That a man schulde be bisi for to putte awai alle stirynges of synne but more bisili
Prioritizing the Spiritual Life
The author distinguishes between the relative gravity of spiritual and fleshly sins, urging the reader to weigh them correctly.
spiritual sins than bodily ones.1 I won't excuse those who fall into the pleasures of gluttony and lechery as if they weren't sinning; for I know well that every kind of these is a sin, whether greater or lesser, depending on the measure of the lust and willful pleasure, along with the other circumstances. But I want you to know and weigh each sin for what it truly is: the greater ones, which are all spiritual sins, and the lesser ones, which are all fleshly sins.2
Purifying the Senses for God
The soul must mortify immoderate fleshly desires to experience the spiritual savor of Christ, while still attending to natural bodily needs with moderation.
Yet you must still hate and flee every bodily and spiritual sin with all your strength. You should know that fleshly desires and immoderate pleasures in food or drink—or any bodily pleasures beyond reasonable need—are, even if they aren't always great sins for those who are in charity, still very heavy and bitter to a soul that longs for purity and the spiritual sense of God, and they are much to be avoided.3 For the spirit cannot feel its proper savor within of the spiritual presence of Jesus Christ until the flesh has lost much of its beastly savor without; and therefore, if you want to come to purity of heart, you must withstand the immoderate stirrings of fleshly desires. As for the root of it—the need itself, such as natural hunger, which you must necessarily feel—attend to it in due time. Help yourself against it with the medicine of food, just as you would reasonably treat a bodily sickness, so that you may eat and serve your God more freely in body and spirit.4
Read the original Latin
goostli synnes than bodili.
I ne wole not excuse hem that fallen in likynges of glotonye and leccherie, that thei synnen not; for I woot wel that alle the spices of hem aren synne more or lasse, aftir the mesure of the lust and wilful likynges, with othere circumstaunces of hem. But I wolde that thou knewe and chargid eche a synne as it is: more or lasse the more, as aren alle goostli synnes, the lasse as aren alle fleischli synnes. Yit schal thou neverthelees hate and flee alle bodili and goostli synnes up thi myght; for wite thou wel, that fleischli desires and unskilfulle likynges in mete or drinke, or ony likynges that longen to the bodi passynge resonable nede, though thei be not ay grete synnes to hem that aren in charité, neverthelees to a soule that desireth clennesse and goostli felynge of God, thei aren ful hevy and bittir, and moche for to eschewe. For the spirit mai not fele hys kyndeli savour withinne of the gostli presence of Jhesu Crist til the fleisch have lost moche of his bestli savoure withoute; and therfore yif thou wole come to clennesse in herte, thee byhoveth agenstonde unskilful stirynges of fleiscli desires. But agen the ground of it that is nede, as kyndeli honger whiche thou schal nedelynges fele and tente thertoo in tyme, and helpe thisilf agens it bi medicyn of mete as thou woldest helpe thisilf resonabli agens bodili sikenesse, that thou myght ete and the more freli serve thi God bodili and goostli.
Notes
- 1 ↩The printed section is only the trailing comparative clause of the chapter head (with ‘more busily…’ understood from the title); the sense is ‘more diligently against spiritual sins than against bodily ones.’
- 2 ↩Hilton ranks spiritual sins as heavier than fleshly ones; 'chargid' means weigh, regard, or take seriously according to true gravity.
- 3 ↩'Unskilfulle likynges' means pleasures without measure or discretion—immoderate, not merely 'unskilled'.
- 4 ↩'Agen the ground of it' is rendered as 'as for the root of it,' taking 'agen' as introducing the base case (natural need) over against the immoderate fleshly stirrings just condemned.
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