number of his contemporaries, that crass fetichism with Christian
terminology which is far from having entirely disappeared. With certain
men, in fact, piety consists in making one's self right with a king more
powerful than any other, but also more severe and capricious, who is
called God. One proves one's loyalty to him as to other sovereigns, by
putting his image more or less everywhere, and punctually paying the
imposts levied by his ministers. If you are stingy, if you cheat, you
run the risk of being severely chastised, but there are courtiers around
the king who willingly render services. For a reasonable recompense
they will seize a favorable moment to adroitly make away with the
sentence of your condemnation or to slip before the prince a form of
plenary absolution which in a moment of good humor he will sign without
looking at it.[2]

Such was the religious basis upon which Francis had lived up to this
time. He did not so much as dream of seeking the spiritual balm which he
needed for the healing of his wounds. By a holy violence he was to
arrive at last at a pure and virile faith; but the road to this point is
long, and sown thick with obstacles, and at the moment at which we have
arrived he had not yet entered upon it, he did not even suspect its
existence; all he knew was that pleasure leads to nothingness, to
satiety and self-contempt.

He knew this, and yet he was about to throw himself once more into a
life of pleasure. The body is so weak, so prone to return to the old
paths, that it seeks them of itself, the moment an energetic will does
not stop it. Though no longer under any illusion with respect to it,
Francis returned to his former life. Was he trying to divert his mind,
to forget that day of bitter thought? We might suppose so, seeing the
ardor with which he threw himself into his new projects.[3]