De gloria martirum et continentium
A Wall of Purest Gold
The soul passes through another wall of brilliant gold whose brightness surpasses all previous glory.
When, then, a great many had passed through in this way, another wall appeared, so high that the first was of the purest, most brilliant gold, so that any soul who saw it would be all the more delighted in the brightness of the metal alone, than all the glory it had seen before.
Golden Seats and Adorned Elders
Beyond the wall, jeweled seats appear, occupied by elderly men and women clothed in silks, white stoles, tiaras, and every adornment, their faces shining like the sun and crowned with gold and gems.
But when they had passed through it in a similar way as before, many seats of gold and jewels appeared to them, built with every kind of precious stone, and covered with the most precious silks. On these sat elderly men and women, clothed in silks, and with white stoles, and tiaras, and every kind of adornment, such things as the soul had never seen before and couldn't even imagine. Indeed, the face of each one of them shone bright, like the sun shining at midday. and they had hair most like gold, and they wore golden crowns on their heads, adorned with those same gems.
Alleluia and the New Song
Lecterns of precious metal hold books inscribed in golden letters, and the saints sing alleluia with a new, sweet melody that makes the soul forget all past things.
And lecterns were set up before them, not made of lesser metal. on which books were placed, written with golden letters, and they were singing alleluia to the Lord, with a new song and so sweet a melody that any soul who once heard their voices would forget all past things.✦
The Saints of Martyrdom and Continence
The angel identifies the saints as those who washed their robes in the Lamb's blood, the continent, martyrs, and those who crucified their vices, living in God's service.
So the soul stood in the place where it had earlier seen the harmonies, and seats wondrously delightful. Then the angel said to her, 'These are the saints who, for the covenant of God, handed over their bodies, and in the blood of the Lamb washed their robes.✦ 'These are,' he said, 'the continent, who for some time, paying the debt of the flesh, spent the remainder of their temporal life in the service of God, or suffering martyrdom for Christ, or crucifying themselves with their vices and desires.'
Friends of God and Triumphal Crowns
The angel concludes that these saints lived soberly, justly, and piously, earning triumphal crowns and the friendship of God.
They lived soberly, justly, and piously, and so conducted their lives. And so they deserved to have triumphal crowns.✦ 'These,' he said, 'are holy men, made friends of God.'✦
Read the original Latin
Cum igitur sic plurimos pertransissent. apparuit alius murus tam altus. ut primus de auro purissimo et preclarissimo; ita ut magis delectaretur quecumque illum vidisset anima. in solo nitore metalli. quam universa quam ante viderat gloria.
Sed cum simili modo pertransissent illum ut primum. apparuerunt illis plurima sedilia de auro et gemmis. et universis preciosorum lapidum generibus constructa. et preciosissimis sericis cooperta. in quibus sedebant seniores viri et femine. vestiti sericis. et stolis candidis. et thiaris.
et universis ornatibus. qualia nec ante viderat nec cogitare anima poterat. Erat vero facies uniuscuiusque ex eis splendida. sicut sol splendet in meridie. et capillos habebant auro simillimos; et coronas habebant in capitibus aureas. hisdem gemmis ornatas.
Sed et lectoralia coram eis erant posita. non inferioris metalli. quibus erant libri superpositi. cum aureis litteris scripti. et cantabant domino alleluia. cum novo cantico et tam dulci melodia; ut cunctorum oblivisceretur preteritorum anima que semel audiret voces eorum.
Stetit igitur anima in illo loco ubi prius concentus viderat. et sedilia mirabiliter delectata. Tunc ait angelus ad eam. 'Isti sunt sancti qui pro testamento dei sua corpora tradiderunt; et in sanguine agni suas stolas laverunt. Isti sunt' inquit 'continentes. qui per aliquot tempus carnis debitum persolventes reliquum vite temporalis in servicio dei. sive martirium pro Christo patientes. sive semet ipsos cum viciis et concupiscentiis crucifigentes.
sobrie et iuste et pie viventes duxerunt. et ideo coronas triumphales habere meruerunt. Isti sunt' ait 'viri sancti facti amici dei.'
Scripture echoes
- ↩Rev.5.9;Rev.14.3 — And they sing a new song, saying: 'You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed for God people from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.' Rev.14.3 — And they sing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders. And no one could learn that song except the hundred and forty-four thousand, those who have been redeemed from the earth.
- ↩Rev.7.14 — And I said to him, 'My lord, you know.' And he said to me, 'These are the ones who are coming out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.'
- ↩2Tim.4.8 — From now on, there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on that day — and not only to me, but also to all who have loved his appearing.
- ↩John.15.15 — No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, because all that I heard from my Father I have made known to you.
Visions of Tondal (Les Visions du chevalier Tondal) companion
Tondal came back and changed how he lived daily. That's the whole point.
Chosen Portion builds the daily practice Tondal's vision demanded: a morning reading that keeps eternity in view.
The Visio was written 'for the edification of many' as a spur to daily amendment of life, and Chosen Portion supplies that daily spur with a morning reading and evening examen.
- A daily portion from historic texts on living well and dying well
- The complete 27-chapter Visions of Tondal in modern readable English
- A built-in daily examen prompt — 2 minutes at day's end