'The spiritual centre of the human person, the self', writes the author, 'maintains its fundamental identity for the whole of life on earth and is destined for participation in the eternal life of God... The person is not a succession of separate points at the mercy of the conditions of the moment. God has given us a share in his power as creator, and to create ourselves through our liberty, to go beyond ourselves towards absolute values'. These reflections by a Carthusian novice master for those training for the life of silent love show that in the obedience born of love, one responds to the all encompassing, deeply intimate and sustaining love of God.

Translated by: An Anglican Solitary