Imitation of Christ

For the book by Thomas à Kempis, see The Imitation of Christ. For other uses, see Imitation of Christ (disambiguation).
"Life in Christ" redirects here. For the ecumenical document, see Life in Christ (document).
Jesus Discourses with His Disciples, James Tissot, c. 1890

In Christian theology, the imitation of Christ is the practice of following the example of Jesus.[1][2][3] In Eastern Christianity, the term life in Christ is sometimes used for the same concept.[1]


The ideal of the imitation of Christ has been an important element of both Christian ethics and spirituality.[4] References to this concept and its practice are found in the earliest Christian documents, e.g. the Pauline Epistles.[3]

Saint Augustine viewed the imitation of Christ as the fundamental purpose of Christian life, and as a remedy for the imitation of the sins of Adam.[5][6] Saint Francis of Assisi believed in the physical as well as the spiritual imitation of Christ, and advocated a path of poverty and preaching like Jesus who was poor at birth in the manger and died naked on the cross.[7][8] Thomas à Kempis, on the other hand, presented a path to The Imitation of Christ based on a focus on the interior life and withdrawal from the world.[9]

The theme of imitation of Christ existed in all phases of Byzantine theology, and in the 14th-century book Life in Christ Nicholas Cabasilas viewed "living one's own personal life" in Christ as the fundamental Christian virtue.[1][10]

  1. ^ a b c A concise dictionary of theology by Gerald O'Collins, Edward G. Farrugia 2004 ISBN 0-567-08354-3, p. 115.
  2. ^ Imitating Jesus: an inclusive approach to New Testament ethics by Richard A. Burridge 2007 ISBN 0-8028-4458-8, pp. 142–145.
  3. ^ a b Holy people of the world: a cross-cultural encyclopedia, Volume 3 by Phyllis G. Jestice 2004 ISBN 1-57607-355-6, pp. 393–394.
  4. ^ The Westminster Dictionary of Christian Theology by Alan Richardson, John Bowden 1983 ISBN 978-0-664-22748-7, pp. 285–286.
  5. ^ Augustine's early theology of the church by David C. Alexander 2008 ISBN 978-1-4331-0103-8, p. 218.
  6. ^ Augustine by Mary T. Clark 2005 ISBN 978-0-8264-7659-3, p. 48.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference Miles160 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference Goff was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ An introductory dictionary of theology and religious studies by Orlando O. Espín, James B. Nickoloff 2007 ISBN 0-8146-5856-3, p. 609.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference Phyllis661 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).