Prologus, caput I
The Testing of Birgitta's Visions
Lady Birgitta humbly submitted her revelations to an archbishop, bishops, and a theologian, and they discerned them to be from the good Spirit of truth.
Here we are told of the way Lady Birgitta received divine revelations, and how she herself, uncertain whether they might be illusions, humbly submitted them to the examination of one archbishop and three bishops and a master of theology, along with a most devout abbot. All of these, having deliberated with mature counsel, approved that they were from the good Spirit of truth and not from the deceiving angel of falsehood.1
The Manner of Revelation
While praying intensely in Norway, Lady Birgitta's body was emptied of strength and her soul perceived spiritual things with perfect vigor.
In the domain of the king of Norway, who is the last of all kings toward the north, so that beyond the lands of his realm no place is found that is habitable by people, it happened to Lady Birgitta, as she was intensely devoted to prayer, that when the strength of her body was as if emptied out, her soul began to see, hear, speak, and perceive those things that are spiritual, becoming most perfectly vigorous with all its powers; so much so that, often caught up, she heard many things in the spirit or in a spiritual and intellectual vision being spiritually described to her.
Fear of Deception and Ecclesiastical Confirmation
Reverently fearing deception by the angel of darkness, Birgitta disclosed her visions to the archbishop of Uppsala and others, who confirmed them by the Holy Spirit.
These things she afterward humbly laid open, with great reverence and fear of God, to the archbishop of Uppsala, together with three other bishops and a most devout master who was considered a great theologian, and to an abbot devoted to God and deeply religious, fearing that she might be deceived under the appearance of an angel of light by the deceiving angel of darkness.✦ And all these, along with many friends of God, hearing these things and conferring together maturely and spiritually about them, divinely confirmed by the good spirit of truth and of light and by the special grace of the Holy Spirit that all things had been revealed to that same person.
The Vision of Christ and His Mother
In a revelation Birgitta saw a beautiful man and woman revealed as Christ and Mary, who appeared as they were on earth, though their heavenly state remains beyond human knowledge.
In such a revelation she once saw a certain man and a woman of most beautiful form. To her a voice at once said: 'See, these two persons whom you see are Jesus Christ and his Mother Mary; they now appear to you such as they were living in the world.' But what their bodies are now like in heaven, it is impossible for you to know or to see.'
Christ Opens His Lips to Speak
After the vision was identified, Christ who had appeared at once opened his lips and began to speak.
When this word had been spoken, Jesus Christ, who had appeared, at once opened his lips and began speaking, saying:
Prologue to the Rule of the Savior
Here begins the prologue to the Rule of the Savior, divinely given by Christ to Lady Birgitta in Sweden.
Here begins the Prologue on the Rule of the Savior, given divinely by Christ to Lady Birgitta of Sweden, in the same kingdom of Sweden.
Read the original Latin
Narratur hic modus, qualiter domina Birgitta habebat reuelaciones diuinas et qualiter ipsa dubitans de illusione humiliter supposuit eas examini vnius archiepiscopi et trium episcoporum et vnius magistri in theologia ac eciam vnius abbatis religiosissimi. Qui omnes prehabito consilio maturo comprobauerunt eas esse a bono spiritu veritatis et non ab illusore angelo falsitatis.
In dominio regis Norwegie, qui est ad septentrionem omnium regum vltimus, ita quod vltra terras sui principatus nullus inuenitur hominibus habitabilis locus, contigit domine Birgitte oracioni intencius vacanti, quod viribus corporis quasi exinanitis cepit eius anima ad videndum, audiendum, loquendum et senciendum ea, que spiritualia sunt, omnibus suis viribus effici perfectissime vigorosa; taliter itaque, quod sepius rapta multa audiuit in spiritu seu in visione spirituali et intellectuali sibi spiritualiter enarrari. Que postmodum archiepiscopo Vpsalensi vna cum aliis tribus episcopis et cuidam magistro deuotissimo, qui magnus theologus habebatur, atque vni abbati Deo deuoto et valde religioso eadem persona cum magna reuerencia et timore Dei humiliter propalauit timens illudi sub specie angeli lucis ab illusore angelo tenebrarum. Et hii omnes et multi amici Dei hec audientes et super hoc mature et spiritualiter adinuicem conferentes, diuinitus a spiritu bono veritatis et lucis et speciali Spiritus Sancti gracia omnia eidem persone reuelata fuisse comprobarunt. In tali eciam reuelacione semel videbat virum quendam et vnam mulierem speciosissime forme. Cui continuo vox quedam dicebat: "Ecce hee due persone, quas vides, sunt Ihesus Christus et sua Mater Maria, qui tales tibi pronunc apparent, quales erant in mundo viuentes. Sed qualia eorum corpora iam sunt in celo, impossibile est tibi cognoscere vel videre." Hoc itaque verbo dicto Ihesus Christus, qui apparuit, labia sua mox aperiens loquebatur dicens:
INCIPIT PROLOGUS SUPER REGVLA SALUATORIS DATA DIUINITUS A CHRISTO DOMINE BIRGITTE DE SWECIA IN EODEM REGNO SWECIE
Scripture echoes
- ↩2Cor.11.14 — And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.
Notes
- 1 ↩The ablative absolute 'prehabito ... consilio' is rendered as 'having deliberated with mature counsel'; the morphology of 'prehabito' is uncertain (see source analysis), but the sense of prior, careful deliberation is clear from context.
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