Of the sharpnes of synne and the godenes of contrition, and how our kynd Lord will not we dispair for often fallyng. Thirty-ninth chapter.
The Scourge and the Remedy
Sin is the sharpest scourge, but the Holy Spirit brings contrition, leading to confession and penance, and through humility God's keeping raises the soul to contrition, compassion, and longing for God, which are the three means by which all sinners come to Heaven.
Sin is the sharpest whip that can strike any chosen soul—a whip that thoroughly beats a person down and hurts them in their own eyes, so much so that sometimes they think they deserve nothing but to sink into Hell—until contrition takes hold of them through the touch of the Holy Spirit and turns the bitterness into hope in God's mercy; and then their wounds begin to heal, and the soul comes alive again, restored to the life of Holy Church.1 The Holy Spirit leads him to confession, to show his sins willingly, openly, and honestly, with great sorrow and great shame that he has defiled the beautiful image of God.✦ Then he undertakes penance for every sin, as prescribed by his confessor—penance grounded in Holy Church through the teaching of the Holy Spirit.2 And this is one kind of humility that greatly pleases God; also bodily sickness sent by God, and also sorrow and shame from outside, and reproach and contempt from this world, with every kind of affliction and temptation that will be thrown at us, bodily and spiritual.3 Our Lord keeps us with most precious care when it seems to us that we are nearly forsaken and cast away for our sin, and because we have deserved it.4 And because of the humility we gain by this, we are raised very high in God's sight by His grace, with such great contrition, and also with compassion and true longing for God. Then they are suddenly delivered from sin and from pain and taken up to bliss, and made saints of equal glory.5 By contrition we are made clean; by compassion we are made ready; and by true longing for God we are made worthy. As I understand it, these are the three ways all souls reach Heaven—that is, everyone who has been a sinner on earth and will be saved.
Wounds Become Honors
By these medicines every soul is healed, so that wounds are seen as honors before God, and earthly punishment and sorrow are rewarded with high, glorious honor in Heaven.
For by these medicines, every soul must be healed. Though he is healed, his wounds are seen before God not as wounds but as honors.6 And so, conversely, as we are punished here with sorrow and penance, we will be rewarded in Heaven by the courteous love of our Lord God Almighty, who wills that no one who comes there lose their labor in any degree.7 For He regards sin as sorrow and pain to His lovers, in whom He places no blame out of love. The reward we will receive will not be small; it will be high, glorious, and full of honor — and so shame will be turned into honor and still greater joy.8
Our Lord's Unfailing Love
Our kind Lord does not want us to despair over falling often, for our falling does not hinder His love; peace and love are always in us, and He is the ground of our life and our everlasting keeper.
For our courteous Lord doesn't want His servants to despair over falling often, or over falling grievously. For our falling doesn't keep Him from loving us. Peace and love are always in us, present and at work. But we aren't always in peace and in love. But He wants us to take this to heart: that He is the ground of our whole life in love; and furthermore that He is our everlasting keeper and mightily defends us against our enemies, who are utterly cruel and fierce upon us — and our need is all the greater, for by our falling we give Him occasion.9
Read the original Middle English
Synne is the sharpest scorge that any chousyn soule may be smyten with, which scorge al forbetyth man and woman and noyith him in his owne syte, so ferforth that otherwhile he thynkyth hymself he is not worthy but as to synken in Helle, til whan contrition takyth hym be touchyng of the Holy Gost and turnyth the bitternes in hopes of Gods mercy; and than he begynnyth his woundis to helyn, and the soule to quickyn tunyd into the life of Holy Chirch. The Holy Gost ledyth hym to confession wilfully to shewyn his synnes nakidly and truely, with grete sorow and grete shame that he hath defoulyd the fair ymage of God. Than undertakyth he penance for every synne, enjoynid by his domysman; that is groundid in Holy Church be the teaching of the Holy Ghost. And this is on mekenes that mekyl plesyt God; and also bodely sekenes of Gods sendyng, and also sorow and shame from withoute, and reprove and dispyte of this world, with al manner grevance and temptations that wil be cast in, bodily and gostly. Ful pretiously our Lord kepyth us whan it semyth to us that we arn nere forsakyn and cast away for our synne and because we have deservyd it. And because of mekenes that we gettyn hereby we arn reysyd wol hey in Godds syte be His grace, with so grete contrition, also with compassion and trew longyng to God. Than thei be sodenly delyveryd of synne and of peyne and taken up to bliss, and made even hey seynts. Be contrition we arn made clene; be compassion we arn made redy; and be trew longyng to God we arn made worthy.
Thes arn three menys, as I understond, wherby that al soulis come to Hevyn, that is to seyn, that have ben synners in erth and shal be save.
For be these medycines behovyth that every soule be helyd. Thow he be helyd, his wounds arn seen aforn God, not as wounds, but as worships. And so on the contraryewise, as we ben ponishid here with sorow and with penance, we shal be rewardid in Hevyn be the curtes love of our Lord God Almyty that wil that non that come there lose his travel in no degre. For He holdyth synne as sorow and peyne to His lovers, in whome He assigneth no blame for love.
The mede that we shal underfongyn shal not be litil, but it shal be hey, glorious, and worshipfull; and so shal shame be turnyd to worship and more joye. For our curtes Lord wil not that His servants dispeir for often ne for grevous fallyng. For our fallyng lettyth not Hym to love us. Peas and love arn ever in us beand and werkand. But we be not alway in pese and in love. But He wil that we takin hede thus: that He is ground of al our hole life in love, and furthermore that He is our everlestyng keper and mytyly defendith us ageyn our enemys that ben ful fel and fers upon us; and so mech our nede is, the more - for we gyven Hym occasion be our fallyng.
Scripture echoes
- ↩Gen.1.26-Gen.1.27 — Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." Gen.1.27 — So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
Notes
- 1 ↩ME 'forbetyth' = thoroughly beats down/thrashes; 'noyith' = harms/injures; 'tunyd into' = turned into.
- 2 ↩ME 'domysman' (doom's-man) = judge who assigns the penitential sentence; rendered here as 'confessor'.
- 3 ↩ME 'on mekenes' read as 'one meekness/humility' (on = one), listing forms of humbling that please God.
- 4 ↩ME 'Ful pretiously' = most preciousely/tenderly; rendered as 'with most precious care' to keep Julian's valuing sense in natural modern English.
- 5 ↩ME 'even hey seynts' = equally high saints (even = equally).
- 6 ↩ME 'worships' means honors or marks of dignity/glory, not liturgical worship; rendered 'honors'.
- 7 ↩ME 'travel' = travail/labor (the effort undergone), not journeying; rendered 'labor'. ME double negative 'lose...in no degre' modernized as 'lose...in any degree'.
- 8 ↩ME 'mede' = reward/recompense; 'worship'/'worshipfull' here mean honor/honorable standing, not liturgical worship.
- 9 ↩ME 'ground' kept as Julian's foundation-term for God as the basis of the soul's life in love. 'Gyven Hym occasion be our fallyng' left as 'give Him occasion by our falling': most naturally, our falls increase the occasion/need for His defending care (rather than occasion given to the enemies).
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