Greco-Christian stream·The Imitation of Christ·Book III — On Inward Consolation·Chapter XVII. That All Care Is To Be Cast Upon God
XVII. All care to be cast upon God
1 Peter 5:7 — 'Casting all your care upon Him, for He careth for you.' The single great Christian act of self-entrustment to providence; the soul that has cast its care is free for the present moment as nothing else can make it.
Source context
- Theme
- surrender of personal anxiety and self-will through total reliance on divine providence
- Soul-faculty
- Consciousness Soul
Steiner
not engaged in the GA corpus
Cross-tradition
- Stoic philosophy (Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius)The Stoic discipline of distinguishing what lies within one's power from what does not provides a structural parallel to the Imitation's counsel to release all care into God's governance.
- Islamic Sufism (tawakkul)The Sufi concept of tawakkul — complete trust and reliance upon God as the sole real agent — exhibits cross-tradition congruence with this chapter's instruction to cast every burden onto divine will.
- Vedantic non-doership (akartṛtva)The Advaita Vedantic teaching that the individual self is not the true agent of action offers a cross-tradition congruence with the chapter's dissolution of anxious self-management into divine sovereignty.
Chapter XVII. That All Care Is To Be Cast Upon God
THAT ALL CARE IS TO BE CAST UPON GOD
"My Son, suffer me to do with thee what I will; I know what is expedient for thee. Thou thinkest as a man, in many things thou judgest as human affection persuadeth thee."
2Lord, what Thou sayest is true. Greater is Thy care for me than all the care which I am able to take for myself. For too insecurely doth he stand who casteth not all his care upon Thee. Lord, so long as my will standeth right and firm in Thee, do with me what Thou wilt, for whatsoever Thou shalt do with me cannot be aught but good. Blessed be Thou if Thou wilt leave me in darkness: blessed also be Thou if Thou wilt leave me in light. Blessed be Thou if Thou vouchsafe to comfort me, and always blessed be Thou if Thou cause me to be troubled.
3"My Son! even thus thou must stand if thou desirest to walk with Me. Thou must be ready alike for suffering or rejoicing. Thou must be poor and needy as willingly as full and rich."
4Lord, I will willingly bear for Thee whatsoever Thou wilt have to come upon me. Without choice I will receive from Thy hand good and evil, sweet and bitter, joy and sadness, and will give Thee thanks for all things which shall happen unto me. Keep me from all sin, and I will not fear death nor hell. Only cast me not away for ever, nor blot me out of the book of life. Then no tribulation which shall come upon me shall do me hurt.