| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Twenty Years After by Alexandre Dumas: into Paris in a large carriage, having his son Louvieres at
his side and Friquet behind the vehicle, the people threw
themselves in his way and cries of "Long live Broussel!"
"Long live our father!" resounded from all parts and was
death to Mazarin's ears; and the cardinal's spies brought
bad news from every direction, which greatly agitated the
minister, but was calmly received by the queen. The latter
seemed to be maturing in her mind some great stroke, a fact
which increased the uneasiness of the cardinal, who knew the
proud princess and dreaded much the determination of Anne of
Austria.
Twenty Years After |
The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from Disputation of the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences by Dr. Martin Luther: 18. It seems unproved, either by reason or Scripture, that
they are outside the state of merit, that is to say, of
increasing love.
19. Again, it seems unproved that they, or at least that all
of them, are certain or assured of their own blessedness,
though we may be quite certain of it.
20. Therefore by "full remission of all penalties" the pope
means not actually "of all," but only of those imposed by
himself.
21. Therefore those preachers of indulgences are in error, who
say that by the pope's indulgences a man is freed from every
|
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from Reason Discourse by Rene Descartes: For to be possessed of a vigorous mind is not enough; the prime requisite
is rightly to apply it. The greatest minds, as they are capable of the
highest excellences, are open likewise to the greatest aberrations; and
those who travel very slowly may yet make far greater progress, provided
they keep always to the straight road, than those who, while they run,
forsake it.
For myself, I have never fancied my mind to be in any respect more perfect
than those of the generality; on the contrary, I have often wished that I
were equal to some others in promptitude of thought, or in clearness and
distinctness of imagination, or in fullness and readiness of memory. And
besides these, I know of no other qualities that contribute to the
Reason Discourse |
