Gregory's imagery is always the best means of approach to his thought, and nowhere more so than in his practical spirituality. Gregory writes to one of his correspondents, the Prefect of Africa, about the problem of maintaining an inner life under the pressures of ‘secular cares’, so that distractions do not take his Eminence ‘entirely outside’ himself and he is able to bring his heart ‘back to itself after he has dealt with the business of the day (Letterx.16, ccsl, p. 845, July 600). Paterius, the notary who made a collection of extracts from Gregory's sermons (pl 79.6836ff) comments on the clarity of Gregory's exposition (pl 79.683A). It was achieved in part by developing certain images of inward and outward life which became familiar to his readers from much use: the notion of those who are ‘in’ and ‘outside’ the Church most commonly of all (the elect only are truly ‘in’ the Church), but also images of the inward and outward in each man, of the soul led outside itself into desire for the world or dwelling within itself where it knows itself, of the conscience or inner judge (intemus judex; intemus arbiter) which is God the teacher acting within.