“Here’s how I wander about at home [rather than wandering about on long and expensive pilgrimages to pray at shrines]. I go into the living room and see that my daughter’s chastity is safe. Coming out of there into my shop, I watch what my servants, male and female, are doing. Then to the kitchen to see if any instruction is needed. From one place and another, observing what my children and my wife are doing careful that everything be in order. These are my Roman stations.”
—Erasmus, Peregrinatio Religionis Ergo
I have just discovered the amusing and thought-provoking pleasure of reading Erasmus’s Colloquies. A sane but gentle mind, he sharply exposes what is foolish in his culture (especially religious culture) without ever ascending to the seat of mockers—a feat only those who have attempted gracious satire, and failed, can appreciate. Anyone who aspires to, or practices without aspiring to, the role of critic should study his example.
