Admirante sponsa et se indignam reputante coram Christo de ista gracia sibi data, scilicet videndi et audiendi in spiritu illa, que aguntur in celo et in purgatorio et in inferno, declaratur de hoc pulchre a Christo et eius matre in principio et in fine capituli. Et ostenditur ei exemplo trium mulierum, quas ipsa videbat, vnam in inferno, aliam in purgatorio grauissime cruciari, qualiter matres prebentes filiabus suis doctrinas et exempla viuendi curiose et superbe et filie imitantes illa horribiliter dampnantur.
The Vessel of Divine Grace
Christ instructs the bride on her role as a vessel for His words and the nature of His divine judgment.
"Praise be to You, God," the bride says, "for everything that has been created, and honor for all Your virtues!" May everyone serve You for the sake of Your love. And so, unworthy and a sinner from my youth, I thank you, my God, because you don't deny grace to any sinners who ask for it, but instead have mercy on all and spare them. O sweetest God, it’s a marvel what you do with me! For when it pleases you, you lull my body into a spiritual sleep, and then you stir my soul to see and hear spiritual things. O my God, how sweet your words are to my soul! My soul swallows them like the sweetest food, and they enter my heart with joy. For when I hear your words, I am both satisfied and famished. I am satisfied, because nothing delights me except your words; yet I am famished, because I long all the more fervently to hear them. Therefore, blessed God, help me to always do your will! Christ answered: "I am without beginning and without end, and everything that exists was created by my power." Everything is ordered by my wisdom and governed by my judgment, and all my works are directed by charity. Therefore, nothing is impossible for me. But that heart is far too hard which neither loves nor fears me, even though I am the governor and judge of all. And humanity more often carries out the will of the devil, who is my executioner and a traitor. He is the one who generously pours out poison throughout the world, because of which souls cannot live, but are instead plunged into the death of hell. This poison, however, is sin; it tastes sweet, even though it is bitter to the soul, and it is scattered daily by the hand of the devil over many people. But who has ever heard of such a thing—that life is offered to everyone, yet they choose death for themselves! Yet I am the God of all, patient and compassionate toward their misery. I act like a king who, when sending wine to his servants, said: 'Give this to many, because it is healthy.'1 It brings health to the weak, joy to the sad, and a courageous heart to the healthy.' But wine isn't poured out except through a suitable vessel. In the same way, I've sent my words—which are compared to wine—to my servants through you, for you are my vessel, which I want to fill and pour out according to my will. My Holy Spirit will teach you where to go and what to say. So, speak joyfully and fearlessly whatever I command, because no one will prevail against me. Then I replied: "O King of all glory, you who pour out all wisdom and are the giver of every virtue!" Why do you accept me—someone who has wasted her body in sin—for such a work of yours? I am, in truth, like a foolish donkey, lacking in virtues; I've failed in everything and have corrected nothing." The Spirit replied: "Who would be surprised if a master took the money or metal presented to him and made it into crowns, rings, or cups for his own use?" So it’s no wonder if I receive the hearts of my friends that are presented to me, and work my will within them." Because one person has less understanding and another has more, I use each person's conscience in the way that best serves my honor; for the heart of the just is my currency. Therefore, stay steady and ready to do my will.
The Warning of the Proud
The Mother of God warns against the pride of worldly mothers who pass on vanity to their daughters, contrasting this with the humility of Christ.
Then the Mother of God spoke to me, saying, "What are the proud women in your kingdom saying?" I answered her, "I am one of them, and for that reason, I’m ashamed to speak in your presence." But the Mother said, "Even though I know this better than you do, I still want to hear it from you." And I answered, "'Whenever,' they say, 'true humility was preached to us, we would say that our parents left us a legacy of vast estates and fine manners.'" Why, then, shouldn't we imitate them? Our mother also sat among the first, dressed in fine clothes, with many servants, and she raised us with honor. Why shouldn't I pass on to my daughters the things I've learned: namely, to carry themselves with nobility, to live with bodily pleasure, and to die with great worldly honor?' The Mother of God replied, "Any woman who follows these words in her actions is on the true path to hell, and that's why such an answer is so harsh." What good will it do you to use such words, when the Creator of all things endured to have His own body remain on earth in all humility from His birth until His death? And the garment of pride never came upon Him. These women don't truly look upon his face as he stood there, living and dying on the cross, bloodied and pale from his suffering; they don't care about the insults he heard, nor about the shameful death he chose. But they don't even remember the place where He gave up His spirit, because my Son was punished in the same place where thieves and robbers received their punishments. And I, who am dearest to Him of all creatures and in whom all humility resides, was present there. And so, those who act with such pride and vanity, and who give others the opportunity to imitate them, are like a sprinkler that, when dipped into a burning liquid, burns and stains everyone it touches. In the same way, the proud provide examples of pride, and through their bad example, they severely burn the souls of others. And so, I want to act now like a good mother who, by frightening her children, makes them see the rod that even servants can see. But when the children see it, they're afraid to offend their mother, and they thank her because she threatened them but didn't strike them. Servants, however, fear being whipped if they do wrong, and so, because of that fear of the mother, children do more good than they did before, while servants merely do less evil. Because I am the Mother of mercy, I want to show you the reward of sin, so that the friends of God may become more fervent out of love for Him, and that sinners, knowing their own danger, may at least flee from sin out of fear. In this way, I show mercy to both the good and the bad: to the good, so they may earn a greater crown in heaven; to the bad, so they may incur a lesser penalty. There is no sinner so great that I am not ready to meet them, and my Son is not ready to give them grace, if they seek mercy with love.
The Vision of the Damned Mother
The bride witnesses the horrific torments of a mother in hell and hears her lament the pride and worldly values she taught her daughter.
After this, three women appeared—a mother, a daughter, and a granddaughter—but while the mother and granddaughter looked dead, the daughter looked alive. The aforementioned mother, however, appeared to be crawling out of a dark pit and mire. Her heart was torn out, her lips were cut away, and her chin trembled; her long, white, gleaming teeth were clashing together. Her nostrils were eaten away, and her eyes were gouged out, hanging down to her cheeks by two nerves. The forehead appeared sunken, and in its place was a vast, dark abyss. The skull was missing from the head, and the brain bubbled like molten lead and flowed out like pitch. Her neck was also being turned around like wood being shaped on a lathe or a plane, against which a very sharp blade was set, scraping away without any comfort. Her chest was laid open and filled with long, small worms that rolled over one another, back and forth, while her arms looked like the handles of a stonemason's tool. The hands were like gnarled, elongated clubs, and every vertebra of the spine was loose, never ceasing its motion as one would rise and another would fall. A long, large serpent also dragged itself from the lower part of the stomach to the upper, and by joining its head and tail like an arch, it circled the internal organs continuously like a wheel. Her legs and shins looked like two thorny staves covered in the sharpest spikes, while her feet were like those of a toad. Then this dead mother spoke to her living daughter: "Listen, you lizard, you poisonous daughter of mine!" Woe to me that I was ever your mother! I am the one who placed you in the nest of pride, where you grew warm and thrived until you reached adulthood. And you've taken such pleasure in it that you've spent your life on it. Therefore, I tell you that as often as you turn your eyes with that look of pride I taught you to avoid, you're casting boiling poison into my eyes with unbearable heat. But whenever you speak words of pride—words you learned from me—I swallow a most bitter potion. Whenever your ears are filled with the wind of pride, stirred up by the storms of arrogance—that is, by hearing praise for your own body and desiring the honors of the world, which you learned from me—a terrible sound reaches my ears, along with a wind that blows and burns.2 Woe to me, poor and miserable—poor because I have and feel nothing good, and miserable because I am full of every evil! But you, daughter, are like a cow's tail that, while walking through mud, stains and splatters those nearby every time it moves. It's the same with you, daughter; you are like that cow because you lack divine wisdom and follow only the works and impulses of your own body. Therefore, as often as you imitate the works of my habit—that is, the sins I taught you to avoid—so often is my pain renewed and it burns all the more fiercely. Besides, my daughter, why are you proud of your lineage? Is it really an honor and a glory to you that the filth of my own womb was your resting place? Your coming forth was from my private parts, and the impurity of my blood was your clothing when you were born. That is why the womb where you once lay is now completely eaten away by worms. But why do I complain about you, daughter, when I should be complaining more about myself? For there are three things that now afflict me more heavily in my heart. The first is that, having been created by God for heavenly joy, I abused my conscience and set myself on a path toward the pains of hell. The second is that God created me beautiful, like an angel, but I’ve deformed myself so that I’m more like the devil than an angel of God. The third is that, in the time given to me, I made a very bad trade. I actually received something small and fleeting—the pleasure of sin—and for it, I now suffer an infinite evil: the punishment of hell. Then he said to the bride, "You who see me, you don't see me except through physical likenesses." For if you were to see me in the form in which I truly am, you would die of fear, because all my members are demons. It is true, as Scripture says, that just as the righteous are members of God, so sinners are members of the devil. I experience this now, that demons are attached to my soul, because the will of my heart has disposed me toward such great deformity. But listen to more. It seems to you that my feet are like a toad's. This is because I stood firmly in sin; that is why demons now stand firmly in me, and they never get their fill of gnawing at me. My shins and legs are like thorny sticks, because I followed my own will according to carnal delight and my own pleasure. The reason every vertebra of my spine is loose and grinding against the others is that the joy of my soul would sometimes soar too high on worldly comfort, and at other times sink low through excessive sadness and anger over worldly adversity. And so, just as the back moves according to the movement of the head, I should have been stable and mobile according to the will of God, who is the head of all good things. But because I didn't do this, I am justly suffering what you see. As for the serpent that has pulled itself from the lower stomach to the upper, standing like an arch and circling like a wheel, this happens because my pleasure and delight were disordered, and my will wanted to possess everything and spend it in many ways, without any restraint. That’s why a serpent now circles through my inner being, biting me without comfort or mercy. The fact that my chest is open and gnawed by worms shows the true justice of God. For I loved rotting things more than God, and the love of my heart was set on passing things. Just as small worms grow into larger ones, my soul has been filled with demons because of the rotten things I loved. My arms, too, look like nothing more than handles. This is because my desire had, so to speak, two arms: I craved a long life, so that I might live in sin for a long time. I also craved and desired that God’s judgment might be milder than what Scripture says. My conscience, however, told me clearly that my time was short and God’s judgment unbearable, but in contrast, my desire to sin suggested to me that my life would be long and God’s judgment tolerable. And from such suggestions my conscience was overturned, and so my will and reason followed after pleasure and delight. Because of that, the devil now stirs within my soul against my own will, and my conscience understands and feels that God’s judgment is just. My hands are like long nails, because God’s commandments were not a delight to me. And so, my hands are a burden to me and completely useless. As for my neck, which is being turned like wood shaped by a sharp iron tool, it is because the words of God were not sweet enough for me to swallow in the love of my heart; instead, they were far too bitter, because they rebuked the delight and pleasure of my heart. That is why a sharp blade now stands against my throat. My lips have been cut away because they were quick to speak words of pride and vulgarity, but were lazy and sluggish when it came to speaking the words of God. My chin is visibly trembling and my teeth are chattering, because I was fully determined to feed my body so that I might appear beautiful, desirable, healthy, and strong for every kind of bodily pleasure. That is why the chin trembles without comfort and the teeth chatter, because the consumption of food and that labor were useless regarding the fruit of the soul. My nostrils, however, are cut off, because just as is commonly done among you to those who commit such a sin, to increase their shame, so has a brand of my own shame been placed upon me forever. As for the eyes hanging by two nerves against the cheeks, it's only just: just as those eyes once delighted in the beauty of the cheeks to show off in pride, so now they've been gouged out by much weeping and hang against the cheeks in shame. It's also just that my forehead is sunken and replaced by immense darkness, because I wrapped my brow in the veil of vanity and wanted to boast and be seen for my beauty; that's why my forehead is now dark and deformed. It’s fitting that the brain boils and melts away like lead and pitch, because just as lead is soft and easily shaped to the will of the one using it, so my conscience, which resided in my brain, was shaped to the will of my heart, even though I understood perfectly well what I should have done. But the passion of the Son of God didn't take root in my heart at all; it just slipped away, like things I knew well enough but never really cared about. Furthermore, I paid no more attention to the blood that flowed from the limbs of the Son of God than I did to pitch, and I fled from the words of God’s love just as I would from pitch, so that they wouldn't turn me away from the pleasures of the body and disturb me. I did sometimes listen to the words of God for the sake of others, but they left my heart just as easily as they entered; that is why my brain is now melting away like burning pitch, bubbling over with intense heat. My ears were also blocked with hard stones, because words of pride entered them gladly and spread sweetly into my heart, since the charity of God had been shut out from it. And because I did everything I could out of pride and for the sake of the world, joyful words are now shut out from my ears. But you might ask whether I performed any meritorious works. I answer you: I acted like a money-changer who takes a coin, inspects it, and hands it back to the master. I did fast, give alms, and perform other works, but I did them out of fear of hell and to avoid physical hardships. But because the love of God was cut off from my work, those things were of no value to me for gaining heaven. Yet they weren't without their reward. You might ask again what I am like on the inside, in my will, when there is such ugliness on the outside. My answer is this: My will is like that of a murderer and a matricide who would gladly kill his own mother. In the same way, I desire the worst evil for God, my Creator, who has been so good and sweet to me.
The Path of Purgation
The daughter in purgatory reflects on the lessons learned from her mother and the hope found in the mercy of God through Christ's passion.
Furthermore, the granddaughter of the aforementioned dead grandmother speaks to her own living mother, saying: "Listen, you scorpion, my mother!" Woe to me, because you've deceived me so badly! For you showed me a happy face, but you've pierced me deeply in my heart. You've given me three pieces of advice from your own mouth, I've learned three things from your works, and you've shown me three paths in your own life. The first piece of advice was to love in a worldly way to gain worldly friendship. The second was wasting temporal things for the sake of worldly honor. The third was seeking rest for the sake of bodily pleasure. These things cost me dearly. Because I loved in a worldly way, I earned shame and spiritual envy. Because I wasted my worldly goods, I was deprived of the gifts of God's grace in this life, and after death, I have met with shame. Because I took pleasure in the ease of the flesh during my life, the restlessness of my soul began at the hour of death, without any consolation. I've also learned three things from your works: it's possible to do some good deeds while still refusing to let go of a sin I enjoy—much like the person who offered a judge honey mixed with poison, only for the judge to angrily pour it back over the one who offered it. That is exactly what I'm experiencing now in my great distress and tribulation. Secondly, I learned a remarkable way of dressing: I would cover my eyes with a cloth, wear sandals on my feet and gloves on my hands, all while leaving my entire neck bare. This linen cloth covering my eyes represents the beauty of my body, which clouded my spiritual eyes so much that I didn't pay attention to the beauty of my soul. The sandals, however, which protect the feet from below but not from above, signify the holy faith of the Church, which I have held faithfully. But no fruitful works followed, because just as sandals support the feet, my conscience—standing in faith—supports the soul; yet because good works didn't follow, my soul was, in a sense, naked. The gloves on my hands represent the empty hope I once held. I, in fact, extended my own works—which are represented by the hands—into the vast and generous mercy of God, which is marked by the gloves; and because of this, when I felt the justice of God, I didn't perceive it or pay it any mind, and so I became far too bold in my sinning. But when death drew near, the veil fell from my eyes onto the earth—that is, onto my body—and then my soul saw and knew itself to be naked, because my good works were few and my sins were many. And because of my shame, I couldn't stand in the palace of the eternal King, for I was dressed in a shameful way. But then the demons dragged me into harsh punishment, where I was mocked in my shame. The third thing I learned from you, Mother, is to clothe the servant in the Master’s robes, to honor the one placed in the Master’s seat just as if he were the Master, and to serve the Master with all the things that the servant finds contemptible. The Lord is the love of God, but the servant is the will to sin. And so, in my heart, where divine love should have reigned, I placed the servant—that is, the delight and pleasure of sin. I clothed myself in that when I turned all created and temporal things toward my own will; but the leftovers, the scraps, and the most worthless things I gave to God—not out of love, but out of fear. My heart was rejoicing in this way over the success and pleasure of my own will, because the love of God had been shut out from me, and the good Lord was shut out, while the evil servant was shut in. Look, Mother, I've learned these three things from your works. You also showed me three paths in your walk. The first was bright. When I entered it, I was blinded by its brilliance. The second was short and slippery, like ice. Whenever I took one step forward on it, I would slide back a full pace. The third path was far too long. As I was walking along it, a violent torrent came up behind me and swept me down beneath the mountain into a deep pit. In the first path, the progress of my pride is noted, which was far too bright; for the showiness that comes from pride shone so brightly in my eyes that I didn't consider its end, and so I was blind. The second path is marked by disobedience. In the end, the time for disobedience in this life isn't long, because after death, a person is forced to obey. Still, it felt like a long road to me, because whenever I took a step forward—that is, in the humility of confession—I would slide right back to where I started; I wanted my confessed sin to be forgiven, but once the confession was made, I didn't want to turn away from the sin itself. And so I didn't stand firm in the path of obedience, but kept slipping back into sin—like someone sliding on ice—because my will was cold and unwilling to turn away from the things that gave me pleasure. So, whenever I took a step toward confession to own my sins, I would slide right back to where I started, because I still wanted those sins and the pleasures I had just confessed. The third way was that I hoped for the impossible: namely, that I could commit sin without facing a long punishment, and that I could live a long life without hastening the hour of my death. And as I had moved along this path, a rushing torrent came up behind me—death itself—which, seizing me from one year to the next, knocked me off my feet with the pain of illness. But what were these feet, if not that, as illness drew near, I could only pay a little attention to the needs of my body, and less to the salvation of my soul? That’s why I fell into a deep pit: when my heart, which had been lifted up in pride and hardened in sin, finally broke, my soul plunged deep into the pit of the punishment of sin. And so this path was far too long, because the life of the flesh was quickly followed by a long and finished penalty. Woe to me, then, my mother, because everything I learned from you with joy, I now pay for with weeping. The same dead daughter speaks again to the bride who was witnessing these things, saying, "Listen, you who see me!" It seems to you that my head and face are like thunder, flashing inside and out, while my neck and chest are as if they were placed in a hard press with long spikes.3 My arms and feet are like long serpents, and my belly is struck with hard hammers. My legs and shins are like flowing water, hanging frozen from the roof gutters. But there's still one interior pain that's more bitter to me than all of these. For just as if someone had all their vital breath blocked off, and all their veins were so filled with wind that they pressed in toward the heart, causing it to begin to burst from the violence and force of that wind, so I am miserably afflicted within by the wind of pride, which was once so dear to me. Yet I am on the path of mercy, because during my most severe illness I confessed as best I knew how, even though it was out of fear. But as death approached, the thought of my God's passion came to mind—that it was far more severe and bitter than my own, which I deserve to suffer for my sins. That reflection moved me to tears, and I groaned at how great God's love for me was, and how meager my own was for Him. For I looked upon Him then with the eyes of my conscience and said: O Lord, I believe that You are my God. Have mercy on me, Son of the Virgin, for the sake of Your bitter passion! For from this moment on, I would gladly amend my life if I only had the time.” At that very moment, a spark of charity was kindled in my heart, and Christ’s passion seemed more bitter to me than my own death. And so, my heart broke, and my soul fell into the hands of demons to be presented for the judgment of God. It fell into the hands of demons because it was unworthy for the angels of beauty to draw near to a soul of such deformity. But at the judgment of God, when the demons were clamoring for my soul to be condemned to hell, the Judge replied: I see a spark of love in her heart that must not be extinguished, but must remain in my sight. "And so, I judge this soul to purgation, until, having been worthily purified, she may merit to obtain pardon." You might also ask whether you'll share in all the good works done on your behalf. I'll answer you with a comparison. If you were to see two scales hanging—one pulled down by lead and the other holding something light that tends upward—you’d see that the more you piled onto the empty scale, the faster it would lift the heavy, weighted one. It’s the same with me. The higher I had climbed in sin, the deeper I fell into punishment. And so, whatever is done for the honor of God on my behalf lifts me out of punishment, especially prayer and the good that is done by righteous people and friends of God, as well as benefits provided from honestly acquired goods, and works of charity. These are the things, then, that make me draw closer to God every day."
The Mystery of Spiritual Vision
The Mother of God explains the nature of the visionary experience and concludes with the fate of the third woman.
After this, the Mother of God says to the bride, "You wonder how I, the Queen of Heaven, you, living in the world, that soul in purgatory, and the other in hell, are all speaking together." I will tell you this clearly. As for me, I never leave heaven, because I will never be separated from the vision of God. Neither will the soul that is in hell be separated from its torments, nor will that soul be separated from purgatory until it is cleansed, nor will you come to us before the separation of your bodily life. But your soul, along with your understanding, is lifted up by the power of the Spirit of God to hear the words of God in heaven, and you're permitted to know some of the punishments in hell and purgatory—as a warning for the wicked, and for the good, as a source of comfort and progress. Still, you should know that while your body and soul are joined here on earth, the Holy Spirit—who is in heaven—gives you the understanding to grasp His will. This passage mentions three women, the third of whom entered a monastery and spent the rest of her life in great perfection.
Read the original Latin
"Laus tibi sit, Deus", inquit sponsa, "pro omnibus, que creata sunt, et honor pro omnibus virtutibus tuis! Seruiciumque impendatur tibi ab omnibus pro caritate tua.
Ego igitur indigna et a iuuentute mea peccatrix regracior tibi, Deus meus, quod nullis peccantibus negas graciam, qui petunt, sed misereris omnibus et parcis.
O dulcissime Deus, mirabile est, quod facis mecum! Quando enim placet tibi, soporas corpus meum spirituali sopore, excitas quoque tunc animam meam ad videndum et audiendum spiritualia.
O Deus meus, o quam dulcia sunt verba tua anime mee! Que glutit ea quasi dulcissimum cibum, et intrant cum gaudio in cor meum. Nam cum verba tua audio, et saciata sum et famelica.
Saciata, quia nichil delectat me nisi verba tua, famelica vero, quia ea audire feruencius concupisco. Ideo, benedicte Deus, da michi auxilium facere semper voluntatem tuam!"
Respondit Christus: "Ego sum sine principio et sine fine, et omnia, quecumque sunt, per potenciam meam creata sunt. Omnia disponuntur sapiencia mea omniaque reguntur iudicio meo, omnia quoque opera mea ordinantur caritate. Ideo michi nichil est impossibile.
Sed nimis durum est cor illud, quod nec diligit nec timet me, cum sim omnium gubernator et iudex. Et homo magis perficit voluntatem dyaboli, qui est lictor meus et proditor. Qui propinat largiter venenum per mundum, pro quo anime viuere non possunt sed demerguntur ad inferni mortem.
Hoc autem venenum peccatum est, quod dulciter sapit, licet amarum sit anime, et cottidie spargitur de manu dyaboli super multos. Sed quis audiuit talia, quod scilicet omnibus offertur vita et ipsi eligunt mortem!
Attamen ego omnium Deus paciens sum et compacior miserie eorum. Ego quippe facio sicut rex, qui mittens vinum seruitoribus suis dixit: 'Propinate pluribus, quia salubre est. Dat enim infirmis salutem, tristibus leticiam, cor virile sanis.'
Sed nec vinum mittitur nisi per vas aptum. Sic ego misi verba mea, que comparantur vino, seruitoribus meis per te, que es vas meum, quod implere et exhaurire volo ad velle meum.
Spiritus quippe meus Sanctus docebit te, quo ibis et quid loquaris. Ideo gaudenter loquere et intrepide, que iubeo, quia nullus contra me preualebit."
Tunc ego respondi: "O rex omnis glorie et infusor omnis sapiencie omniumque virtutum largitor! Cur me, que corpus consumpsi in peccatis, recipis ad tale opus tuum? Ego quippe sum quasi asinus insipiens et defectuosa virtutibus, et in omnibus deliqui et nichil emendaui."
Respondit Spiritus: "Quis miraretur, si aliquis dominus de presentata sibi moneta vel metallo faceret sibi coronas vel anulos aut cyphos ad vtilitatem suam? Sic nec mirum est, si ego recipio corda amicorum meorum michi presentata et facio in eis voluntatem meam.
Et quia vnus habet minorem intellectum et alius maiorem, sic vniuscuiusque consciencia vtor, sicut expedit ad honorem meum; quia cor iusti est moneta mea. Ideo esto stabilis et prompta ad velle meum."
Deinde loquebatur ad me mater Dei dicens: "Quid dicunt mulieres superbe in regno tuo?" Cui ego respondi: "Ego sum vna de illis et ideo confundor loqui in conspectu tuo." Et mater ait: "Licet melius te hoc sciam, tamen te loquente audire volo."
Et ego respondi: "'Quando', inquiunt, 'predicabatur nobis vera humilitas, diximus, quod genitores nostri hereditabant nobis latas possessiones et mores pulchros. Cur ergo illos imitari non debeamus?
Mater quoque nostra sedebat cum primis vestita nobiliter habensque seruitores plurimos et enutriens nos cum honore.
Cur talia non debeam hereditare filie mee, que didici, scilicet gerere se nobiliter et viuere cum corporali gaudio, mori quoque cum grandi honore mundi?'"
Respondit Dei mater: "Omnis mulier, que hec verba sequitur opere, per veram viam vadit ad infernum et ideo dura est talis responsio.
Quid enim proderit habere talia verba, cum omnium creator paciebatur corpus suum cum omni humilitate a natiuitate sua vsque ad mortem manere in terra? Et numquam vestis superbie venit super eum.
Vere tales mulieres non considerant faciem eius, quando stetit viuens et mortuus in cruce, sanguineus et pallidus de penis, nec curant de obprobriis eius, que ipse audiuit, nec de morte contemptibili, quam elegit,
sed nec redordantur de loco, vbi reddidit spiritum, quia vbi fures et latrones receperunt plagas suas, ibi plagatus est filius meus. Et ego, que de omnibus creaturis sum sibi carissima et in me est omnis humilitas, presens ibi fui.
Et ideo, qui talia superba et pomposa faciunt et aliis dant occasionem imitandi illa, similes sunt aspersorio, quod impositum liquori ardenti omnes comburit et maculat, quos aspergit. Sic et superbi tribuunt exempla superbiendi et grauiter per malum exemplum vrunt animas.
Et ideo ego volo facere nunc sicut bona mater, que filios terrendo facit eos videre virgam, quam eciam vident serui. Sed filii videntes timent offendere matrem regraciantes ei, quia minabatur eis et non flagellabat.
Serui vero timent flagellari, si delinquunt, et ita ex illo timore matris filii faciunt plura bona quam antea, serui vero minora mala.
Itaque, quia ego sum mater misericordie, ideo ostendere tibi volo retribucionem peccati, vt amici Dei ex caritate Dei feruenciores fiant, peccatores autem scientes periculum suum fugiant saltem peccatum ex timore.
Et isto modo misereor bonis et malis: bonis, vt optineant maiorem coronam in celis, malis vero, vt incurrant minorem penam. Et nullus tantus peccator est, cui non sum parata occurrere et filius meus graciam dare, si misericordiam petit cum caritate."
Et post hec apparuerunt tres mulieres, scilicet mater et filia et neptis, sed mater apparuit mortua et neptis, filia vero apparuit viua. Mater autem predicta mortua videbatur quasi serpere de tenebroso lacu et luto.
Cuius cor abstractum erat et labia precisa, mentum quoque tremebat, dentes vero eius nitentes albi et longi collidebantur. Nares erant corrose et oculi eruti, dependentes ad genas duobus neruis.
Frons videbatur immersa et loco frontis immane baratrum et tenebrosum. In capite vero deerat craneum, et cerebrum quasi plumbum ebuliebat et quasi pix effluebat.
Collum quoque eius circumuoluebatur sicut lignum, quod tornatur in torno seu in runcina, cui ferrum acutissimum oppositum erat, abradens sine consolacione.
Pectus vero apertum erat plenum vermibus longis et paruis, quorum quilibet huc et illuc voluebatur super alium, et brachia similia erant manubriis lapidis fabrilis.
Manus autem erant quasi claue nodose et prolixe, et spondilia dorsi eius omnia erant soluta, que vno ascendente et alio descendente numquam a motu desistebant.
Vnus quoque serpens longus et magnus traxit se per inferiora stomachi ad superiora, qui coniungens caput et caudam quasi arcus circuibat viscera continue quasi rota.
Crura vero et tibie videbantur quasi duo baculi spinosi acutissimis aculeis pleni, pedes vero eius erant quasi buffonum.
Tunc autem ista mater mortua alloquebatur filiam viuam dicens: "Audi, lacerta et venenosa filia mea! Ve michi, quod vmquam fui mater tua! Ego sum, que posui te in nidum superbie, in quo tu calefacta crescebas, donec ad etatem peruenisti.
Et tantum tibi placuit, quod in eo etatem tuam consumpsisti. Propterea dico tibi, quod, quociens tu oculos vertis cum superbie visu, quam ego te docui, tociens proicis buliens venenum in oculis meis cum intollerabili ardore.
Quociens autem loqueris superbie verba, que didicisti a me, tociens glucio amarissimam pocionem.
Quociens vero aures tue implentur superbie vento, quem procelle arrogancie excitant, scilicet audire corporis tui laudes et desiderare mundi honores, que didicisti a me, tociens venit ad aures meas sonitus terribilis cum vento flante et vrente.
Ve ergo michi pauperi et misere, ideo pauperi, quia nichil boni habeo nec sencio, ideo misere, quia habundo omnibus malis!
Sed tu, filia, similis es caude vacce, que vadens in lutosis locis, quociens mouet caudam, tociens maculat et aspergit appropinquantes. Sic tu, filia, similis es vacce, quia non habes diuinam sapienciam et vadis secundum opera et motus corporis tui.
Ideo, quociens imitaris opera consuetudinis mee, scilicet peccata, que te docui, tociens innouatur pena mea et eo grauius exardescit. Preterea, o filia mea, cur superbis de generacione tua? Numquid honor et decus est tibi, quod immundicia viscerum meorum fuit puluinar tuum?
Pudorosum quoque membrum meum fuit egressus tuus et immundicia sanguinis mei fuit vestis tua, quando nascebaris. Ideo nunc venter meus, in quo iacuisti, totus a vermibus est corrosus.
Sed cur conqueror de te, filia, cum plus conqueri deberem super me ipsa? Nam tria sunt, que iam grauius affligunt me in corde. Primum est, quod a Deo creata ad celeste gaudium abutebar consciencie mee et disposui me ad dolores infernales.
Secundum est, quod Deus creauit me pulchram quasi angelum, sed ego me ipsam deformaui, vt similior sim dyabolo quam angelo Dei. Tercium est, quod in tempore michi dato valde malam feci commutacionem.
Recepi quippe modicum transitorium, idest peccati delectacionem, pro quo sencio nunc infinitum malum, scilicet inferni penam."
Et tunc ait ad sponsam: "Tu", inquit, "que vides me, non vides me nisi per similitudines corporales. Si enim videres me in ea forma, in qua sum, morereris ex timore, quia omnia membra mea sunt demones.
Ideo vera est Scriptura, que dicit, quod, sicut iusti sunt membra Dei, ita peccatores sunt membra dyaboli. Sic ego nunc experior, quod demones affixi sunt anime mee, quia voluntas cordis mei disposuit me ad tantam deformitatem.
Sed audi vlterius! Tibi videtur, quod pedes mei sunt quasi buffonis. Hoc ideo est, quia stabiliter steti in peccato; propterea nunc demones stabiliter stant in me, et mordentes me numquam saciantur.
Tibie vero et crura mea sunt quasi baculi spinosi, quia voluntatem meam habui secundum carnalem delectacionem et voluptatem meam.
Quod vero quodlibet spondile dorsi mei solutum est et quodlibet mouetur contra aliud, hoc ideo est, quod gaudium animi mei quandoque ascendebat nimis ex consolacione mundana, quandoque descendebat per nimiam tristiciam et iram ex aduersitate mundi.
Et ideo, sicut dorsum mouetur secundum motum capitis, sic ego deberem fuisse stabilis et mobilis secundum velle Dei, qui est caput omnium bonorum. Sed quia hoc non feci, ideo iuste pacior, que vides.
Quod vero serpens vnus traxerat se per inferiora stomachi ad superiora et stans quasi arcus circuit quasi rota, hoc ideo est, quia voluptas et delectacio mea inordinata fuit et voluntas mea volebat omnia possidere et multipliciter expendere et indiscrete.
Ideo nunc serpens circuit interiora mea, inconsolabiliter et immisericorditer me mordendo. Quod vero pectus meum apertum est et corrosum a vermibus, hoc veram Dei demonstrat iusticiam. Dilexi quippe putrida plus quam Deum, et ad transitoria erat amor cordis mei.
Et ideo, sicut de vermiculis procreantur longiores vermes, sic anima mea pro putridis, que dilexi, demonibus est impleta. Brachia quoque mea videntur quasi manubria.
Hoc ideo est, quia desiderium meum habuit quasi duo brachia, scilicet quia concupiui longam etatem, vt longe viuerem in peccato. Concupiui eciam et desiderabam, quod iudicium Dei micius esset, quam Scriptura loquitur.
Verumptamen consciencia mea bene dixit michi, quod tempus meum erat breue et iudicium Dei intollerabile, sed econtra desiderium meum peccandi suggessit michi vitam meam esse longam et iudicium Dei tollerabile.
Et ex talibus suggestionibus euertebatur consciencia mea, et sic voluntas et racio sequebantur voluptatem et delectacionem. Et ideo nunc dyabolus mouetur in anima mea contra voluntatem meam, et consciencia mea intelligit et sentit iudicium Dei esse iustum.
Manus vero mee sunt quasi claue prolixe et hoc ideo est, quia precepta Dei non fuerunt michi delectabilia. Et ideo manus mee sunt michi ad onus et non ad aliquem vsum.
Collum vero quod circumuoluitur sicut lignum, quod acuto ferro tornatur, hoc ideo est, quia verba Dei non fuerunt dulcia ad gluciendum in cordis mei caritate sed nimis amara, quia redarguebant cordis mei delectacionem et voluptatem.
Et ideo nunc ferrum acutum stat contra guttur meum. Labia autem mea ideo precisa sunt, quia prompta erant ad verba superbie et scurrilia, sed pigra fuerunt et accidiosa ad loquendum verba Dei.
Mentum vero apparet tremulum et dentes colliduntur, et hoc ideo est, quia perfecte fui voluntatis dare corpori meo cibum, vt viderer pulchra et desiderabilis et sana et fortis ad omnia corporis oblectamenta.
Et ideo contremiscit mentum sine consolacione et dentes colliduntur, quia dencium consumpcio et labor fuit inutilis secundum anime fructum.
Nares vero precise sunt, quia sicut vobiscum fieri solet illis, qui in tali casu delinquunt, ad maiorem pudorem, sic michi cauterium pudoris mei impositum est in sempiternum.
Quod vero oculi dependent duobus neruis ad genas, iustum est, vt, sicut oculi gaudebant de pulchritudine genarum propter ostentacionem superbie, sic nunc ex multo fletu eruti sunt et dependent ad genas cum pudore.
Iuste quoque frons immersa est et loco eius sunt immanes tenebre, quia frontem meam circumdedit velum superbie et volui gloriari et videri de pulchritudine; et ideo frons mea nunc est tenebrosa et deformis.
Quod vero cerebrum ebulit et defluit quasi plumbum et pix, dignum est, quia sicut plumbum molle et flectibile est ad voluntatem vtentis, sic consciencia mea, que in cerebro iacuit, flectebatur ad voluntatem cordis mei, quamuis facienda bene intelligerem.
Sed et passio filii Dei nequaquam figebatur in corde meo sed defluxit sicut illud, quod bene sciui et non curaui.
Insuper et de sanguine, qui de membris filii Dei fluxit, non plus attendebam quam de pice, et fugiebam sicut picem verba caritatis Dei, ne me a corporis oblectamentis auerterent et conturbarent.
Attamen quandoque audiui propter homines verba Dei, sed ea facilitate exibant de corde meo, qua intrabant, et ideo nunc cerebrum defluit quasi pix ardens cum ardentissima ebulicione.
Aures quoque mee obturate sunt cum lapidibus duris, quia verba superbie gaudenter intrabant eas et extendebant suauiter in cor, quia caritas Dei exclusa erat a corde meo.
Et quia propter superbiam et mundum omnia feci, quecumque potui, ideo nunc ab auribus meis exclusa sunt verba gaudiosa.
Sed potes querere, an feci aliqua opera meritoria. Respondeo tibi: Ego denique feci sicut campsor, qui precidens monetam reassignat eam domino. Sic ego ieiunabam et feci elemosinas aliaque opera, sed illa feci propter timorem inferni et propter aduersitates corporis fugiendas.
Verum quia caritas Dei precisa fuit in opere meo, ideo talia non valuerunt michi ad optinendum celum. Nec tamen fuerunt sine remuneracione.
Iterum poteris querere, qualis sum interius in voluntate, cum tanta deformitas est abextra. Respondeo:
Voluntas mea est sicut homicide et matricide, qui libenter occideret genitricem suam. Sic ego pessimum malum cupio Deo, creatori meo, qui michi optimus et dulcissimus fuit."
Item neptis mortua predicte auie mortue alloquitur viuentem matrem propriam dicens: "Audi scorpio, mater mea! Ve michi, quia male decepisti me! Ostendisti enim michi faciem letam, sed grauiter in cor pupugisti me.
Dedisti quippe michi tria consilia ex ore tuo, triaque didici ex operibus tuis, et tres vias demonstrasti michi in processu tuo. Primum consilium fuit diligere carnaliter propter amiciciam carnalem optinendam.
Secundum fuit expendere temporalia prodigaliter propter honorem mundi. Tercium fuit habere requiem propter corporis delectacionem. Ista enim fuerunt michi multum dispendiosa.
Nam quia dilexi carnaliter, ideo optinui pudorem et inuidiam spiritualem. Quia vero prodigaliter expendi temporalia, ideo priuata sum gracie donis Dei in vita et post mortem consecuta sum pudorem.
Quia vero delectabar in quiete carnis in vita, ideo in hora mortis inchoabatur inquietudo anime mee absque consolacione.
Tria quoque didici ex operibus tuis, scilicet facere aliqua bona opera nec tamen dimittere illud peccatum, quod delectabat me, sicut ille faciens, qui commiscens veneno mel optulit iudici, qui iratus effudit super offerentem; sic ego nunc experior in multa angustia et tribulacione.
Secundo didici mirabilem modum vestiendi me, scilicet operire oculos lintheo, sandalia habere in pedibus, cyrothecas in manibus et collum totum extra nudum.
Lintheum istud obumbrans oculos significat pulchritudinem corporis mei, que sic obumbrabat spirituales oculos meos, quod non attendebam pulchritudinem anime mee.
Sandalia vero, que muniunt pedes subtus sed non supra, significant fidem sanctam Ecclesie, quam fideliter tenui.
Sed nulla opera fructuosa sequebantur eam, quia sicut sandalia promouent pedes, sic consciencia mea stans in fide promouet animam, sed quia opera bona non sequebantur, ideo anima mea erat quasi nuda.
Cyrothece vero in manibus significant spem vanam, quam habui. Ego quippe opera mea, que significantur in manibus, extendi in tam condensam et largam misericordiam Dei, que notatur in cyrothecis, quod, quando palpaui iusticiam Dei, non sensi eam nec attendi; ideo nimis audax fui ad peccandum.
Cum autem appropinquaret mors, cecidit lintheum ab oculis meis super terram, idest super corpus meum, et tunc anima vidit et cognouit se, quod nuda erat, quia pauca opera mea fuerunt bona et peccata plurima.
Et pre pudore non potui stare in palacio regis eterni, quia pudorose vestita fui. Sed tunc demones traxerunt me in duram penam, vbi cum pudore deridebar.
Tercium, quod didici a te, mater, est vestire seruum vestibus domini et in sede domini positum honorare sicut dominum reliquiasque serui et omnia contemptibilia domino ministrare.
Dominus autem iste caritas Dei est, seruus vero voluntas est peccandi. Itaque in corde meo, vbi regnare debuit caritas diuina, ponebatur seruus, idest delectacio et voluptas peccati.
Quem tunc vestiui, quando omne creatum et temporale conuerti ad voluntatem meam; reliquias vero et perismata et abiecciora dedi Deo, non ex caritate sed ex timore.
Taliter igitur letabatur cor meum de successu et delectacione voluntatis mee, quia caritas Dei exclusa erat a me et bonus dominus exclusus seruusque malus inclusus. Ecce mater, hec tria didici de operibus tuis.
Tres eciam vias demonstrasti michi in incessu tuo. Prima fuit lucida. Quam cum ingressa fuissem, de splendore eius excecabar. Secunda fuit compendiosa et labilis quasi glacies. In qua cum processissem ad vnum vestigium, relabebar ad vnum passum.
Tercia fuit nimis longa. In qua cum procederem, venit post me torrens impetuosus et transtulit me subtus montem in profundam fossam.
In prima via notatur progressus superbie mee, que fuit luminosa nimium, quia ostentacio, que procedit de superbia, tantum resplenduit in oculis meis, quod non cogitaui finem eius; et ideo fui ceca.
In secunda via notatur inobediencia. Denique tempus inobediencie in hac vita non est longum, quia post mortem cogitur homo obedire.
Verumptamen michi fuit longum, quia quando processi per vnum vestigium, scilicet in humilitate confessionis, relabebar ad passum, quia volui, quod peccatum confessum dimitteretur, sed facta confessione nolui peccatum declinare.
Et ideo non steti stabilis in obediencie vestigio sed relabebar in peccata, sicut qui labitur in glacie, quia voluntas frigida fuit nolens ab hiis, que me delectabant, resipiscere.
Sic ergo, quando processi ad vnum vestigium confitendo peccata, relabebar ad passum, quia volui peccata et delectancia me confessa iterare.
Tercia via fuit, quod sperabam impossibilitatem, scilicet posse facere peccatum et non habere longam penam, posse eciam diu viuere et horam mortis non accelerare.
Et cum per hanc viam processissem, venit post me torrens impetuosus, scilicet mors, que ab vno anno in alium apprehendens me euertit pedes meos cum infirmitatis pena.
Quid autem erant pedes, nisi quod appropinquante infirmitate modicum potui attendere corporis vtilitatem et minus anime salutem?
Ideo cecidi in profundam fossam, quando cor, quod altum erat in superbia et durum in peccato, crepuit et anima profunde cecidit in foueam peccati pene.
Et ideo hec via nimis longa fuit, quia vita carnis finita pena longa cito inchoabatur. Ve michi ergo, mater mea, quia quecumque a te cum gaudio didici, hec modo luo cum ploratu."
Item loquitur eadem filia mortua ad sponsam, que hec videbat, dicens: "Audi tu, que vides me! Tibi videtur, quod caput meum et facies est quasi tonitruum fulminans intus et extra, collum vero et pectus quasi in duro prelo cum longis stimulis positum.
Brachia autem et pedes mei sunt quasi longi serpentes et venter percutitur cum duris malleis. Crura vero mea et tibie sunt quasi fluens aqua, de canalibus tecti pendens congelata. Sed adhuc vna pena interior amarior est michi omnibus istis.
Sicut enim si aliqua persona esset, cuius omnia spiracula vitalis spiritus obturata essent omnesque vene implete vento artarent se ad cor, quod pre violencia et valitudine venti crepare inciperet, sic ego intus disposita sum miserabiliter propter superbie ventum, qui michi carissimus fuit.
Attamen sum in via misericordie, quia in grauissima infirmitate mea confitebar melius, quo sciui, sed tamen ex timore; appropinquante autem morte venit michi in mente consideracio passionis Dei mei, scilicet quod illa multum grauior et amarior erat quam mea, que propter demerita mea digna sum pati.
Et ex tali consideracione optinui lacrimas ingemiscens, quod tanta caritas Dei erat ad me et mea tam modica ad ipsum. Respexi enim tunc eum oculis consciencie mee et dixi:
'O Domine, ego credo te Deum meum. Miserere mei, fili virginis, propter amaram passionem tuam! Amodo enim libenter ego emendarem vitam meam, si haberem tempus.'
Et in illo puncto accensa fuit scintilla quedam caritatis in corde meo, qua amarior videbatur michi passio Christo quam mors mea. Sicque tunc crepuit cor, et anima mea venit in manus demonum presentanda iudicio Dei.
Ideo autem venit in manus demonum, quia indignum fuit, quod angeli pulchritudinis appropinquarent anime tante deformitatis. In iudicio autem Dei cum demones clamarent animam meam iudicari ad infernum, respondit iudex:
'Video ego scintillam quandam caritatis in corde eius, que extingui non debet sed esse in conspectu meo. Et ideo iudico animam ad purgacionem, donec digne purgata veniam meruerit optinere.'
Iterum poteris querere, an particeps ero omnium bonorum, que pro me fiunt. Respondeo tibi per similitudinem.
Sicut enim si tu videres duas stateras pendere et in vna esset plumbum naturaliter deprimens et in alia aliquid leue tendens sursum, et quanto maiora et plura imponerentur statere vacue, tanto cicius eleuarent stateram aliam, que ponderosa et grauis est, sic est et mecum.
Quia quanto alcius fui in peccato, tanto grauius descendi in penam.
Et ideo, quidquid fit ad honorem Dei pro me, eleuat me de pena, et specialiter oracio et bonum, quod fit per homines iustos et amicos Dei, et beneficia, que fiunt de bonis bene acquisitis, et opera caritatis.
Talia itaque sunt, que me cottidie faciunt appropinquare Deo."
Post hec loquitur mater Dei ad sponsam: "Tu miraris, quomodo ego, que sum regina celi, et tu, que viuis in mundo, et illa anima, que est in purgatorio, et alia in inferno loquimur simul.
Hoc enim bene dicam tibi. Ego quippe numquam recedo de celis, quia numquam separabor a visione Dei. Nec anima, que est in inferno, separabitur a penis nec illa anima a purgatorio, antequam purgata sit, nec tu venies ad nos ante separacionem corporalis vite.
Sed anima tua cum intelligencia tua virtute Spiritus Dei eleuatur ad audiendum verba Dei in celis, et permittitur tibi scire aliquas penas in inferno et purgatorio, malis in cautelam et bonis in consolacionem et profectum.
Verumptamen scias, quod corpus tuum et anima tua coniuncta sunt in terris, sed Spiritus Sanctus dat intelligenciam tibi, qui est in celis, ad intelligendum eius voluntatem."
Hic loquitur de tribus mulieribus, quarum tercia intrauit monasterium, agens residuum vite sue in magna perfeccione.
Notes
- 1 ↩The Latin 'propinate' carries the sense of offering a drink to others; 'give this to many' captures the intent of the king's command.
- 2 ↩The phrase 'que didicisti a me' (which you learned from me) is syntactically ambiguous in the Latin; it likely refers to the 'honors of the world' or the 'pride' previously mentioned, implying that the speaker (Christ) has taught the recipient the vanity of these things, yet the recipient continues to desire them.
- 3 ↩The term 'prelo' (press) likely refers to a wine or oil press, a common metaphor for intense crushing or torment.
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