The thritty chapitre. Who schuld blame and reprove other mens defautes.
Whose Right It Is to Judge
The chapter asks who may rightly judge others' faults, answers with those having spiritual authority, warns against acting without the Holy Spirit's stirring, and advises self-judgment only.
But I ask you: who should judge people's deeds? Surely those who have the authority and care of their souls—whether given openly by the laws and ordinances of Holy Church, or privately in spirit through the special stirring of the Holy Spirit in perfect charity.1 Everyone should be careful about presuming to blame and reprove other people's faults, unless they truly feel stirred by the Holy Spirit within them to do so; otherwise, they may very easily err in their judgments.2 Therefore, be careful: judge yourself as you please, between yourself and your God or your spiritual father, and leave other people alone.
Read the original Middle English
Bot, I preye thee, of whom schal mens dedis be demyd? Sekirly of hem that han power and cure of theire soules, other geven in aperte by the statute and the ordinaunce of Holy Chirche, or elles prively in spirite at the specyal steryng of the Holy Goost in parfite charité. Iche a man beware that he presume not to take apon hym to blame and reprove other mens defautes, bot yif he fele verrely that he be sterid of the Holy Goost withinne in his werke; for elles may he ful lightly erre in his domes. And therfore beware; deme thiself as thee list, bitwix thee and thi God or thi goostly fader, and lat other men allone.
Notes
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