Whoso shall find me; so there were men in the world already, before Adam. Isaac (Location 3309)
inspired the writers of Spain and Provence with their tales of Knights Errant, Giants, Dragons, Enchanted Castles and all the paraphernalia of Chivalry. (Location 3315)
With Richard Simon and his Histoire critique du Vieux Testament, which was published in 1678, criticism comes into its own. The term is a technical (Location 3340)
If, now, we look about us for a visible example which shall do justice to the pomp and splendour of this power, and soar to the height of this well-nigh superhuman majesty, the image of Louis XIV rises spontaneously to our eyes. It haunts us with its very splendour, this symbol of regal state; it pursues us across the gulf of time, it is with us, here and now; it is living still. There yet linger in our memory the famous words which the Grand Monarque—we can almost hear him saying them, as on the day he signalized the inauguration of his personal sway—l’état, c’est moi: I am the State. We know how he made up his mind to fulfil to the letter the motto: One King, One Faith, One Law; how he crushed every attempt at resistance; how, in the presence of the Pope himself, the helmsman of Christ’s Church, he upheld the rights of the captain who is responsible for the Ship of State; the captain being, of course, himself. He is the commanding exemplar, the hero, of the Monarchy. At Versailles we wait to see him pass through the halls and the courts, we follow him as he enters the Gallery of Mirrors surrounded by courtiers eager to interpret and obey his slightest gesture; and when, as the shades of evening begin (Location 4749)
to fall, we prepare to leave the groves and alley-ways laid out in accordance with his sovereign pleasure, we seem, as we retrace our steps towards the Château, to behold at one of the windows the figure called back for us by La Bruyère from the land of shadows: “He himself, in a manner of speaking, is his own Prime Minister. His mind forever dwelling on his people’s needs, there is for him no leisure time, no hours that he can call his own. Night draws on, the guards have been relieved at the approaches to his palace; the stars come out in the heavens, and proceed on their appointed way; all nature sleeps, buried deep in shadow, now that the day is done; and we too, take our rest; not so the King; quitting the balcony, he retires within his chamber, there, with sleepless eye, to watch over us and all his realm.” (Location 4758)
know that you will never take a soul by force: (Location 5359)
