9th November 1851. At the church of St. Gervaise, a second sermon from Adolphe Monod. Subject: Paul or the active life of the Christian. I felt the golden spell of eloquence; I found myself hanging on the lips of the orator, fascinated by his boldness, his grace, his energy and his art, his sincerity and his talent; and it was born in upon me that for some men difficulties are a source of inspiration, so that what would make others stumble is for them the occasion of their highest triumphs. He made St. Paul cry during an hour and a half; he made an old nurse of him, he hunted up his old cloak, his prescriptions of water and wine for Timothy, the canvas that he mended, his friend Tychieus, - in short all that could raise a smile; and from it he drew the most unfailing pathos, the most austere and penetrating lessons. He made the whole of St. Paul, martyr, apostle and man, - his grief, his charities, his tenderness - live again before us, and this with a grandeur and unction a warmth of reality such as I had never seen equalled ..... Finally, as a peroration, he dwelt on the necessity for a new people, for a stronger generation if the world is to be saved from the terrors which threaten it. 'People of God, awake! Sow in tears that ye may reap in triumph!' What a study is such a sermon! I felt all the extraordinary literary skill of it, while my eyes were still dim with tears. Diction, composition, similes - all instructive and precious to remember. I was astonished, shaken, taken hold of.
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taken from:
Journal page 14
