"Seek silence in the midst of the tumult, seek solitude in the masses, light in the midst of darkness; find forgetfulness in injury, victory in the midst of despondence, and courage in the midst of alarm, resistance in the midst of temptation, peace in the midst of war."This book is a classic guide to what has been called Pure Prayer and Contemplative Prayer, as well as the Prayer of Quiet. This Prayer is a passive, alert receptivity to unseen, off unfelt Presence, or God... Though this long-standing tradition had been within the Catholic Church, the author was condemned and the book listed as forbidden reading. ("Anyone found in possession of this book will be excommunicated" -Papal Decree 1687)

Certainly, this work poses a threat to the dominance of final reliance on accepted dogma and the mediation of human authority and the control by ecclesiastical structure.

Banned by the Vatican, Michael de Molinos started a movement called Quietism.

This edition included a biography of Michael de Molinos.