Hou the ymage of synne schal be broken doun.
Confronting the Image of Sin
The seeker is encouraged to honestly acknowledge their inner corruption and cry out to Jesus for the strength to break the burden of their sinful self-image.
So begin, and break this image. When you have inwardly considered yourself and your wretchedness as I have said—how proud, how vain, how envious, how malicious, how greedy, how fleshly, and how full of corruption you are; also how little knowledge, feeling, or savor you have in God; how shrewd, how sharp, and how much savor you have in earthly things; and in short, that you seem to yourself as full of sin as a hide is full of flesh—don't be too afraid if you think of yourself this way.1 And when you have done this, lift up your desire and your heart to your Lord Jesus Christ, and ask Him for help. Cry to Him with deep longing and sighs, that He would help you break the burden of this vain image—or else that He Himself would break it.2 Think also what a shame it is for you to be fed on the swine's food of fleshly pleasures, when you ought to taste a spiritual savor of heavenly joy. If you do this, you'll begin to rise against the very foundation of sin in you; and it may well be that you'll feel pain and sorrow, for you must understand that no soul can live without great pain unless it has rest and delight in its Creator or in His creatures.3
The Pain of Detachment
The soul must endure the temporary pain of detachment from worldly comforts, trusting that Christ will eventually reform the heart into His own likeness.
Then when you rise against yourself with a fervent desire to feel something of your Lord Jesus, and to draw your love away from every bodily thing—so much so that you're burdened with yourself, and it seems to you that all creatures rise against you, and everything you once delighted in turns to pain for you—and when you forsake yourself this way and can find no comfort in God: your soul must necessarily suffer pain. Nevertheless, I hope that anyone who would suffer this pain for a while, steadfastly clinging to that desire to have nothing but his Lord Jesus, and not lightly fall away from it or seek any outward comfort for a time—for it doesn't last long—our Lord is near and will soon ease your heart. He will help you bear your body, which is full of corruption, and He will break down this image of self-love within you—not all at once, but little by little, until you are somewhat reformed to His likeness.4
Read the original Latin
Bigyn thanne on, and breke this image. Whanne thou hast inwardli bithought thee of thisilf and of thi wrecchidnesse as I have seid - how proud, hou veyn, how envious, how malicious, how covetous, and how fleischli and how ful of corrupcioun; also of how litil knowynge, felynge, or savour thou hast in God; how wise, how quyk, and how moche savour thou hast in ertheli thynges; and schorteli that thee thenketh thee as ful of synne as the hide is ful of fleisch - be thou not adreed to moche, yif thee thenketh so of thisilf. And whanne thou hast don thus, lift up thi desire and thyn herte to thi Lord Jhesu Crist, and prey Hym of helpe. Crie to Him bi greet desire and sighynges, that He wole helpe thee to breke the charge of this veyn image, or elles that He wole breke it. Thenke also that sich a schame it is to thee to be feed with swynes mete of fleischli savouris, that schuldest feele a goostli savour of heveneli joie. Yif thou doo thus, thanne bigynnest thou for to arise agen the hool ground of synne in thee; and it mai so be that thou schal feele peyne and sorwe, for thou schalt undirstonde that there mai no soule lyve withoute greet peyne, but he have reste and delite in his creatour or in his creaturis.
Thanne whanne thou arisest agens thisilf bi a fervent disire to feele of thi Lord Jhesu, and for to drawe thi love from al bodili thinge, in so moche that thou art encombred of thisilf and thee thenketh that alle cratures risen agen thee and alle thynge whiche thou hadde delite in bifore turneth thee to peyne; and whanne thou forsakest thus thisilf and thou mai fynde no confort in God: nedelynges thi soule schal suffre peyne. Nevertheles, I hope whoso wolde suffre this peyne awhile, stidefastli clevynge upon that desire that he wolde have not but his Lord Jhesu, and falle not lightli therfro ne seeke no confort outward for a tyme, for it lasteth not longe, oure Lord is neer and soone schal eese thyn herte. For He wole helpe thee to bere thi bodi ful of corrupcioun, and He wole breke doun this image of love in thisilf; not al at oonys but litil and litil, til thou be sumdel reformed to His liknesse.
Notes
- 1 ↩ME 'savour' kept as 'savor' for spiritual/interior relish or taste, not mere flavor; 'wise' and 'quyk' of earthly things rendered as 'shrewd' and 'sharp' to mark worldly cleverness against the little knowledge of God.
- 2 ↩ME 'charge' rendered as 'burden' (load/weight of the vain image), not legal charge or commission.
- 3 ↩ME 'but he have' is exceptive ('unless he have'), not adversative 'but'; rendered as 'unless it has'.
- 4 ↩Source "this image of love in thisilf" is rendered as self-love (love directed toward yourself), consistent with the chapter's image-of-sin theme; not generic charity.
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