Read first the best books. The important thing for you is not how much you know, but the quality of what you know.
Desiderius ErasmusYou must acquire the best knowledge first, and without delay; it is the height of madness to learn what you will later have to unlearn.
Desiderius ErasmusOur determination to imitiate Christ should be such that we have no time for other matters.
Desiderius ErasmusFor them it's out-of-date and outmoded to perform miracles; teaching the people is too like hard work, interpreting the holy scriptures is for schoolmen and praying is a waste of time; to shed tears is weak and womanish, to be needy is degrading; to suffer defeat is a disgrace and hardly fitting for one who scarcely permits the greatest of kings to kiss the toes of his sacred feet; and finally, death is an unattractive prospect, and dying on a cross would be an ignominious end.
Desiderius Erasmus