Chapter 65: Of the utility of temptation

As Gertrude prayed for a person who was greatly tried by temptation, she received this reply : " It is I who have sent this temptation, and who permit it, that she may thus per ceive and repent of her defects, and efface those defects which she does not see ; as it usually happens that, when men perceive any stain on their hands, they wash them, and thus thoroughly cleanse away lesser stains, which they would not have perceived or removed if they had not seen a greater one.