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think to increase their profits, then they will not go
to pray to God until the day when they think they will not
conquer any more worldly goods, but they gain less for
they serve God in vain. And God will give them such
a recompense that it will cost them much more than what
they left Him to serve. For he can give more merit in
a single day than they can acquire in a thousand years.
Such people are both foolish and ill-advised when they
think to serve Him with nothing, Him who knows and sees
all and who knows their thoughts. [And so it is also with] those
who go to church without the intention of praying to
God but rather doing so to get the praise of the world.
They pray more that God should guard and multiply
their wealth than they do for their souls, which may
well perish. It is wondrous to see such people,
who think and know well enough in their hearts
that what they do is wrong, yet they will not
change their ways at all. From this they are little
able to assess what a weak thing the devil in hell is, from whom all ills