The eight and twenty chapitre. That a man schuld not presume to worche in this werk before the tyme that he be lawfuly clensid in consience of alle his specyal dedes of synne.
The Call to a Cleansed Conscience
The author answers that one must first cleanse their conscience according to Holy Church before engaging in this work, which dries up the root of sin and is the lifelong labor of the soul.
But if you ask me when they should work at this work, then I answer you, and I say: not before they have cleansed their conscience of all their particular deeds of sin done beforehand, according to the common ordinance of Holy Church.12 For in this work a soul dries up within itself all the root and ground of sin that will always remain in it after confession, however diligent that confession may be. And therefore anyone who wants to labor in this work should first cleanse his conscience; and then, when he has done all that he can lawfully do, let him set himself to it boldly but meekly. And let him think that he has been held back from it for a very long time; for this is the work in which a soul should labor all his lifetime, even if he had never sinned mortally.
The Cloud and the Creatures
The soul always experiences the cloud of unknowing and the intrusion of creatures between it and God, a righteous judgment for humanity's original disobedience.
And as long as a soul is living in this mortal flesh, it will always see and feel this burdensome cloud of unknowing between itself and God. And not only that, but in the pain of original sin it will always see and feel that some of all the creatures God ever made, or some of their works, will always press into the mind between it and God.3 And this is the righteous judgment of God: that man, when he had sovereignty and lordship over all other creatures, because he willfully made himself subject to the stirring of his subjects, leaving the command of God his Maker—just so afterward, when he would fulfill God's command, he sees and feels that all the creatures that should be beneath him proudly press above him, between him and his God.4
Read the original Middle English
But if thou aske me when thei schulen wirche in this werk, then I answere thee, and I sey that not er thei have clensid theire concience of alle theire special dedis of sinne done bifore, after the comoun ordinaunce of Holi Chirche.
For in this werk a soule drieth up in it al the rote and the grounde of sinne that wil alweis leve in it after confession, be it never so besy. And therfore whoso wil travayle in this werk, lat him first clense his concience; and sithen, when he hath done that in him is lawefuly, lat him dispose him booldly bot meekly therto. And lat him think that he hath ful longe ben holden therfro; for this is that werk in the whiche a soule schuld travaile alle his liiftyme, thof he had never sinnid deedly.
And the whiles that a soule is wonyng in this deedly flesche, it schal evermore se and fele this combros cloude of unknowyng bitwix him and God. And not only that, bot in pyne of the original sinne it schal evermore see and fele that somme of alle the creatures that ever God maad, or somme of theire werkes, wilen evermore prees in mynde bitwix him and God. And this is the rightwise dome of God, that man, when he had sovereynté and lordschip of alle other creatures, forthi that he wilfuly maad him underloute to the steryng of his sojettes, levyng the biddyng of God and his maker, that right so after whan he wolde fulfille the bidding of God, he see and fele that alle the creatures that schuld be bineeth him proudly prees aboven hym, bitwix him and his God.
Notes
- 1 ↩ME 'special dedis of sinne' means particular, identifiable acts of sin (as against the general root of sin left after confession); rendered 'particular deeds of sin'.
- 2 ↩ME 'after' here means 'according to / in keeping with,' not temporal sequence.
- 3 ↩ME 'in pyne of the original sinne' rendered as 'in the pain of original sin' (penalty/suffering consequent on original sin), not as a formal juridical phrase alone.
- 4 ↩ME 'dome' rendered as 'judgment' (doom/judgment); 'underloute' as 'subject'; 'steryng' as 'stirring' (impulse/prompting of subordinate creatures).
The Cloud of Unknowing 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