"In Christ our two natures are united"
And anent our Substance He made us noble, and so rich that evermore we
work His will and His worship. (Where I say "we," it meaneth Man that
shall be saved.) For soothly I saw that we are that which He loveth,
and do that which Him pleaseth, lastingly without any stinting: and
[that by virtue] of the great riches and of the high noble virtues by
measure come to our soul what time it is knit to our body: in which
knitting we are made Sensual.
And thus in our Substance we are full, and in our Sense-soul we fail:
which failing God will restore and fulfil by working of Mercy and Grace
plenteously flowing into us out of His own Nature-Goodness.[1] And thus
His Nature-Goodness maketh that Mercy and Grace work in us, and the
Nature-goodness that we have of Him enableth us to receive the working
of Mercy and Grace.
I saw that our nature is in God whole: in which [whole nature of
Manhood] He maketh diversities flowing out of Him to work His will:
whom Nature keepeth, and Mercy and Grace restoreth and fulfilleth. And
of these none shall perish: for our nature that is the higher part is
knit to God, in the making; and God is knit to our nature that is the
lower part, in our flesh-taking: and thus in Christ our two natures are
oned. For the Trinity is comprehended in Christ, in whom our higher
part is grounded and rooted; and our lower part the Second Person hath
taken: which nature first to Him was made-ready.[2] For I saw full
surely that all the works that God hath done, or ever shall, were fully
known to Him and aforeseen from without beginning. And for Love He made
Mankind, and for the same Love would be Man.
The next[3] Good that we receive is our Faith, in which our
profiting beginneth. And it cometh [out] of the high riches of our
nature-Substance into our Sensual soul, and it is grounded in us
through the Nature-Goodness of God, by the working of Mercy and Grace.
And thereof come all other goods by which we are led and saved. For the
Commandments of God come therein: in which we ought to have two manners
of understanding: [the one is that we ought to understand and know]
which are His biddings, to love and to keep them; the other is that we
ought to know His forbiddings, to hate and to refuse them. For in these
two is all our working comprehended. Also in our faith come the Seven
Sacraments, each following other in order as God hath ordained them to
us: and all manner of virtues.
For the same virtues that we have received of our Substance, given to
us in Nature by the Goodness of God,--the same virtues by the working
of Mercy are given to us in Grace through the Holy Ghost, _renewed_:
which virtues and gifts are treasured to us in Jesus Christ. For in
that same[4] time that God knitted Himself to our body in the Virgin's
womb, He took our Sensual soul:[5] in which taking He, us all having
enclosed in Him, oned it to our Substance: in which oneing He was
perfect Man. For Christ having knit in Him each[6] man that shall be
saved, is perfect Man. Thus our Lady is our Mother in whom we are all
enclosed and of her born,[7] in Christ: (for she that is Mother of our
Saviour is Mother of all that shall be saved in our Saviour;) and our
Saviour is our Very Mother in whom we be endlessly borne,[8] and never
shall come out of Him.
Plenteously and fully and sweetly was this shewed, and it is spoken of
in the First, where it saith: _We are all in Him enclosed and He is
enclosed in us_. And that [enclosing of Him in us] is spoken of in the
Sixteenth Shewing, where it saith: _He sitteth in our soul_.
For it is His good-pleasure to reign in our Understanding blissfully,
and sit in our Soul restfully, and to dwell in our Soul endlessly,
us all working into Him: in which working He willeth that we be His
helpers, giving to Him all our attending, learning His lores, keeping
His laws, desiring that all be done that He doeth; truly trusting in
Him.
For soothly I saw that our Substance is in God.[9]
[1] "kynde godhede."
[2] "adyte."
[3] or the _first_.
[4] "ilk" = "same."
[5] Here, as above, the MS. term for the "_Sensual soul_" is the
"_Sensualite_."
[6] "ilk" = "each."
[7] The MS. word is in both cases "borne," which may mean either _born_
or _borne_. S. de Cressy gives "born" both for the first word and the
second. See lx. "He sustaineth us within Himself in love," etc.; and
lxiii. "In the taking of our nature He quickened us," etc.
[8] See preceding note.
[9] From _The Scale [or Ladder] of Perfection,_ by Walter Hilton
(Fourteenth century), edition of 1659, Part III. ch. ii.:--
"The soule of a man is a life consisting of three powers, _Memory,
Understanding,_ and _Will,_ after the image and likeness of the blessed
Trinity.... Whereby you may see, that man's soule (which may be called
a created Trinity) was in its natural state replenished in its three
powers, with the remembrance, sight, and love of the most blessed
uncreated Trinity, which is God.... But when Adam sinned, choosing
love and delight in himselfe, and in the creatures, he lost all his
excellency and dignity, and thou also in him."
Ch. III. Sec. i. "And though we should prove not to be able to recover
it fully here in this life, yet should we desire and endeavour to
recover the image and likeness of the dignity we had, so that our soul
might be reformed as it were in a shadow by grace to the image of the
Trinity which we had by nature, and hereafter shall have fully in
bliss...." Sec. ii. "Seeke then that which thou hast lost, that thou
mayest finde it; for well I wote, whosoever once hath an inward sight,
but a little of that dignity and that spirituall fairness which a soule
hath by creation, and shall have again by grace, he will loath in his
heart all the blisse, the liking, and the fairnesse of this world....
Nevertheless as thou hast not as yet seen what it is fully, for thy
spiritual eye is not yet opened, I shall tell thee one word for all, in
the which thou shalt seeke, desire, and finde it; for in that one word
is all that thou hast lost. This word is Jesus.... If thou feelest in
thy heart a great desire to Jesus ... then seekest thou well thy Lord
Jesus. And when thou feelest this desire to God, or to Jesus (for it
is all one) holpen and comforted by a ghostly might, insomuch that it
is turned into love, affection, and spiritual fervour and sweetnesse,
into light and knowing of truth, so that for the time the point of thy
thought is set upon no other created thing, nor feeleth any stirring
of vain-glory, nor of selfe-love, nor any other evill affection (for
they cannot appear at that time) but this thy desire is onely enclosed,
rested, softened, suppled, and annoynted in Jesus, then hast thou found
somewhat of Jesus; I mean not him as he is, but a shadow of him; for
the better that thou findest him, the more shalt thou desire him. Then
observe by what manner of Prayer or Meditation or exercise of Devotion
thou findest greatest and purest desire stirred up in thee to him, and
most feeling of him, by that kind of prayer, exercise, or worke seekest
thou him best, and shalt best finde him....
"See then the mercy and courtesie of Jesus. Thou hast lost him, but
where? soothly in thy house, that is to say, in thy soul, that if
thou hadst lost all thy reason of thy soule, by its first sinne, thou
shouldst never have found him again; but he left thee thy reason, and
so he is still in thy soule, and never is quite lost out of it.
"Nevertheless, thou art never the nearer him, till thou hast found
him. He is in thee, though he be lost from thee; but thou art not in
him, till thou hast found him. This is his mercy also, that he would
suffer himself to be lost onely where he may be found, so that thou
needest not run to _Rome_, nor to _Jerusalem_ to seeke him there, but
turne thy thoughts into thy owne soule, where he is hid, as the Prophet
saith; _Truly thou art the hidden God_, hid in thy soule, and seek him
there. Thus saith he himselfe in the Gospel; _The kingdome of heaven is
likened to a treasure hid in the field, the which when a man findeth,
for joy thereof, he goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that
field_. Jesus is a treasure hid in the soule....
"As long as Jesus findeth not his image reformed in thee, he is
strange, and the farther from thee: therefore frame and shape thyself
to be arrayed in his likenesse, that is in humility and charity, which
are his liveries, and then will he know thee, and familiarly come
to thee, and acquaint thee with his secrets. Thus saith he to his
Disciples; _Who so loveth me, he shall be loved of my Father, and I
will manifest my selfe unto him_. There is not any vertue nor any good
work that can make thee like to our Lord, without Humility and Charity,
for these two above all other are most acceptable ('most leyf') to
him, which appeareth plainly in the Gospel, where our Lord speaketh of
humility thus; _Learn of me, for I am meeke and humble in heart_. He
saith not, learn of me to go barefoot, or to go into the desart, and
there to fast forty dayes, nor yet to choose to your selves Disciples
(as I did) but learne of me meeknesse, for I am meek and lowly in
heart. Also of charity he saith thus; _This is my Commandment, that ye
love one another as I loved you, for by that shall men know you for
my Disciples_. Not that you worke miracles, or cast out Devills, or
preach, or teach, but that each one of you love one another in charity.
If therefore thou wilt be like him, have humility and charity. Now thou
knowest what charity is, _viz._ To love thy neighbour as thy selfe."
Chap. IV. Sec. 1.... "Now I shall tell thee (according to my feeble
ability) how thou mayest enter into thy selfe to see the ground of sin,
and destroy it as much as thou canst, and so recover a part of thy
souls dignity.... Draw in thy thoughts ... and set thy intent and full
purpose, as if thou wouldst not seek nor find any thing but onely the
grace and spiritual presence of Jesus."
"This will be painful; for vaine thoughts will presse into thy heart
very thick, to draw thy minde down to them. And in doing thus, thou
shalt find somewhat, but not Jesus whom thou seekest, but onely a naked
remembrance of his name. But what then shalt thou finde? Surely this;
A darke and ill-favoured image of thy owne soule, which hath neither
light of knowledge nor feeling of love of God.... This is not the image
of Jesus, but the image of sin, which St Paul calleth a _body of sinne
and of death_.... Peradventure now thou beginnest to thinke with thy
selfe what this image is like, and that thou shouldst not study much
upon it, I will tell thee. It is like no bodily thing; What is it then
saist thou? Verily it is _nought_, or no reall thing, as thou shalt
finde, if thou try by doing as I have spoken; that is, draw in thy
thoughts into thy selfe from all bodily things, and then shalt thou
find right _nought_ wherein thy soule may rest.
"This _nothing_ is nought else but darknesse of conscience, and a
lacking of the love of God and of light; as sin is nought but a want
of good, if it were so that the ground of sin was much abated and
dryed up in thee, and thy soule was reformed right as the image of
Jesus; then if thou didst draw into thy selfe thy heart, thou shouldst
not find this _Nought_, but thou shouldst find Jesus; not only the
naked remembrance of this name, but Jesus Christ in thy soule readily
teaching thee, thou shouldst there find light of understanding, and
no darknesse of ignorance, a love and liking of him; and no pain of
bitternesse, heavinesse, or tediousenesse of him....
"And here also thou must beware that thou take Jesus Christ into thy
thoughts against this darknesse in thy mind, by busie prayer and
fervent desire to God, not setting the point of thy thoughts on that
foresaid _Nought_, but on Jesus Christ whom thou desirest. Think
stifly on his passion, and on his Humility, and through his might thou
shalt arise. Do as if thou wouldst beate downe this darke image, and
go through-stitch with it. Thou shalt hate ('agryse') and loath this
darknesse and this _Nought_, just as the Devill, and thou shalt despise
and all to break it ('brest it').
"For within this Nought is Jesus hid in his joy, whom thou shalt not
finde with all thy seeking, unlesse thou passe this darknesse of
conscience.
"This is the ghostly travel I spake of, and the cause of all this
writing is to stir thee thereto, if thou have grace. This darknesse
of conscience, and this _Nought_ is the image of the first _Adam_: St
Paul knew it well, for he said thus of it; As we have before borne the
_image of the earthly man_, that is the first _Adam, right so that we
might now beare the image of the heavenly man_, which is Jesus, the
second _Adam_. St _Paul_ bare this image oft full heavily, for it was
so cumbersome to him, that he cryed out of it, saying thus; _O who
shall deliver me from this body and this image of death_. And then he
comforted himselfe and others also thus: _The grace_ of God through
Jesus Christ."