There is a hardening of the heart that cannot always be measured merely by the number and gravity of one's sins. A relatively upright life in the eyes of the world can nevertheless conceal a layer of cold egoism that is thicker than the one possessed by an avowed sinner. Man is made in the image of God, and, even if only in the deepest part of his being, he always retains some sense of the divine life. Because man is the bearer of that reflection of the God who is Love, he is always capable of being attracted again to that Love.
YVES DE MONTCHEUIL, SJ Problèmes de Vie Spirituelle