Humility of Heart

One need not fear that the constant handling of one book will dry up the mind, if the topic treated be one of primary importance, and if it be the work of a master on the spiritual life. The number of thoughts and truths suggested by such a book are truly wonderful. It often will happen that far more is suggested than is actually put down by the hand of the writer. But to enjoy this result, you must have put away all hurry; you must have said, “I am going to spend at least a year with this friend; I am going to take him not merely for a friend but for a master and a guide.” I well remember how one night before bed–time, reading my da Bergamo in the Chapel of St. Bede’s College, a single line suggested this idea or train of thought: God in the Old and New Testament named people after their personal characteristics.