These Revelations were shewid three wises. And of two gostly sekenes, of which God will we amend us, remembring His passion, knowing also He is al love; for He will we have sekirnes and liking in love, not takyng onskilfull hevyness for our synnes past. Seventy-third chapter.
The Three Ways of Revelation
Julian describes the three modes of divine revelation she received: bodily sight, words formed in understanding, and spiritual sight, noting that the spiritual sight cannot be fully told.
All the blessed teaching of our Lord God was shown in three parts, that is to say, by bodily sight, by word formed in my understanding, and by spiritual sight. As for the bodily sight, I've told it as I saw it, as truly as I can. And as for the words, I've said them exactly as our Lord showed them to me. And as for the spiritual sight, I've said something of it, but I can never tell it fully, and so concerning this sight I'm stirred to say more, as God will give me grace.
The Two Spiritual Sicknesses
God shows two kinds of sickness that trouble those who love Him: impatience or sloth, and despair or doubtful dread, and He wills that we be amended from these.
God showed two kinds of sickness that we have. The first is impatience or sloth, because we bear our troubles and our pains heavily.1 The other is despair or doubtful dread, as I'll say later.2 In general, He showed sin, in which everything is included. But in particular He showed only these two. And these two are the ones that most trouble and toss us, according to what our Lord showed me—and of these He wants us to be amended. I'm speaking of such men and women who, for love of God, hate sin and set themselves to do God's will. Then, through our spiritual blindness and bodily heaviness, we're most inclined to these.3
The Remedy of Christ's Passion and the Call to Love
As a remedy, God shows Christ's patience in His Passion and His delight in it, teaching us to bear our pains gladly and to fix our gaze and joy in love.
And so it's God's will that they be known, and then we'll refuse them as we do other sins. And as full help for this, our Lord showed most meekly: the patience He had in His hard Passion, and also the rejoicing and the delight He has in that Passion for love.4 And He showed this as an example, that we should gladly and wisely bear our pains, for that is a great pleasure to Him and endless profit to us. And the reason we are troubled by them is unknowing of love.5 Though the three Persons in the Trinity are all equal in themselves, the soul took most understanding in love.6 Yes, and He wills in all things that we have our gaze and our joy in love.
Overcoming Blindness to Love and Dread
Julian explains that our blindness to God's all-loving nature leads to unskillful heaviness and doubtful dread, but God wills us to have assurance in love and to forgive our own sin as He forgives us.
And we are extremely blind about this knowing. For some of us believe that God is almighty and can do everything, and that He is all wisdom and can do everything; but that He is all love and will do everything — there we stop short.7 And this unknowing is what most hinders those who love God, as I see it. For when we begin to hate sin and amend ourselves by the ordinance of Holy Church, yet there still remains a dread that hinders us, because we look at ourselves and at our past sins, and for some of us because of our everyday sins. For we neither keep our covenants nor maintain the purity our Lord places us in, but often fall into such wretchedness that it's shameful to see. And looking at this makes us so sorry and so heavy-hearted that we can hardly find any comfort. And we sometimes mistake this dread for humility, but it is a terrible blindness and a weakness. And we cannot reject it the way we reject another sin that we recognize, for it comes from enmity, and it is against the truth.8 For among all the properties of the blissful Trinity, it is God's will that we have the most assurance and delight in love. For love makes might and wisdom fully meek toward us. For just as, by the courtesy of God, He forgives our sin when we repent, just so He wills that we forgive our sin regarding our unskillful heaviness and our doubtful fears.9
Read the original Middle English
All the blissid teching of our Lord God was shewid be three partes, that is to sey, by bodily syte and by word formyd in myn understondyng, and be gostly sight. For the bodily sygte, I have seid as I saw as trewly as I can. And for the words, I have seid them rith as our Lord shewid hem to me. And for the gostly syght, I have seyd sumdele, but I may never full tellen it, and therefore of this syght I am sterrid to sey more, as God will give me grace.
God shewid two manner of sekenes that we have. That on is onpatience or slaith, for we bere our trevell and our peynes hevily. That other is dispeir or doubtfull drede, as I shall seyen after. Generally, He shewid synne, wherin that all is comprehendid. But in special He shewid not but thes two. And these two arn thei that most travelin and tempesten us, as be that our Lord shewid me, of which He will we be amendid. I speake of swich men and women that for God love haten synne and disposen hem to do Gods will. Than be our gostly blind hede and bodily hevynes, we arn most enclinand to these.
And therfore it is Gods will thei be knowen, and than shall we refusen hem as we don other synnes. And full helpe of this ful mekely our Lord shewid: the patience that He had in His herd passion and also the joyeing and the likyng that He hath of that passion for love. And this He shewid in example that we shuld gladly and wisely baren our peynes for that is gret plesing to Him and endless profitt to us. And the cause why we arn trevellid with them is for onknoweing of love. Thow the three persons in the Trinite ben all even in the selfe, the soule toke most understonding in love. Ya, and He will in all thing that we have our beholding and our enjoyeyng in love.
And of this knoweyng arn we most blynd. For som of us leven that God is almyty, and may don all, and that He is al wisdam, and can don all; but that He is all love, and will don all, there we astynten. And this unknowing - it is that that lettith most Gods lovers, as to my syte. For whan we begynnen to haten synne, and amenden us be the ordinance of Holy Church, yet ther dwellith a drede that lettith us, for the beholding of our selfe, and of our synnes aforn don, and sum of us for our everydayly synnes. For we hold nor our covenants ne kepe not our cleness that our Lord settith us in, but fallen oftimes in so much wretchidness that shame it is to seen it. And the beholding of this makyth us so sorry and so hevy that onethis we can finde ony comfort. And this drede we taken sumtime for a mekness, but this is a foule blyndhed and a waykenes. And we cannot dispisen it as we don another synne that we knowen, for it commyth of enmite, and it is agens truth.
For of all the propertes of the blisfull Trinite, it is God will that we have most sekirnes and likeing in love. For love makith myte and wisdam full meke to us. For ryte as be the curtesye of God He forgivith our synne atte the tyme that we repenten us, ryte so will He that we forgiven our synne as anempts our unskilfull hevyness and our doutfull dreds.
Notes
- 1 ↩ME 'slaith' rendered as 'sloth' (spiritual sluggishness); 'onpatience' as 'impatience'.
- 2 ↩Kept Julian's paired term 'doubtful dread' rather than flattening to generic anxiety; it names fearful, mistrusting dread of God's mercy.
- 3 ↩ME 'Than be' taken as 'Then by/through'; 'gostly blind hede' as the compound 'spiritual blindness'.
- 4 ↩ME 'herd passion' read as 'hard Passion' (severe/painful Passion), the standard sense in this chapter's Passion context.
- 5 ↩Kept Julian's key phrase 'unknowing of love' (ME 'onknoweing of love') rather than flattening to mere 'ignorance of love,' since the next sentences treat love as the soul's primary understanding of God.
- 6 ↩ME 'Thow' rendered as concessive 'Though,' not the pronoun 'thou'.
- 7 ↩Julian's triad (almighty / all wisdom / all love) tracks the Trinity's might, wisdom, and love; 'will do all' means love's willing to accomplish all, not bare power.
- 8 ↩Middle English 'enmite' may mean enmity in general or specifically the Enemy; rendered as enmity, preserving opposition to truth.
- 9 ↩enm 'anempts' rendered as 'as regards': God wills that we release the hold of unskillful heaviness and doubtful fear over already-forgiven sin, paralleling His own courteous forgiveness.
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