What thinges men owen to trowe bi siker trouthe.
Steadfast Faith in the Church
The believer is called to maintain a firm, unwavering faith in the teachings and sacraments of the Church, even when internal stirrings suggest doubt.
The second thing you need is a sure faith in the articles of the faith and the sacraments of Holy Church, believing them steadfastly with all the will of your heart. And even if you feel any stirring in your heart against any of them through the enemy's suggestion, meant to cast you into doubt and dread of them, stay steadfast and don't be too afraid of such stirrings or of feeling them; instead, renounce your own understanding without arguing over them or probing them, set your faith generally in the faith of Holy Church, and pay no mind to the stirring of your heart that, as it seems to you, runs contrary to it.1 For that stirring you feel is not your faith; the faith of Holy Church is your faith, even though you neither see it nor feel it. And then bear such stirrings patiently as a scourge from our Lord, by which He will cleanse your heart and make your faith steadfast. You also need to love and honor in your heart the laws and ordinances made by the prelates and rulers of Holy Church, whether in declaring the faith, or concerning the sacraments, or in the general governance of all Christian people.
Humility and Obedience to Church Order
One must submit humbly to the ordinances and governance of the Church, avoiding private notions or fancies that contradict established teaching.
Humbly and sincerely accept them, even if you don't understand the reason for their rules. Even if some of them seem ill-advised to you, don't judge or criticize them; instead, receive and honor them all, even those that affect you very little. And don't adopt any opinion, whim, or private notion under the guise of greater holiness—as some unwise people do—whether it comes from your own imagination or someone else's knowledge, if it contradicts even the smallest rule of the general teaching of the whole Holy Church.
The Anchor of Hope
Believers should maintain a steadfast hope in their salvation, grounded in repentance and submission to the Church, while rejecting the despair caused by temptation.
Beyond this, you should hope steadfastly that you are ordained by our Lord to be saved as one of His chosen, by His mercy, and not waver from this hope, no matter what you hear or see, or what temptation you face. Even if you think you're such a wretch that you deserve to sink into hell because you do no good and don't serve God as you should, still hold to this hope, ask for mercy, and all will be well. Yes, even if all the devils of hell appeared in bodily form—whether you were sleeping or waking—and told you that you wouldn't be saved, or if all the people on earth or all the angels in heaven said the same, you shouldn't believe them, nor be shaken from this truth and hope of salvation.2 I say this because some people are so weak and simple that when they've given themselves entirely to serve God as best they can, if they feel any stirring from the enemy's suggestions, or hear from outside through the words of the devil's prophets—what people call soothsayers—that they won't be saved, or that their way of life isn't pleasing to God, they're stunned and shaken. Because of their ignorance, they sometimes fall into great heaviness of heart, and practically into despair of salvation.3 Therefore, it seems to me both good and necessary for anyone who, by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, is fully willing to forsake sin, and who—as clearly as his conscience tells him—lets no deadly sin remain in him without soon confessing it, and humbles himself to the sacraments of Holy Church, to have a trust and hope of salvation.4 And much more, then, for those who give themselves wholly to God and flee venial sins as far as they can. Conversely, it's just as perilous for someone who knowingly remains in a deadly sin to trust in salvation, and who, relying on that hope, refuses to forsake his sin or truly humble himself before God and Holy Church.
Read the original Latin
Secunde thynge which thee bihoveth for to have is a siker trouth in articlis of the feith and the sacramentes of Holi Chirche, trowand hem stidefastli with al the wille of thyn herte. And though thu feele ony stirynge in thyn herte agens ony of hem bi suggestion of the enemye, for to putte thee in doute and in dweer of hem, be thu stidefast and not to mykil have drede of sich stirynges ne of the feelynge of hem, but forsake thyn owen witte withoute disputynge or ransakynge of hem, and sette thi feith generali in the feith of Hooli Chirche, and charge not the styrynge of thyn herte whiche, as thee thenkith, is contrarie therto. For that stirynge that thu felist is not thi feith, but the feith of Holi Chirche is thi feith, though thou neither see it ne fele it. And bere thanne sich stirynges pacienteli as a scourge of oure Lord, bi the which He wole clense thyn herte and make thi feith stidefast. Also thee bihoveth love and worschipe in thyn herte the lawes and the ordenaunces maad bi prelates and rulers of Hooli Chirche, either in declarynge of the feith, or in the sacramentis, or in general governance of alle Cristen men.
Mekeli and truli assente to hem, though it be so that thou knowe not the cause of here ordenaunce; and though thee thenketh that summe were unskileful, thu schalt not deme hem, ne reprove hem, but receyve and worschipe hem alle, though thei longen but litil to thee; ne thou schalt not resseyve noon opynioun, ne fantasie, ne singuler conceyt undir colour of more holynesse, as summe doon that aren not wise, neither bi thyn owen ymaginacion ne bi kunnynge of noon othir man, whiche is contrarie to the leeste ordenaunce of general techynge of al Hooli Chirche.
And over this, thou schalt hopen stidefastli that thou art ordaynyd of oure Lord to be saaf as oon of His chosene, bi His merci, and stire not fro this hope, whatso thou herist or seest, what temptacion thou be inne. And though thou thenke thee so greet a wrecche that thou were worthi to synke to helle for that thu doost no good, ne servest God as thu schuldist doo, yit holde thee in this hope, and aske merci, and al schal be right weel. Yhe, and though alle the develis of helle appereden in bodili likenesse, slepynge or wakynge, seiden to thee that thou schulde not be saaf, or alle men lyvyng in erthe or alle the angelis in hevene, yif it myght be seid to thee the same, thou schulde not leve hem, ne bee myche stirid fro this truthe and hope of salvacioun. This y seie to thee, for summe aren so weyke and so symple, that whanne thei have gyven hem al hooli to serve God up here kunnynge, yif thei feelen ony styrynge withinne bi incastynge of the enemye, or fro withouten of ony word of the develis prophetis, whiche men callen soothseieris, that thei schulde not bee saaf, or here astaat or maner of lyvynge were not plesant to God, thei ben astonyed and stired with sich wordis, and so for unkunnynge thei fallen sum tyme into grete hevynesse, and as it were into dyspeir of savacioun. Wherfore as me thenketh it is spedeful to everi creature whiche bi grace of oure Lord Jhesu Crist is in ful wille to forsake synne, and as clerli as his conscience telleth hym he suffreth no deedli synne reste in hym that he ne schryveth hym sone therof, and meketh hym to the sacramentis of Holi Chirche, for to have a trust and hope of savacion. And mykil more thanne they that gyven hem hooli to God, and flen venyal synnes up here myght. And on the contrarie wise, as perilous it is to hym whiche lieth wityngeli in a deedli synne for to hafe truste of savacion, and in hope of that trust wole not forsake his synne, ne lowe him trewli to God and to Hooli Chirche.
Notes
- 1 ↩ME dweer is taken as dread (parallel with doute); charge not rendered as pay no mind / do not heed.
- 2 ↩leve = believe (not leave).
- 3 ↩incastynge of the enemye: interior suggestions cast in by the devil; soothseieris = soothsayers.
- 4 ↩schryveth hym = confesses; meketh hym to the sacramentis = humbly submits himself to the Church's sacraments.
Scala Perfectionis (The Scale of Perfection) companion
A daily portion of stillness
Chosen Portion delivers one short contemplative reading and a guided moment of silence each day — the ascent, one step at a time.
Chosen Portion is the paced doorway into this collection: it portions the dense mystical treatises into one daily reading plus guided silence, exactly as the 14-day plan teaches.
- Daily bite-sized excerpts from the contemplative classics, never a wall of text
- A built-in timed stillness practice that grows from 2 minutes to 10
- Gentle progression through the tradition — the app remembers where you are on the ascent