes that one should meditate on death and "live as becomes a pilgrim and a stranger on earth...for this earth of ours is no lasting city" (Chap. 23).<ref>{{harvnb|Tylenda|1998|p=36}}.</ref> On the [[Day of Judgement]], Kempis writes that a good and pure [[conscience]] will give more joy than all the philosophy one has ever learned, fervent prayer will bring more happiness than a "multi-course banquet", the silence will be more "exhilarating" than long tales, holy deeds will be of greater value than nice-sounding words (Chap. 24).<ref>{{Harvnb|Tylenda|1998|p=38}}.</ref>

Kempis writes one must remain faithful and fervent to God, and keep good hope of attaining victory and salvation, but avoid overconfidence. Kempis gives the example of an anxious man who, oscillating between fear and hope and with grief went to the altar and said: "Oh, if only I knew that I shall persevere to the end." Immediately he heard the divine answer, "What if you knew this? What would you do? Do now what you would do then, and you will be very safe." After this the man gave himself to God's will, and his anxiety and fear of the future disappeared (Chap. 25).<ref>{{Harvnb|Creasy|2007|p=30}}.</ref><ref>{{Harvnb|Tylenda|1998|pp=39–40}}.</ref>

=== Book Two ===
Book Two of the ''Imitation'' is "Directives for the Interior Life". The book continues the theme of Book One, and contains instructions concerning "inward peace, purity of heart, a good conscience—for moderating our longings and desires, for patience, for submission to the will of God, for the love of Jesus, for enduring the loss of comfort, and for taking up the Cross."<ref name="Sherlock"/> Kempis writes that if we have a clear conscience, God will defend us, and whomever God chooses to help no man's malice can harm.<ref>{{Harvnb|Tylenda|1998|p=49}}.</ref> Kempis writes that when a man humbles himself, "God protects and defends him...God favors the humble man... and after he has been brought low raises him up to glory" (Chap. 2).<ref>{{Harvnb|Tylenda|1998|p=50}}.</ref> Kempis stresses the importance of a good conscience—"The man whose conscience is pure easily finds peace and contentment... Men only see your face, but it is God who sees your heart. Men judge according to external deeds, but only God can weigh the motives behind them" (Chap. 6).<ref>{{Harvnb|Tylenda|1998|pp=54–55}}.</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Creasy|2007|pp=40–41}}.</ref> Kempis writes we must place our faith in Jesus rather than in men and "...Do not trust nor lean on a reed that is shaken ...All flesh is grass, and all its glory shall fade like the flower in the field" (Chap. 7).<ref>{{Harvnb|Tylenda|1998|pp=56}}.</ref> Kempis writes that a false sense of freedom and overconfidence are obstacles for spiritual life. Kempis writes that "Grace will always be given to the truly grateful, and what is given to the humble is taken away from the proud" (Chap. 10).<ref name="c4546">{{Harvnb|Creasy|2007|pp=45–46}}.</ref>

Kempis writes that we must not attribute any good to ourselves but attribute everything to God. Kempis asks us to be grateful for "every little gift" and we will be worthy to receive greater ones, to consider the least gift as great and the most common as something special. Kempis writes that if we consider the dignity of the giver, no gift will seem unimportant or small (Chap. 10).<ref name="c4546"/> In the last chapter, "The Royal Road of the Cross", Kempis writes that if we carry the cross willingly, it will lead us to our desired goal, but on the other hand if we carry our cross grudgingly, then we turn it into a heavy burden and if we should throw off one cross, we will surely find another, which is perhaps heavier. Kempis writes that by ourselves we cannot bear the cross, but if we put our trust in the Lord, He will send us strength from heaven (Chap. 12).<ref>{{Harvnb|Tylenda|1998|pp=66–68}}.</ref><ref>{{Harvnb|Creasy|2007}}.</ref>

=== Book Three ===
[[File:De Imitatione Christi 001 title page 01.jpg|thumb|upright=1|The 1505 edition, [[Museum Catharijneconvent]], [[Utrecht]], the [[Netherlands]]]]
Book Three, entitled "On Interior Consolation", is the longest among the four books. This book is in the form of a dialogue between Jesus and the disciple.

Jesus says that very few turn to God and spirituality, since they are more eager to listen to the world and desires of their flesh than to God. Jesus says that the world promises things that are passing and of little value, which are served with great enthusiasm; while He promises things that are most excellent and eternal and men's hearts remain indifferent (Chap. 3).<ref name="Ty-76">{{Harvnb|Tylenda|1998|p=76}}.</ref><ref name="c57-58">{{Harvnb|Creasy|2007|pp=57–58}}.</ref> Jesus says that the "man who trusts in Me I never send away empty. When I make a promise I keep it, and I fulfill whatever I have pledged—if only you remain faithful...unto the end" (Chap. 3).<ref name="Ty-76"/><ref name="c57-58"/>

Jesus says that spiritual progress and perfection consists in offering oneself to the divine will and not seeking oneself in "anything either small or great, in time or in eternity" (Chap. 25).<ref>{{harvnb|Tylenda|1998|pp=114–116}}.</ref> Jesus says do not be anxious about the future—"Do not let your heart be troubled and do not be afraid." Jesus advises the disciple that all is not lost when the result is not as planned, and when one thinks he is farthest from Jesus, it is then that Jesus is nearest, and when one thinks that all is lost, it is then that victory is close at hand. Jesus says not to react to a difficulty as if there were no hope of being freed from it (Chap. 30).<ref>{{Harvnb|Tylenda|1998|p=122}}.</ref><ref>{{Harvnb|Creasy|2007|pp=89–90}}.</ref>

Joseph Tylenda summarizes the central theme of the third book with the teaching in Chapter 56, "My son, to the degree that you can leave yourself behind, to that degree will you be able to enter into Me. Just as desiring nothing outside you produces internal peace within you, so the internal renunciation of yourself unites you to God."<ref name="Tylenda-xxxvi" /> Jesus gives his important teaching, "Follow Me...I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Without the Way, there is no going; without the Truth, there is no knowing; without Life, there is no living. I am the Way you are to follow; I am the Truth you are to believe; I am the Life you are to hope for" (Chap. 56).<ref>{{Harvnb|Tylenda|1998|p=167}}.</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Creasy|2007|p=121}}.</ref>

=== Book Four ===
Book Four of the ''Imitation'', "On the Blessed Sacrament", is also in the form of a dialogue between Jesus and the disciple.<ref name="Tylenda-xxxvi" /> Kempis writes that in this [[Sacrament]] spiritual [[Grace (Christianity)|grace]] is conferred, the soul's strength is replenished, and the recipient's mind is fortified and strength is given to the body debilitated by sin (Chap. 1).<ref>{{Harvnb|Tylenda|1998|p=182}}.</ref>

Jesus says that the sooner one resigns wholeheartedly to God, and no longer seeks anything according to one's own will or pleasure, but totally places all in God's hands, the sooner will one be united with God and be at peace.<ref name="4-15"/> Jesus continues, "Nothing will make you happier or please you as much as being obedient to the divine will" (Chap. 15).<ref name="4-15">{{Harvnb|Tylenda|1998|p=209}}.</ref> Jesus also delivers his "changeless teaching" — "Unless you renounce all that you have, you cannot be my disciple" (Chap. 8).<ref>{{Harvnb|Tylenda|1998|p=195}}.</ref>

To receive the Sacrament, Jesus says "make clean the mansions of your heart. Shut out the whole world and all its sinful din and sit as a solitary sparrow on a housetop and, in the bitterness of your soul, meditate on your transgressions" (Chap. 12).<ref>{{Harvnb|Tylenda|1998|p=204}}.</ref><ref>{{Harvnb|Creasy|2007|p=149}}.</ref> Jesus says that there is no offering more worthy, no satisfaction greater, for the washing away of sins than to offer oneself purely and completely to God at the time the Body of [[Christ]] is offered in the [[Mass (liturgy)|Mass]] and in [[Communion (Christian)|Communion]] (Chap. 7).<ref>{{harvnb|Creasy|2007|p=142}}.</ref>

==Influence==
[[File:Kempis.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1|Hungarian edition, 1891, Nagyvárad]]
''The Imitation of Christ'' is regarded as the most important devotional work in Catholic Christianity and is the most widely read devotional work next to the [[Bible]].<ref name=Miola /> Apart from the Bible no Christian book has been translated into more languages than the ''Imitation of Christ''.<ref name=WPAnd />

The book was admired by the following individuals: Saint [[Thomas More]], Chancellor of England and renowned humanist who was executed by King [[Henry VIII]] of England; Saint [[Ignatius of Loyola]], founder of the [[Society of Jesus]], [[Erasmus of Rotterdam]], [[Louis XVI]]; and twentieth-century American Catholic author and monk [[Thomas Merton]]. It also has been admired by many others, both Catholic and Protestant.<ref name=Miola /> The [[Jesuit]]s give it an official place among their "exercises". Kempis' ''Imitatio Christi'' was in close parentage with Ignatius of Loyola of the ''[[Devotio moderna#The Imitation of Christ|Devotio moderna]]'' movement, and also it was affirmed and practiced by St. Francis de Sales, profoundly influencing his ''[[Introduction to the Devout Life]]''.<ref name="Thornton_2010">{{cite book |author=Thornton |first=Martin |author-link=Martin Thornton |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=urBMAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA99 |title=Pastoral Theology: A Reorientation |date=2010 |publisher=Wipf and Stock |isbn=9781608997442 |page=99 |language=en |oclc=908417927}}</ref>

[[John Wesley]], the founder of the [[Methodism|Methodist movement]], listed ''The Imitation'' among the works that influenced him at his conversion. [[Charles George Gordon|General Gordon]] carried it with him to the battlefield.

[[José Rizal]], the [[Philippines|Philippine]] [[polymath]] and [[National hero of the Philippines|national hero]], reportedly read the book whilst incarcerated within [[Fort Santiago]] in [[Intramuros]], [[Manila]], shortly before the [[Spanish East Indies|Spanish colonial government]] executed him by [[firing squad]] for sedition on 30 December 1896.<ref>{{cite book |author=Romero, M.C. |author2=Sta Romana, J.R. |author3=Santos, L.Y. |title=Rizal and the Development of National Consciousness |publisher=Goodwill Trading |page=68 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ngonYm_SDSIC&pg=PA68 |isbn=9789715741033}}</ref>

[[Swami Vivekananda]], the 19th-century [[Hindu]] philosopher and founder of the [[Vedanta Society]], drew a number of parallels between the teachings of the ''Imitation'' and the ''[[Bhagavad Gita]]''. Vivekananda wrote a [[s:The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda/Volume 8/Writings: Prose And Poems/A Preface to the Imitation of Christ|preface]] and a [[s:The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda/Volume 9/Writings: Prose and Poems(Original and Translated)/Footnotes to The Imitation of Christ|translation]] of the ''Imitation'' in 1899.<ref>{{cite book |last=Sen |first=Amiya P. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OacKxYHmVVgC&pg=PA208 |title=Explorations In Modern Bengal, C. 1800–1900 |publisher=Primus |year=2010 |isbn=9788190891868 |page=208}}</ref> Vivekananda would always carry a copy of the ''Bhagavad Gita'' and the ''Imitation''.<ref>{{cite book |last=Jongeneel |first=Jan A. B. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=S8uSmV3wKecC&q=imitation+of+christ&pg=PA192 |title=Jesus Christ in world history |publisher=Peter Lang |year=2009 |isbn=9783631596883 |pages=192–193}}</ref> Spiritual writer [[Eknath Easwaran]] compared the teachings of the ''Imitation'' with the [[Upanishads]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Easwaran|1996|p=12}}.</ref>

''The Imitation of Christ'' was an early influence on the spirituality of Saint [[Thérèse of Lisieux]], who used it in her prayer life, distilled its message and used it in her own writings which then influenced Catholic spirituality as a whole.<ref>''Spiritual Genius of St. Therese of Lisieux'' by Jean Guitton 2000 {{ISBN|0-86012-270-0}} page</ref> Thérèse was so attached to the book and read it so many times that she could quote passages from it from memory in her teens.<ref name="Nevin">''Thérèse of Lisieux: God's gentle warrior'' by Thomas R. Nevin 2006 {{ISBN|0-19-530721-6}}, p. 45.</ref> In her own autobiography she claims that she had memorized it in its entirety.

The theologian [[Shailer Mathews]] wrote that the ''Imitation'' presents an accurate description of the Christ of the Gospels, and gives an unbiased reading of the words of Jesus.<ref name="Mathews 1905 455">{{Harvnb|Mathews|1905|p=455}}.</ref> He also wrote "For centuries men have found in it inspiration to sacrifice and humility, and to severest self-examination...He who has never come under its influence has missed something that would have made him more humble and more ambitious for purity of life."<ref name="Mathews 1905 455"/>

The Spanish [[Crypto-Islam|crypto-Muslim]] writer known as the [[Young Man of Arévalo]] included adaptations of many passages from the ''Imitation'' in his Islamic devotional work ''Summary of the Account and Spiritual Exercise''.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Thomas|first1=David|first2=John A. |last2=Chesworth|title=Christian-Muslim Relations. A Bibliographical History.: Volume 6. Western Europe (1500–1600)|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=R-3iBQAAQBAJ|date=2014|publisher=BRILL|isbn=978-90-04-28111-0|page=167}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Harvey|first=L. P.|title=Muslims in Spain, 1500 to 1614|url=https://archive.org/details/muslimsinspain1500lple|url-access=registration|date=2005|publisher=University of Chicago Press|isbn=978-0-226-31963-6|page=[https://archive.org/details/muslimsinspain1500lple/page/174 174]}}</ref> He replaced specific Christian contexts and features with Islamic ones, while keeping the spiritual and moral meaning intact.{{sfn|Harvey|2005|p=176}} The adaptation of Christian devotional literature in his Islamic work was likely the result of his being obligated to attend missionary sermons (after [[forced conversion#Spain|forced conversions]] of Muslims in Spain), and a lack of access to actual Islamic literature.{{sfn|Harvey|2005|p=176}}

==Criticisms==
The theologian [[Hans Urs von Balthasar]] wrote:
{{blockquote|It rejects and eliminates every speculative element not only of scholasticism but also of mysticism, and yet, at the same time, it abstracts from the colourful multiplicity of the Bible and—since it is written for those who have turned from the world—disregards the world, in all its richness, as a field for Christian activity... In place of the openhearted readiness of a [[Catherine of Siena]], a subdued and melancholy resignation runs through the book.... [T]here is an excess of warnings about the world, the illusions of egoism, the dangers of speculation and of the active apostolate. In this way, even the idea of the imitation of Christ does not become the dominant perspective. There is no mention of the mediation of the God-man, of access through Christ, in the Holy Spirit, to the Father. The mystery of the Church, therefore, does not come into view either. The individual is unaware that his love of God can only be fulfilled if it expands into love of neighbor and into the apostolate. All [that] remains is a flight from the world, a world that has not been brought home in Christ.<ref>{{Harvnb|Balthasar|2001|p=103}}</ref>}}

[[René Girard]] wrote: "Neither does Jesus propose an ascetic rule of life in the sense of Thomas à Kempis and his celebrated Imitation of Christ, as admirable as that work may be".<ref>{{Harvnb|Girard|2001|p=13}}.</ref>

[[Friedrich Nietzsche]] stated that this was "one of those books which I cannot hold in my hand without a physiological reaction: it exudes a perfume of the [[eternal feminine|Eternal-Feminine]] which is strictly for Frenchmen—or Wagnerians".<ref>{{Harvnb|Nietzsche|2009|p=193}}.</ref>

==See also==
* [[Christian mysticism]]
* ''[[Vita Christi]]''
*[[What Would Jesus Do?]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
{{refbegin|2}}
* {{cite book|last=Creasy|first=William C.|title=The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis: A New Reading of the 1441 Latin Autograph Manuscript|year=2007|publisher=[[Mercer University Press]]|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JI7AA0GAbUgC|isbn=9780881460971}}
*{{cite book|last=Easwaran|first=Eknath|author-link=Eknath Easwaran|title=Seeing with the Eyes of Love: Eknath Easwaran on the Imitation of Christ|url=https://archive.org/details/seeingwitheyesof0000easw|url-access=registration|year=1996|publisher=Nilgiri Press|isbn=978-0-915132-87-4}}
* {{cite journal|last=Gwynn|first=Aubrey|title=New Light on the Imitation of Christ|journal=Studies: An Irish Quarterly Review|date=March 1940|volume=29|issue=113|pages=84–94|jstor=30097827}}
*{{cite book|author-link=Ralph Keen|last=Keen|first=Ralph|title=The Christian tradition|year=2004|publisher=Prentice Hall|isbn=978-0-13-090461-4|pages=400|url=https://books.google.com/books?ei=9WzOTenkN42HrAfdjbnCCg}}
* {{cite book|last=Miola|first=Robert S.|title=Early modern Catholicism: an anthology of primary sources|year=2007|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|isbn=978-0-19-925985-4|pages=285|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fxWcVSWY_3IC}}
*{{cite journal|last=Mathews|first=Shailer|author-link=Shailer Mathews|title=The Imitation of Jesus|journal=The Biblical World|year=1905|volume=26|issue=6|pages=455–458|jstor=3140876|publisher=The University of Chicago Press|doi=10.1086/473678|s2cid=144326257}}
*{{cite journal|last=Sherlock|first=William|title=The Imitation of Christ|journal=The Irish Church Quarterly|year=1908|volume=1|issue=1|pages=24–38|jstor=30066864|doi=10.2307/30066864|url=https://zenodo.org/record/1449705}}
* {{cite book|last=Tylenda|first=Joseph N.|title=The Imitation of Christ|year=1998|publisher=Vintage Spiritual Classics|isbn=978-0-375-70018-7|pages=[https://archive.org/details/imitationofchris00thom_2/page/288 288]|url=https://archive.org/details/imitationofchris00thom_2/page/288}}
* {{cite book|last=Balthasar |first=Hans Urs von | title=The Glory of the Lord V: The Realm of Metaphysics in the Modern Age|year=2001|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0898702477|pages=103–104}}
* {{cite book|last=Girard |first=Rene | title=I See Satan Fall Like Lightning|year=2001|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1570753190|pages=13}}
* {{cite book|last=Nietzsche |first=Friedrich | title=Twilight of the Idols|year=2009|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-01688-9|pages=193}}
{{refend}}
* {{cite book |last=von Habsburg |first=Maximilian |title=Catholic and Protestant Translations of the Imitatio Christi, 1425–1650: from Late Medieval Classic to Early Modern Bestseller |year=2011 |publisher=Ashgate |isbn=9780754667650 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3BppyUmrY5QC}}

== External links ==
{{Wikiquote|Thomas à Kempis}}
{{Wikisource|The Imitation of Christ|''The Imitation of Christ''}}
* {{StandardEbooks|Standard Ebooks URL=https://standardebooks.org/ebooks/thomas-a-kempis/the-imitation-of-christ/william-benham}}
*{{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Imitation of Christ, The|volume=14|pages=333–334|first=Edward Cuthbert|last=Butler|author-link=Edward Cuthbert Butler}} This article is largely about the historical controversy over the identity of the author.
*{{cite web |title=''L'Imitation de Jesus-Christ'' – 1659 printed copy |url=http://www.cyclopaedia.org/1659/imitation.html |publisher=Cyclopaedia.org |access-date=14 May 2011}}
* <!-- the publication date isn't in the gutenberg text, but can be found at: http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/etcbin/toccer-new2?id=KemImit.xml&images=images/modeng&data=/texts/english/modeng/parsed&tag=public&part=teiHeader -->[http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/kempis.html ''The Imitation of Christ''], in Latin, at The Latin Library{{gutenberg|no=1653|name=The Imitation of Christ}}, in English, translated by [[William Benham (priest)|William Benham]], 1905
* [https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Of_the_Imitation_of_Christ ''Of the Imitation of Christ''] Wikisource 
* {{librivox book | title=The Imitation of Christ | author=Thomas à KEMPIS}}
* [https://www.ccel.org/ccel/k/kempis/imitation/cache/imitation.pdf ''The Imitation of Christ'', modern translation by Aloysius Croft and Harold Bolton] 

{{Authority control}}

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