“I would rather feel contrition than know how to define it.” – Thomas à Kempis
This quote from The Imitation of Christ strikes a chord, doesn’t it? It’s a simple yet profound reminder of the tension we navigate in the spiritual life, especially in the 21st century.
We live in an age of almost unlimited information. At our fingertips, we have books, articles, podcasts, videos—you name it. Whatever subject related to the faith you want to explore, there’s no shortage of resources to help you dive in. And that’s a blessing. But it also comes with a challenge.
The risk is that we spend so much time exercising our minds that it stops there. We train our intellect, but not our will. We can define concepts like contrition, faith, or love in precise terms but struggle to live them out in our everyday lives.
Thomas à Kempis reminds us that knowledge alone isn’t the goal. You can know about contrition—or faith, hope, love, humility—but what matters most is that these virtues take root in your soul.
Faith and wisdom aren’t meant to stay in the pages of books or the words of podcasts—they’re meant to shape our thoughts, our words, and our actions.
In the end, the goal isn’t just to define holiness—it’s to become holy.