How our Lady, beholdyng the gretenes of hir Maker, thowte hirselfe leste; and of the great droppys of blode renning from under the garland; and how the most joy to man is that God most hie and mightie is holyest and curtesiest. Seventh chapter.

Mary's Humble Contemplation

Julian sees how Mary's reverent dread of God's greatness filled her with humility and grace, making her surpass all creatures.

And to teach us this, as I understand it, our Lord God showed our Lady Saint Mary at the same time — that is to say, the high wisdom and truth she had in contemplating her Maker, so great, so high, so mighty, and so good. This greatness and nobility of contemplating God filled her with reverent dread, and with this she saw herself as so little and lowly, so simple and poor, in comparison with her Lord God, that this reverent dread filled her with humility.¹ And so, on this foundation, she was filled with grace and with every kind of virtue, and she surpasses all creatures.

The Plentiful Bleeding of the Head

Julian describes the bodily vision of blood drops falling from the crown of thorns, comparing them to pellets, herring scales, and raindrops, and concludes with the paradoxical nature of the showing.

Throughout the time He showed me what I have just described, in spiritual vision I saw the bodily vision of the plentiful bleeding of the head continuing.² The great drops of blood fell down from under the garland like pellets, seeming as if they had come out of the veins; and as they came out they were brownish red, for the blood was very thick, and as they spread out they were bright red, and when they reached the brows, then they vanished; yet the bleeding continued until many things were seen and understood.^✦ The beauty and the vividness are like nothing but themselves.³ The abundance is like the drops of water that fall from the eaves after a great shower of rain, falling so thick that no one can count them with bodily senses; and for the roundness, they were like herring scales as they spread on the forehead. These three came to my mind at the time: pellets, for the roundness as the blood came out; herring scales, for the spreading on the forehead, for roundness; the drops from the eaves, for the innumerable abundance. This showing was vivid and alive, and hideous and dreadful, sweet and lovely.

The Greatest Joy: God's Intimate Courtesy

Julian explains that the greatest comfort is knowing that the awe-inspiring God is intimate and courteous, using the example of a king's familiarity with a poor servant.

And of all that I saw, what comforted me most was that our God and Lord, who is so awe-inspiring and to be feared, is so intimate and courteous—and this filled me most with delight and security of soul.⁴ And to help me understand this, He showed this open example. It is the greatest honor a solemn king or a great lord can do a poor servant, if he is willing to be intimate with him—and especially if he shows it himself, with a fully true intention and a glad face, both privately and publicly.⁵ Then this poor creature thinks: Ah, what more honor and joy could this noble Lord do me than to show me, who am so simple, this marvelous intimacy? Truly, it is more joy and delight to me than if he gave me great gifts and kept himself distant in manner. This bodily example was shown so high that a person's heart might be ravished and almost forget itself for joy of this great intimacy. So it is between our Lord Jesus and us: for truly, as I see it, the greatest joy there can be is that He who is highest and mightiest, noblest and most worthy, is lowest and meekest, most intimate and most courteous. And truly and surely this marvelous joy will be shown to us all when we see Him.

Faith, Grace, and the Showing

Julian teaches that the showing is received by grace and is nothing other than faith, which we must hold until the end, grounded in faith, hope, and love.

And this is what our Lord wants: that we desire and believe, rejoice and delight, and comfort and console ourselves as best we can with His grace and help, until we see it truly.⁶ For the greatest joy we will have, as I see it, is the marvelous courtesy and familiar intimacy of our Father, our Maker, in our Lord Jesus Christ, our brother and Savior.⁷ But no one can know this marvelous familiar intimacy in this life unless they have it from a special showing of our Lord, or from a great abundance of grace given inwardly by the Holy Spirit.⁸ But faith and belief with love deserve the reward; and so it is received by grace; for our life is grounded in faith with hope and love.^✦⁹ The showing, made to whomever God wills, plainly teaches the same thing—opened and declared with many hidden points of our faith that are worthy to be known with reverence.¹⁰ And when the showing, which is given for a time, has passed and been hidden, then faith keeps it by the grace of the Holy Spirit until the end of our life. And so, by the showing, it is nothing other than the faith, neither less nor more, as can be seen by our Lord's meaning in the same matter until it comes to the end.¹¹

Read the original Middle English

And to lerne us this, as to myne understondyng, our Lord God shewed our Lady Saint Mary in the same tyme, that is to mene the hey wisedome and trewth she had in beholding of hir Maker, so grete, so hey, so mightie, and so gode. This gretenes and this noblyth of the beholdyng of God fulfilled her of reverend drede, and with this she saw hirselfe so litil and so low, so simple and so pore, in reward of hir Lord God, that this reverent drede fulfillid hir of mekenes. And thus by this grounde she was fulfillid of grace and of al manner vertues and overpassyth all creatures. In all the tyme that He shewed this that I have seid now, in ghostly sight I saw the bodyly sight lesting of the plentious bledeing of the hede. The grete dropis of blode fel downe from under the garland like pellots semand as it had cum out of the veynis, and in the comeing out it were browne rede, for the blode was full thick, and in the spredeing abrode it were bright rede, and whan it come to the browes, than it vanyshid; notwithstondying the bleding continuid till many things were seene and understondyn. The fairehede and the livelyhede is like nothing but the same. The plenteoushede is like to the dropys of water that fallen of the evys after a greate showre of reyne that fall so thick that no man may numbre them with bodily witte; and for the roundhede, it were like to the scale of heryng in the spreadeing on the forehead. These three come to my mynde in the tyme: pellotts, for roundhede in the comynge out of the blode; the scale of heryng, in the spreadeing in the forehede, for roundhede; the dropys of evese, for the plentioushede inumerable.

This shewing was quick and lively and hidouse and dredfull, swete and lovely.

And of all the sight it was most comfort to me, that our God and Lord that is so reverent and dredefull is so homley and curtes, and this most fullfilled me with likeing and sekirnes of soule. And to the understondyng of this He shewid this opyn example. It is the most worshippe that a solemne King or a grete Lord may doe a pore servant if he will be homely with him, and namely if he shewith it himselfe, of a full trew meneing and with a glad cheere, both prive and partie. Than thinkyth this pore creature thus: A, what might this nobil Lord doe more worshipp and joy to me than to shew me that am so simple this mervelous homlyhede? Sothly it is more joy and likeing to me than he gave me grete gifts and were himselfe strange in maner. This bodily example was shewid so hey that manys hart might be ravishid and almost forgettyng himselfe for joy of this grete homlyhede. Thus it fareith be our Lord Jesus and be us, for sothly it is the most joy that may be, as to my sight, that He that is heyest and mightyest, noblest and worthyest, is lowest and mekest, homlyest and curteysest. And treuly and sothly this mervelous joy shall be shewne us all whan we se Him.

And this will our Lord, that we willen and trowen, joyen and liken, comfortyn us and solacyn us as we may with His grace and with His helpe into the tyme that we se it verily. For the most fulhede of joy that we shal have, as to my sight, is the mervelous curtesie and homlyhede of our Fader that is our maker in our Lord Jesus Criste that is our brother and our Saviour.

But this mervelous homlyhede may no man weten in this tyme of life, but he have it of special shewing of our Lord, or of grete plenty of grace inwardly govyn of the Holy Ghost. But faith and beleve with charite deservith the mede; and so it is had be grace; for in faith with hope and charete our life is groundyd. The shewyng, made to whome that God will, pleynly techith the same, openyd and declarid with many privy points longing to our faith which be worshipfull to knowen. And whan the shewyng, which is goven in a tyme, is passyd and hid, than the feith kepyth be grace of the Holy Ghost into our life end. And thus be the shewyng: It is not other than the faith ne less ne more as it may be seene be our Lords meneing in the same matter be than it come to the end.

Scripture echoes

↩Matt.27.29;Mark.15.17;John.19.2 — And they twisted together a crown of thorns and placed it on his head, and put a reed in his right hand. And kneeling before him, they mocked him, saying, 'Hail, King of the Jews!' Mark.15.17 — And they clothed him in purple, and after twisting together a crown of thorns, they placed it on him. John.19.2 — And the soldiers, having woven a crown of thorns, placed it on his head, and they clothed him in a purple robe.
↩1Cor.13.13 — And now faith, hope, and love remain, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Notes

1 ↩ME "in reward of" means comparative regard, not modern "as a reward".
2 ↩The Marian showing is spiritual, concurrent with the continuing bodily Passion vision of the bleeding head.
3 ↩The blood's fairness and liveliness admit no comparison except to themselves.
4 ↩Middle English homley/homlyhede means warm, familiar intimacy (God drawing near), not plain appearance; rendered here as intimate / intimacy throughout the section.
5 ↩prive and partie = in private and in public / openly; not party in the modern sense.
6 ↩Middle English 'homlyhede' / the antecedent 'it' points back to the marvelous joy of God's familiar nearness named in the previous section; 'willen and trowen, joyen and liken' are paired volitional and affective verbs kept as four distinct acts.
7 ↩'Homlyhede' rendered as 'familiar intimacy' (Julian's sense of God's approachable nearness); modern 'homeliness' would mislead. 'Curtesie' kept as 'courtesy' in the courtly-gracious sense of God's gracious kindness.
8 ↩ME homlyhede is Julian's distinctive term for God's familiar, approachable nearness (homely intimacy), not plainness or domesticity; continued from the prior section's pairing with curtesie.
9 ↩ME charite/charete here is the theological virtue in the faith–hope–charity triad; rendered as love for modern cadence, with the doctrinal sense retained.
10 ↩privy points: inward/secret particulars of the revelation; worshipfull: worthy of honor or reverence, not merely interesting.
11 ↩be the shewyng read as instrumental 'by the showing'; ne less ne more kept as 'neither less nor more'; be than rendered as 'until' (by the time that / until).

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