Thomas Hemerken of Kempen (c. 1380–1471), schooled at Deventer among the Brethren of the Common Life and then a canon regular at Mount St Agnes near Zwolle for some seventy years, where he copied manuscripts and wrote. The Imitation of Christ, which circulated anonymously, is generally given to him and is the most widely read Christian book after the Bible.
Works (2)
- The Founders of the New Devotion — Lives of Gerard Groote, Florentius Radewin and their followers — the Devotio Moderna of the Low Countries, the movement in whose houses Thomas à Kempis was raised and out of which the Imitation came. (62 notes)
- The Imitation of Christ — The most widely read Christian book after the Bible, written in the houses of the Devotio Moderna and circulating anonymously from about 1420. Four books: admonitions for the spiritual life, admonitions concerning inward things, of inward consolation, and of the sacrament — the last turning from counsel into direct address between Christ and the disciple. (114 notes)