The seven and fourty chapitre. A sleygh teching of this werk in purté of spirite; declaryng how that on o maner a soule schuld schewe his desire unto God, and on the contrary unto man.
A Childlike Manner of Speaking
The author explains why he speaks childishly and without natural discretion to his spiritual friends.
Don't wonder why I speak so childishly, and as if foolishly and without natural discretion; for I do it for certain reasons, and it seems to me that for many a day I've been stirred both to feel this way and to think this way and to say this way, as much to some of my other special friends in God as I am now to you.1
The Paradox of Hiding Desire from God
The author gives two reasons for telling the reader to hide the heart's desire from God: that hiding brings it more clearly to God's knowing, and that it leads to spiritual union in burning love.
And here is one reason why I tell you to hide the desire of your heart from God. I hope that by hiding it this way, it will become clearer to His knowledge—for your own good and the fulfillment of your desire—than it would through any other method of showing it that I believe you could manage.2 And here is another reason: I want, through this hidden way of showing, to bring you out of the coarseness of bodily feeling into the purity and depth of spiritual feeling, and so, by going further, finally help you knit the spiritual knot of burning love between you and your God, in spiritual oneness and harmony of will.3
Spiritual Purity and Nearness to God
The author argues that God, being a spirit, is more clearly known in the depth of spirit than through any bodily mixture, and that straining in body and spirit together distances us from Him.
You know this well: God is a spirit, and whoever would be united to Him must be in truth and depth of spirit, far removed from any feigned bodily thing. It's true that everything is known by God, and nothing can be hidden from His knowledge—neither bodily nor spiritual things. But because He is a spirit, that which is hidden in the depth of spirit is more openly known and shown to Him than anything mixed with any kind of bodily nature.4 For by the course of nature, every bodily thing is farther from God than any spiritual thing. By this reasoning, it seems that while our desire is mixed with any kind of bodily nature—as it is when we stress and strain ourselves in spirit and body together—for as long as that lasts, it is farther from God than it should be, and farther than if it were done more devoutly and with more ease in soberness, purity, and depth of spirit.5
The Practice of Hiding in the Depth of Spirit
The author clarifies that he does not command the impossible, but urges the reader to do all in their power to hide desire in the depth of spirit, away from bodiliness, so that it becomes more spiritual and more like God.
And here you can see, at least somewhat and in part, the reason why I tell you so childishly to conceal and hide the stirring of your desire from God. And yet I'm not telling you to hide it outright, for that would be a fool's command—to tell you plainly to do what can in no way be done. But I tell you to do all that's in you to hide it. And why do I ask this? Certainly because I want you to cast it into the depth of spirit, far from any crude mixing with physicality, which would make it less spiritual and farther from God to that extent; and because I know well that the more your spirit has of spirituality, the less it has of physicality, and the nearer it is to God, and the better it pleases Him, and the more clearly it can be seen by Him. Not that His sight can ever, or in anything, be clearer than in another, for it is forever unchangeable; but rather because it is more like Him when it is in purity of spirit, for He is a spirit.
Showing Desire to God vs. to Man
The author warns against making a bodily showing of desire to God, as one would to a human, and concludes that a thing must be shown to God in a different way than to man.
There is another reason why I tell you to do all you can to keep Him from knowing: because you and I, and many like us, are so ready to take in a bodily way something that is meant spiritually that perhaps, if I had told you to show God the stirring of your heart, you would have made a bodily showing to Him — whether in your face, or in your voice, or in words, or in some other crude bodily straining, the way you do when you show something hidden in your heart to a bodily person; and to that extent your work would have been impure.6 For a thing must be shown to a human being in one way, and to God in another.
Read the original Middle English
Loke thou have no wonder whi that I speke thus childly, and as it were folily and lackyng kyndly discrecion; for I do it for certeyn skyles, and as me thinketh that I have ben sterid many day bothe to fele thus and think thus and sey thus, as weel to som other of my specyal freendes in God, as I am now unto thee.
And o skyle is this, whi that I bid thee hide it fro God, the desire of thine herte. For I hope it schuld more cleerly com to His knowyng, to thi profite and in fulfyllyng of thi desire, by soche an hidyng, than it scholde by any other maner of schewyng that I trowe thou coudest yit schewe. And another skyle is: for I wolde by soche a hid schewyng bryng thee oute of the boistousté of bodely felyng into the pureté and depnes of goostly felyng, and so forthermore at the last to help thee to knit the goostly knot of brennyng love bitwix thee and thi God, in goostly onheed and acordyng of wille.
Thou wost wel this, that God is a spirit; and whoso schuld be onid unto Hym, it behovith to be in sothfastnes and deepnes of spirit, ful fer fro any feynid bodely thing. Soth it is that alle thing is knowen of God, and nothing may be hid fro His wetyng, neither bodily thing ne goostly. Bot more aperte is that thing knowyn and schewid unto Him, the whiche is hid in depnes of spirit, sith it so is that He is a spirit, than is any thing that is medelid with any maner of bodelines. For alle bodely thing is ferther fro God bi the cours of kynde then any goostly thing. By this skile it semith that the whiles oure desire is medelid with any maner of bodelines -- as it is whan we stresse and streyne us in spirit and in body togeders -- as longe it is ferther fro God then it schuld be, and it were done more devoutly and more listely in sobirnes and in puretee and in depnes of spirite.
And here maist thou see sumwhat and in party the skil whi that I bid thee so childly hele and hyde the steryng of thi desire fro God. And yit I bid thee not pleynly hyde it, for that were the biddyng of a fole, for to bid thee pleynly do that on no wise may be done. Bot I bid thee do that in thee is to hide it. And whi bid I thus? Sekirly for I wolde that thou castedest it into depnes of spirite, fer fro any rude medelyng of any bodelines, the whiche wolde make it lesse goostly, and ferther fro God in as moche; and for I wote wel that ever the more that thi spirit hath of goostlines, the lesse it hath of bodelines and the nerer it is God, and the betyr it plesith Hym, and the more cleerly it may be seen of Hym. Not that His sight may be any tyme, or in any thing, more cleer then in another, for it is evermore unchaungable; bot forthi it is more liche unto Hym, when it is in puretee of spirit, for He is a spirit.
Another skyle ther is whi that I bid thee do that in thee is to late Hym not wite: for thou and I, and many soche as we ben, we ben so abyl to conceyve a thing bodily, the whiche is seyde goostly, that paraventure, and I had boden thee schewe unto God the steryng of thin herte, thou schuldest have maad a bodily schewyng unto Hym, outher in contenaunce, or in voyce, or in worde, or in som other rude bodely streynyng, as it is when thou schalt schewe a thing that is hid in thin hert to a bodely man; and inasmoche thi werk schuld have ben inpure. For on o maner schal a thing be schewid to man, and on another maner unto God.
Notes
- 1 ↩ME skyles here means grounds or reasons, not modern 'skills'.
- 2 ↩Middle English 'hide it fro God' is paradoxical mystical counsel: a concealed, purely spiritual offering of desire, not literal concealment from omniscience. Rendered as 'hiding' to keep the source's deliberate paradox.
- 3 ↩'boistousté of bodely felyng' rendered as 'coarseness of bodily feeling' (crude/rough sensory force), contrasting with the subtle purity of spiritual feeling; not mere noise or loudness.
- 4 ↩ME 'aperte' rendered as 'openly' (manifestly/clearly); 'medelid with...bodelines' as 'mixed with...bodily nature'.
- 5 ↩ME 'listely' rendered as 'with more ease' (gladly/readily, contrasting forced strain). 'and it were done' taken as comparative conditional: 'than if it were done'.
- 6 ↩late Hym not wite continues the chapter’s paradoxical counsel to “hide” the stirring from God by casting it into spiritual depth, not literal concealment from omniscience.
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