I was admynystred in the chyrche of saynt Iohan in Iherusalem / ¶ I praye the that thou dyspyse not my requeste / But doo as I haue sayde to the / ¶ Wyth this thou shalte saye to IohnÌ„ Abbot of thyne monasterye that there ben some thynges to be corrected in his chyrche and Abbaye the whyche I wol not tell to the now / ¶ But neuertheles thou shalte aduertyse hym to take hede to his Relygyouses / ¶ Thyse wordes sayd the goode woman retourned in to her caue and dwellynge place accustomed ¶ The good Zozimas retornyng to his monastery kyssed the grouÌ„de where as she hadde markyd / In praysynge god / And sayde non thynge alle that yere of that he hadde seen / ¶ For by cause he durste noo thynge saye / He enterteyned wyth his brethern whanne they were retourned from the Desertes after theyr custome / ¶ Alle the yere syghed Zozimas somoche desyre hadde he that it were passyd ¶ Whanne the tyme was come that the brethern sholde departe for to goo in to Deserte to make theyr fastynges as they hadde ben accustomyd / ¶ Zozimas was taken with a feuer / And therfore he abode in the monasterye / ¶ ThenÌ„e he remembred that she had sayde to hym whanne he wolde haue gone wyth the other he myghte not ¶ The daye of the Cene comen / And after that alle the brethern were retourned from Desertes / ¶ Zozimas in obeyenge that whyche that the goode lady saynt Marye Egypcyen hadde sayd to hym / ¶ He tooke a chalys and the precyous body and blood of oure Sauyoure Ihesu Cryste / ¶ And after he putte fygges and Dates in a lytyll panyer and in a lytyll potte potage wyth water / ¶ And soo wente forth as he hadde ben cauzâ—e vnto the rynage of the flom Iourdan / In abydynge the good woman Marye Egypcyen / ¶ And notwythstondyng that it was longe â—â— she came thyder / Yet Zozimas slepte not / Ferynge that she hadde ben there tofore his comynge / ¶ Wherfore he wepte and prayed god in sayenge / My god whyche haste wylled to yeue to me the grace to se this holy woman / I byseche the that it maye pleyse the to graunte to me agayn that I maye yet ones se her / ¶ And in prayenge and makynge hys orysons came to hym a nother fantasye / ¶ And after he sayd / Alas what shal I do whan she shall come / how shall she come ouer the Ryuer ¶ Alas I haue noo Boote to rowe her ouer / Alas that I am vnhappy / ¶ And thus sayenge the holy woman came and taryed on that other syde of the flom Iourdan / ¶ Whanne Zozimas sawe her he was replenisshed wyth Ioye and thanked god / Alwaye thynkynge how she myghte come ouer wychoute boote / ¶ And he beholdynge her what she dyde He sawe her make the sygne of the Crosse vppon the water / ¶ And after she beganne to walke vppon the water / In passynge ouer as stedfastly as she hadde walked vppon drye londe ¶ She beynge yet vppon the water sayd to Zozimas / What doost thou faynt fader whyche arte preest and seruaunte of god kepynge the holy thynges / ¶ And thus sayeng she came vnto the other ryuage of the flood where as was the holy man / Whom she salewed righte humbly / ¶ Thenne he answered I was soo admerueylled of this myracle that I was in maner of a aslepe / Now I knowe / that alwaye it is trouth that god saythe whyche hathe promysed to theym that puryfye theym by penaunce / That they ben agreable to hym ¶ Alas I knowe now / how well I be lasse in perfeccoÌ„n thanne they that ben in this place / ¶ And I helde me the moost perfyghte in my former monastery ¶ This done the holy Marye Egypcyen sayde to hym that he sholde begynne the Symbole Quicunque vult saluus esse et cetera ¶ After they sayde the orayson Domynycall / That is to saye the Pater noster / The whyche achyeued she kyssed the holy fader Zozimas / ¶ And after receyued the holy sacrament of the aulter her maker and â—â—res / ¶ And after lyfte vppe her hondes to heuen and sayde / ¶ O my god suffre now thy honde mayde and poore seruaunte in peas after thy worde / ¶ For myn eyen hathe seen thy helthe ¶ After she sayd to Zozimas Goo now in to thy monasterye and lyue in peas wyth god / ¶ And whanne this yere shall be passed thou shalte come agayne vnto the lytyll Broke where I fyrste spake to the / And yet thou shalte see me agayne yf it playse to my god / ¶ Zozimas answered / Wolde god that I myghte alwaye be wyth the / ¶ My moder I praye the that thou mote ete a lytyll of the mete that I haue broughte to the / ¶ Thenne she toke thre graynes of his LeÌ„tylle and put it in her mouthe sayenge / ¶ It suffyseth to haue the grace of the holy ghost for to susteyne the soule vndefoylled of synne / ¶ Thenne sayde Zozimas pray for me / And remembre myn Infelycyte / ¶ Zozimas tooke her by the fete in prayenge her that she wolde haue the state of the poore synnars and hymself for recommended / ¶ Thyse thynges thus done the good woman made the sygne of the Crosse vppon flom Iourdan and went vppon the water as she dyde tofore / ¶ Zozimas dredefull and Ioyeous retourned agayn in to his monasterye / ¶ But he was dysplaysed by cause he hadde not asked her name / ¶ The yere passed he came agayne in to the place afore sayde / ¶ And byholdynge on alle sydes yf he myghte se her ¶ But he cowde fyude none apparaunce nor knowlege ¶ And lyftynge vppe his eyen to henen made his prayer sayenge / ¶ O my god playsyth it that to shewe to me the Aungell to whom alle the worlde is not worthy to be compared or lykened / ¶ And thyse wordes thus proferred and vttred / he saw ouer the sayde broke a clerenesse shynyng as the sonne / ¶ Vnder whyche bryghtnes laye deed the body of the holy Egypcyen / Hauynge the face towarde the Eest And her hondes Ioyned vppon her breste / Thenne Zozimas aroos and wente vnto the sayde body / ¶ By whyche he wepte a longe whyle / wasshynge her fete wyth his teeres wythout towchynge ony other parte of her body / ¶ Thynkynge in hyÌ„selfe that he was not worthy to towche her / ¶ But by the prouydence of god he founde a letter in whyche was wreton this that folowyth / ¶ Fader Zozimas putte in sepulture the poore body of Marye Egypcyen To the ende that in soo dooynge thou rendre to the erthe that whiche is hys / And poulder to poulder / in prayenge god for my soule / ¶ Zozimas was moche admerueylled In thynkynge how thyse lettres hadde ben wreten / Neuerthelesse he reioyced hym of that he knewe her name / And praysed and
of you by cause that the worlde deceyuynge you mocke you / ThenÌ„e he that had aresoned theim whan he was retorned in to his hous gaaf for goddis loue all the he had / And after became hyÌ„self religioê° with the holy heremytes / ¶ Of saynt Amon fyrst relgioê° in Nytrie whiche begynynnth in latyn ¶ IniciuÌ„ sancti / Caplm .xxx. THe fyrste Heremyte in Nytrye was called Amon. the soule of whom IncoÌ„tynent after his dethe was seen by saynt Anthonye borne by angels in to heuen / But for to wryte of his ryght holy lyf we shall begyn at his natyuyte ¶ He was of noble riche frendes the whiche ayenst his wyll dide hyÌ„ to be maryed to a noble womaÌ„ of the couÌ„tree of Nytrye He beynge layed a bedde wyth her the fyrste nyght of theyr espoussaylles he made to her many fayr exortacoÌ„ns in ercytynge her to the noble vertue of chastyte and of vyrgynyte vnder suche or lyke wordes / My loue by cause the wythout fawte thynge corrupte shall fynde corrupcoÌ„n / And by the contrary thynge not corrupt oughte to hope incorrupcoÌ„n / Therfore it is more auaylable to vs tweyne togyder hoole to dwelle entier without flesshly touchynge vs. than the one were corrupte of the other / Thise wordes herde by the dyrgyne / she consented therto lyghtly lyued togyder in honest chastyte virgynyte longe tyme after the deth of theyr frendes And after the holy man went in to the nexte deserte to his dwellynge assembled many Heremytes / And the sayd virgyne abode in her hous accompanyed wyth many virgyns / After that he had be a certayn tyme solytarily in the deserte Some men broughte to hym a chylde enchayned / The whyche had be byten wyth a wood honde besechyng hym to pray for the helth of the sayd chylde / The holy man ansuerde that he had not deserued somoche anenst god that shold enhauÌ„ce his prayers / But neuertheles he sayd to theym that the helthe of the sayd chylde was in theyr hodes / For whanÌ„e they wolde rendre to a poore wydowe an oxe whiche they had robbed fro her theyr childe shold haue helth shall be al hoole / Of whiche wordes they were moche abasshed merueylynge by what manere the holy maÌ„ might know the thefte that they had done soo secretly / ThenÌ„e they went home rendred to the widow the ore that they had stolen / by the prayer of the holy man the chylde was made hole ayen and had his helthe / ¶ A nother tyme came some other to hym / of whom he wolde proue the courages / ¶ He sayde to theym that he had grete necessyte of a tonne ful of water / for to yeue drinke to hem that disyted hyÌ„ / And prayed requyred theim that they wolde brynge to hym a tonne full / whyche they promysed for to doo and to fulfylle / ¶ And after that they were departed fro him the one sayd to his felow the haste promysed the water aswel as I Wherfore thou shalt doo it be borne to hyÌ„ yf thou wolt that it be borne / For I haue not but my camell that whiche shal neuer bere it / That other answerde thou knoweste wel the I ne haue but an asse / the whiche maye not bere soo moche as thy camell maye / For the one is more stronger than the other / To whom that other answered / Doo what thou wolt for I woll not slee my camell / ThenÌ„e the other sayd / I shall laye it on myn asse that whyche thou darst not laye on thy camell / But I hope that the meryte of the holy man shall make possyble that whiche is impossyble to a creature / The asse anone after the he was charged wyth the tonne full of water bare it to the lodgis of the holy man Amon. also lightly as he had borne noo thynge on hym / And thenÌ„e the sayd saynt Amon in receyuyng the sayd water sayd to the gode man whiche was come thyder for to guyde his beest Thou haste done well for to brynge the tonne vpon thyn asse for the camell of thy felowe is deed / And whaÌ„ that other was retorned he fonde that it was true ¶ The sayd Amon was somoche bilouyd of god that he gate of hyÌ„ singuler graces / emong thother whan he wolde passe go ouer the ryuer of Nyle bycause he was shamfaste to vnclothe hyÌ„self sodainly he fonde hymself set ouer the ryuer on that other side of the ryuage / Therfore we oughte faythfully to byleue / that to Iuste and good men is noo thynge impossyble / ¶ Of saynt Pyamon whyche begynnyth in latyn ¶ Non auteÌ„ michi c. Caplm .xxxi. SAynt Iherom recouÌ„tyth in procedyÌ„ge ferder in this werke that this is not a thinge worthy neresonable that ony sholde eschewe or leue to wryte the faytes dedes of the holy faders dwellyÌ„ge in deserte nye the see Parthenie nye to a castell namyd Dyolcho whyche amonge the holy faders he sawe an holy man namyd Pyamon whiche had the yeft of all humylyte benygnytee of reuelacoÌ„n / ¶ On a time whan he sacrefysed to god he sawe an angell nye his awter holdynge a boke in whyche was wryten the names of some relygyouses assystent to his awter / some he wrote not / After the sacrefyce done he axed of theym of whom the names were not writen / But by theyr ansuere he fonde that they were all in dedely synÌ„e Thenne he admonested theym to duo contynuell penaunce / And he hymselfe also lyke as he had be culpable as they were· wepte waylled And contynued so longe and vnto the tyme that in callynge theim vnto the holy sacramente of thawter he knewe by the angel that he had wryten theym in the boke / that they had done penauÌ„ce agreable to god / ¶ A nother tyme he was beten of deuilles that he might not remeue fro the place / Thenne it happed that on a Sondaye that he hadd a custome to receyue his maker / he was constrayned to be horne of his bredern to thawter / Tofore whiche he lyeng flatte on therth / he sawe thangell the caughte his honde for to lyft hyÌ„ vp / forthw t he was hoole / ¶ Of an other holy fader that whiche was namyd IohnÌ„ begyÌ„nyng in latyn ¶ Erat in ipis locis / Caplm .xxxii. THere was in the places aforsayd an holy man namyd IohnÌ„ a nother than he of whom tofore is spoken· fulfylled with alle grace / EmoÌ„ge al other he had one suche that all they that went to hym of what trybulacyon they were trowbled by his worde in contynent they were coÌ„forted / with that he heelyd many persones of dyuers dyseses / And saynt Iherom sayth after al thyse hystoryes by hyÌ„ wreton that for doubte of grete peryllis dauÌ„gers whiche thenne were in the waye he durste not goo in to the hye regyon of Thebayde by Serene wherof
in to a lytyll house made of Ionkes and bowes Wherin he endured tyll he was twenty yeres olde colde and heete Rayne and snowe and other grete necessytees / And after he dwellyd in a nother lytyll houses· whiche was foure fote brode and fiue fote hyghe / But it was a lytyll lenger thanne his body / ¶ This lytyll hous semed better a sepulcre than an house / ¶ He clipped of his heere 's ones a yere / That is to wyte tofore the solempnytee of Ester / ¶ He laye bare vppon a bedde of Ionkes / and soo contynued to the deth / And neuer was he couered but wyth one sacke / The whyche he neuer wasshed / Sayenge that in an hayer oughte not to be soughte clennesse / ¶ He neuer chaunged Robe ne cote tyll tholde was rotyn / His felycytee was to remembre holy scrypture / ¶ And emonge his orysons he songe deuowte psalmes to god as he hadde be presente / ¶ After that he was .xxi. yeres olde vnto .xxvi. he lyued sobrely / ¶ And in thre yere he ete not but onÌ„ly a syxter of wortes medled in a lytyll colde water / In the other thre yeres he ete but breede salt wyth a lytyll water / ¶ After seuen and twenty yeres tyll fyue and thyrty he ete not but sixe vnces of barly breede And for his potage a lytyll coole wortes without oyle ¶ But whan he sawe his body by straytnesse of lyffe became scabby and ronyous / Alytyll for to recomforte hymself / he putt a lytyll oylle in his potage ¶ And he lyued in this life sobrely vnto thaâ—ge of thre and fourty / without etynge apples ne other frutes / ¶ Whanne he came vnto the aege of thre score foure yere and the deth drawynge nyghe· He ete noo more brede tyll he was foure score yere olde but oonly ete meele and scooles brayed / ¶ Alle that he ete and dranke weyed not all but fyue vncis / ¶ And thus fynysshed he his dayes in suche abstynences / ¶ Alas we that ete some more thaÌ„ thyrty other more than foure score vncis of weyghte fyue or syxe tymes on the daye yet ben not well contente / And he that ete not but oonly whanne att the sonne was gone downe one tyme on the daye / And all his mete drynke weyed not but fyue vnces / Yet he lyued vnto the aege of foure score yeres / ¶ Lete vs thenne be sobre vnto the ende to be chaste by the ensample of the good holy fader Hylaryon whyche in his lyffe wolde suffre and endure soo moche euyll and payne / for the honour of Ihesu Cryste / ¶ He beynge in the aege of .xviij. yeres Theues came to hym wenynge to affraye hym by cause of his yonge aege Or for to robbe some thynge fro hym / ¶ And how well they made grete dylygence to fynde his lytyll house Neuerthelesse they went rounde abowte it an hoole daye and a nyghte cowde not fynde it / And on the morne they fonde it and hym therin / ¶ And they demaunded of hym this questyon / Yf the theues came to the. what sholdest thou do thou lytyll man / He ansuered to theym What maye they demaunde or aske seen that I am all naked and haue none moeuable goodes / ¶ Thenne they sayde to hym / Thou myghtest be slayne / ¶ The chylde ansuered / I maye well be slayne truely / But for that I drede-not / For I am redy for to deye / ¶ The theues were moche admerueylled And recounted to hym how they had soughte him / ¶ And after they amended theyr lynes ¶ He was not yet but two and twenty yeres olde / whanne his fame renommee sprange ouer alle the countree of Palestyne by cause of the holynesse of his lyffe / ¶ And in that tyme was a woman in the towne of Lentâ—opolytane whom her husbonde dispysed and hadde in hate / By cause he cowde not conne haue of her in fyftene yeres ony chylde / ¶ Wherfore she came to saynt Helaryon demaundynge or aryng counseylle of hym how she myghte doo ¶ And by cause that at the fyrste tyme he wolde not speke to her but spytte by cause he wolde not speke / Thenne she fell downe on her knees sayenge to hyÌ„ ¶ Fader Hylaryon lete it playse the to here me / torne not awaye thyne eyen from me / But beholde me not as a woman but as one vnhappy and cursyd ¶ Att laste he spake to her in demaundyng her the cause of her sorowe / The whyche by her recyted and opened / saynt Hilaryon sayd to her that she sholde goo home and haue alwaye stedfaste hope in god / ¶ And after for the pyâ—e that he had in her he prayed god often tymes in grete habundauÌ„ce of teeres soo effectuously that in the ende of the yere she had a childe / and that was his fyrste myracle / ¶ The wyfe of one namyd Elypydius comynge to se saynt Anthonie abode in the towne of Gaza wyth threof her chyldern and her husbonde / In whyche towne deyed the sayd thre chyldren ¶ The moder beynge in the myddle of theym thre soo desolate that she wyste not whom moost to bewaylle / ¶ And aduysed her of saynt Hylaryon whyche was nyghe by / And tooke the waye wyth her Chamberers and lefte alle her astate for to come to the place where he was ¶ To whom she sayd I requyre and adiure the in the name of our lorde Ihesu Cryste / Of his gloryous passyon and of the effusyon of hys precyous blood that it playse the to praye for my thre children that they maye by him be reysed from dethe / To the ende that his name be praysed and magnyfyed in the cyte of Paynems / ¶ And also I adiure the in lyke wyse that for thys cause thou come oute of thyne Hermytage And come in to the cyte of Gaza ¶ Thenne ansuered saynt Hylaryon that he wolde neuer come oute of hys celle / ne also wolde entree in to townes ne citees ¶ She noo thynge content of his ansuere fell down prostrate or flatt to the grounde and beganne to crye / Hylaryon reyse my chyldren by thy prayers / the whyche saynt Anthonye hath soo longe kepte and gouerned in Egipte / To the ende that of the they sholde be kepte in Syrye / ¶ All they that were thenne presente wepte / ¶ And how well he dyfferred his gooynge / neuerthelesse she sayd to hym that she sholde neuer departe / But he shold fyrste promyse to goo vysyte her chyldren wyth her / ¶ And soo he was constrayned by her wordes for to goo thyder / ¶ He beynge comen thyder / And seenge the chyldren all colde as they whyche had noo sygne of lyfe / In the presence of grete multytude of people thyder comen by cause of hym / He made his prayer deuowtly to god / ¶ The whyche made the sayde chyldren caste oute grete habundaunce of water oute of
/ ¶ A merueyllouse thynge in sayenge thyse wordes the membres of the seke man were restored in theyr strength and helthe / In suche wyse that he wente vppon his fete / ¶ Of whyche thynge and myracle the fame sprange and spradde there alle abowte / ¶ Wherfore the holy man Hylaryon wolde noo lenger abyde there / Not for to departe from thens for ony mutabylyte or chaungynge of thoughte / But by cause he desyred to lyue solytaryly wythoute to haue knowlege of ony persone / ¶ Whanne he was foure score yeres olde he felte himselfe moche feble / And by cause that Esicius his dyscyple was thenne absente / He made a cedule or letter of his honde / By the whyche he lefte to hym alle that he hadde / ¶ That is to wyte his Robe Whyche was made of a sake / His Frocke his Pelycon and his Gospellis / ¶ Alle thyse were noo greteâ—ychesses / ¶ Many deuowte Relygyouses of the cytee of Pafun And wyth theym a notable-notable-woman named Constance att prayers of whom he hadd heeled her sone and her doughter / Camen to hym by cause he was in dysposicyon to deyeed / And spoken wyth hym as he hadde To whom he requyred and neuerthelesse commaunded that Incontynent as he sholde be deed They sholde putt hym in to the erthe in a gardine nyghe to his hous / ¶ And tofore that he deyed there as he hadde noo more charyte he sayd to his soule / What dredest thou my soule / Goo oute of my body / Wherfore arte thou aferde / ¶ It is now gone thre score and ten yere syth thou seruedeste Ihesu Cryste / And now thou dredest to deye / ¶ And thus sayenge he rendred his spyryte to god / Incontynent they buryed hyÌ„ wythin the gardyne ¶ Anone after his dyscyple Esicius whyche was in Palestyne knew his departyng / And thenne he came in to Cypre / ¶ And whanne he was in the gardyne where as he was buryed / He fayned that he wolde dwelle there / ¶ To the ende that they that kepte hym sholde haue noo suspecyon ne mysdemyng that he wolde transporte and carye away the body of saynt Hylaryon / But he wroughte soo pryuely that ten monethes after that he stele hym a waye transported or caryed hym to Maxymian his auncyen and olde chyrche in the whyche the same Esicius and also all the men and Relygyouses there abowte buryed hym in his frocke and his pelycon / Whyche as it is sayde is there alhoole / ¶ And saynt Hylaryon is yet as he was in playne lyfe / Gyuynge out odoures sauours merueyllously smellynge swete / ¶ The good woman Constaunce / whyche hadde be acustomyd in curyouse wakinges to passe the tyme in makinge her prayers there as he had be burybe alyue / ¶ Whanne she knewe that he was transported and taken from thens She wynge the grete loue that she had to him Rendred and gaaf Incontinente her spyryte vnto god / ¶ And yet preseÌ„tly by this occasyon is there grete questyon bytwene theym of Cypre and of Palestyne / ¶ By cause they of Cypresayen that they haue the spirite / ¶ And they of Palestyne sayen to haue the body / ¶ Neuerthelesse in Cypre atte this daye ben done to the praysynge of him moo myracles thanne in Palestine / ¶ And perauenture for almoche as he loued more the place ¶ Or by cause onely that it playsyth god that soo it be done / ¶ Thus endeth this Prossesse of the ryghte holy and deuowte man saynt Hylaryon / ¶ Here folowyth the life of saynt Malachye / And begynnyth in latyn ¶ Caromas / Caplm .xxxviii. CAromas is a cyte in Syrie distaunt or beynge of fernesse fro Anthyoche abowte thyrty myle / In the whyche dwelled Malachye a man soo named / ¶ Malachye is a sayeng Syryaque / The whyche in latyn tongue is asmoche to saye as kynge / ¶ This same Malchus or Malachye was an holy man borne of Syrye with hym was alwaye an olde woman the whyche was so olde that she semyd alwaye redy to deye ¶ Thei two were so contynuelly in the chirche that they myghte be lykenye to Zacharye and Elysabeth in deuocoÌ„n / ¶ Saynt Iherom beyng in Syrye some cyteyzyns of the same cyte axed yf the sayd Malachie same woman were maryed or kynnes folke / By cause he sawe theym soo contynuelly togider / ¶ To whom was ansuered that they were holy and deuoute persones towarde god / Thenne saynt Iherom wente to vysite the holy man for to demaunde and enquyre of his life / ¶ The holy man Malachyas sayd to him that he was born of a place namyd Nyzibam / and oonly Herytour of his fader and moder / ¶ The whyche for to contynue their lygnage wold haue constrayned hym to take the Sacrament of Maryage / And nothwythstondynge that he was by his fader strongly menaced and threrenyd / And of hys moder affectuously requyred for to marye hym / ¶ Neuerthelesse he loued beter to these the state of Relygyon and to renounce and forsake the world / ¶ After he sayde to hym that for doubte of the Romayns that made watche vpon the passages and of other men of the sayde countree / He durste not goo in to the Eeste / But wente hym in to the Weste ¶ He sayde to hym also that he had be in an Hermytage whyche was namyd Calcidâ—s and stode towarde the Southe bytwene Mynas Heroas / ¶ And that he had founde there good Relygyous vnder whyche werkynge and laborynge he had lyued longe tyme. ¶ After he was in wyll to retorne in to hys countree / By cause that he wyste well that his fader was deed ¶ And for this cause he wold haue the goodes that were lefte for to gyue a parte to poore peple / Another parte to make a churche the Resydue for to susteyne his lyfe / ¶ The whiche thinge he had declared to his Abbot as he sayd / And he Incontynent blamyd hym / sayenge that it was temptacyon of the deuyll / ¶ And alleged and shewed to hym for the same many fayre hystoryes of some Relygyouses whyche in lyke caas hadd be deceyued / ¶ For the denyll vnder the coloure of good thynge temptyth alwaye the persone for to make him to accomplysshe and doo some euyll / ¶ He sayde ferdermore that his Abbott hadde sayde to hym / That he resembled and was lyke the hounde the whiche after he hadd made his vomyte Retourned and receyued it agayne / ¶ And for prayer that the Abbot cowde doo he wolde not consente to abyde ¶ How be it that he knelyd downe on his knees tofore hym / Prayenge that he sholde not goo / but abyde wyth him in prayenge and shewyng that he that putteth his honde to the plough· That is to saye that entreth in to Relygyon And he loke backewarde / Is not worthy to haue the kyngdom of heuen / ¶ Alas sayde Malachye to
ensygnes of his vysage and clothynge and habyllements of the sayd holy fader with many other tokenes / By the whyche her Husbonde knewe certaynly the sayd visyon to be true / Wherefore he sore amerueylled retorned to the sayd holy fader for to rendre and gyue thankynges of the thynges afore sayde / The whyche rendred he demauÌ„ded of hym his bene dyccyon / And after came Ioyously home to his howse / ¶ In a nother tyme a Prouoste or Capytayne of men of warre lefte his wyffe nyghe her tyme for to chylde Came for to see the sayde holy fader / And in the tyme that he aryued in the place where as he dwelled And the same day she was in grete peryll for her chyldynge / Thenne the holy fader forsayde aduertysed the sayde Prouoste and shewed to hym how she was delyuered of a fayre sone and brought fayre a bedde In sayenge to hym Thou art bounde to gyue thankynges souerayne to god / For thy wyfe whiche was in grete daungeour is delyuered oute of peryll / But haste the to retorne home and thou shalte fynde her hoole and guarysshyd wyth her chylde seuen dayes olde Whom thou shalte name IohnÌ„ / And thou shalte nourysshe hym seuen yere in thyne howse wythoute to haue ony comynycacion wyth the Pay nyms to th ende for to kepe hym from theyr vyces / The whyche seuen yere so passyd thou shalte delyuere hym to some holy relygyous man for to Instructe and teche the Crystyn fayth and doctryne / And thus the holy man as well to peple of the prouynces nygh by him as to straungers yf they requyred hym gaaf good counseyle in repreuyng theym of theyr vyces and secrete synnes ¶ He prophecyed the famyne to come / for the synne of the peple and other persecucyons comynge In excytynge the synners to penaunce and amendement of lyfe And as to Inpotents and Paralytyks whan they were broughte to hyÌ„ he blessyd hem wyth holy oyle· of whyche whan they were ennoynted they recouered helthe and guaryson of all theyr maladyes / ¶ A Senatour of Rome had a wyfe blynde whiche exorted him to lede and brynge her to the sayde holy Heremyte / To whom the sayd Senatour her husbonde answerd that he wolde neuer see ony wymmen / ThenÌ„e she prayed hym that he wolde goo to hym / And praye hym to make his oryson and prayer to god for her / For by this moyen syngulerly she hoped to recouere her syghte / The same Senatour came to this sayde holy man / and after that he hadde made his Requeste He blessyd a lytyll oyle / And sente it to the sayde blynde woman / Wyth whyche she ennoynted her eyen thre dayes And Incontynente she receyuyd her syghte in gyuynge thankynges to god ¶ Many other dedes worthy to be remembred dyde this holy man / ¶ The whyche sholde be ouer longe to wryte ¶ But saynt Iherom hathe yet wryten one in this boke / By cause he him self was there present wyth syxe other brethern / The whyche togyder came for to see the sayde holy man / ¶ And after they were aryued / And that they had salwed eche other / He receyued theym wyth grete gladnesse / And spake to eche of theym humbly / In admonestynge theym to praye to god wyth hym / As it was acustomed to the holy faders of Egypte / whanne ony came for to vysyâ—e theym / ¶ Thenne he demaunded theym yf ony of theym were a clerke / The whyâ—he answerde to him â—aye ¶ Neuerthelesse he knewe in spytyte of prophecie that one of them was a Deaken / ¶ And by humylytee he reputyd hymself vnworthy to be with lo grete and persyghte men as his felowes wâ—ee / And hydde hym behynde theym / ¶ The holy man seenge the sayde Deaken whyche was the yongest of theym And shewed hym wyth his fynger and sayde / Loo this is the Deaken The whiche answered that he was no ne / ¶ Thenne the holy man toke him by the honde and kyssyd hym and sayde / Haa my sonne denye not the grace that god hathe giuen to the. To the ende that thou take none harme for goode / And for humylytee to lye / ¶ For aboue all thynges â—â—synges oughte to be eschewed be it for good or for euyllâ— The whyche Deken receyuyd benygnly his correceyon / ¶ And this done they togyder prayeng god / One of theym had a grete Feuer· In suche wyse that he supposyd to haue deyed / ¶ Thenne he prayed the same holy man that he myghte by hym be heelyd and guarysshyd / To whome he answered / ¶ My frende thou desyreste to putte from the that thinge whiche is to the necessarye to haue / ¶ For lyke as the body is puryfyed and wasshyd by the Nytree Whyche is a spece of Salte puryfycatyff / or by other wasshynges / ¶ In lyke wyse also is puryfyed and heelyd the sowle by maladyes and other Infyrmytees corporell / ¶ Neuerthelesse after that he hadd enfourmed and taughte hym of many enscynements and doctrynes He blessyd a lytyll oyle / And gaaf it to hym to drynke / By the moyen of whyche he caste oute sodaynly of his mowthe the humoure causynge the Feuer / And retournyd alle hoole· and guarysshyd of his Feuer / ¶ This myracle done thus and after many other Instruccyons and spyrytuell refecâ—yons to theym gyuen by the sayd holy fader / He dyde admynystre to theym that was nedefull / for theyr refeccyon corporell / ¶ And in the meane whyle he wythdrewe hym in to his Celle / There beynge solytary by Reason / ¶ For to wryte his abstynence it sholne be a thynge merueyllous / For he neuer ete tofore Euen / And yf he therme ete it was ryght lytyll / ¶ Of corpulence he was lene by his abstynence / And he hadde but lytyll heere of his heede also of berde / As he that was in langour / By cause he ere noo thynge wherof his nature myghte be susteyned / He beynge of aege foure score yeres ete noo mete that was boylled ne by fyre ne other wyse / ¶ Whanne they hadde take theyr Refeccyons they retorned to him ¶ And they beynge sette tofore hym / He demauÌ„ded for what cause they were comen thyder / The whyche answered that for the helthe of theyr sowles / they were comen from Iherusalem to hym / And also for to see hym bodyly By cause of the merueyllous thynges whyche were of hym to theym recyted / ¶ For more formely is reteyned and reduced to remembraunce that whyche hathe be seen thanne that whyche hathe ben herde tolde or spoken / ¶ Thenne the holy man replenysshyd wyth Ioye in smylynge answered / I merueylle of you my chylderen that ye haue enterprysyd soo grete a waye For as ye maye see to me is noo thinge digne ne worthy of praysynge / Certaynly I am a man lytyll and pooer / Hauynge noo vertue that ye oughte to desyre / ¶ And whanne it soo
holy sacramente of the awter / But the holy man seenge that it was the deuyll sayde to hym / ¶ O cursyd deuyll why cessest thou not to trowble the deuoute soules / How arte thou soo hardy to play Iape with the holy sacrament of thawter / The deuyll answerd that he supposyd to haue dysceyued hym as he hadd done a nother / The whyche after that he had obeyed to hym he became folysshe and oute of wytte / In suche wyse that with payne and vnethe many holy men myght by prayers and orysons reduce hym agayn vnto his place to his former helth / And whan the deuyll had sayd soo he vanisshed away fro the holy man ¶ Of whom it is radd that by ouer longe beynge in prayer his poor fete whyche were contynuelly in reste were broken roten / And after that he had done this penaunce by the space of thre yeere thangell apperyd to hym said / God hath receyued thi orysons prayers / And sendyth to the worde that all thy soores shall be heelyd guarysshed / Thenne the angell towched hym by the mouth by the teeth· and IncoÌ„tyuent he was all hoole guarysshyd / of al his soores and replenysshed wyth scyence wyth all graces in suche wyse that he neuer after hadde hungre ne thurste / ¶ Thangell coÌ„maunded hym after that he shold goo to other places visytynge his bredern for to comfort theym and tenseyne teche to them holy doctryne ¶ And on a tyme it happed that a man crokebacked came to him to the ende that he myghte recouere helthe / wolde mount vpon a mare for to ryde thyder / the whyche was gyrde wyth one cengle whyche the holy man had made / For gladly euery daye in the weke â—auf the Sandaye he made cengles / coueryÌ„ges of leues of palme wouen after the custome of the countree / And so as the sayd crokebacked was mouÌ„ted on the mare he was forthwyth all hoole / by cause his fete had towched the sayd cengle ¶ The holy man was of so grete meryte vertue / that whan he sente to ony seke people of the brede whyche he had blessed wyth his honde / Yf they ete therof / they were heelyd of all maladyes and sykenesses ¶ He had also this grace that he knewe all the thoughtes of his bredern / And Incontynent wrote to ther faders and abbottes how there some ruled theym in synnes vncleÌ„nesse / And other prouffyted in scyence and vertues / Some were inpacyente sette noughte by theyr bredern / The other were constaunt and in charyte / ¶ He preched to vs to torne our eyen fro thynges transytory and to fyxe theym in goodes in fallyble eternall / ¶ Also sayd the holy fader that is of necessite to a man to haue courage manly or vyrile in leuynge the maners condycyons of euyll chyldren whyche of theyr nature ben vicyous variable and in constaunt / ¶ Of saynt Paphunce / and begynÌ„yth in latyn ¶ Vidimus et alium monasterium / Caplm xvi SAynt Iherom writith of a monastery after where in was an holy heremyte named PaphuÌ„ce strongly renoÌ„med emonge thermites of the desertes / He had dwellyd in thut terest or last desertes of Heracleos a cyte renoÌ„med in Thebayde / of whom saynt Iherom sayth That on a tyme he prayed god that he wolde shew to whom of the sayntes of heuen he sholde be lyke or semblable / Thangell of god answerde to hym that he sholde be lyke to a player vpon a symphonye the whiche by the stretes sought his lyuynge in syÌ„gynge / ThenÌ„e he was moche abasshed of thanswere went forth IncontyneÌ„t for to seche hym where he myght fynde hym / Whan he had fonde hym / he asked by of his lyf of his workes / And he recounted to hyÌ„ how he had alwaye lyued symply in coÌ„misynge many theftes other synnes / Paphunce yet asked hym more feâ—der yf in doynge those theftes he had euer done ony operacyon or werke vertuoê° / The sayd man answerde that he knewe in hym noo good saue on a tyme his felowes whiche were theues as he was hadd take by force a virgyn whiche was sacred to god and whan he sawe / that they wolde haue defoylled her / He thrested emonge theym preseruyd her fro corruptynge / ¶ After this he sayde· that on a nother tyme that he fonde a woman maryed walkynge wythin desertes the whyche was all desolate was nye deed for huÌ„gre by cause she had not ete in thre dayes TheÌ„ne he demauÌ„ded her for what cause she went soo alone in the wodes to whom she answerd that her husbond was prysoner thre of his children by his euyl gouernaunce / And for to eschewe that she sholde not be take she soo fledde not wythstondynge that she gaaf ouer herselfe to the sayd theyf yet neuerthelesse he dyde to her noo dyshonour But gaue to her .iii. C. shilinges of whiche she boughte her husbond the thre chyldern out of pryson / And the theyf sayd that he had done none other good thanne this whiche he had sayd / Thenne the good fader Paphunce answerd / that he hymselfe neuer had done suche werkes of charyte· Sayeng to hym more ouer that god had shewed to hym that he shold haue asmoche Ioye in heuen as he / And therfore he couÌ„seyled hym that he sholde leue his euyll lyfe / and conuerte hym to doo well And Incontynent he caste awaye his â—oytes his symphonie tourned alle his arte of musyke in to spyrytuell songes In suche wyse that he was thre yere in thermytage wyth the sayd holy fader in fastynges merueylous abstyneÌ„ce / And at laste rendred gaaf his spyryte wyth thangels in to heuen· ¶ And after the sayd saynt Paphunce put hyÌ„self to doo more penauÌ„ce gretter thaÌ„ he dyde tofore / And yet ayen he demaunded of god / to what man in erthe he was semblable the voys of heuen answered to hym that he was semblable vnto the lord of a Brugh nye to his hermytage The whiche thyng herde / he went Incontinent for to knowe of the gouernaunce of the sayd lorde / came in to hys hous / Anone as the lorde had receyued him benygnely / The holy fader demaunded of hym of his merytes and vertues / The whyche lorde wyllyng to he â—le and hyde his bountee answered to hym humbly that he neuer had done any gode dede The holy fader suffred it well sayenge that he had reuelacyon that he was semblable lyke in vertues to the holy heremytes dwellynge in deserte / The lorde knowynge the ReuelacoÌ„n made of his lyfe began tex pose the manere of his lyuynge / the whyche was gretly to be merueyled / ¶ Fyrste he sayd how wel that his wyte sythe the tyme of theyr waryage was excellently fayr of yonge aege / Neuerthelesse for the grete loanges that he hadd other tyme recyted of the
and began to crye in sayenge / O god of Cristen men now we confesse that thou art almyghty and oonly Inmortall / Anone after camÌ„ thyse tydynges to the grete Prouoste of Alexandrye / the whyche as enraged sente for to fetche the sayd Iuge the two holy faders / That is to wyte Apolonyon Phylemon ordenynge that they sholde be brought straytly bounde lyke prysoners / But in ledyng theym the holy man coÌ„uerted theym that were come to lede theim / Whyche all they togyder presented themselfe as crysten to the sayd Prouost of Alexandrye / Thenne the cursed prouost seenge that he myghte not reuoke theim fro the cristen fayth he made them alle to be throwen in to the see / And in that wyse they were baptysed in the water / Anone after the see broughte theim to the ryuage all hoole wythout corrupccoÌ„n of theyr bodyes / Thenne were they buryed al togider in one sepulture And god shewyth there euery daye many dyuerse myracles on theym that serue requyre theym / ¶ Of saynt Dioscore abbot beginÌ„yng Vidimus aliuÌ„ / Caplm xx AFter spekith saynt Iherom of saynt Dyoscore whiche hadd in his monastery nyght vnto Thebayde .i. C. religyouses or there abowte To whom he coÌ„mauÌ„ded expressely that they shold neuer receyue their maker yf they had ony synnes in their conscyences / Not onely synnes actuell or in thoughte but also of theym that somtyme happe by dremynges of whiche they falle in pollucoÌ„ns nocturnall / were it by fantasies or by operacoÌ„ns of wymÌ„en or bi habuÌ„daÌ„ce of humours naturell / And he sayde yf somtyme suche pollucoÌ„n came wythout to haue ony faÌ„tasye of ony woman in the manere / that is noo synne But that he take therin no playsaunce after the sayd dreme / For that pollucyon comyth by cause of thabuÌ„dance of thumour whyche is wythin the body of the man ¶ For to eschewe suche pollucyon is necessary fastynge to lyue sobrely / ¶ He gaaf to his dyscyples a symylytude suche / Whan a man is seke And the Fylicyen defendyth to hym ony mete / he kepyth his coÌ„maundement / Thenne the relygiouses all maner of peple that will lyue vertuously oughte to kepe theym to doo thyng that is contrary to the medicyne of the soule / That is to saye that he muste kepe hym fro synne the whyche makyth the soule seke / And in the ende makyth it to deye ¶ And to the contrary yf we kepe it clene wythout dedely synne we shall haue Ioye perdurable / ¶ Of the monasteries of Nitrye begyÌ„nyth in latyn ¶ Venimê° / Caplm xxi AFter saynt Iherom and his felowes camÌ„ in to Nytrye a place the most fayr moost renoÌ„med of Egypte dystaunt fro Alysaundrie xl myle or there about whiche ben escryued to xxx leukes of FrauÌ„ce / There was a cyte namyd Nytrye takynge his name of the sayd region in whiche growyth the Nytre lyke or semblable to sonde / Wherof ben wasshen there the clothes / And otherwise it is called an esspyce of salte after Papye / it is made of water of therthe in Egypte / And in Palestine it is made of grete hete of the sonne / ¶ In the countree were aboute .v. C. monasteryes th one nyghe vnto that other vnder one abbot / Of whom ther some lyued dwelled togyder other helde them solytarily eche by hymselfe that notwithstoÌ„dyng they had alwaye charyte togyder / ¶ And whan saynt Iherom his coÌ„panye approched to them All in a grete companye lyke to a multytude of bees came ayenst theim bryngynge brede botelles full of water And after they broughte theym all singynge in to the chyrche / After wasshed theyr fete wiped theim wyth to waylles / ¶ And they were not onÌ„ly serued of bodyly necessytees / But also they were Instructe in humylytee clemence / ¶ And saynt Iherom sayth that he neuer hadd be in place where he had seen flowe so habundantly charyte mercy ¶ Theyr Oratoryes were full of bookes in scyence dyuyne / And they vsyd none other thynges in all theyr dayes / ¶ Of a nother place callyd Cecylya begynnyth in latyn ¶ Post hunc vero / Caplm xxii THere was a nother place towarde that deserte dystaunte fro that place tofore sayd x. myle or there abowte / the whyche was callyd Cecylia for the multytude of celles and lytyll houses that were there / ¶ The custome of the relygiouses that there dwelled was suche that they spake not th one to the other but the saterdaye sondaye And yf that one came not on that daye Incontynent they thouÈte that he was seke / Werfore that one after that other wente for to see hym / And broughte to hym some thynge for to susteyne helpe hym to his bodyly helthe / They neuer spake togyder but the dayes tofore sayd but yf it were in prechynge or in gyuynge doctryne / Whan ony of theim was gretter Clerke or Inspyred more thanÌ„e a nother / And yf ony wolde goo dwelle wyth ony of them / they were so replenysshed wyth charytee that they lodged theym Incontynent in theyr howses or cotages / ¶ Of saynt AmÌ„onion abbot begynÌ„ynge ¶ Vidimê° quendaÌ„ / Caplm xxiii AMonges the same heremytes relygyouses saynt Iherom saw one namyd AmÌ„onyon to whom god had gyuen all plenytude of graces / pryncypally he had merueyls us charyte humylite none lyke generally asmoche in pacyence clemence benygnyte / Also in scyence prudence he was moost perfite of theim al / The sayd AmÌ„onyon had ii· bredern that one namyd Eusebius the other Euâ—imius / that whyche were not oonly bredern carnalle but also in lyf in religyon in vertues they were germayns / Thise iii. bredern solycyted in theyr tyme the other bredern as the moder thynkyth on her chyldern in helpyng theym not onÌ„ly to theyr corporall lyfe but also to the spirituell as enscynynge theym to vertues good maners / The same saynt AmÌ„onion dwelled in a monastery closyd wyth walles In whiche he hyÌ„selfe had made a pytt And it happed that a broder transported hymself towarde him for to haue a lytyll hous to dwell in thermytage / The whyche answerde to hym that he hadd none but he made hym to dwell in his monastery vnto the time he had fouÌ„de one / ¶ Sone after he delyuerde to him a lytyll one the whiche he fonde nye the sayde monastery / And yf by aduenture had many come he had IncoÌ„tynent gadred togider his bredern and in lytyll tyme had made a monastery / ¶ Of saynt Dydyme why the begynnyth in latyn ¶ Vidimus inter cos Caplm xxiiii SAynt Iherom recounteth of a nother namyd Didyme the whiche was emonge the faders namyd moche vertuouse debonayr / lyke as his vysage shewed well / And suche grace had he of god that he roode vpon the scorpyons other venymous bestes whiche were there in grete habuÌ„dance / By
and makynge to his body foule to wchyÌ„ges dyshonest whyche sholde be abhomynable stynkyng shamfull to reherce and all for to moue hym to the synne of lecherye / ¶ The whiche thynge seenge the good knyght of IhuÌ„ Cryst wyst not what to doo to th eÌ„de that he whyche had vaynquysshed the deuyl by soo many tormentes were not ouercome by a woman / ¶ And by cause he myghte not putt her from hym / ne had power of noo membre to put her from hym / He putt oute as moche as he myghte his tongue bote it a sondie wyth his teeth and spitte it in the vysage of the fowle ylle woman / whiche dyshonestly kyssed hym to th ende that the playsaunce of her sholde not moeue hym to synÌ„e / But for the payne and anguisshe that he felte / he myghte conserue kepe his virgynyte / And holde it agaynst the vyolence of the sayde fowle and euill disposed woman / ¶ In that same tyme was saynt Poul in the lowe Regyon of Thebayde of the aâ—ge of syxtene yeres / ¶ But neuerthelesse he was well Instruce in lettres Greke and Egypcyen / He abode and dwelled faderles and moderles wyth one his syster thenne maryed ¶ He seenge the persecucyon of the true Crysten men· wente in to a towne moche ferre fro his couÌ„tree / And from thens in to a mouÌ„tayne full of roches / Att foote wherof was a grete and a merueylous pytte couerd with a stone / ¶ The whyche he toke awaye and loked therin And founde there a moche fayre fountayne / Wyth this there was in the sayd mountayne dyuerse habitacoÌ„ns and dwellinges / Wherin he fonde many maners of Instrumentes / wyth whyche had be made in tyme passed secretly and forged false money Lyke as it is wretch in histories of Egypte in the tyme that Anthonye was with Cleopatra / ¶ Saynt Poul louyd thene merueyllously the sayde place Eyke as god hadde gyuen it to hym / ¶ And there he ladde a solytary lyfe / In oâ—cupyenge deuowte prayers and abstynâ—nces merueyllously / ¶ His vesture was oonly of leues of palme / And other mete also he ete not / ¶ In the same place on the side of Syrye nyghe by the Saâ—asyus lawe saynt Iherom an Hermite the whyche had be there shytte enclosed thyrty yere· without to ete ony other thynge than barly breede to dryÌ„ke water ful of ordure fylthe / ¶ And a nother wythin a cysterne the whyche ete but euery daye .v. fygges for his sustentacoÌ„n / that this is true saynt Iherom callyth god his angellis to wytnesse / ¶ Thenne for tachieue of saynt Poul / We oughte to knowe that whan he was come to thage of C xxx yere in lyuyÌ„ge an heueÌ„ly lyf· In a nother partye was saynt Anthoaye the whiche hadd lyued lxxxx yeres / And by cause that he was tempted of vaynglory / wenynge that in the hermytages hadd none be better than he / By the wyll of god it was shewed to hym by nyghte that there was one more perfyte than he / ¶ And assone as it was daye saynt Anthonye departed / And how well that he was sore feblysshyd in his body / He went fourth wyth a staffe in his honde / And putt hymselfe in dylygence for to seke saynt Poul / ¶ For it was he of whom he had had Reuelacyon / ¶ And whan he had walkyd vnto myddaye / Not knowynge what waye he sholde take and holde He founde a Monstre halfe horse and halfe man / Whom the Poetes name Centaure / Of whom he was gretly abasshed / ¶ And he blessyd hym wyth the sygne of the Crosse / And askyd of hym in what place saynt Poul enhabyted and dwellyd ¶ To this demaunde or askyng the sayd Centaure ansuerde some wordes / whiche saynt Anthonye vnderstode not / And after he shewed hyÌ„ the waye on the ryght honde and IncoÌ„tynent as he hadd fledde he vanysshed a waye fro the syghte of saynt Anthonye / The whiche beeste sayÌ„t Anthonye doubted stroÌ„gly / For we fynde not whether it was a monstre or a deuyll But neuertheles he wente forth / And anone after in a valeye full of stones he sawe a lytyl man hauyng his nosethrilles torned outwarde the forbede full of ferdful hornes / and his fete lyke to the fete of a ghoeâ— / ¶ To whom saynt Anthonye replenysshed with the shelde of fathe and wyth the habergron of hope as a good Champyon adressyd hymselfe questyonynge hym what he was The whyche ansuered / ¶ I am sayde he a mortall dweller in this hermytage with the other / Whyche haue be there dysceyued by many temptacoÌ„ns / ¶ We praye the that thou pray for vs one god onely / The whyche is descended in to the erthe for oure helthe / ¶ Thenne saynt Anthonye herynge thyse wordes wepte and alle by wette his fare wyth teeres / ¶ For he reioyced hym of the glorye of god / And of the contrarye of the destruccyon of the deuyll / ¶ Also he was moche admerueylled how he vnderstode the langage speche of the same beeste / ¶ And after he beganne to smyte with a staffe vppon the erthe sayenge / Acursyd be Alexandrye / The whyche adoure and worshyppe for theyr god thydolles / In whyche the deuylles enhabyte and dwelle / ¶ Ha Regyon what mayste thou saye / The beestes confessen the name of god / And thou worshyppest the deuylles / ¶ In sayenge thyse wordes / The same beeste vanysshed away Lyke as it hadde flowen in the ayre / ¶ After this saynt Anthonye abode in his enterpryse in folowynge the waye of wylde beestes / And not knowynge what waye he sholde take ¶ Thus contynued the seconde daye / wythoute to knowe whether it were daye or nyghte / ¶ And fynably he founde a wulfe gooynge vpwarde towarde a mountayne / The whyche had grete thurste / ¶ And whan he sawe hym goone vp / He wente after vnto a fosse or a dyche The whyche he behelde / But neuerthelesse by cause the place was tenebrouse or derke he apperceyued noo thynge / ¶ Alwaye lyke as he had perfyght dyleccyon / And fered noo thynge / he wente peasybly in to the dyche or hoole / herkenynge yf there were ony thynge / ¶ Soo abydynge by feruente charytee Whyche puttynge from hym alle feere· and drede / Wente soo ferre fourth and soo longe / That he sawe the doore of a place In whyche was saynt Poul / ¶ And in approuchynge or comynge nyghe to the same / He knockyd wyth his fote ayenst a stone whyche made a lityll noyse / ¶ The whyche herynge saynt Poul Incontynent shytte his doore ¶ And whanne saynt Anthonye sawe his doore shytte / ¶ He abode there by the space of syxe houres / ¶ And fynably he sayde to him thyse wordes / Poul my broder / Thou knoweste by Reuelacion of god whom that I am / And fro whens I come / And wherfore I am comyn hyther /
peasybly / ¶ A nother tyme came to hym two Phylosophers on hyghe on the mountayne / The whyche by subtyll dysputacyons supposyd to haue ouercome hym and dysceyued / ¶ Whan he sawe theym he Iudged theym to be Paynemes and sayde to theym / I wonder of you that ben soo wyse how ye come to me from soo ferre / for to see a man folysshe / To whom they ansuerde that he was noo foole / but he was ryght wyse / ¶ Saynt Anthonye ansuered to theim that he was a fole / by that they had loste theyr labour and waye / And yf it soo be that I be wyse lyke as ye saye / And for to loue wysdom it is vtylyte prouffyte / Folow ye that ye alowe and prayse And soo ye shall doo your duete / ¶ For thoose men ben to be praysed whan they ensyewe the good and wyle men / Yf I had goon to you I wolde haue folowed your lawe / Thenne syth ye ben come to me Come and folowe my fayth and be ye crystenyd / ThenÌ„e the Phylosophers wente theyr waye / ¶ Other came to hym in mockynge him by cause he was noo clerke ne lettred / To whom he askyd the whyche had be fyrste or the wytte or the scrypture / And yf the scryptures were by the wytte and vnderstondynge / Or yf the wytte and vnderstondynge came of the scriptures / ¶ They ansuered him· that alle the scryptures proceded and were made by the vnderstondynge / Thenne sayd saynt Anthonye / He that hath vnderstondynge good and hoole nedyth not to be lettred by scryptures / ¶ And in this manere he delyuered theym all confused / ¶ Constantyn the Emperour and his two sones Constante Constanciyus wrote to hym on a tyme in salewynge hym To the ende that it myghte playse hym to wryte some thynge to theym for theyr comforte consolacoÌ„n ¶ Saynt Anthonye seenge the lettres was not abasshed / ne chaunged noo thynge for the salutacyon of soo grete lordes / But as Inmobyle canstaunt not wyllynge to beholde the sayd lettres called to hym alle his brethern and after sayde to theym / ¶ The kynges of thys worlde sende to vs lettres whiche semeth to be thynge merueyllous And herof we maye be gladde / ¶ For alle men notwythstondyng they haue dyuers dygnytees lordshyppes ben borne and deye the one wyth that other / ¶ And therfore we oughte to honoure the scryptures lettres pryncypally suche as god hathe wryten to men / as ben the coÌ„maundementes of the lawe / And bi cause there is none conuenyence amonge kynges and Relygyouses / I woll not take the lettres that the kynges sende to vs / For I knowe not the scyence manere to salewe theym be lettres / ¶ In the ende the brethern prayed hym that he wolde wryte agayne to the sayd kyÌ„ges / In admonestyng theym to flee the vyces and to ensiewe the vertues / And soo he wrote to theym in this manere / ¶ Ye kynges I counseylle you that ye kepe the Crysten lawe / But I praye you / Wene ye not that your puyssaunce temporell be grete / For that is but a lytyll thynge to the regarde of the puyssaunce of god / ¶ And therfore ye oughte not to be prowde / ¶ Esteme of yourselfe that ye be noo thynge more thanne other / For assoone and as well shall ye be Iuged of god as the moost poore of the worlde / ¶ Wyth this I praye you that ye ben pyteuous and debonayr toward your subgettes / Hauynge cure and besynesse to doo Iustyce as well to the poore as the ryche / ¶ Consydre ye that there is a kinge aboue you eternall not oonly vpon you but vpon al mankynde ¶ Thise lettres seen by the sayd prynces tofore namyd thei were gretly comforted ¶ And the fame renoÌ„mee of saynt Anthonye was ouer all the countree publysshed and knowen / ¶ After that the Paynems Gentyles were confused of theyr argumentes And the kynges comforted by his lettres / He retorned in to the mountayne / in whyche he had many vysyons / by that whyche he knewe and by reuelacoÌ„n all that was done in Egypte / And sent to the bysshopp of Egypte namyd Serapyon / Emonge the whyche he sawe a moche pyetable caas / and worthy of sorowfulnes / whiche was this / ¶ He beynge wyth his brethern sette / lyfte hys eyen vpp to heuen wayllynge and wepyng / ¶ And a lytyll whyle after that he had seen the reuelacoÌ„n whyche was shewed to hym / ¶ He sette hym on his knees prayenge to god that it sholde not come ne happen / ¶ And soo doyng he shedde oute grete teeres in merueyllous habundance and plentee / ¶ Wherfore the brethern that were there present trembled and quoke / ¶ And questyned him what reuelacyon he hadd hadde / ¶ Ha haa my chyldren sayd saynt Anthonye / The fayth of cristendom shall in shorte tyme be subuerted / The men semblable or lyke to beestes / Iumentes or fooles / Whiche shall destroye the godes of the chyrche / ¶ I haue seen the aulter of oure lorde enuyronned or closed wyth mulettes / The whyche wyth theyr fete haue broken the aulter / And thyse thynges ben cause of my wayllynge / ¶ Two yeres after was publysshed and shewed the cursed secte of the Heretykes Arryens / The chyrches were pylled / And the sacred vessellis vilypended or dyspysed wyth the Sacramentes of the chyrche / by the pollute or defoylled hondes of the Ethnycyens Iuâ—ydelis / And Paynems dide and made in Alexandrye sacrefyces to ydollis / made wyth theyr hundes / In makyng to theym adoracyon and prayer as to theyr goddes / in offrynge to them bowes of palmes / whyche ben in the sayd countree a ryghte grete ydolatrie / ¶ And the Crysten men were constrayned to dod in lyke wise suche Insolences with the Aâ—yens / In suche wyse that there was noo dyfference bytwene the one the other / ¶ The courage sayd sayne Anthonye sholde haue abhomynacyon and horrour to reherse the horrible and detestable synnes that were done / ¶ Is it not a thynge well abhomynable afore god that the vyrgynes and matrones were shamed and vylonyed / and were not ashamed to lese theyr vyrgynyte / ¶ The blood of crysten people was by cruell occysion shedde wythin the chyrches / In suche wyse that the aulters were alle deyed and sprynkcled wyth the blood / ¶ A lytyll whyle after this heuy and desolate Reuelacyon saynt Anthonye had a nother Reuelacyon ryght Ioyous / Of whyche he comforted his Relygyous sayenge / ¶ My chyldren be not sorowful / For after this persecucyon of the chyrche of god / The crysten people shall be releuyd / And the chyrche shall be broughte hoole in his honoure / And all they that shall kepe well the fayth in this persecucyon shall be tofore god more shynynge thanÌ„e the bryghtnesse of the sonne / ¶ False satellytees persecutours of
serpentes and venymouse beestes roo◠vp agaynst the peple / Of the Infeccion of whom they deyed in dyfferently wythout remedye yf Incontynent they had not be brought to saynt Hylaryon whiche gaaf theim oyle blessyd Of whiche anone as theyr woundes were touched were hole guarysshed / ¶ And by that cause that in those partyes he was soo moche knowen / And that there was done to hym ouermoche grete honour He went in to Alexandrye and came in to a monasterye namyd Oason / ¶ Ferdermore bi cause he had not dwellid in no towne walled syth he had be religyous He went to Brynchion by Alexandrye wyth some of his brethern that he knewe where he was receyued benygnely / ¶ But anone after by cause that they sawe the discyples of the holy man make redy his asse for to departe / they prayed hym wyth Ioyned hondes that he wolde abyde / For they hadd leuer haue deyed than he sholde departe fro theym ¶ Thenne the holy man for to comforte them sayd that he was constrayned hastly to depart / To th ende that by his ouerlonge taryenge there wyth theym he sholde be cause of heuynesse / ¶ Sayeng to theym ferdermore that for some thynges that they sholde see after come They sholde well know that not with oute grete cause he sholde not departe soo hastely from theym and theyr monastery / ¶ And the day after it happed that the Pryncypall of the cyte of Gaza / A cytee nyghe by wherin dwelled Paynems and enmyes to the lawe of oure lorde Ihesu cryste / Whyche were aduertysed of the comynge of saynt Hilaryon to the sayde monastery / Knowynge that their lawe was in waye and daūger to be all destroyed by the moyen of the sayde saynt Hylaryon / And for to eschew the same concluded to goo to the sayde monastery for to putte hym to dethe / ¶ And soo Incontynent they wente thyder ¶ And they fyndynge that soo hastely was departed from thens / And wythoute to be aduertysyd· ne warned of theyr enterpryse and purpose / Imposed and put to him that he was a Magycyen / Sayenge emonge theim that that they myghte cleerly knowe that he sawe before thynges that comen after / ¶ Now it oughte to be vnderstonde that whanne saynt Hylaryon was departed from Palestyne / They of Gaza demaūded of Iulyan whyche thenne was emperoure lycence for to slee his discyple Esicius / ¶ And for more lyghter to take him / they had wreton to alle the londes there abowte ¶ His chyrche was thenne dystroyed beten downe / And his Relygyouses slayn / ¶ The whyche thynge he had perceyued by reuelacyon / wherfore he was departed by cause he wold not see that dystruccyon / Lyke as tofore is sayde / ¶ Saynt Hylarion soo departed from Bruchyon and the desertes retournyd in to Oason / Where he was a yere or there abowte ¶ But by cause his renomee and fame was thrugh that londe spradde· He wold goo to places where he sholde not be knowe / ¶ And wente for to passe ouer the see / and to dwell in yles where he sholde not be knowen ¶ In that tyme Adryan whyche was his dyscyple comynge from Palestyne arryued to hym sayenge / That Iulyan the Emperoure was slayne / And that in his place regued an Emperoure that was Crysten / ¶ Whanne the holy man herde his purpoos he blamyd hym / ¶ And neuerthelesse he wolde not retorne / But he and Zazanius one his discyple went in to a shippe for to come in to Cecyle / ¶ And whanne they were in the myddill of the see / the sone of the maronner was rauisshed of a deuyll Whyche entred in to his body ¶ And by cause that saynt Hylaryon by force of coniuracyon wold haue constrayned hym to departe oute of the sayd sone He sayde to hym ¶ O seruaunt of god why suffrest thou not me to be in peas wythin the water / Gyue me spase to goo to the londe / ¶ For yf I departe here / I sholde falle in to the abysme / ¶ The holy man ansuered to the deuylll Yf my god hath gyuen to the puyssaunce and power to abyde / Abyde thou And yf thou haste noo myghte I shall caste the oute / ¶ Anone after the chylde was hoole and guarysshed / ¶ After this saynt Hilaryon to the ende that he sholde not be knowen made the Maronners to swere other that were there that they shold not shewe his name / ¶ And whanne he was arryued in an hyghe mountayn in Cecyle named Pachumum he wold haue gyuen to the Maronner for his solaire a boke of the gospellis whiche he hadd doo make in his yongthe for hym and his dyscyple Zazanius / ¶ The Marōner seenge that he had none other thynge wolde noo thynge haue / ¶ And to th ende that he wold not there be knowen of the Marchaūtes of the Eest partyes / He wente ferre in to the myddyll of the lond well twenty myle from the see / ¶ And there in a desert he made of the broken bowes and wode fagottes and brusshes / and charged and layd in the necke of his dyscyple for to bere to the market in the nexte towne / To the ende that he sholde brynge breede for theyr sustentacyon / ¶ Alas lete vs consydre the pouertee of this holy man / and how moche euyl he suffred for to come to heuen / we that haue soo moche good / How suppose we to haue it / I byleue that it shall be wyth grete payne / ¶ And how well that the holy man was goon in to a straūge countree by cause he wolde not be knowen / ¶ Neuerthelesse anone after by the moyen of his merueyllous werkes· Hys fame was grete thorugh alle the countree of Cecylle / ¶ And the fyrste knowlege of hym was by a a man whyche had a deuyll wythin his body / the whyche man was broughte in to the chirche of saynt Peter of Rome / ¶ And on a daye amonge the other / the deuyll cryed by the mouthe of the seke man with in shorte tyme Hylaryon shall entre in to Cecylle the whyche wenyth to hyde hym / But I shall goo to him and shal manyfeste and shewe him thorugh out the londe of Cecylle / For suche is the playsure of god / ¶ Anone the same man wyth his seruauntes wente to the see came a londe in Pachumium / ¶ And lyke as the deuyll broughte hym tofore the hermytage of saynt Hylaryon And Incontynent was alle hoole / ¶ The whyche curacyon was the fyrste myracle that he made in Cecylle / ¶ And after came to hym Innumerable seke people / Of whom he refusyd many grete gyftes whyche they wolde haue gyuen to hym / ¶ Consyderynge by hym that whyche oure Sauyour sayd to his dyscyples / ¶ I haue gyuen to you grace / wythoute ony thynge to gyue therfore Gyue ye in lyke wyse wythout takynge of ony thynge / ¶ Esicius dyscyple
saynt Iherom I was well melchaunte and vnhappy / Whanne by his exhortacyons I wolde not abyde wyth hym / ¶ Whiche thynge I wolde not doo / Wenyng that he sayde soo for none other thynge but for to holde hym companye / for hys ryght singuler prouffyte / ¶ And to me departynge and takynge of hym leue He sayde to me / ¶ Ha a my sone I oughte well to be angry / For I see the deuyll whyche markyth the wyth the signe of dampned men / ¶ And lyke as the shepe that lepâ—th oute of the folde is of the wulfe rauysshed / Ryght soo was I and my companye / ¶ For in comynge from Heroa for to goo in to Edysle we were robbyd of theues / And we were bitwene thre score foure score in a companye / ¶ Emonge whom was taken a wyfe of one of my companye / â— And we were caryed vpon two camellys vnto the house of a lorde / ¶ And in goynge thyder we ete noo thynge but rawe flesshe And dranke milke of Camellis ¶ Finably we arriued and came to the house of the sayde lorde / Where I was constrayned for to saue my poore lyffe to adoure hym wyth his wyfe and his chyldren / ¶ And soo dooynge I muste knele downe on my knees tofore theym / ¶ And after for to encreace my sorowes I was putt for to kepe his shepe The whyche I kepte in suche wyse that they multeplyed in grete foyson / ¶ There I ete noo thinge but softe chese and mylke / ¶ But alwaye I prayed to god and sayde suche psalmes as I haue lerned wyth the Religiouses that I hadde lefte / ¶ The lorde of whom I hadd kepte the shepe for to rewarde me by cause that I hadd kepte theym soo well wolde haue constrayned me to take in maryage this woman the whywhiche was prysoner wyth me / ¶ And by cause I wolde not take her / But in excusynge me I sayde that I was Crysten and not she / also that her husbonde was yet lyuynge whyche was prysoner with a nother lorde / ¶ He drewe oute a swerde and wolde haue slayne me If Incontynent I had not promysed to espowse the same woman prysoner ¶ That nyghte we were shytte bothe in a grete pytte / In whyche I sayd to myselfe / ¶ Alas what hathe it prouffyted to haue lefte fader and moder / and also my countree / for to eschewe maryage yf now I marye myselfe / ¶ I suppose this aduersytee is comen to me bycause I haue desyred to retourne in to my countree ¶ Ha my soule what shal we doo / Alas I shall slee myselfe / It is better that I slee myselfe and be saued thanne for to take a wyfe in maryage and be dampned in helle euerlastyngly / ¶ After I had sayde thise wodes I toke a swerde / And sette the poynt agaynst my stomacke In sayenge to this sayde woman / ¶ O poore woman take me now martyr in maryage Otherwyse shalt thou neuer haue me to husbonde / ¶ Thenne the good woman prisoner knelyd down on her knees tofore me / and beganne to crye / Ha my frende I praye the in the name of god slee not thyselfe / To the ende that thy blood be not cause to lese myn / O yf thou wolt slee thyself / Slee thou me fyrste / And soo as Martyrs we shall be maryed / ¶ I saye to the for trouthe that whanne my husbonde shall be frohens forth wyth me· He shall neuer touche me / ¶ For from this houre forthon I make a promyse to kepe Chastytee ¶ Wherfore thenne wolt thou slee thy selfe yf thou take me in maryage / Yf it soo were that thou woldeste haue me otherwyse / I sholde rather slee myself thanne to consente to be thy wyfe / ¶ But I praye the that thou take me as to thy wife / And I shal takethe as my husbonde in clennesse in louynge my soule and hatynge my body / They shall lyghtly byleue that we ben maryed / And also we shall hastely be maryed whan they see vs loue that one that other / ¶ Thenne was I moche admerueylled of her constaunce and wisdom and louyd her better / thanne yf she hadd be my propre wife / ¶ And how well that we haue sythen lyued as husbonde and wyfe togyder longe tyme / ¶ Neuerthelesse I sawe her neuer naked ne she me Ne neuer towched the one the other / ¶ The sayd Malachye recyted and tolde also to saynt Iherom that on a tyme amonge the other like as he wente to pasture and fede the beestes / He sawe a Molle hylle full of Auntes / And longe tyme I tooke hede to the manere of theyr lyuynge / In consyderyng how some of them bare for to susteyne and to contynue theyr lyfe more gretter paste and more heuyer by the halfe thanÌ„e they were theymselfe / ¶ And he sawe some drawe after theym that whyche they myghte not bere / ¶ Consyderyng also how they were neuer ydle / ¶ And whanne one of theym came out of his hoole for to bere to ete / That other wolde neuer parte vnto that he hadde holpen to dyscharge and vnlade his felowe / ¶ The condycoÌ„n of the Aunte is suche / That whanne he beryth ony herbe hauynge grayne / By cause it sholde not growe wythin the hoole in the erth he takyth awaye the sayde grayne· for in the Garner it shold he Incontynent grene / ¶ Wyth this consydered Malchus the sayeng of Salamon / the whyche sente the slowthfull to the formices or Auntes / ¶ And in thynkynge on thise thynges / He sayde to hymselfe / lyke as saynt Iherom rehercyth / That he was the moost slouthfull of alle mankynde / ¶ And by this cause he ymagyned how he myghte escape from the seruytude where he was in for to fynde some monasterye / In whyche he myghte in seruynge god prouffytably fynysshe his dayes / ¶ Vppon this purpoos he retorned home / And cowde not hyde from his wyfe this heuynesse of his courage / The whyche after that he hadd declared and shewed to her his caas / ¶ Admonested and counseyled hym to flee by nyghte ¶ Thenne sayde the sayd Malachyas that he had in his flocke two beeres the whyche he wold fyrste slee / ¶ And of theyr two skynnes he made two sackes for to bere the flesshe of the two beeres / ¶ And whanne thys was done / He and his wyffe awayted that alle they of the howse slepte / And thenne departed and went theyr waye wythoute makynge grete noyse / And after that they hadde gone ten myle or there abowtes / They founde a Ryuer the whyche they passed prudently / ¶ For whanne they were wythin the Ryuer They wente wythin the same in descendynge well lowe fro theyr fyrste waye for to take an nother / To the ende that yf ony came for to seke them that they sholde not fynde the stappes of theyr fete / ¶ And by
/ ¶ She recounted theym to saynt Iherom / ¶ The whyche in spekynge to the sayde Heretyke and in enfourmynge hym other questyons confounded his in this manere / ¶ Fyrst saynt Iherom demaunded hym yf he byleuyd the Resurrexcōn generall / ¶ The Heretyke ansuered Ye / sowe oughte to byleue / ¶ For it is an artycle of the faythe / ¶ Secondly he demaunded yf the same body that deyed sholde ryse agayne / ¶ He ansuered Ye For it is also trouth / ¶ Thyrdly he demaunded yf the bodyes sholde aryse in the sexe or kynde in the whyche they sholde be deed / That is to wite yf the man shall aryse in the lykenesse of a man / And also in like wise the woman in lykenesse of a woman / ¶ To this demaunde or question the Heretyke ansuered nought / ¶ Saynt Iherom sayde after to him / ¶ Syth that thou wolt not ansuere I shall saye to the by manere of ansuere / ¶ That yf a man ryse not in lykenesse of a man / And a woman in lykenesse of a woman / Thenne it sholde not be Resurreccyon of theym that deyed The whiche Resurrexcyon thou grauntest to be / And also it is true / ¶ We haue prouff herof by oure lorde Ihesu Cryste / The whyche whanne he was arysen shewed his woūdes whyche he hadde receyued in the Crosse / ¶ And also whanne saynt Thomas towched him in his worthy side / ¶ Sayd not oure lorde to his dyscyples / Beholde and see my woundes / To the ende that certaynly ye byleue that I am he that hathe be crucyfyed ¶ Thenne that syth oure lorde after his Resurrexcyon was seen and towched / And that his discyples herde him speke / ¶ It aperyth cleerly thy his membres that he arose in lykenesse of a man and not of a woman / ¶ For by his membres it apperyth that he hadd a body / ¶ By cause that the body is not wythoute membres ne the membres also wythout body / ¶ Therfore it muste conclude that the men shall aryse as men / And wymmen as wymmen / ¶ As towchinge the conclusyon that the Heretyke made in sayenge That maryages oughte to be made in heuen / ¶ Saynt Iherom ansuered that there sholde be none / ¶ For oure lorde saythe that after the Resurreccyon generall shall neuer be maryage made / ¶ And by this the scrypture sayth that there shall none be maryed / And yf it be argued to be wryten that we shall be lyke to good aungellis the Proposycyon oughte to be vnderstonde that we shall be sēblable or lyke to theym in conuersacyon and blessydnesse / As is promysyd to vs. Not by nature / ¶ Saynt Iohan Baptist tofore that he was byheded was called an aungell But for that he hadde not the nature of aungellis / ¶ The symylytude or lylenesses of aungellis is oonly promysed in holynesse of lyfe / ¶ But the nature not for that shal be chaunged / ¶ Yf ony argued in sayenge that god ete after his Resurreccyon Thenne we shall ete after that we were reysed / ¶ The argumente is not prouffytable / ¶ For that whyche was done was for the approbacyon and veryfyenge of the sayyd Resurrexcyon / ¶ He also whanne he hadde Reysyd the sayde good Lazare / Whyche hadde be deed foure dayes ete wyth hym / ¶ Also the doughter of the Synagoge anone after that god hadde reysed Commaunded that mete sholde be gyuen to her / To the ende that they that sawe thise and herde of thise reysinges sholde ne myght not saye that they were bodyes fantastyke / But were very bodyes whyche hadd ben deed and reysed agayne / ¶ As towchynge the question of the chylde vexed of the deuyll whyche had not synned / ¶ And also in what aege we shall aryse / ¶ Saynt Iherom fyrste sayth that the Iugementes of god aren as a grete swolowe / ¶ His scyence is also to vs vnknowen / ¶ Neuer man knewe what god hathe in his entendemente and purpoos / ¶ Secondly ought to be noted with saynt Iherom / That a man whanne he is ten or twenty or thyrty Or a hūdred yere olde is none other than whā he is but two or thre or foure yere olde ¶ And neuerthelesse after the tradycyons and sayenges of the chyrche and the doctryne of saynt Poul / we shal ryse in the aege of perfeccyon In whyche oure lorde aroos fro thyrty to two and thyrty yeres / ¶ And in whyche aege was Adam fourmyd after that the Iewes wytnesse / ¶ In retournynge thenne to saynt Paula / And for to speke of her entendemente sayth saynt Iherom that ofte she kepte and obserued the commaundement that sayth Andi israhel ettace That is to saye ¶ Man here and bestylle / For the good lady Paula was well lyghte to here / And slowe to speke / ¶ She was curyous and besie to haue bokes of holy scrypture / And radde theym gladly / ¶ And for better to prouffyte in theym / She constrayned saynt Iherom to expowne to her the olde Testamente and the newe / ¶ But whanne for ony doubtes he differred to expowne to her certayne proposycyons / Sayenge to her that he cowde not expowne theym / She wolde not byleue hym / ¶ But by contynuell Interrogacyons and desyres she constrayned him to expowne theym after the Sentence moost apparent or lykely and after trouthe and good sens / ¶ Her vnderstondynge was soo grete that she lerned of saynt Iherom the Ebrewe tongue / In suche wyse that she songe the psalmes of the Psaulter in Ebrewe tongue / And songe noo more in latyn / ¶ After that we haue recyted of her holy lyfe conuersacōn that is to saye of her gloryous departing oute of this worlde ¶ Whanne the good lady saynt Paula felte that she had no more hete but a lytyll in her stomack / ¶ She beganne to saye thyse wordes that folowe in wepynge and wayllynge bytterly ¶ O my god I haue desyred the beaultee of thy heuen and glory / ¶ O lorde that thy Tabernacles and dwellynge places ben fayre shynynge / O lorde god I haue more desire to be in thy hous that is in the chyrche than to dwelle with them of the worlde ¶ Anone after she cessed to speke saynt Iherom seeng that she ansuerd not to ony thyng that he demaunded or asked of her / ¶ He asked why she ansuered not / ¶ And yf she hadde in her herte ony heuynesse or gryef / ¶ The goode lady ansuered in Greke / Naye / but she sawe alle Ioyousete and gladnesse / ¶ After she spake noo more / But sygned her wyth the sygne of the Crosse / ¶ There were dyuerse bysshoppis as well of Iherusalem as of other places And wyth theim were grete nombre of preestes and Innumerable companyes of vyrgynes and Relygyouses / ¶ In presence of whom she herde oure lorde / whiche callyd her sayenge / ¶ Come to me my
growe in the places nyghe vnto his habytacyon in whyche he dwellyd after by the space of .xvi. yeres / ¶ Thenne it happed that his sayde fame and renomÌ„ee spradde ouer all the countree / ¶ And was soo agreable to the people that they made to hym two chyrches in whyche he dwellyd yet by the space of foure yere / ¶ The whiche yeres passed he diâ—e many grete miracles In helynge by his prayers many that were dombe / Some demonyakes Blynde· deyf Lazars and other sekenesses / ¶ Moche people as well Sarrasyns as PersauÌ„s and of other ferre regyons herynge the bruyte of his vertuous renommee camen to hym / as well for to serue hym and honoure hym / as for to receyue the faythe catholyke of hyÌ„ ¶ He beyng in the sayd place the deuyl apered to hyÌ„ in the forme of a shynynge angel· beyng in a charyot whyche was coÌ„duyted ladde by the strengthe of horses all enflamed the whiche lyghted al the place where as saynt Symeon was / To whom the deuyll began to saye thise wordes Symeon take hede to that whiche god sendith to the by me / I am come hyder for to ranyssh that in this charyot / as was the gode prophete Helye Thy tyme is comen / Come vppe wyth me her in / To the ende that thou come in to paradyse / ¶ Where as ben the aungels accompanyenge the moder of god / the Appostles and alle the heuenly courte / ¶ And dyfferre it not / For I woll retorne to heuen / ¶ Saynt Symeon full of humylyte prudence that somwhat was disceyued made his prayer to god in sayenge / Helas my Redemer me that am a poore synnar Wylt thou rauysshe in to heuen ¶ And in sayenge thyse wordes he lyfte vppe his ryghte foote and his honde also for to mounte and goo vppe in to the charyott / ¶ But fyrste he made the signe of the Crosse vppon the sayd charyot / ¶ And Incontynent it vanysshed alle awaye / Where by he knewe that it was the deuyll whyche wolde haue disceyued hym / Wherof he was moche abasshed / ¶ And by cause that his righte foote was ouer redy to ascende in the sayde charyot / He made it to bere penaunce ¶ For he was an hoole yere vpon a pyler hauynge oonly one fote on the erthe / And there susteyned hym but one fote / ¶ There engendred a postom in his legge out of whyche fell downe grete multytude of vermyn aswell vppon the pyler as vpon the grounde / ¶ Now he had wyth hym a yonge discyple namyd Anthonye whiche after wrote his lyfe The whyche in obeyenge the commaundement of the sayd saynt Symeon gadred toke to hym the sayd vermyn that fyll fro the sayd apostome / that whyche he puttynge theym in to the sore sayenge to theym thexample of Iob ¶ Take ye ete that god hath sent to you / ¶ Bazylle kyng of the SarrasyÌ„s herynge the fame of his holy life transported hymself for to se hym ¶ And he beynge comen founde hym prayenge to god ¶ But in soo dooynge fell downe a worme from his sore vpon the same kynge / ¶ The whyche meuyd of a feruent deuocyon that he had to the holy man tooke the same worme and layed vppon his eyen / ¶ Saynt Symeon repreuynge hym askyd hym wherfore he hadde soo doo sayenge to hym that it was noo thynge but a worme / To whom the same kinge ansuered that it was noo worme but it was a precious stone / And soo it was verely / ¶ For by myracle and by the grete faythe of the sayd kynge the sayd worme in his honde was conuerted in to a precyous stone namyd Margaryte ¶ And therwith departed the good kynge replenysshyd in good faythe / ¶ And toke leue of the holy fader Symeon / ¶ Longe tyme after his moder herde tydynges of hym And came to hys chyrche for to se hym / ¶ But by cause that wyÌ„men neuer entred in where as he was / The good holy man whyche had herde and well vnderstonde the voys of his moder dyde doo saye and prayed her / that she wolde haue a lytyl pacience and that in short tyme by the playsur of god they shold eche of them se other That seeng his moder begun to wepe sayng to hyÌ„ / Helas my sone this is the receyuyng rewarde that thou dost to me for to haue born that in my beli haue yeuen the swete mylke out of my pappes after so swetly haue norisshed / Certain I haue done pore nourysshyÌ„g whan in stede to receyue me thou yeuest to me wepyÌ„ge waylyÌ„ge / Helas who shold not wepe that heryth her sone thus speke to his moder / ¶ Whanne the holy man herde the lamentacyons of his moder / He began to wepe as strongely as she dyde / And after he sayde to her swetely wythoute to see her face / ¶ My lady my moder wepe no more For I promyse you that wythin shorte tyme we shall se eche other / ¶ His moder not contente of hys ansuere prayed for to se hym more thaÌ„ tofore / sayenge / ¶ My sone I praye the in the name of hym that hath formyd the. syth that I haue be soo long out of thi presence that now I maye se the. or that I maye more playnly here thy voys / or elles I am deed / ¶ Thynke how thy fader is deed for loue of the / Helas my sone· doo not so that I deye in this heuynesse / ¶ Thyse wordes sayde she slepte as heuy sore gryeuyd / For thre dayes thre nightes she had contynuelly prayed for to se hym / ¶ ThenÌ„e saynt Symeon beganne to praye god for her / And Incontynent she rendred vpp her soule to god ¶ That done the dede corps was born tofore the holy man / that whyche made his prayer to god for her sayenge / ¶ My god I praye the to take the soule of my good moder / the whyche hath endured somoche sorowe for me anone the body of his moder began to moue in the presence of all the assystentis / ¶ And after saynt Symeon made an other prayer sayenge / My god whyche syttyst in trone aboue Cherubyns and that seest cleerly all thynges vnto thabbysmes lowest places / And Adam tofore he was born whyche haste promysed thy reame to theym that loue the. the spakeste to Moyses in thenflaÌ„med busshe gauest thy benedyccoÌ„n to AbrahaÌ„ Whiche puttest the soules of good persones in eternall glorye them of euyl lyfe in perpetuell fyre ¶ And also that gauest refeccoÌ„n to Helye by two crowes Now receyue the soule of my moder wyth the holy faders lyke as onely thou mayst doo none other / ¶ After this prayer accomplysshed he ne lyued but .xvi. yere / ¶ In the tyme nyhe vnto his monastery towarde the partyes of the Northe dwellyd a dragon whyche was soo venemous that there aboute as he was grewe
transitory and maye no lenger dure thanne foure score yere / Thou knoweste also that the worldly rychesses and the vanytee of this worlde arn noo thynge but a lytyll wynde / ¶ But the rychesses of heuen ben alwaye durable perpetuel / ¶ Now my syster thou oughtest to knowe that all they that louen dysordynatly the honoures of thys worlde ben pryued from the goodes of heuen / ¶ And ofte the rychesse worldly possessyons ben cause of the confusyon and vtterly dystruccyon of theim that haue theym / ¶ His wyfe herynge thyse wordes sayd to hym / What playsyth that that we doo / CoÌ„maunde thy good playsure and I shall accomplysshe it ¶ For thy wyll is myne That whyche thou wolte I woll / ¶ Antigonius ansueryd We haue a doughter god be thankyd / And we oughte to be contente that one wyth that other wythout to haue affectyon to lyue emonge the voluptuosytees of this worlde / ¶ Thenne his wyfe lyfted vpp her hondes to heuen in sayenge / O my lorde loue blessyd be our lorde that hath made the worthy to knowe thyne helthe / ¶ Truely my loue I haue many tymes prayed god / that he wolde humble the. and torne thyne entendemente to wyll to flee thy flesshely coÌ„cupyscences worldly / But I neuer durste declare to the ony thynge therof for the grete fere gode loue that I had to the / ¶ And for asmoche as thy wyll is suche / Lete vs departe of our temporell goodes to the ende that they be not cause to make vs descende in to helle / ¶ Other holsom reasons the lady gaaf to Antigonius her husbond the whiche herof praysynge thankynge god with all his herte Dystrybuted the gretest parte of his goodes to the poore people / ¶ And after lyued not but one yere wyth his good lyfe holy vertuouse in perfyghte deuocyon· chastytee contynence / ¶ Of his dethe was moche sorowfull the emperour whyche was of hys kynÌ„e and also alle the Romayns for the grete vertues that were in hym / And also for the pyte that they hadd of his wyfe Eufraxe whiche had not bâ— but .ij. iij monethes wyth hym / ¶ After that he was buryed the good lady Eufraxe toke her doughter also namyd Eufraxe And presented her to the Emperour to her frendes sayenge ¶ O souerayne emperour and ye alle my lordes frendes I put in to your hondes this poore Orphelyne Humbly you supplyenge that in fauoure contemplacyon of the gode very loue that ye had to her fader Antigonius it wolde playse you to doo her to be Instructe and taughte in gode maners vertues And to be to her gode faders conduytours / ¶ The lordes herynge this pyteuous requeste were in contynent moeuyd to wepynge waylynge / ¶ And a lytyll after that they had resprysed theyr spyrytes the emperour desyred counseylled the good lady that she sholde consente to the maryage of her fayr doughter / of one of the Senatours the rychest of alle the other / ¶ To the whyche she accorded / And the sayde doughter receyued ernest of the maryage / ¶ But after by cause that the sayde doughter atte that tyme that the sayde Maryage was treated / was but fyue yere olde / And that the senatoure was greuyd to abyde tyll that she were suffysaunte of aege for to accomplysshe the sayde maryage / ¶ He concluded to demaunde the moder to his wyfe / ¶ And for to come to his entencyon / He sente notable ladyes to the Emperesse for to labour that the moder wolde take to husbonde the sayde Senatour / The whyche thynge the sayde Emperesse and the sayde ladyes supposyd to haue made and accomplysshed it ¶ But the good lady wydowe wolde neuer in that maner leue her â—eâ—e to here it / But repreâ—yd theym angrely In shewynge to theym the grete Inconuenyent in whyche they wolde brynge her That is to wyte in desyrynge her to leue the way of helthe for to take the worldely waye for to brynge her to eternal dampnacyon / And emonge other wordes she sayde to the emperesse / ¶ A madame to what thynge woll ye Induce me Alas whanne I was wyth my husbonde that was I kepte chastytee And ye labour to me that I sholde folowe the amorouse wymmen I shall neuer doo it / ¶ The emperour induertysed of the enterpryse of his wyfe was euyll contentent wyth her sayenge thyse wordes ¶ Come hyther my wyfe ye be wel presumptuous to woll breke the maryage whyche hath be soo honestely begonne ¶ Ne knowe ye not that oure cosyn kynnes woman Eufraxe woll lede a solytary lyfe / ¶ Haue ye now forgoten the loue that ye had to her husbonde whan he lyued / Woll ye now doo hym Iniurye / ¶ Alas yf ye haue louyd hym whyle he lyned ye oughte after his deth to loue his wyfe whyche is soo good and Iuste / ¶ The emperesse herynge thyse wordes was soo moche trowbled that she was two houres wythoute spekynge and semyd to be deed / ¶ The good Eufraxe knowynge thyse tydynges / was in lyke wyse wrothe Doubtynge that it sholde be layed to her that she sholde be cause of the dyscencyon of the emperoure of his wyfe in suche wyse that she myghte be in daunger of deth ¶ And in waylynge wepynge she sayd to her doughter ¶ Lete vs goo in to Egypte my dere doughter we haue there many londes and possessyons whyche I shall leue vnto the. For alle that I haue is thyne / And soo they wente in to the londe of Egypte / ¶ They â—eynge there arryued vysyted her londes possessyons And fynably came in to the partyes of Thebayde where they dyde many almesses to the monasteries relygyons / ¶ And emonge all other they came to a Relygyon of wymmen in a towne wherin were an hundred thâ—â—ty monasteryes of relygyouses / ¶ There some ete no apples ne fygges ne draÌ„ke no wyne The other ete noo oyle ne other lycour Other fasted an hole day Other wysshe noo fete / And whanne ony spake to theym they were abasshyd ¶ They laye on the erthe and ware euery daye the heyt / ¶ And yf by aduenture one of theym were syke / there was noo medycyne gyuen to her ¶ But the sykenesse that she hadde was reputed for a benedyccoÌ„n of god ¶ They wente neuer out of the monasterye but they hadde a Portiere the whyche gaaf ansuere to alle theym that came thyder / Eufraxe knowynge the honeste and deuowte conuersacyon of the sayde Relygyouses vysyted theym ofte And gaue them lyght to the chyrche for to doo the seruyce of god / ¶ On one daye emonge the other Eufraxe spake to thabbesse and to the pryÌ„cypallis of the monasterye And sayde to theym / My good ladyes I woll yeue to you twenty or thyrty pouÌ„de of golde of reuenue for and to the ende that it wolde playse you
somoned to her maryage / ¶ And dyde doo assemble all the sisters for to chese an other Abbesse / And they chose one namyd Theogenye / ¶ And after that she was made Abbesse / She callyd her and sayde / My sister thou seest that the sisters haue made good wytnesse of the. And therfore I commaunde the in the name of the Trynite that thou thinke not on temporel godes ne on vayne playsauÌ„ce of this worlde / Ne suffre thy systers be occupied on erthly thynges But make theym to excersyse fastynges prayers and other vertuouse werkes / To the ende that they maye by theyr merytes gete the glorye of heuen / ¶ After she sayde to her systers Ye my good systers haue seen the holy conuersacyon of the ryght deuowte Eufraxe / Doo ye lyke as she hathe doon / to then de that ye maye accompanye her in heuen / And haue wyth her the fruycyon of euerlastynge blessydnesse / And whan she hadde thus sayde she entred in to her Oratorye / and shytte the dore / And after defended that none sholde entere tyll on the morne ¶ On the morn they came vnto the sayde Oratorye and founde that she hadde rendred her spyryte to god ¶ And they buryed and sayed her solempnely by the sayde holy saynt Eufraxe / ¶ And after that tyme there were non moo of theym buryed in the yr sepulâ—ure / ¶ Maâ—ty Demonyakes weâ—en guarysshed vppon the combe where the deuylles cryed ¶ O Eufraxe what shall we doo / Thou doost vs more harme after thy dethe thanne in thy lyte ¶ By thâ—se thynges we oughte to enforce vs to ensyewe by vertuous werkes the ryght persyghte lyte of saynt Eufraxe And in soo dooynge fynably we shall haue the glorye eternall The whyche by her Intercessyons we maye gete Amen ¶ Thus fynysshyth the story of saynt Eufraxe / ¶ Of saynt Machanâ— Romayne whiche was founde nyght by Paradys terrestre / And begynnyth in latyn ¶ Gloriam et magnificentiam et cetera Caplm .xlviii. After the reporte and wytnesse of thre deuoute relygyous men Theophyle Serguis Thymus We shall see of the lyfe of saynt Machaire / ¶ The sayd thre relygyous men mette togyder by a monasterye in Mesopotamia in the countree of Syâ—t bytwene two floodes / Of whyche that one is named Eufraxes and that other Tygris / ¶ The Abbot of the sayd monastery was callyd Asclypyon the whiche receyued theym benygnely for to make there theyr professyon after the rule of the sayde monasterye / ¶ Longe tyme after that they hadde lyued comyÌ„ly wyth the brethern / ¶ On a daye aboute nyne of the clocke in the mornynge they mette togyder vpon the Ryuer of Eufrates in disputynge of the conuersacyon and of the grete laboure of the brethern of the sayde monastery / ¶ And thenÌ„e came to Theophile a thought Whyche he sayde to his two felowes Sergius and Thâ—mus ¶ My brethern I shall saye to you / Truly it play syth me / and I haue grete desyre to walke and goo soo ferre vnto that I maye fynde the heuen and the erthe Ioyne togyder / ¶ The other sayd / We haue holde the alwaye companye / And yet we shall not leue the / For thy maners and thy wordes playse vs. We shall goo with the. and not forsake the vnto the dethe ¶ Thyse wordes sayde they departed from thens ¶ And after that they had gone by the space of ten dayes Iourney They arryued and came to the cyte of Iherusalem / And worshypped the places where our lorde Ihesus Cryst had be ¶ His Crosse his sepulture and other sayntuaryes ¶ And after came to Bethleem in whiche place they also worshipped the cribbe where in oure lorde hadde layen and were also in the place where the aungelus spekynge to the Shepeherdes songen Gloria in excelsis deo the whyche place standyth two myle from Bethleem ¶ And after they wente vpp in to the mounte of Olyuete Where as our lorde Ihesu Cryste ascended in to heuen whanne he was receyued in a clowde the daye of his gloryous Ascencyon / ¶ They came agayne in to Iherusalem And there adoured and worshyped god ¶ And after they departed as people gyuynge ouer refusynge all delyers temporell Wythoute to haue ony regarde ne thoughte to the worlde / ¶ The fyfthe daye they passed the Ryuer of Tygris / And entred in to the londe of Perse ¶ They came in to a grete felde namyd Assya / In whyche saynt Mercure martyr slewe Iulyan the Apostata / ¶ After they reentred in to a cyte namyd Catyssefodo / In whyche the bodyes of the thre chyldren Anany as Azaryas and Mysaell ben buryed / ¶ And there they soiourned many dayes / ¶ Foure monethes after they passed the londe of Perse / And entred in to the londe of Inde / And aryued in an how se in whyche noo man dwellyd / ¶ And there they abode two dayes / ¶ And the thyrde daye they sawe come to them a man and a woman armyd / Of whom they had grete drede / ¶ But by cause that the sayd man and woman hadde supposyd that the relygyouse men had ben spyrytes or espyes and retorned agayne / And asseÌ„bled almost a thre thou sande Ethyopyens / The whyche arryued there and bylette the house al aboute where as they weren on theyr knees prayenge to god / ¶ And the other sette fyre atte the foure corners of the howse ¶ The whyche thynge knowen by the religyous men were moche aferde and not wythoute cause / And sprongen out in to the myddes of theym in callynge the name of Ihesu Cryste Sauyoure of alle the worlde / ¶ The sayde Ethyopyens after that they hadde longe parlemented togyder in theyr langage whiche the sayd freres vnderstode noo thynge / ¶ Fynably they lad theym· and broughte theym in pryson obscure and derke / ¶ Alas whanne they weren in pryson none gaaf to them nother mete ne drinke / And had noo comforte of ony man liuynge But beganne to wepe and requyred the mercy of god / ¶ Whanne the cursyd Ethyopyens sawe that they were in contynuell prayer / They lete theym goo oute In chacynge and betinge theym vylandusly rygoryously wyth grete staues tyll they were oute of theyr prouynce / ¶ And they sayd that thei were foure score dayes wythoute mete And herof the Recytour callyth god to wytnesse / The whyche for the honour of god we oughte pyteuously to byleue ¶ Fynably they departed oute of theyr Regyons / And wente towarde the couÌ„treye of the Eest Where they founde a felde delycyous alle full of trees berynge sauourous fruyte and merueyllouse swete Wherof they thankyd god / And ete alle theyr fylle of the fruytes of the sayde trees / And after passed the sayde londe of Iude. And entred in to the londe of Chanane ¶ Whanne they sawe the vysages of the Inhabytauntes of the sayde countreye / They were moche admerueyled ¶ In that countree the men
thynge for deuocyon But to the ende for to enryche theym wyth goodes and rychesses of the chyrche for to lyue atte theyr playsure God knowyth what shall be the ende ANd folowynge thenne the doctryne and tethynge that Pastumyen gaaf to his Religyouses ¶ He commaunded theym ferthermore to loue not oonly the one that other But to loue god pryncypally wyth all theyr herte / That was the fyrste commaundement that god gaaf to Moyses in the moutayne of Synay / ¶ But wyth the same commaundement must be Ioyned the lone that we oughte to haue that one wyth a nother / ¶ Whanne alle Relygyouses louen eche other / and god pryncypally and fyrste / Yet muste they haue the vertue of obedyence / ¶ Loue wythoute obedyence is noo thynge ¶ For lyke as the grasse lettyth the corne to fructefye and encreace / In lyke wyse who that is in obedient and fastyth and prayeth / bryngyth fourth noo fruyte for fawte of obedyence / ¶ After he commaunded theym to excercyse the nyghtes in prayers / ¶ For by nyghte the deuyll makyth moo lettynges to deuowte persones thanne he dooth in the daye Lyke as the Gospel saythe / ¶ Who woll doo euyll Hatyth lyghte / ¶ And to this purpoos sayth the Gospell Awake awake For ye know not the howre whanne the theyf of the soules woll come / ¶ He commaunded theym also that they sholde wryte in a Table of theyr conscyences all the commaundementes of god / And that ofte they sholde laye the clothe for to take refeccyon spyrytuell in sauourynge and etynge the ten loues composyd of the ten commaundementes of the fayth ¶ The twelue artycles of the lawe / And the werkes of mercy / ¶ More ouer he sayde / O ye my brethern / whyche desyre to be very obedyent and charytable to loue eche other / byleue ye after the sentence of Baruth the prophete whyche sayth / that ye ben now the felowes of god / ¶ And in a nother place the holy scrypture sayth well happy â—en the peasyble For they ben the sones of god / ¶ Now they that ben peasyble ben obedyent and charytable / ¶ They thene that shall desyre in this corruptyble world to enioye the fruytes of heuen / He muste renounce and forsake his propre wyll in hauynge perfyghâ—e charyte / ¶ After he coÌ„maunded theym yf they hadde amonge theym ony dyscencyon or debate / that Incontynente it sholde be appeasyd / For god oure lorde dwellyth ne abydeth but in one place of peas / ¶ And the contrarye where as is dyssencyon the deuyll regnyth ¶ And ferthermore he deffended them that they neuer sholde be angry ne wrothe ne to theyr brethern ne to straungeres / ¶ And that for ony gayne of the worlde that they myghte gete They sholde not oâ—cupye theym wyth temporell thynges But oonly in werkes spyrytuell By the whyche they myghte lyghtely gete the herytage of the Reame of heuen / ¶ And whanne ony temptacyons sholde come to theym the whyche with grete payne the ymyghte eschewe / ¶ He admonested theym to torne to god / In lyf tynge theyr hondes to heuen And sayenge ¶ O my god I pray the that it playse the to helpe me / And to enforce my poore freyltee to the ende that I maye vaynquysshe and surmounte my mortall enemye / ¶ And he sayde that anone after oure prayer made to god Comen his aungellis to oure ayde for to comforte vs / ¶ And for to proue thys thynge to be true He tolde thenÌ„e to theym that on a tyme. he beynge on a mountayne came tofore hym a grete companye of deuyllis in lyckenesse of men humayne And bi cause that by the will of god he knewe well that they were deuylles / He all resoluyd / And wythoute hauynge ony drede kneled downe on the erthe in prayenge god that it wolde playse hym to make the same deuylles to departe / ¶ And Incontynent they vanysshed awaye as a fume or a smoke tofore the wynde / ¶ Many other temptacions the deuylles made to hym But god delyuered hym alwaye by the deuowte prayers that he made / ¶ Therfore in concludynge he sayde to his Relygyouses / My chyldren be ye ferme and stable in the faythe in resystynge the deuylles temptacyons / And that ye ben clymynge by feruente charyte to the loue of god / The whyche in soo dooenge he shall to you be alwaye a protectour / And by his helpe ye maye gete the reame of heuen / ¶ Thus endyth the storye of the ryght holy man Pastumyen ¶ Here folowyth of saynt Onuffryen Heremyte / And begynnyth in latyn Beate memorie paphoncius et cetera / Caplm .l. SAynt Phaphunce hauynge desyre for to vysyte alle the Relygyouses that weren in the hermytages for to accomplysshe the helth of his body more lyghtly his waye bare wyth him a lityll water and brede / ¶ And whanne he hadde walked by the space of foure dayes his vytaylle faylled him / And became all confusyd and halfe deed By cause he was soo feble that he hadde neytheyr foote ne legge that myghte susteyne hym / by cause he had neyther to ete ne to drynke / ¶ But neuerthelesse he was by the helpe of god made alle hoole and guarysshed / And hadde as moche strength as though he hadde well eten and dronken / ¶ And thenne beganne to walke agayne And contynued soo foure dayes without mete and drynke ¶ The sayd foure dayes passed / by cause he felte hymselfe feble / He was constrayned to lye downe on the erthe as he hadde be deed / ¶ And he lyenge on the erthe Sodaynly sawe by hym a man in merueyllous glory ferdfull and terryble in shynynge / Worthy of prasynge in beawte / Longe of corpulence and right clere of regarde / Whom Paphunce seenge hadde grete fere but anone after he comforted hym / ¶ For in approchyng towched his lyppes and his houdes / And restored and gauf to hym strengthe / ¶ And Incontynent aroos vpp and walkyd seuentene dayes after tyll he came to a place where as god wolde brynge hym ¶ To whyche place he came and saw a man as he rested hauynge his face terryble all coueryd wyth heer lyke as a brute beest / ¶ And fro the raynes downe alowe he hadde a vestement of leues and of herbes / ¶ Whanne Paphunce sawe thys man soo deformyd / He was sore abasshyd / And not wythoute cause / ¶ For he hadde neuer seen suche lyckenesse of man ne of woman and wyst not what to doo But fledde in to a mountayne whyche was nyghe to that place And there hydde hym vnder the braunches of the trees / He was soo sore aferde / ¶ And there he beganne to syghe merueyllously ¶ Knowynge that by cause of his aege and abstynence he myghte goo noo ferther / ¶ This man seenge that Paphunce was fledde tofore him / and that he was aferde came nyghe to hym And callynge and cryenge with an hyghe
Infamyd ryght myserable and lyar of alle lyars / syth that thou knoweste theym that ben happy humble seruauntes of god Wherfore ye ueste thou to theym heuynesse and lettynges that they may not doo theyr penaunces suche as they desyred / ¶ The deuyll ansuered that the cause wherfore he trowbled the seruauntes of god / was to th ende that they sholde leue theyr gode conuersacyons and abandonne and gyue theym to synne / ¶ ThenÌ„e the holy man sayde to hym / Thynkeste thou spyrite Infamyd that they that ben ferme in the loue of IhuÌ„ Cryst may be deceyued by thy suggestions Thou deceyuest none but theym that ben vnhappy And ben contente to doo thy wyll / And that worse is they done payne to synne mortally / ¶ Thou knowest whan the seruauntes of god ben assaylled of the / That by one prayer that they make to god thou arte constrayned to flee / And Incontynent as the holy man hadd sayd thyse wordes / The deuyll fledde awaye as a raye or beme of the sonne ¶ Yet agayne fyue dayes after came the deuyll And made in the ayre a noyse / as he hadde hadd a grete multytude of people / That one sayeng to that other ¶ Lete vs goo and throw Abraham into a dyche and putte hym to dethe / ¶ The good holy man whanne he herde thyse wordes sayede / ¶ The enmyes of god haue gone rounde abowte me as flyes or bees and ben enforcyd agaynst me as fyre in thornes ¶ Alle be done in the name of god our lorde Ihesu Cryste / For by the puyssaunce dyuyne I shall vaynquysshe the cursyd deuyll / ¶ After that the enmye had herde thyse wordes of the sayde good holy man / He beganne to crye sayenge / Helas Helas I knowe noo more by what manere ne by what moyen the to dysceyue I knowe now that I am dysceyued / Neuerthelesse I shall neuer departe fro the vnto the tyme thou rendre thyself to be my subgette / ¶ Thenne the holy man ansuered to hym Maledyccyon come to the / Glory be gyuen vnto god and noo thynge vnto the / ¶ Thou knoweste that our sauyoure and redemptour Ihesus gyuethe to alle his true seruauntes strength to fyght agaynst the. and knowlege of thy dysceyuable temptacyons and mockynges for to kepe them from thy mortall and dampnable grynnes ¶ By many assawtes was assailed the holy man Abraham of the deuyll oure enmye But of what some euer temptacyon that he was tempted wyth He neuer fered ne doubted / but hadde alwaye stedfaste faythe / ¶ And of soo moche more as he was tempted vexid and traueylled of the deuyll / Of soo moche more he augmented his charytee towarde god / Wherfore fro day to day encrecyd his grace / ¶ And by that lyghtly by the helpe of god he suppedyted and put vnder fote the deuyll / ¶ Whanne the holy man apperceyued that the tresoure of grace was to hym ottroyed and gyuen He took thre precyous stones / Of whyche the fyrste was Faythe The seconde Hope / And the thirde Charyte To the ende that by thyse thre the other vertues mighte be decorate and made fayre / ¶ His charyte was soo grete that it stratched not oonly to good men / For whom he prayed affectuously / to the ende that the deuyll sholde not greue ne noye theym / But also he desired the conuersyon of the euyll peple in prayenge in lyke wyse for theym And in wepynge grete habundauÌ„ce of teeres / ¶ To the ende that god wolde dyuerte theym from theyr euyll lyfe / and tourne theym to the waye of helthe / ¶ He neuer laughed / And neuer after his conuersion wysshe his feete ne his hondes· ne his vysage / Estemynge euery daye that he sholde deye / ¶ He had his vysage not lyke the floure that neuer dryeth / ¶ And in seenge hym by his vysage· he sholde be Iuged to be a vessell full of alle vertues· ¶ Alwaye he was Ioyeous wythoute heuynesse / ¶ And for that cause atte houre of his dethe he was Iuged neuer to haue doo penaunce soo moche was his visage fayte and rodye / ¶ And that more is in fyfty yere he chaunged not his garment of hayre / Whiche he toke and hadde worne syth he beganne to doo penaunce fyrste / By the whyche thynges it apperyd euydently that he was strongely the frende of god / ¶ A nother myracle dide the holy man Abraham in his olde aege / He hadde a cosyn germayn / Whiche departed oute of this worlde and deyed leuynge after hym a doughter seuen yere of aege / ¶ The frendes of the sayde chylde secuge that she had neyther fader ne moder / broughte her to the holy man / where as she was enclosyd nyghe by to a wyndowe whyche was on the syde of his lytyll house And by the same wyndowe he taughte to her the Psaulter other holy scryptures / ¶ And there in soo dooyng and sayenge Ympnes and psalmes they were longe togyder / In suche wyse / that in alle abstynences the yonge mayde ensyewed her vncle Abraham / The whiche seeng the good way and wyll by her begon / He deuowtely wythoute cessynge prayed god for her / To the ende that he wolde gyue to her suche grace that she neuer solde retourne to the worlde And that her thoughte sholde haue none affeccyon to worldly thynges / ¶ For he hadde therof grete doubte by cause that her fader hadde lefte to her grete plentee of goodes temporell / ¶ The whyche goodes Abraham seenge her grete prudence and perfeccyon made theym to be dystrybuted to the pore people / In prayeng god that the deuylles by theyr subtyll suggestyons myghte haue noo power to chaunge her from her good purpoos / ¶ Soo contynued longe tyme the goode mayde in the rule that her vncle had gyuen to her / ¶ And she hadde in her soo grete constaunce that in twenty yeres he founde not her varyable / But obeyssaunte as a yonge lambe or shepe / ¶ Durynge this tyme. the deuyll whiche slepyth not ymagyned many subtyll meanes by whyche he myghte dysceyue theym / ¶ And by cause he cow â—e in noo wyse come to his entente / He dyde do begyle and disceyued her by a myserable Relygyous / The whyche were ofte to vysite the sayd good man Abraham Faynynge soo to doo for the saluacyon of his soule / ¶ But the cursyd Relygyous man tempted of the deuyll vnder the shadow of deuocion He wente for to defoyle the sayd vyrgyn / And soo longe he contynued by the space of a yere that he drewe her oute of her Oratorye / ¶ And by cause that in suche caas the lasse to knowe and expresse is beste and mooste honeste / It suffyseth to wryte that the poore doughter was defoylled / ¶ And that after the synne commysed and done / she became soo sorowfull and desolate that vneth maye be expressyd and wryten her
also yf thou be otherwyse dysposyd / I wyll not kepe the by force ¶ The rule of the very Relygyouses is for to forsake alle togyder the worlde and to flee all worldly conuersacyons / ¶ And therfore he that wolde saye my fader my moder arn my blode I ought to loue them / He must take hede to saynt Poul that sayth / WhosoÌ„euer that shal be ouercom by the flesshe he shal be seruaunt to the flesshe / And in effecte euery body becomyth thrall vnto hym of whom he letyth hymselfe to be broughte vnder fote / ¶ His moder seenge that she myghte not speke with hyÌ„ purposed to dwell wyth the virgynes that had theyr place nyghe the sayde monastery where her sone was a Relygouse Hopynge by goddis grace that she sholde see hym amonge the other Relygyouses / And also that in this dooynge she sholde purchase some mede to the saluacyon of her soule / durynge the tyme that she were in the monastery wyth the sayde vyrgynes / ¶ And by this that is sayde apperyth openly / that to kepe some tyme Rygoure in the worshypp of Ihesu Cryste and not for noo praysyng ne vaynglory is ofte cause of grete goodes to theim agaynst the whiche men ben Rigorouse How be it that for a shorte space of tyme it semyth theym that men haue offended theym / ¶ Of many reprouyd Relygyouses / To the chapytre begynnynge in latyn ¶ Igitur sicut / Caplm lxxxiii AAfter that we haue seen of the maners and vertues of many vertuouse and holi Freres consequently we shall see the necligence of some reprouyd Relygyouses that folowen after theyr flesshely appetyte oute of al good rule / The whyche gaaf grete malencolyes to saynt Pachomyen / By cause that for noo manere of monycyon ne warnynges that he made to theym they wolde not retorne theym / Wherby the holy man was wonderfully sorowful and heuy / ¶ And complaynynge hym to god he sayd / ¶ O my god that haste lordshypp ouer alle the worlde / Thou commaundest vs to loue oure euyn crysten / And therfore my god that knowest my wyll and the secrete of my conscyence / I praye the that thou wolt not dispyse my oryson The whyche ofte I haue made vnto the for thyse wretchydfull Relygyouses to the ende that thou haue of theym pyte and mercy in gyuynge to theym thy drede reuerently / And grace to knowe thy dyuyne puyssaunce for to obeye and serue the / Hauynge in the onÌ„ly wythout ony other the stedfaste hope of theyr saluacoÌ„n / ¶ Truely my soule is feblyd and tourmented soo moche and all my wâ—ttes trowblyd of theyr abhomynable lyuynge and Innyquyte / ¶ The holy man seenge they wold not amende theym / He made yet agayne prayers vnto god for theym / And after gaaf to theym certayn smale easy rules to lerne theym to honour praye god / To the entente that lytyll and lytyll they myghte accustome theym to doo well / And amende theyr lyfe / ¶ Ferdermore seenge that they coude not accoÌ„plisshe theyr delectacyons and playsures wythstondynge the contynuell denyenge of saynt Pachomyen / That suffred theym neuer goo oute of the monastery for to playse theyr wyckyd wylles / They for loke the monastery and ensyewed the deuyll theyr lorde and mayster / ¶ And after that the other Relgyouses were more desyroê° in the loue of god thanne afore / ¶ For thus as the corne whanne it is weded from the euyll herbes groweth and multyplyeth the better / ¶ In lyke wyse whanne in a felyshypp of folke peasyble are some vycyouse men / It is of necessyte to throwe theym oute from the other / ¶ And by this it is seen that to a man gyuen to the worlde auayllyth hym not to be a Relygyous / For his professyon shall doo hym noo prouffyte yf he be neclygente to kepe the Rules of his Relygyon / ¶ In lyke wyse a prayer prouffyteth not that is made for theym that ben aslepe in theyr synnes yf they helpe not to awake theymself / ¶ How Relygyouses of other monasteryes comynge to vysyte the monastery of saynt Pachomien were not receyued in to the sayd place amonge the dwellers / And begynnyth in latyn ¶ Confessor c. Caplm lxxxiiii THere was a preest named Denys that was Confessour Prouysor and admynystratour of of the chyrche of the Centyryens / And well byloued of the holy man Pachomyen / ¶ The whyche Denys knowynge and aperceyuynge that this holy man defferred and putt of for to gadre wythin his monasterye wyth hys brethern the Relygyouses that camen to hym from other monasterys / But made theyr necessytees to be admynystred to theym by theymselfe and wythoute the gates of his monastery / Reproued hym sharply in sayenge to hym / That he dyde not well to doo soo / ¶ The holy man tooke and resceyued benygnely his correcyon / And answeryd to hym ¶ My brother and frende god knowyth my wyll and myn entencyon / And also he knowyth wel how I desyre the saluacyon of alle soules / And none I wolde despyse ne prouoke to wrathe / ¶ I knowe also that god hath sayde in hys gospell / That thys that men shall doo to the leest of his seruauntes / He shall take it in lyke wyse as it were doon to hymselfe / ¶ And therfore wyte it that I doo not soo for to contempne theym ne dyspyse theym / But oonly by cause that I knowe some Relygyouses in my chyrche soo symple that they sholde not conne putte dyfference bytwene theyr ryght honde and lyfte honde / ¶ And yet some other there ben also that bere not the habyte of relygyon / Wherfore me semyth good and nedeful that they that ben comyng to vs from other places be receyued honestly in a nother house by ours / ¶ And whaÌ„ they woll come to the chyrche to serue god they maye come there wyth vs / And after the seruyce dyuyne doon to retourne in to theyr lodges / for to doo there theyr secrete Oracyons or other vertuouse werkes after theyr deuocyon ¶ The preest hering his answere was contente of hym / And wente agayne awaye all recomforted and wyth gode counseylle / ¶ How the gowne of saynt Pachomyen heelyd folke of the blody Flux / And begynnyth in latyn ¶ Mulier et cetera Caplm lxxxiiii IN the cyte of the Centiryens a woman had hadd suffred by a longe space a syckenesse callyd the blody Flux / Soo came she to the good preest aboue namyd / And by cause he was famylier frende of saynt Pachomyen· Prayed hym humbly that it wolde playse hym to sende for the holy man Pachomyen that was in his chaÌ„bre sayeng that he had certayn necessary thynges to telle hym / ¶ Saynt Pachomyen came to the sendynge of the sayd preest / And whan he was comÌ„ with in the chirche he made his prayer after he salued the good preest Denys / as they spake
/ And begynnyth in latyn ¶ Taliter igitur et cetera / Caplm lxxxviii SAynt Syluayn wyllyng to torne hym out of the fylth of synne for take clene pouertee / Came and yelded hymselfe to saynt Pachomyen / whiche frendly receyued him But this notwythstondynge he wolde not kepe the Rules of the Relygyouses ¶ For it was ouer harde a thynge to hym for to forgete his euyll customes / of the tyme passed / By the whyche he peruerted many brethern / And bowed theym to his wycked wylle ¶ Some Religyouses were ryghte sory of that they sawe the other Relygyouses consentynge to the detestable wyll of Syluayn / ¶ Soo came they and shewed it to the holy fader Pachomien· that whiche prayed god for the sayd syluayn to the ende he sholde haue contrycoÌ„n for hys synne and that he shold doo penaunce But for noo prayer he wolde not plyene consente therto / And for this cause they all wolde haue chaced him out of the monastery / The holy fader defferred it ladd hym wyth hym / And syn after corrected hym with swete wordes techyng hym alwayes in the crysten fayth / Wherof it happed syn that the poore Syluayn / as by synguler grace ameÌ„ded his wycked lyfe had it in so grete dysplaysure that he was neuer wythoute teeres in all his werkes / ¶ Some seenge his grete contrycoÌ„n shewed vnto hym that he angred hymself to bytterly and exorted hym to be moderate in his wepynges takynge in hym attemperaunce / but he answerde that he cowde not / For his hert was soo sore taken wyth grete dysplaysure / that he myght not conteyne himself / And morouer by cause he cowde not absteyne hyÌ„self fro wepynge / as well at the borde as elles where / The bredern sayd to hym that he sholde wepe in makynge his holy orysons not at the table / For it was noo place pâ—opâ—e ne couenable to wepe ne weyle / And that a relygyoê° myght wel haue sorow dysplaysure for his synÌ„e by hymself alone wythout to shewe it thus openly / And admonested hym to abstene himself therof / by cause the brethern myghte not ete whan they sawe hym wepe soo / ¶ Suche and semblable wordes they sayd to hym for to constreyne hym to telle the cause for whiche he contynued soo longe in his weyllynges and lamentacions / ¶ And theÌ„ne he sayd to theym / My brethern why sholde not I wepe in Ioyenge myselfe of the grace that my god hath doon to me / ¶ I was wonte to be full of synnes and soo many benefaytes are now gyuen vnto me for the saluacoÌ„n of my soule / ¶ Dathan and Aâ—yron ben contynuelly in my remembrauÌ„ce / To the confusyon of the whyche by cause they were defoyled and poluted wyth synne And wolde haue towched the holy sacrefyce The erthe opened and swalowed theym in / ¶ And I that haue despysed soo moche my saluacyon I fere yet ryght soore suche a sentence of god / Alas though I sholde wepe and weylle myn Innyquyte al my lyfe dayes and that I were in contynuell lamentacyons / Yet sholde I be vnworthy to haue the felycyte eternall / ¶ The good â—yluayn contynued in his humylytee and contynence soo that he was more perfite than all the other / ¶ And saynt Pachomyen seenge his holy conuersacyon sayd in the presence of all the other suche wordes ¶ My brethern I calle god to wytnesse the angelles and all the â—urt of heuen that syth oure monasterye was founded I haue not knowen noo brother of ours that hath be soo moche obeysaunt to me as hath one about al the other / The brethern thoughte that it hadd be Theodore or Peâ—ronyen â—or Orose / ¶ Theodore prayed saynt Pachomyen that he wolde tell what he was that he loued soo moche / But the holy man defferred to tell it hym / Neuerthelesse whan he saw that Theodore can streyned hym soo sore / He sayd to hym ¶ Yf I crowed that he sholde arâ—yse hymselfe in vaynglory therfore I sholde neuer declare it to hym / but by cause I knowe that the vertue praysed often tymes encreacyth and that he shall be more humble for it than he was byfore ¶ Also to the ende that other take ensample at hym I shall name hym vnto the / Soo I telle the. that how be it thyselfe and thy semblable haue bataylyd strongly ayenst the deuyll soo that by the grace of god / ye haue ouercome brought hym vnder your fete / Neuerthelesse Syluayn yonge of aege that thy bredern and thyselfe wolde put oute of our monastery hathe foughte in suche wyse ayenst hym that he hath this gyfte of god that the deuyll dare neuer shew hymself afore his face / And by his grete humylytee he hath ouercome hym in all thynges / ¶ Ye other haue confydence in youre vertues / But he the more that he batayllyth he yeldyth hymselfe the more meke vnprofytable / And yf thou demaunde why he wepte soo contynuelly / I telle the that it is by cause he is perfyghtly meke / And for this cause he canne not forbere his teeres / ¶ Soo wite it that there is noo vertue that makyth the deuyll more confuse / than the vertue of very and perfyghte humylyte ¶ The good Syluayn was bi the space of viii yere in befightyng his enmye Sathan / And after he deyed / And saynt Pachomyen wytnessyd that at his passynge were present many angels that wyth grete Ioye bare his soule awaye in to the glory that euer shall laste / the whyche by his prayers we maye purchace Amen ¶ How the holi man coÌ„mauÌ„ded that a deed body shold be vnclothed of his vestimentes / And begynnyth in latyn ¶ Eodem vero teÌ„pore / Caplm lxxxx IN the cyte of Panos was a bisshopp named Varus that was right deuowte feruent in the loue of Ihesu Cryste the whiche herde speke of the conuersacoyn of saynt Pachomyen / Soo wrote he to hym many lettres by that whiche amonge other thinges he desyred prayed hyÌ„ to come towarde hym for to gyue hym counseyle ayde to buylde a chyrche nygh to his cyte / And for to lodge there some Religyouses that were of good lyfe of coÌ„uersacoÌ„n good / In obeynge to the whiche requeste he toke on his waye towarde the sayd bisshopp / And as he was come nye a monastery whiche he vysited by the waye he mett wyth many Relygyouses that conueyed the corps of one of theyr bredern that was deceased whiche his frendes bare to the erth clothed with riche raymentes whiche were after the maner doynge that the seculer had there acustomyd / Whan they sawe saynt Pachomyen come they taryed Incontynent for to praye hym that he wolde make deuowte prayers orysons to god aswel for the deed as for them whiche he dide gladly / And his orison done he coÌ„maunded that men sholde take awaye fro the Relygious that was deacessed the rayments of the
IohnÌ„ rehercyd ones to the hope of them that gladly gyue for goddis sake that he beynge on a nyghte a slepe sawe in dremynge a ryght fayre and clere woman and shynynge as the sonne / And crowned with a crowne of lawrer / In musynge of her grete bewte he a woke / ¶ And him semyd that he sawe her in dede stondynge byfore hym / ¶ Soo he blessyd hym Incontynent And spake to her After askynge what she was / ¶ To whom she answerde all smylinge that she was the moder of the doughter of the kynge / ¶ And after sayd to hym / My frende yf thou wolt loue me I shall presente the byfore the souerayne emperour / For none hath there soo grete power as I haue / ¶ Thenne after she vanysshed a waye from his syghte / ¶ Thenne the holy man Iohan supposyd after his aduys that it was compassyon or almesse that was appered byfore hym in lykenesse of a woman / By cause she hadd on her heed a fayre crowne of lawrer / ¶ For certaynly the grete compassyon benygnytee that god hath to the poore synners / He hathe made his ryght dere and swete chylde Ihesu Cryste to take our kynde flesshe / and suffre soo many euylles for vs / ¶ The holy man after this vysyon aroos / wythout to a wake ony body and wente to the chyrche / ¶ And ingoynge thyder he founde a poore euyll clothyd man / and as deyenge for colde ¶ Soo toke he of his gowne and gaue it hym for to clothe hym wyth all / And after retornyd wythoute to entree in to the chyrche / Puttyrige in hymselfe a doubte whether the aduysion that he had seen were of god or non / ¶ And in retornynge to hys howse warde he met wyth a man clothyd wyth whyte vestyments / that gaaf hym an hundred penyes / Sayenge that he sholde dystrybute theym where it playsed hym / ¶ And by cause hym semyd that he had be ouer hasty and redy to receyue the sayde penyes doubtynge to be dysceyued / He wente to haue delyuered theim ayen to hym that gaaf theym to hym / ¶ But he cowde not by cause the other was vanysshyd away / ¶ Soo had he thenÌ„e some vnderstondynge and knowlege that this vysion was come to hym of god / ¶ Of a pylgryme that wolde tempte saynt Iohan the Almoner / Begynâ—nynge in latyn ¶ Adoriâ—ue et cetera Caplm C.xiii. IN the sayd cyte of Alexandrye was a straunger whyche herynge the grete fame of saynt IohnÌ„ the Almoner wolde tempte him for to vnderstonde the certayntee therof / And for to doo this he put of his raymentes toke euyll clothes abowte hym / And after came byfore hym there as he wente towarde the place where the syke peple were kept dressed / ¶ For his customÌ„ was to goo to the hospytalles twies in the weke for to vysite there the syke folke that were there / ¶ This valyaunt man stranger sayd to him / O my lord gyue to me your almesse poore prysoner / ¶ ThenÌ„e the holy man coÌ„mauÌ„ded the men sholde yeue to hym vi pens ¶ Whan he had receyued the fyrst almesse he chauÌ„ged his habyte and Incontynent went ayen tofore hym in sayenge ¶ Alas syre haue pyte of me poore syke man / The holy man ones ayen coÌ„maunded to the Almoner that he sholde gyue hym vi pens of golde / ¶ After that he had taken theym to the Papelarde he said all soft to the holy man that he had had twyes his almesse / Wherat the holy man answerd noo thynge / feynyng as he had not herde hyÌ„ / ¶ Thirdly he came agayn in a nother chauÌ„geable clothynge / for to haue yet a nother almesse / And thenÌ„e the Almoner drew the holy man by the gowne for to gyue hym to knowlege that it was he that had had twyes his almesse that daye / But the holy man coÌ„maunded the men sholde gyue hym twelue pens of syluer sayenge to his Almoner / Doo the I coÌ„mauÌ„de the / For by aduenture it is god that temptyth me / ¶ Of a Maryner of the tynne that was tornyd to syluer / Begynnynge in latyn ¶ Nauclerus quidam et cetera Caplm C.xiiii A Marynar straunger / that by tempest of the see or otherwyse had loste all his goodes / Besechynge humbly to saynt IohnÌ„ the Almoner that he wolde sprede vpon him his mercy / Hauynge pyte vpon hym as he had vpon the other / ¶ Soo he gaaf him v. pounde of golde that he put forthe in marchandise and after retorned vpon the see where he loste all excepte oonly his shippe the whiche was saued ¶ Soo came he ayen to the sayd holy man / prayed hym as aboue / ThenÌ„e he said to him / ¶ My broder thou had dest some syluer euyll goten that thou hast medled wyth that of the chyrche Therfore thou hast loste all / Neuerthelesse he gaue hym agayne x. pounde of golde / Soo went he agayen to the see / Where he had the wynde soo contrary that all his shyppe was perysshyd· abode noo thynge sauf but the men / The whyche thynge seenge the Mary nerâ—he wolde haue slayne hymselfe for sorowe / But god preseruyd hym there fro / And shewed his wrath angre to the holy Patryarke / The whyche Incontynent sente for hym / ¶ The Maryner coueryd wyth asshes / and his clothes all to torne lyke as they are wont to doo in the londe came to the sendynge of the Patryarke / The whyche in beholdynge vpon hym sayd to hym ¶ My frende god haue pyte and mercy vpon the / I trowe / that from hensforth thou shalte not haue none euyll fortune / ¶ Thy shippe is perysshyd bicause it was goten by wronge / ¶ And thenne he made to be gyuen to hym one of the shyppes of the chyrche / that he made be fylled wyth ten thousande râ—sers of whete / ¶ And this done the Marynar wente to the see as he was acustomyd / But he saylled twenty dayes twenty nyghtes that he wyste not whether he drewe to / ¶ Durynge the whiche tyme the gouernoure of the shyppe / as he rehercyd to the Marynar / sawe nyghe hym the holy Patryarke / that sayd to hym / Marinar doubte no thinge thou sayllest well / ¶ After the twenty dayes they londed in Britayne where soo grete necescyte of corn was that they of the londe for grete derth suffred grete hungre / Wherby they were receyued in grete Ioye reuerence / ¶ The folke of the londe asked of the Marynar yf he wolde selle his where for redy moneye or take Tynne for it ¶ And after he had remembred vpon theyr askynge / He toke redy money for the halfe / And for the other halfe he take fyne Tynne / And after wyth a grete gladnesse retornyd in to Alexandrye And were longe tyme art the hauen callyd Penthapolis / To the whyche hauen the maister Marynar of the shypp had a
be Crysten / He thenÌ„e consyderynge her good wyll and ferynge to offende god / Yf by his neclygence she had not contynued in her holy purpoos Hopyng also that the deuyll sholde not dysceyue hym by her Had taken on his way wyth her and had born her felyshypp vnto the cyte of Alexandrye / Where he had existned her and sought a place for to haue her in to relygyon / And this doynge they asked theyr breede thorugh the cyte / The holy Patryarke seenge the holy affeccoÌ„n that he had to the soule of the good mayde begâ—â— for to crye / ¶ Alas how many good seruauntes of god 〈◊〉 is the worlde vnknowen / ¶ And after he gaaf hym aâ— hundred pens / But the relygyous wolde none take / Sayeng that it was not that he soughte / ¶ And that all relygyouses that ben of good fayth haue noo nede of syluer / ¶ And yf that they haue nede / Men maye well saye that they haue noo fayth / ¶ Thenne the Patryarke bowed his knees byfore hym and recommended hym to god / ¶ And after loued maintened and lodged the relygyouses more tenderly than he hadd done afore / ¶ And after for the grete affeccyon and feruent loue that he had to them dide buylde an hospytall without the cyte of Alexandrye that he namyd the hospytall of Relygyouses / ¶ How the holy Patriarke vysited the 〈◊〉 in â—ourynge to theyr dethe warde ¶ And of hym that was broughte pryâ—â—â—er in Perse / And begynnyth in latyn ¶ Mortalitate et cetera Caplm C.xxix A Grete dethe happed in Alexandrye in the holy Patriarkes dayes / Durynge the whiche dethe / For to purchace gretter mede / And also for to shewe a token of mekenesse to all other / He wente and vysyted the lyke / and helped to wynde them whan they were decessed / ¶ And often for to haue a contynuell mynde of dethe / He â—â—syd they re eyen after that they were deed / ¶ And after made deuowte prayes and orysons for the helthe of theyr poore soules / ¶ And for to shewe that prayers and orysons that ben doone deuowtely profyten to the deed / Here after is rehercyd a fayre hystory of a maÌ„ the whyche was taken and broughte prysoner in to Perse / And was putt in a pryson that is callyd Lethe / Whyche is as moche for to saye as Forgetynge Or to be putt oute of Remembraunce ¶ Some that fledde from thens for to goo in to Ethypre / Passed by the howse of the frendes of the sayd prysonere / And they were questyoned yf they had not mette nor seen theyr kynnesman / ¶ Wherat they answeryd that wych theyr owne hondes they hadd buryed hym / ¶ Alwayes it was not the same / But it was a nother that was well lyke hym / ¶ And for to certefye the better that it was he they namyd the monyth and also the daye that he deyed ¶ The sayd frendes bi cause they wende thise mennes sayenges to be true dyde do make thre seruyses euery yere for theyr sayde kynnesman / ¶ That is to wyte one att the feeste of the Epyphanye that we calle Tweluyfthdaye / the other vpon the holy Sondaye that is Trynyte Sondaye And the thyrde at the feeste of Pentecost otherwyse called Wytsondaye ¶ It happed that foure yere after the sayd prysoner came ayen To whom his frendes rehercyd tolde hym / That by cause men had reported to them that he was deed they made for him vpon thise dayes and euery yere the sayd seruyses / ¶ The whyche thyng by hym herde of theym / He affermyd to theym for a trouthe / That he beynge wythin the sayde pryson / euery yere and the same dayes came to hym a man alle in whyte that loosyd hym his chaynes wherwyth he was bounde And preseruyd hym from theym that kepte him / And after went beryng hys chaynes att his necke wythout the knowlege of ony man / ¶ Wherfore he concluded that oryson prouffytyth moche to the prysoners vpon the Turkes and Sarrasyns / And pryncypally to theim that ben deed / ¶ Of hym that prayed for his sone and for his shyppe that was vpon the see / by cause it sholde not perysshe / And begynnyth in latyn / ¶ Quod in actibus aplorum / Caplm C.xxx SVche a nother thynge we rede of the holy Patriarke in the boke of the dedes of thapostles· that many deuowte crystens seenge the grete coÌ„passion that he had toward the poore solde moche of theyr goodes broughte the money therof to the holy man for to be dreased by hyÌ„ to the poore / ¶ Amonge the other was one that had onÌ„ly but .vii. pouÌ„de of golde an halfe / that whiche somÌ„e he brought to the sayd holy man sayenge that it was all the golde that he had in his possessoÌ„n / ¶ And as he toke him this golde He sayd that he had onÌ„ly a sone of .xv. yere of aege the whyche wyth a shyppe was gone in to Affryque ¶ And bi cause he was in grete thoughte malencolye of that he came not ayen soo soone as he was acustomyd besoughte hym that he wold pray god that he wolde saue hym his sone brynge his shyppe ayen to port salw / the holy Patryarke was merueylled of the goodnes and· kindnesse of this marchaunt that had gyue all his golde att oâ—â— almesse / ¶ Soo toke he soone the sayd golde and put it vnder a table halowed prayenge god deuoutly for the helthe of his sone of his shippe / ¶ Thirty dayes after came tydynges that hys sone was dysceased but thre dayes after the sayd tydynges his shyppe came and also his sone that neuertheles was drowned in comyng wythin the hauen the goodes wythin the shyppe lost / there abode oonly but one lytyll boote / All this befall was reported to the sayde holy Patryarke And how the fader was more sory onÌ„ly for the deth of his sone than for the losse of his goodes / the holy man consideryng his grete sorow durste not make hym come afore hym / ¶ But neuertheles he sent hym worde that he shold take his Infortune in pacyence bi cause our lorde made no thynge wythout a cause all be it that we knowe not the same or wyll not knowe it / And therfor he leuyth neuer those that do ony good but rather whan they suffre ony aduersitees or trybulacoÌ„ns yf they retourne to hym soone or late they ben coÌ„forted / ¶ Soone after the good marchaunte sawe in his dreme a man lyke vnto the holy Patryarke the sayd to hyÌ„ / My broder why trowblest thou thiself takest soo moche heuynesse / Hast not the prayed me that thy sone mighte be sauyd / Certaynly thy prayer is harde for surely yf he lyued he were in daungeâ—ur to be dampned for the euylles that he sholde haue done / ¶ I ensure the yf iâ— had not be by the gyfte that thou beste doone to me /
goodes in this worlde / Pouerte is more sure for to fynde the waye of saluacoÌ„n / ¶ The holy scrypture sayth that pouertee mekyth the persone / And Dauid in his psalme sayth to this purpoos / I am gladde my god that thou haste mekyd me to th ende that I shall lerne thy IustyfycacoÌ„ns also the wayes of saluacoÌ„n / Alwayes the holy man sayd this / ¶ I byleue truly that the god that was in Iobs dayes is yet almyghty the whiche shall not fayle vs at oure nede not for the loue of me / But for to helpe and socour the pore nedy / For he sayd hymself / Thou that arte Iust good I shall not leue the / And moreouer god coÌ„maundyth vs to seke fyrste his reame his Iustyce promysyng to vs that all thyÌ„ges leyffull good that we shal aske him shall be graunted to vs / ¶ Ye knowe how to Iob very pacyent / he gaue more goodes ayen than euer he had loste afore / And the whyche Iob after that he was stablisshed ayen in his godes and in his astate· was more medefull than he had be afore / ¶ Of a seruaunt to whom he gaaf .ii. pounde of golde / And begynnyth in latyn ¶ Ad extremam et cetera Caplm C.xxxiii THe holy Patryke knowynge one of his seruauntes to be fallen in grete pouertee gaaf him two pounde of golde soo secretly that noo body knewe of it / ¶ The seruaunte sayde vnto hym / ¶ Alas my lorde I shall neuer dare come byfore thy face ¶ The holy Patryarke as a wyseman answerde to hym wordes worthy of praysyng sayenge / My frende I haue not yet shedde my bloode for the. lyke that god dyde for vs / hath coÌ„maunded vs to doo it / ¶ Of a duke that refusyd to leue fyfty pounde of golde / Begynnyng in latyn ¶ Districtis / Caplm C.xxxiiii A Man was that ought moche money and cowde not paye it What for cause that his marchauÌ„dyse was not soo prosperous vnto hym· as it was wonte to be as also by cause that the ryuer of Nile had fayled that tyme for to dewe the grounde / As it was wont to doo euery yere ¶ This man went to a duke prayed hyÌ„ that he wolde lende hym fyfty pouÌ„de of golde vpon a pledge that was worth twyes asmoche / The duke denyed hym fyrste his askyÌ„ge / But neuertheles he promysed hym after that he sholde haue theym / ¶ This man was constrayned for to paye there as he owed· And this hangynge he aduysed hymself that he sholde goo to his socours there as all other were receyued that is to wyte to the holy Patryarke / ¶ Soo came the poore man vnto hyÌ„ and shewed hym his pouerte / But or he had tolde al his befall The holy Patryarke that of his nature was pitefull and myghte not see peple wepe but he must wep also toke his gowne of gaue it hym constrayned the pore to take it wyth hyÌ„ / The nyghte folowynge / the duke that had refusyd to lene to the poore man the sayd somme sawe in his dreme many folke makynge offrynges and oblacyons vpon an awter / And for one peny that they offred they receyued an hundred / ¶ And wyth theym was the god holy Patryarke behynde the backe of the same duke / ¶ There came a man that shewed hym a sacke beynge nyght by theym / sayenge to hym in this manere ¶ Take an offrynge that is wythin this sacke and goo offre it to the awter And thou shalte haue an hundred for it / ¶ The duke was neclygent to doo as he hadde hym / Neuerthelesse the good holy man that was there nyght by hym all Incontynent wente and toke it and offred it And was yeuen to him for it as to the other an huÌ„dred tymes as moche as he had offred / ¶ Whanne the duke was awakyd He cowde not vnderstonde his dreme / ¶ Soo sent he Incontynent for him that had desyred moneye of hym / And wold haue theâ—e lente hym asmoche as he dyde aske / ¶ To whom the sayd man answeryd Truely my lorde the holy Patryarke hath fulfylled myn askyÌ„ge byfore you Ye haue loste your rewarde / The duke whan he had vnderstonde thise wordes had mynde of his dreme and sayde / ¶ Truely thou tellest me trouth he bare the offrynge afore me that I wolde not bere / ¶ Cursyd be he that may â—el doo it and woll not / ¶ After he rehercyd his dreme to dyuerse folke / And 〈◊〉 that tyme forth wyllyng to recouer the tyme and the rewarde that he had loâ—â— afore sorely by his ouer grete neclygence he dysposyd himself to be large and rewarded and gaue towarde the poore peple in dealynge freely and wyth goâ—de courage grete habuÌ„dance of alâ—mesâ— and charytees / Wherof he was by our blessyd Sauyour Redemer IhuÌ„ Cryste rewarded to the hundred folde in the Ioye and blessydnesse oâ— euerlastynge glory / ¶ Of a woman that forbare wronges other sone in lawe / And begynnyth in latyn ¶ Vergente / Caplm Cxxxv. THe holy patryarke gladly and often went to vysyte the chyrche of the vyctoryous martyrs saynt Cyr saynt IohnÌ„ / ¶ One tyme as he was gooinge thyder he mette with a woman whiche was sore trowbled the prayed hym tauenge her of many wroÌ„ges that she sayde were done to her by her sone in lawe / One of the seruauÌ„tes of the sayde Patryarke whyche trusted of his gode wyll sayd vnto hym / Syre leue this woman / Whan thou shalt retorne thou shalt doo to her right / The holy man answerd to hyÌ„ / Thou knowest well yt. we goo for to pray / And how sholde god here vs yf we herde not fyrste this woman / And therfore the holy man went not fro that place till that she had shewed vnto hym alle her befall that he vtterly had coÌ„forted her / ¶ Of saynt IohnÌ„ saynt Sophronyon / Whyche begynnyth in latyn ¶ AdvoluÌ„tateÌ„ igitur c. Caplm C.xxxvi GOâ— that woll sende to the wyll dothe holy Patryarke euer ferme to the heuenly thyÌ„ges sent vnto hym â—o holy men / that is to wite Iohn Sophronyon for to be his couÌ„seylers / To whom benygnely he obeyed as to his faders techers ¶ Thise .ii. holy faders meaninge the grace of the holy ghost disputed many tymes ayenst the Seueryens and other heretykes / In so moche that they preserued fro theyr InfeccoÌ„n many monasteryes chyrches / As done the good pastours that rescue theyr shepe fro the rauisshyng vulues For whyche thyng the holy man had them in grete honour reuerence / ¶ A sermon made by the forsayd holy Patriarke ayenst the beters of folke folowyth / begynnyth in latyn ¶ Si vero alicubi c· Caplm C.xxxvii YF the holy man wyst or knew that one had smyten a nother He went wyth grete humylyte vnto hym / â— desyred him sayenge / My sone it hath ben reported
for to performe his vnlawfull wyll he departed fro his monastery camÌ„ in to Alexandrye / And whan he was come thyder he ladde a playsaunt lyfe· as to men but vnto god ryght agreable / ¶ Fyrste he wrote all the houres playnly / And that whyche he cowde wynÌ„e he gaaf vnto one of theim sayd to her / My frende I praye the gyue me this nyght that is to say that she sholde abstene herself fro fornycacoÌ„n ¶ The sayd abbot for to kepe her fro euyll dedes· abode wyth her al the nyght helde hymself in a corner of the chaÌ„bre prayeng god for her tyll it was day / On the morn he went away prayed her that she shold tell no bodi that he had be with her / ¶ Many dayes nyghtes he contynued this going among theim vnto the time that this was shewed bi an harlot that neuerthelesse wolde not saye that he was a lechour but he acoÌ„panyed theym onÌ„ly for theyr helthe / ¶ The good abbot prayed god that his good purpoos mighte not be lette by the sayd dyscoueryng / Wherfor the deuyll anone entred in the bodi of the sayd woman to th ende that the other sholde fere to saye as she sayd in sheweng the lyf that he lad ¶ SomÌ„ that sawe this woman sike sayd to her beholde euyll womaÌ„ thou seest now how god punysshyth yt. by cause that thou hast lyed vpon the relygious / Thou hast sayd that he gooth not wyth thy felowes for lechery / but thou hast made a lye / Thise thynges notwythstondynge the holy abbot whan he had wrought all daye / He at euen desyred none other but preche the comyn wymÌ„en / sayd to hyÌ„self Goo we goo to a nother place there is a woman that taryeth after ye. ¶ Many that sawe his vsuall comynycacyon that he had wyth thyse wymÌ„en blamed hyÌ„ for it / but he answerd vnto theym / Is not god aswell wroth wyth the other as he is wyth the relygyouses they ben men as other ben / ¶ Some tolde hym that he sholde take a wyfe chauÌ„ge his habyte by cause he shold not be sklauÌ„dred / But he kepte hym well that he consented not vnto theyr oppynyon onÌ„ly to theym he answerd that they shold goo fro him askyÌ„ge them / Are ye assygned my Iuges see to yourselfe lete me do my wyll Fynably he was accusid to the holy Patryarke whiche wold not byleue lightly that men reported vnto him but had in remeÌ„braunte the other relygyouse that in lyke wyse had hadde be accusyd as here byfore is made mencoÌ„n / ¶ And for to stynte the reporters the holy Patriarke tolde an hystory of Constantyn the emperour to whom was lyke wyse reported by an accusar certain blames in writynge ayenst a religyous / ¶ Whan the emperour saw the accusacoÌ„n he sente for the accusar him ytâ— as accused And they beynge aforesayd to the accusaâ— / Truly yf I sawe a seculer preest or a relygious that dide ony synÌ„e I shold hyde hym wyth my mantell / to th ende that his synne sholde not be knowen nor seen of other / And thê° the holy Patryarke peased the accusars of the sayd abbot ¶ Durynge the sayd tyme the seruauÌ„t of god Vitall vsed as he had acustomed wyth the comyn wymen / And wyth this he prayed god deuoutly contynuelly that after his deth to some persone shold the cause be shewed bi reyson wherof he dyde hauÌ„te the comyn wymen to th eÌ„de the peple sholde not abyde by hyÌ„ euyll ensaÌ„pled as also they ought not to be / ¶ For thrugh his prayers many persones that sawe hym praye god by nyghte â—euynge his hondes vp towarde heuen bi feruent deuocoÌ„n kept them self fro flesshly desires namly many wymen by reyson of him kept themselfe from the synne of lechery / ¶ It happed one daye as in a mornyng that he came out of the hous of a comyn womaÌ„ He mette wyth a lewde haskarde whyche for to doo the sayd synne of lechery went to the hous there as the holy man came fro / And at theyr metynge togyder this Vnthryft gaaf hym a buffett sayenge to hym / Knauysshe ypocryte why amendest not thyselfe of thyne ypocrysie / The holi abbot answerd vnto him I shall yelde the ones suche a buffett that all Alexandrye shall come to thy crye ¶ A lytyll whyle after this deyed the holy abbot Vytall / neuer duryng his lyfe was the cause knowe why he drewe to the comyn wyÌ„men / ¶ And it is to wyte that his celle or lytyll hous where he decessed all alone was sett in a place a lytyll fro the towne the whiche was called the gate of the sonÌ„e / ¶ Anone after his dethe or euer it was to oni persone knowen the deuyll came in lykenes of an Ethyopien toward him that had smyten hym hyÌ„ gaaf a grete buffett sayeng The abbot Vitall sendith that this offryÌ„ge / The vnhappy bawdy knaue felle down to the grouÌ„de / foomyÌ„ge as a mad man / Wherof many men wyÌ„men that herde the stroke were sore merueyled by cause they trowed that they had herde the thouder bolte fall / ¶ And truely lyke as the abbot had prophecyed it all the cyte was therof moeuyd / the cyteyzyns came to the cryeng of the sayd vnthryfte / Whyche after a longe space of tyme that he had be in this penauÌ„ce his mynde was restored to hym ayen / And anone he â—auÌ„e to the lytyl heâ—us of the sayd abbot for to crye hym mercy sayeng that he had ouermoche offeÌ„ded ayeÌ„st hyÌ„ whan he mette hym gaaf hym the buffett ¶ Many went thyder with hym in presence of whom the deuyll yet ayen smote the forsayd knaue caste hyÌ„ to theâ—h And they that were come wyth hyÌ„ entred wythin the celle of the sayd Vitall and founde hym on bothe his knees as he shold praye god wyth this it semyd theym that he had one honde to the grouÌ„de wherwyth he wrote thyse wordes / ¶ O ye men of Alexandrye iuge neuer noo man nor woman but that ye knowe him fyrst abyde tyll that god hyÌ„self makyth the Iugement / ThenÌ„e the pore losell confessyd that he had beten hym ¶ And thê° the prophecye was in hym fulfylled / ¶ All thise thyÌ„ges were by the peple rehercyd vnto the holy Patriarke The whiche wyth the Clergye grete nombre of cyteyzyns came to the place where the corps of the holy abbot was All the wyÌ„men in lyke wyse came thyder whiche he had coÌ„uerted to goodnes And bare with theim tapres lampes brenÌ„ynge sayenge Alas we haue loste our hele techynge / ¶ ThenÌ„e they tolde shewed how he companyed wyth theim not for rayson of synÌ„e but for to exhorte styre theym to doo well leue theyr lecherous lyfe malyce / Soo were they sore rebuked / that they hadd not vttred his holy lyfe / But they answerde that
the same countree one namyd Phylyp The whyche departynge out of Rome toke his wyfe Claudia wyth hym two his chyldern / namyd Anitus Sergius / and a doughter of his callyd Eugene They togider came in the cyte of Alexandrye / This Philyp as grete Prouost gouernour there rulynge the cite and all the countree after the ordenaunce of the lawes of Rome put out and broughte downe the cursyd secte of the magicyens that in grete nombre and of longe tyme had by theyr fendly crafte Infected poysened alle the londe / ¶ Secondly he coÌ„maunded that the Iewes shold noo more bere a name in all that londe / And after he ordeyned that the Crysten shold abyde dwelle in the countree but not wythin the cytees But wythout ferre ynoughe from the same There the sayd Eugene was wonderfulli lerned aswell in Greke lettres latyn as also in the scyence of Phylosophye ¶ She had a wytte so quicke so sharpe the lyghte stedfastly she helde alle that she radde or that to her was expowâ—â—â— The face of her was moche playsaunt She was fayr praty of body / but more fayr in thought in chastytyte 〈◊〉 stedfaste and noble / ¶ Whan she came to her fyftenth yere of aege many lordes coÌ„syderyng her grete perfeccoÌ„n made her to be asked to her fader for to haue her by maryage / And amonge thother she was desyred of one namyd Aquylyen the sone of Aquyn Consull of Rome / But her fader that exposyd shewed vnto her the extraccoÌ„n nobles of the sayd Aquylyen for to enduce her to this that she sholde be agreable to mary wyth hym / She wysely answerde that a mayde that hath a wyll to mary oughte to haue her husboÌ„de agreable whaÌ„ she is noble of vertues not onÌ„ly of noble kynrede / ¶ For whan a woman is wedded she is constrayned to folowe the maners of her husboÌ„de not of her freÌ„des / And fynably to this Aquilien to all the other she gaaf an answere that she wolde not mary but had in her purpose that shold lyue chastly / ¶ And bi cause that Phylyppe her fader had chaced all the Crysten folke out of the cyte neuertheles she desyrynge to comyn with theym / And to th ende that her fader that was a Panym sholde haue noo knowlege of it nor suspeccoÌ„n prayed hyÌ„ mekely that he wolde suffre that she myghte goo by manere of sporte vnto the subarbes of Alexandrie for to see some of theyr londes herytages there lyenge nye The whyche thynge was grauÌ„ted vnto her of her fader / And soo it happed as she wente fore by a chyrche of the crysten that she had herde synge thyse verses Omnes dii genciuÌ„ demonia deus auteÌ„ noster cels fecit That is to saye that the goddes of the Paynems are but deuyls / But the god that we Crysten doo worshypp hath made the heuens the erthe / ¶ Whan Eugene herde this songe she began to wepe sayeng to .ii. Emyches that is two men that lacke their membres of mankinde The one namyd Prothus the other Iacintê° that were coÌ„mytted to kepe her serue her / as comynly it was done of custome to the doughters wyÌ„men comen of goode houses / ¶ My frendes I knowe that you I haue ben taughte enformed togyder aswel in the lawes of men as in the vayne scyence of the Phylosophers And haue radde the falages of Aristole the ydes of Platon· the secte of the Epicuriens the techynges of Socrates of the Stoyciens and generally all the doctryne of the Poetes Rethoryciens But all thise vayn scyence are put out and sette asyde by that lytyll verse that I haue herde syÌ„ge by the Crysten OmÌ„s du genciuÌ„ demonia c Ye calle me your lady thorugh the power of my fader whyche he hath ouer you mysusyd / but I am your syster in scyence / Be ye theÌ„ne my bredern and I shall be your syster / ¶ Lete vs goo to the Crysten / And as I shall coÌ„maunde you we shall doo I knowe the bisshopp of Leopolis named Helayn / In whoo 's hous men singe contynuelly the holy scryptures / The sayd bisshop hath vnder hyÌ„ many holy relygyouses / And amoÌ„ge other one there is namyd Theodore the whyche is leder of theym that done the dyuyne seruyce / ¶ Thorugh his prayers his orisons he makith the blynde to see chacyth the deuylles oute of the bodyes of men / ¶ Dyuerse wretches in grete sorowe abydynge by his prayers aren of theyr sykenesse fully helyd / And the desolate recomforted / Wherfore I haue a synguler desyre to goo vnto him / And for to doo this I woll doo cutte my heere 's and clothe myself wyth the clothinge of a man / Therfore I praye you as my bredern that this for to doo ye wol helpe me / ¶ The sayd kepers knowynge her holy deuocion and desyrynge as she to become Crysten gaaf her for to fulfyll her wyll all comforte and ayde / ¶ Soo lepte she out of the chare / wherin she was caryed And clothed her in mannes clothynge / And by the suffraunce of god Incontynent as they were come in the chyrche they mett wyth the sayd bisshopp Helayn / ¶ The custome was in Egipte suche that whanne the bysshopp wente to vysyte the chyrches a grete multytude of Syngers came wyth theim Thus wyth the bysshopp Helayn came mo than .x. thousande the songe afore hym sayenge / ¶ The way of the Iuste is made veryte and the way of the sayntes of god is made redi Eugene this seenge sayde to her felowes / ¶ My freÌ„des here the substauÌ„ce of thys songe / Loke how the god of the Crysten is gode to theim that woll holde the faith of cryst take hede how they knowe that we woll leue our Ydoles for to be Crysten / And for this cause they are come ayenst vs in suche a grete multytude of deuoute peple· that synge soo swete a songe / ¶ Lete vs beholde whyche waye they shall goo / and Ioyne ourselfe wyth vs. Soo shall we synnge tyl that we haue knowlege wyth theym / TheÌ„ne they began to question some of that felyshypp / And askyd what was he that was in the myddes of theym rydynge vpon an Asse / The whyche answeryd that it was their bysshopp Helayn that of his yongthe was a Crysten man / And of soo grete meryte towarde god That of his yonge aege he made dyuerse myracles / ¶ In berynge of fyre in his gowne whyche was noo thynge perysshed by it· and other also wonderfull / ¶ Amonge the other Religyouses one namyd Eutropius rehercyd to Eugene and to her felowes / How wyth in few dayes passed that a magicien namyd Zaree was come thyder / And had shewed that the sayd bysshopp was a false Crysten man / And that falsly he sayd he was sente by Ihesu Cryste for
cure of the thynges that were necessary to be had for the refeccoÌ„n of the bâ—â—derâ— / In sayeng psalmes and orysons she kepte soueraynly a good order / And to all the houres of the seruyce of god aswell by nyghte as by daye soo curyously contynued that she thoughte alle tyme to be loste that was passed wythout graces and praysynges to be gyuen vnto god / ¶ In this holynesse of lyfe she contynued in suche wise / and soo longe That our lorde graunted vnto her soo grete habundance of graces That she chacyd out of menÌ„es bodyes the deuels that tormented theym / Made the blynde to see many other grete myracles she dyde / ¶ AmoÌ„ge the whiche a lady of the londe of AlexaÌ„drie named Melance / amonge other was of grete power heâ— he grete reporte that euery man made of the merueyloê° vertues of the holy virgin Eugene whiche was take as a riÈt holy man came to her for to be holpen heled of a grete feuer that a yere duryÌ„ge more had vexed her body right sore· The whyche Eugene enoynted wyth an oyle anone this woman cast out of her body the corrupt humours that caused wythin her the feuer all hoole so side weÌ„te home ayen to her place that was not ferre Where she toke the grete goblets fylled theym wyth money whyche she sente vnto saynt Eugene / The whyche dispysyng the sayd presents sente theym vnto her ayen forthwyth / Letyng her wyte that of godes she had ouer moche / Wherfor she couÌ„seyled her that she shold deale depart to the poore nedy nedfull the godes presents that she had sent to her / ¶ The sayd MelaÌ„ce heryng thyse wordes was gretly wrothe came toward saynt Eugene / prayeng her that she wolde take receyue agreatly her presents promysyng to gyue her other more grete· but in efect she loste her tyme. For saynt Eugene wold not take theim / This notwythstoÌ„ding Melance left not but she come toward the good Eugene / not knowyng by ony wyse that she was a woman / the beaute of her disceyued the sayd Melance the whyche trowynge that she had be a man and that by hyÌ„ she was heelyd / Not by his holynes but by some crafte or cunnynge of physik lete herself fall by the temptynge of the deuyll in to the synne of flesshly desyre / And thynkynge that the sayd Eugene had refusyd the sayd presents for couetyse to haue had gretter offred other vnto her in more grete habundance than she had tofore / Promysynge to gyue hym yet more of theym asmoche as he wolde aske / ¶ And where she contynued prayenge hym that his playsure were to resceyue the sayde presents / And sawe they were refusyd And to her sente agayne by the goode Eugene / She ranne in to a gretter hete than she was afore / ¶ And atte thys cause feynyng to be syke soo greuously that she sholde not haue moeuyd herselfe out of her bedde / Made saynt Eugene to be prayed that she sholde come and vysyte her And she dyde soo / And beyng there byfore the bedde of Melance that had made the folke to goo oute of her chambre that were there feynynge to declare vnto her some secretes in confessyon as well of her conscyence as of her sikenesse Sayd vnto Eugene suche wordes / ¶ My lorde and my frende Eugene pardonne yf it playse you yf I ouer famylyerly do declare my pouertee vnto you / For I am therto constrayned by the grete sore whyche opressyth me / ¶ Certaynly my lorde the grete and excessyue loue whyche I haue coÌ„ceyued towarde your gracious yongthe The right excellent beaute of the whyche dame Nature hath soo gretly largely endowed you tormentith my pore herte soo sharply that it ne were to me possible neuer to haue Ioye ne playsure in this worlde But yf it come to me of you / ¶ Soo yelde I myself and al my goodes to you alone makynge ordeynynge your goodly persone lorde maister ouer my body and of al my godes ¶ Alas my lord what playsure doo ye take totorment thus greuousli your body by folysshe and vayne abstynences / I haue Infynyte possessions and ryches I haue grete tresours of gold of syluer / I am enhauÌ„sed in auctoryte of noblesse of my kinÌ„e / and this yere I haue loste my childern that are deceased oute of this world / Alas I pray you succede to my goodes in stede of theym / be alone mayster lorde not oonly of me but also of all my possessions godes The deuoute Eugene hering thise fowle wordes dyshoneste exhortacoÌ„ns / answerde to her in this manere / O womaÌ„ daÌ„pned certaynly / thy name beryth truwitnesse of an horrible cursidnes treison / Truely thou hast made redy in the a grete place for the deuyll / DaÌ„pnable disceyuer leue that wyll that thou haste to torne the seruauÌ„tes of god / I woll well that thou knowe that we relygiouses haue wel vsed to lyue otherwise / ¶ The daÌ„pned spyrytes that are to the lyke / take thy godes and not we that haue no appetyte to them nor woll not haue theym / For it is vnto vs a pleysauÌ„t thing to begge our brede wyth our lord IhuÌ„ Cryst / He is habuÌ„dantly ryche that is wyth hym ¶ O Melance the wyll of me is that suche folysshe concupysceÌ„ces depart from the Truely thâ—happynesse that hath assaylled the shall not be cause of thy heele but of dampnacoÌ„n / Thou that art made the house dwellynge of the venymouse dragon shedest spredest a wonderfull venym / But by the callynge of the name of god and by the helpe of hys mercifulnes we haue eschewed and yet we shall eschewe thinfeccoÌ„n of thin abhomynable and horryble poysons / ¶ Thenne this cursyd and wretchyd woman / Impacyent of the repreyffe the the good Eugene had sayd to her / at this cause al enswollen with bytter dâ—Ì„playsure / Knowynge also that she had thus loste her honoure / And doubtynge that Eugene sholde telle her synne for to quenche her feere purposyd herselfe to complayne of hym afore the Iustyce ¶ Wherfore Incontynent she went afore the grete Prouoste of Alexandrye shewed to him in a gret wodnesse and hertly dysplaysure / How for to haue founde the meanes to be holpen of a sykenesse that haue kept her longe she had suffred a yonge relygyous of the Relygyon Crysten that called himself a gode Leche to come towarde her for to hele her / But this Relygyouse replenysshyd wyth treyson Wenynge that she hadde be suche as they were of whom he had taken of a custome his foule delectacyons hadd dare all shame layed asyde speke vnto her shamefull and dishoneste wordes for to haue moeued her vnto his abhomynable wyll / and that worse was / Yf she hadde not callyd her woman abowte her / He sholde haue rauysshyd her and defoyled / ¶ Requyrynge this Melance to
the sayde Prouoste that therof he wolde doo to her as ryghte and reason requyreth / ¶ The Prouoste heryng thise wordes was enflammyd wyth grete woodnesse And sente to the monastery certayne Commyssaryes that charged were to brynge hym prysonere / Eugene and alle the other dwellynge in the sayde monasterye Whyche thynge was done / ¶ And by cause they were in suche nombre that they myghte not be alle in one pryson togyder / They were put in dyuers places and vnder dyuerse kepers fetherâ—â— well harde faste / The sayd Pâ—â—â—oste after gyuyng credence folysshly to the â—â—â—des of the sayd Melance condempned theym all for to deye ordeyned a certayn daye that some of theym shold be take for to be deuoured of wylde bestes The other to be brenÌ„ed thother to be put vnto dyuers tormeÌ„tes / And at this cause was thrugh all the londe grete no ye of the execucion that sholde be done of the sayd Relygyouses / The whyche alle the dwellers of the londe Iudged them worthy to suffre deth / ¶ For they thoughte that Melance whyche was come of a noble hous / and of hyghe kynreed / wolde neuer haue putt vpon theym wythout a Iuste cause suche a charge / ¶ Fynably whan the daye was come that the sayd execucoÌ„n sholde be done alle the dwellers of the townes and cytees lyenge abowte / came to Alexandrye the cyte for to see the same / Wherof some sayd theyr opynyon in one manere and the other sayde otherwyse / ¶ But oure lorde god that neuer leuyth his seruauntes in their moost nede / After that the hangman had made redy the torments other thinges couenable to putt to dethe Eugene and the other relygyouses suffred that the sayd Eugene for to declare the more openly her grete vertues / was by the sayd Prouostr questyoned / And for to make alle the people wyse of the grete malyce of the forsayd wycked Melance / Thenne the sayd Prouoste namyd Philyp that was fader to Eugene and that knewe her not began to speke afore her sayenge in this wyse / ¶ Come hether false Crysten man and the worst of thother Hath thi god coÌ„mauÌ„ded to the to be oppressour defoyler of the noble ladyes Thou art well shamles and ouerseen / What folye causyth the to praye wolde haue take bi foly so noble a lady as is dame Melance ¶ Eugene casted her syght to the grouÌ„de feryng to be knowe of her fader answerd mekeli / Mi god whom I serue hath coÌ„maunded the men shall kepe his chastytee vyrgynyte / vnto all those that done soo he promysyth euerlastyng lyfe in his Ioye of heuen / ¶ And now we maye declare Melance to be a lyar and forger of falshede / But it is better that we suffre some euylles than that she shold be atteyned conuycte of her synne to th ende that we lese not the meryte of our pacience / Alway yf you syre Prouost woll promyse whan she shal be proued fals full of lesyng that ye shal doo her noo harme at this hour we shall approue her synÌ„e / the Prouoste heryng her meke wordes grauÌ„ted her request / ¶ ThenÌ„e Eugene to testyfie the vntrouth of Melance required the men sholde her woman seruaunte in her chaÌ„bre doo come / The Iuge made all the seruauÌ„tes of the sayd lady to be callyd brought afore hym whiche declared by their othes that theyr lady Melance wyth good Iuste cause had complayned her of the Relygyous Eugene / And that he wolde haue constrayned her as it is sayd aboue / ¶ The Prouoste herynge theyr deposicyons sayde vnto saynt Eugene / ¶ What wol thou saye now false wyckyd monke / thou seest how thus many wytnesse thy cursyd delyte / ¶ Eugene of this fals wytnessyng was sore trowbled / So thouÈt she in herself that yf shold hyde her virgynytee / Soo many Relygyouses as were there prysonners wyth her there sholde allisuffre dethe for her and in the tyme to come the euill malycyoê° sholde be more bolde to repreue the seruauÌ„tes of god / Of the other parte she hadd purposed neuer to dyscouer her conuersacoÌ„n but oonly to her spouse IhuÌ„ Cryste / Neuertheles for to saue the lyf of her relygyouses / and to th ende that the cursed Melance and al suche other by falshed· sholde not be in tyme comynge so outrageoê° for to charge wrongfully the crysten peple / she thoughte to open and shewe her befall that was soo secrete / ¶ Soo departed she her gowne fro top to too shewed that she was a womaÌ„ and namely that the Prouost was her fader and Claudia her moder / and tolde hym that Anitus Sergius were her bredern / ¶ This came anone to the ceres of her moder Claudia that was in her place / Wherfore she desyryng to see her doughter ranÌ„e anone to the barres where the Iustyce was / And there the Prouoste she her bredern knewe her / and began to wepe make grete way lynges that longe were to be rehercyd ¶ Anone were broughte gownes of clothe of golde vnto her of the whiche she clothed her as by force / After she shewed to her fader how Prothus Iacintus his two Emiches she had forsake the worlde and all the goodes in erthe and had made theymself Crysten / Thenne all togyder thanked god / sayenge / ¶ O god thy power is now gloryfyed that hath ouercome and banysshyd the enmyes of thy seruauntes / ¶ Eugene was ladde in grete worship in to the house of her fader / And the fyre of heuen came downe vpon the house of Melance / In whyche abode noo body alyue but were all that were 〈◊〉 in brenned and wasted all in to asshes / ¶ Thenne all the Crysten peple that had be put out of the sayd Prouoste were called ayen / And the chyrche was open / the whyche by the space of eyghte yere was shytte / ¶ The fader of Eugene Prouoste of Alexandrye that in the Crysten hadd take awaye theyr fraunchyses restored theim enteerly vnto theym ayen / ¶ And he himself thrugh the enticynge of his doughter Eugene made hym to be crystned his wyfe also all his seruauntes / ¶ Alle the cyte was as it had be one oonly chyrche soo moche began there the name of the Crysten to flourysshe / ¶ Now it is trouthe / as often it happyth that the good are enuyed by the badde / that some wente and reported vnto Seuere Anthony bothe emperours of the Romayns / vnder the whyche / the gouernaunce of all Alexandrye was ruled and gouerned / How Phylyp the Prouost was become a crysten man and dystroyed thydolles and buylded chyrches in the name of the god of the Crysten / And how he hadd ordeyned newe lawes and put asyde the emperours lawes / The whyche wrote vnto hym in this maner / ¶ Philyp we be enformed of the noueltees that thou hast done
in Alexandrye / And we knowe wel that our fader ComÌ„odius ordened the to be there / Not oonly as Prouoste but as a kynge In suche wyse that in all thy lyfe thou sholdest neuer be reuokyd therfro / And noo successour sholde not be gyuen to the / ¶ Wherfore we desyrynge some thynges to be multyplyed vnto the benefices of the same order / We seÌ„de the worde of coÌ„mauÌ„dement that to the ryght myghty goddes thou doo make lyke sacrefice as we haue acustomyd or otherwyse thou shalt be bi reuyd fro thy dygnytee And wyth thys thy goodes shal be vnto vs applyed as forfayted / ¶ The Prouoste Phylyppe whan he herde thyse tydynges feyned hymself to be syke tyll that he had caused al his goodes to be dealed vnto the poore for goddis sake / and to the chyrches And he hymself weut and comforted the Crysten· to the ende they sholde be more stable constaunt and not ferynge the dethe / ¶ Durynge the sayde tyme notwithstondyng that he was coÌ„maunded to wythdrawe hymself oute of the offyce of Prouoste / Neuerthelesse by cause none other was yet come that sholde ocupye the sayd offyce the peple seruyd and obeyed hym as theyr Prouoste / And ouer this the preestes ordeyned hym theyr Bysshopp / ¶ Soo was the good Phylyppe a hole yere well seruynge god in suche astate / The yere expyred was ordeyned to the office of the Prouoste one namyd Perennius whyche trowed to haue slayn hym / But by cause he was moche agreable to god to the peple he cowde not fynde the wayes therof / ¶ Finably he made to be put secretly some subtyll and euyll dryuels that feyned to be Crysten wythin the chyrche where as was the goode Phylyppe and slewe hym in doynge the dyuyne seruyce / ¶ Thyse vnhappy Dreuels murdrers were take put in pryson in the hondes of the Prouoste PereÌ„nius / The whiche Prouoste felyng hyÌ„ self gyltye of this synne / And feynyng as he wolde haue made them to be kepte surely for to speke wyth theym and enquyre of the trouthe of the befall made theym to be putt in to pryson vnder good kepers / ¶ But neuertheles in fewe dayes after he lete them goo free by pardon Indulgence of the prynces ¶ Eugene that in the sayd cyte had begon a Couente of vyrgines buryed the body of her fader the martyr wythin the chyrche where she helde her / ¶ Also her moder Claudia had begon an hospytall whiche she had endowed wyth suffysauÌ„t rentes fayr possessyons / for to herbrugh the poore pylgrymes was at the buryenge of the sayd blessyd martyr somtyme her husbonde ¶ Whan his seruyce was done / Claudia moder to Eugene her chyldren retorned to Rome they there lo come / one of the sayd chyldren was made Senatour of Rome / the other Consul of Cartage and thother vycarye in Affryque / ¶ Eugene hadde many cosyns bothe of men of wymmen dwellynge in Rome that came to see her desyryng at her ensample to be Crysten ¶ AmoÌ„ge other saynt Basille a vyrgyne / that was of the lygnage of kynges cowde not fyÌ„de the meanes to speke wyth Eugene for to be Crysten / So made she her to be prayed bi a messager that she wolde sende her some InstruccoÌ„ns of the Cristen fayth ¶ TheÌ„ne saynt Eugene sente her two crysten knyghtes / Prothus Iacintus toward the sayd Basylle for to be by theÌ„ taught in the faythe of holy chirche / The whyche she receyued worshypfully as apostles of IhuÌ„ Cryste / ¶ All daye all nyghte she was wyth theym spekinge of the holy scrypture / And by cause they were Emyches therof folowed noo sklauÌ„dre / ¶ In the sayde tyme one namyd Cornille was pope of Rome / whiche came to her secretly crystned her / WhaÌ„ saynt Basylle was coÌ„fermyd in the faythe by the sacrament of baptesme / she came almoost euery nyght visited saynt Eugene all the wydowes that were cristned went to the couent of saynt Claude the moder of Eugene the virgyns resorted to saynt Eugene / ¶ The sayd saynt Cornyll at that tyme pope went euery Saturday visyted them / expownyg vnto theim deuoute ympnes soÌ„ges all the longe nyght vnto the spring of the daye / ¶ Valerien Galien in tho dayes were emperours that whiche began to haue the Crysten in grete Indignacyon for by cause the saynt Cyprien coÌ„uerred them of Cartage / saynt Cornylle the Romayns / Soo was sent Paternê° Proconsul in to Cartage for to bringe theâ—â— to deth Cyprien that whiche thyng he dyde â— by all thê° he deyed a martyr ¶ The same tyme saynt Eugene knewe by the wyll of god / that saynt Basylle shold be martâ—ed for to kepe her vyrgynyte the whiche reuelacoÌ„n she gaue her to know saynt Basylle answerd to Eugene· that also she had vnderstond by reuelacoÌ„n of god that Eugene shold haue a dowble crowne of martyrdom one for the meryte that she had gote in Alexandrâ—e thother for shedynge of her bloode that she sholde suffre for to kepe her faythe ThenÌ„e saynt Eugene yelded graces to god sayenge / O my god onÌ„ly sone of the euerlastyg god the fader that art come in to this vyle world within the wombe of the right holy virgin I byseâ—he the right huÌ„bly that it woll playse that to grauÌ„te vnto altho virgines whiche that hast coÌ„mitted to be ruled by me the grace that they maye come to thy euerlastyng Ioye / ¶ Eugene after went wyth her vyrgyns and sayd to them suche or lyke wordes in substaunce / ¶ My sisters the vyneyerde is now ripe / the seeson is now come that the gode vynes shall be pressed out of the grapes wyth fete / but after that the vyne shal be strayned made well pure clene / It shall be preseÌ„ted for to be dronke in the ryall courte of the kynge / And therfore sayde god I am the vyne And ye my dyscyples are the raysyns / My systers that are sprynges reysyns of virgynytee be euer redy for to make fayre worshypp the lawe whyche ye holde Virgynyte is the fyrst shewing of gode vertues nyhe neyghbour to god lyke vnto angels moder of life freÌ„de vnto holynes waye of suretee lady of Ioye leder of vertue nourysshinge crowne of fayth the socours yelder of charyte ¶ And therfore my systers we oughte to desyre none other thynge somoche as to lyue in vyrgynyte / yet noâ—e grete deuocoÌ„n we ought to haue as to deye for her in this byhalfe / ¶ Ye knowe that all erthly thynges come wyth grete Ioye· but after departyng they are cause of grete heuynesse soo they gyue a laughter a Ioy sondayn for to be the causeâ— of wepyng euerlastyÌ„gly / For this lyfe is but a momente to the regarde of the lyfe that euermore shall last / And at the ende al those that therupon shall
/ And att this cause he askyd theym what it was that had moeued theym to come there also the cause why they made hym so grete honour / TheÌ„ne they tolde hym the wonderfull syghte that they had seen / of the whiche saynt Basylle yelded graces to god / ¶ And certayne dayes after he gadred all the peple / In the presence of whom he put the one of the sayd thre partes of the hoste in to the sayd douune of golde hanged it reuerently ouer the awter / And this done He for to comforte the peple and to conferme in the holy faythe of Ihesu Cryste made a moche fayre prechynge / ¶ Att whyche was the grete abbot Of whom herafter shall be spoken / ¶ Of an Ebrew man that saw a chylde bytwene the hoÌ„des of saynt Basylle whan he deuided the body of our lorde And begyÌ„nyth in latin ¶ Diuino quidem c· Caplm C.lxii. BY the wyll of god and duringe the tyme the saynt Basille on a tyme amoÌ„ge other songe masse An Eâ—rewe that was there saw a chylde bitwene the hondes of the sayd saynt Basylle / ¶ The chylde as it semyd to the sayd Ebrewe was by this Basylle parted deuyded / And where they alle after the masse sayd admynistred them self in receyuynge the body of our lorde The sayd Ebrewe man put hymselfe amonge the other Crystens / And so saynt Basylle admynystred hym an hoste as to the other / And consequently askyd to be admynystred wyth the holy chalys that semyd him to be fylled with blood / And his askynge was gyuen to hym / ¶ And he kepynge of eyther one parte bare it vnto his wyfe for to shewe it to her and to conferme her in the vyson that he had seen / ¶ And the nexte daye after he retorned to the holy bysshop and made hymself to be crystned wyth all his meyne / ¶ Of one that forsoke god and gaaf a wrytynge therof sealed wyth his owne honde / And begyÌ„nyth in latin ¶ Illudius auteÌ„ / Caplm C.lxiii A Holy man that had be Chapelayn to saynt Basylle and his sucessour in the bysshopryche of Capadoce / And the whyche wrote vnto saynt Iherom the lyf of saynt Basylle / ¶ Reherseth that a Senatour of Rome called Protherius hadd a doughter The whyche he wolde offre and sacrefye vnto god / Thynkynge that she shold be a relygyous woman / But the deuyll enuyuous ouer all goodnesse ¶ For to lette and wythdrawe the holy purpoos of the sayd Protherius / enflaÌ„med wyth the fyre of concupyscence one of his housholde seruauntes / The whyche enamoured hymselfe on his sayd doughter / ¶ And by cause he knewe for certayne that he was not her lyke for to haue her by maryage / He wente to a mayster of Magyke / To whom he shewed his caas / Sayeng that yf he cowde lerne hyÌ„ ony meane by the whiche he myghte haue the sayd doughter He sholde gyue hym a grete somme of golde / ¶ The Magycyen or Nygramancer answerd that he cowde not do it / ¶ But and he wolde he shold make him speke with the deuyll / whiche was his procurour / By whoo 's werkyng he sholde well now haue ryght soone hys wyll / ¶ Thenne the folisshe louer answerde to the sayd Magicyen / That he was redy to doo all that he shole commaunde hym / Soo that he myghte gete all that he desired / ¶ Thenne the sayd Magycien made him to forsake his Creatour And to forsake his parte of the Ioyes of paradis / And this done he made hym to take hym a bylle conteynynge the wordes that folowe wryten oonly wyth his owne honde / ¶ My lorde and my Procurour / by cause that I muste wythdrawe oute of the Crysten relygyon· and bynde myself to thy wyll to the ende that thy subgettes ben multeplyed / I sende the this messager berer of my lettrers whyche is desyrous taken wyth the loue of a may de / Werfore I praye that thou wolt doo soo moche for me that his wyll be fulfylled / To th ende that by hym I may haue Ioye and glory / And power to coÌ„mauÌ„de other / and brynge theym in thy obeyslaunce / ¶ This letter soo made the Magycyen delyuered it to the folysshe louer / and sayd to hym / That att a certayne hour of the nighte / he sholde goo and put himselfe vpon the graues of the Paynyms and Heretykes / And that there he sholde holde vp his letter in the ayre And anone certayne messengers sholde come to hym whyche sholde brynge hym to the deuyll / ¶ Thus dyde this vnhappy wretche / And sodainly came to hym a grete multytude of wickyd spirytes from the prynce of derkenesse and of wyckydnesse The whyche in grete Ioye ladde hym tofore theyr prynce / Whyche was sett vp on hihe in a grete chayer / And abowt hym were a grete multytude of deuylles wythoute nombre / In presence of whom he presented his wrytynge / ¶ And after that it was radde / the sayd prynce sayde vnto hym / ¶ Now come hyther my freÌ„de / Doost thou byleue in me / He answerd ye / ¶ Yet agayn questyoned him sayenge / ¶ Doost thou forsake Ihesu Cryste / he answerd as afore / Ye / TheÌ„ne the prynce of the deuylles sayde to hym / ¶ Ye Crysten men are false shrewes / For whan ye haue nede to be holpen of me / Ye praye me / And after that ye haue gote your desyre Ye denye and forsake Incontynent to that ye haue promysed to me / And soone after retonrne to youre god whyche is soo moche good and swete and mercyfull / That he refusyth not ony Synnar / ¶ But this notwythstondynge / yf thou wolte that I shall doo thy wyll to be performed and fulfilled to thy behouf playsure / Thou muste fyrste gyue to me a letter of thyne honde / By the whyche thou shalt denye and forsake the sacrament of baptesme and the crysten faythe / ¶ SecoÌ„dly thou shalt promyse me that thou shalt serue me in this worlde And atte the daye of dome thou shalte holde me felishyp for to be wyth me afterwarde perpetuelly in all the tormentes that I suffre / This vnhappy man promysed him all the same / And IncoÌ„tynent all the deuylles maysters of fornycacion were sente towarde the sayde mayde for to tempte and styre her to the loue of the vnhappy man forsayde ¶ The whyche sodaynly was soo take wyche loue of hym that she myghte no ther ete nor drynke / And after that she had borne this woodnesse a lytyll space of tyme / Fynably she sayde vnto her fader / ¶ O my fader haue pyte vpon me / For certainly I am sore tormented of the loue of one of thy seruauÌ„tes / My fader I biseche the shewe now what a loue thou haste to thy chylde / For yf thou enclyne and falle not to my wee le thou shalte see me deed wythin shorte tyme / ¶
Basylle thou doost me grete wroÌ„ge / for this synnar is come to me not I to hym / He hath forsake his Creatour in my presence / therof he hath gyue to me his writynge wyth his honde wryten for a wytnesse of the same / the whyche wrytyng I goo present byfore the euerlastyÌ„g Iuge / ¶ Saynt Basylle thenÌ„e sayd to the deuyll / Blessyd be god / My people shall neuer ceasse to praye / nor shal not brynge downe theyr hondes whiche are heued vpward to heuen tyll that thou haste gyuen ayen the sayd wrytynge vnto this poore synnar / ¶ Alle this noble assemble made after more deuowte prayers than afore had done / And ceassed not tyll that the sayde wrytynge was taken in to the hondes of the sayde holy man / The whyche after the receyuynge of it he yelded graces vnto god / And sayd to the synÌ„aâ— byfore all the peple that was there / ¶ My broder knowest not thou this letter / He answerde ye / And that it was wryten with his owne honde / ¶ ThenÌ„e saynt Basille brake it in peces and brought him to the chirche for to make Confessyon / Whyche thynge done he Receyued his Creatour / And after sente-hym home agayn vnto his his wyfe / The whiche of his grete grace she thanked deuowtly our lorde / ¶ Of a woman to whom her sinÌ„es were forgyuen by the prayer of saynt Basylle / And begynÌ„yth in latyn ¶ Mulier quidaÌ„ c. Caplm C.lxiiii A Woman ryche noble full of the vanitees of the world· vsed euyll of her facultees / For she was prodyge lecherous / Soo that in all maner of her dedes she was vnagreable to god / And as a sowe dooth laye herself in a fowle putdel soo was thys woman wrapped in all fylthe vncleÌ„nesse of flesshe ¶ And somtyme by a syÌ„guler grace that god gaaf her she alone to herself made knowlege of the grete multytude of her synnes and in wepynge sayd to god / Alas my Redemer I that am a poore synnar how shall I make satysfaccoÌ„n towardes the of my synnes / I oughte for to be the temple of the holy ghost / And by my synnes I haue defoylled hurte my soule / I am the moost vnhappy of all the worlde / I byleue not that euer ony woman syn her Crystendom dyde soo synÌ„e gretely / and soo abhomynable as I haue done ¶ Alacke how shall I mow be in certayn that god woll receyue my penaunce ¶ And whan she had well bethoughte herselfe vpon her byfall / God Inspyred her to thyÌ„ke vpon the grete euylles and synnes that she had sinned and done syn her yongthe vnto her olde aege And theym she broughte in mynde wrote in a rolle / And this done / she sealed theym vnder leed / And after purposed whan saynt Basylle sholde come to the chirche for to syÌ„ge masse that she sholde delyuer he Rolle vnto hym / ¶ The whyche thynge she dyde soo in cryenge wych an hyghe voys / ¶ O holy man and seruauÌ„te of god haue pyte of me moost wretched of all other synnars / ¶ Saynt Basylle askyd her the cause of her wayllynge / and she answered / Alas my lorde I haue wryten in this Rolle all my mysdedes and wyckydnesse / I byseche the that thou wolt not loke vpon theim / But vouchesauf to doo soo moche for me by thy prayers towarde god / That they maye be forgyuen to me / ¶ I wote wel that he that hathe gyuen me vnderstondynge and wyll for to knowe theim / shall enhaunse the prayer that thou shalt make for me in this byfalfe / ¶ Therfore I byseche the socour me now at my grete nede / ¶ The holy man toke the rolle of her / And heued his hondes vp towarde heuen sayenge / ¶ O my god it aperteynyth thy dygnytee for to doo that this poore synfull woman askith / thou mayste putt and enrase oute wythin a moment alle the synnes of the worlde / ¶ I byseche the mekely for her / All oure synnes are in a certayne nombre byfore thy mageste / ¶ But thy mercy is wythoute ende / ¶ His prayer thus done / he sette the Rolle vpon the awter / And there the holy man abode prayenge god a daye and a nyghte contynuelly / ¶ The nexte morowe he called vnto hym the sayd woman in presence of some clerkes and sayd to her / ¶ WomaÌ„ thou knowest well that thy synne can not be pardonned· but by the power of god the whyche answerde / ¶ Holy fader I by leue that that thou sayst / And therfor I by seche mekely that it woll playse the to be myn helper towarde him ¶ ThenÌ„e the rolle was opened at openynge of it· It was founde that all her synÌ„es were to her foryeuen except do grete synÌ„e whiche was not enrased nor putt oute ¶ The pore woman was sore heuy dyscoÌ„forted felle to the fete of the holy maÌ„ cried / O maÌ„ of god haue pite vppon me and lyke as thou haste prayed for all my synes Yet ayen pray for me towarde god that this synÌ„e maye be also pardonÌ„ed to me / ¶ Saynt Basylle began to wepe sayde to the woman / My frende stonde vpp I haue as grete nede of pardonÌ„e as thiself / For I am a synÌ„er / He that hath put out thyn other syÌ„nes may emase the same whyche is lefte behynde / And therfore yf in tyme comynge thou kepe the coÌ„maundements of god He shall not only forgyue the this lyue / But wythall he shall gyue the the lyf eternall in euerlasting blysse / Thou shall goo in to the Hermytage where a man is namyd Effrem to whom thou shalt take thy rolle And Ieâ—â—st in god that by his prayers thou shalt be delyuerd of the same synne and shalt haue of it a full absolucoÌ„n to the saluacoÌ„n of thy soule / ¶ The woman walked solonge thrugh the wyldernesse that she fonde the holy man Effrem Soo begane she to knocke att his doâ—e cryenge ¶ O holy man of god haue pite of me / Effrem that bi the knowlege of god knewe the cause why she was come answerde vnto her / ¶ Woman goo thou thâ— way for I am a synnar as the arte / Wherby I haue nede of the mercy of god as thou hast / The woman thenÌ„e cast to hym her rolle sayeng / O holy fader the bisshop Basylle sendeth me to the. gyuynge to me a hope that thurgh thy prayers the greetest of my synnes shall be foryeuen vnto me ¶ Effrem sayd vnto her / Naye my doughter naye / He that by his prayers hathe gote remyssyon of thin other synÌ„es may yet do that the same synÌ„e for that whiche thou comest toward me shall be pardonÌ„ed vnto the / ¶ Torne ayen lyghtly towarde him to the ende that thou mayst speke wyth hym byfore his deth / The woman retorned anone / But whaÌ„ she entred in Cezaree the
vnto the holy faders by reuelacyon dyuyne the trouth of this befalle / that the one gafe his bodye to penauÌ„ce for the salualoÌ„n of his felawe / how be it that he had not done the synne ¶ Men maye doo no fayrer almose than to gyue his body for to saue his euencrysten to praye god for his soule ¶ An other brother there was that semblably was tempted of the synne of lecherye / wherfore by dyuerse tymes he camto one holy fader that was dwellyng ynough nyghe him euer he besought hym that he wolde praye god for hyÌ„ / but the more that the holy fader prayed / the sayd brother to more besely requyred him to praye for hym ¶ And for this cause the sayd holy fader was both nyght daye in oryson for him / but it prouffyted hyÌ„ nought / wherof the sayd holy fader was sore dyscomforted knowyng that his oryson was not herde ¶ But our lord for to comforte hym shewed to hym a vysyon the cause why he was not herde / that it was by occasyon of the neglygence of hyÌ„ for whom he prayed / the whiche wolde not helpe hym selfe for to resyst corageously ayenst the temptacoÌ„n of the deuyls / but rather toke a plesure to see the Illusyons that the deuyll presented vnto hym puttyng in his mynde the remeÌ„braunce of many dyshonost women And how well that in these folysshe Illusyons his good angell that was full heuy and sory as him semed of that he resysted not ayenst the sayd temptacyons / neuertheles he made no force for it So sayd he to the sayd brother My frende but yf the take corage of thy self castyng a backo the delectacoÌ„ns that the deuyll presented to the I can not helpe that by my prayers And therfor thou must put thy selfe in oryson to fast / to sygh to wepe / other abstynences to do Thou knowest that the leche whan he wyl gyue to the pacyent some remedyes ayenst his maladye / yf the seke kepe not hyÌ„selfe from suche metes that ben contrarye to his helthe / with grete payne the leche shall he le hyÌ„ ¶ Also thy selfe the arte in dedely synne thou puttest no payne to recouer the grace of god that thou hast lost / but doest the contrarye of that he coÌ„mauÌ„deth the to do thrugh the pleasure that thou takest in the temptacoÌ„ns of the flesshe Therfor helpe thy selfe / god shall helpe ye. For otherwyse the holy faders that are leches spyrytual sholde not conne because to restore to thy soule her helthe ¶ The brother by these remonstracoÌ„ns toke at his herte so grete contrycyon that he obteyned the mercy of god / the sclauÌ„deroê° wycked passyon of lecherye wente a waye from hym ¶ For no maner of nede that a man hath he ought not to suffre the ony yong woman serue in his house / all be she his kynneswoman or otherwyse ¶ An her myte beyng in his hermytage doynge there penauÌ„ce was by one his kynnes woman wretchedly deceyued For the deuyll styred the same his kynnes womaÌ„ for to see the sayd hermyte in his hermytage where he receyued her benyngly / at this cause she bode with hyÌ„ a space of tyme / the whiche tyme / he knewe her carnaly Not ferre froÌ„ the same hermytage dwelled a holy fader right deuoute / the which by many dayes afore the caas was happed / when he put water in a vessell of his owne for hyÌ„ to dryÌ„ke / incoÌ„tyneÌ„e as he wold take the vessell trowyÌ„g to haue droÌ„ken of the water / the vessell tourned vpsodoÌ„ne in his hande spylled the water coude not drynke out of it Thenne he thought he wolde shewe this to his felawe for to knowe what it mente Soo toke he his waye for to come to his hermytage / but he was beclypped of the nyghte and constrayned for to goo lye in a Temple where Yooles were ¶ As he slepte within the sayde Temple / he herde the deuyls that sayde one to the other / how that nyghte they hadde made an hermyte to falle in the synne of fornycacyon with a woÌ„man that was of his sybbe ¶ The holy hermyte herynge these wordes was therof sore meruaylled ¶ On the morowe acte sprynge of the daye he began to walke forth on his waye vnto the tyme that he was come there as his felawe was ¶ And entryng in his hermytage he founde hym trystefull and sore to the deth ¶ After his gretynge yeuen vnto hym tolde hym how his water dyde spylle oute of his vessell when he sholde drynke / and that for to haue his counseyll in this matere / he was come towarde hym ¶ That other that hadde done the sayd synne of lecherye answered ¶ Alas my brother I haue gretter nede of thy counseyll / than thou of myne / for the last nyght I felle in to the fowle dyshonest and abhomynable synne of fornycacyon / wherof I haue offended my god and my maker wyckedly ¶ Thenne his felawe sayd to hym / that he wyst it well and shewed hym the maner / how he beynge a slepe within a Temple of Ydoles hadde herde the deuyls sayeng the one to the other that whiche is sayd ¶ Thenne he that hadde synned as withoute hope wolde haue gone to the worlde and forsake his hermytage But that other recomforted hym aswell as he coude / praynge hym to abyde styll in his telle / and that better it was to sheue oute the sayde woman to th ende they two togyder myghte doo penaunce tyll that god had pardonned hym his synne / the whiche thynge he dyde / and syth ledde a lyfe moche deuoute and holy ¶ Whan men are ouermoche vexed trauaylled of the deuyll / and tempted of the synne of fornycacyon / the souerayne remedye is to occupye hym selfe in prayers and orysons / or in temporall werkes / and I lee ydlenes whiche is the rote of all vyces ¶ To this purpose we rede that an holy hermyte beyng in a place named Celya / the whiche by the deuyls was sore tempted for to acomplysshe the synne of lecherye He consydered in hym selfe that it was of necessyte that he sholde sette hym selfe to some werke by the whiche his bodye were strongly trauaylled ¶ Now this broder was a potmaker / so aduysed he that he sholde make a woman of erthe / in dede he dyde so / after that she was made / he sayd to his thoughtes the tourmented him of the synne of fornycacyon that he had a woman to kepe But bycause that this notwithstandyÌ„g he was euer teÌ„pted as aboue / he ymagyned to labour more than he had done tofore / made childern of erthe saynge after to his thoughtes when they moeued hyÌ„ to lecherye that he hadde bothe wyfe and childern Morouer for to ouercome his passyons / he purposed to laboure more than he had done afore / sayng that nedes he muste trauaylle / aswell for to gete his wyfe
/ alwayes the vertuous persone ought to flee the places where men doo to hym honour / to the ende that the deuyll tempte hym not by vayne glorye ¶ The abbot Poemen to this purpose recouÌ„ted to his brethern / that in the ryme that Theodosius was Emperour of Constantynople There was an hermyte that hadde a lytell house without the towne of Constantynople nyghe ynoughe to a place of pleasure where the Emperours wente gladely to passe the tyme by maner of recreacion ¶ Theodosius knowyng of the sayde hermyte and that he neuer wente out of his sayde house purposed for to goo vysyte hym And whan he was nyghe the sayd place / he made his folke to tarye and wolde goo there all one Soo came he and knocked atte the hermytes dore The holy hermyte rose vppe anone and opened the gate After that the Emperour was entred there ynne / he looked alle aboute the chambre and he founde there no thynge but a lytyll drye brede He prayed the sayde hermyte that he wolde gyue hym some mete ¶ The holy man presented hym Incontynente brede / salte / and water Thenne after that the Emperour asked hym how the holy faders of Egypte dyde lyue in the deserte Where vnto he answered that contynuelly they prayed and were in theyr orysons for the saluacyon of theyr soules ¶ More ouer the Emperour asked hym yf he knewe hym not And he answered naye Thenne the Emperour tolde hym that he was Theodosius the Emperour of Constantynople ¶ Thenne the hermyte kneled donne on his knees a fore hym to the grounde But Theodosius toke hym vp sayeng in this maner Ye Relygyouses are right happy in this presente worlde / for ye lyue without solycytude and are euer in peas All your laboure is to doo the saluacyon of your soules / and to acquere the Royalme of paradyse And in good sothe I tell the holy fader that I that am Emperour hadde neuer rest / but I haue be am contynuelly in laboure and trybulacyon / and be it in drynkyng or in etyng Dame solycytude cometh and telleth my morcelles After the Emperour salued hym honestely and toke leue of hym The man of god consyderyng all the nyght how the Emperour was come to hym / was a ferde that many other lordes sholde come in lykewyse to hym Wherfore dredynge the grete honour that they myght haue done to hym / purposed to goo thens And in dede he wente to the deserte of Egypte with the other holy faders / to th ende that he were not withdrawe nor brought from his humylyte by the pleasure that he myght haue taken in the vysytacyons of the lordes that shold haue comen see hym Soo ought we well to take hede to the exemple of the sayde holy fader that toke soo moche payne vpon hym for to kepe his humylyte without whiche we maye not come to the euerlastyng glorye ¶ Of the sayd abbot Poemen RecouÌ„ted the holy faders that on a tyme the Iuge of the prouynce where he was that hadde herde many thynges of his holynesse sente hym worde and prayed hym that he wolde wouchesauffe to receyue hym in to his house / for he wolde goo see hym ¶ The holy man Poemen thought in hym selfe that yf the sayd Iuge sholde come to hym / many other myght also come there / where by his conuersacyon sholde be knowen the whiche he hadde kepte soo secretly sythe the tyme of his yongthe ¶ And by this myghte the deuyll thrughe his cautele and malyce tempte him of vayne glorye And thus he sholde lese all the meryte that he hadde acquered ¶ Alle these thynges consydered / the abbot Poemon sente worde to the sayde Iuge that he sholde not receyue him This answere herde the Iuge was angry and wrothe supposyng that the holy fader wolde not receyue hym because he was to grete a synner Alwayes he thought in hym selfe by what maner he myght best speke with hym So he aduysed hym selfe and made to be take and brought to pryson the sone of the syster of the sayde holy man / ymagynyng that when the sayde saynte Poemen sholde knowe of it he sholde come for to sue his delyueraunce towarde hym / or ellys he sholde be contente for to Receyue hym in his celle or lytell house ¶ And this doon he sente worde to the holy abbot Poemen / that he sholde not be wroth for the prysonement of his neuewe For as soone as he wolde come and speke with hym he sholde be delyuered oute of pryson The syster of the sayd holy man all wasshed in teeres went to the deserte for to telle hym these tydynges / but he had a meruayllous constauÌ„ce / for he nother opned the dore nor spake not to his syster wherfor she as a woman froÌ„ her wytte began for to curse Poemen be cause of that he had no coÌ„passyon ouer her sayeng O ryght harde herted euyll man â—â— thy hert made of yron which can not be moeued thurgh the teeres of thy syster Germayn I haue but one oonly sone whiche thou leuest in daunger onely by cause that wyll not obeye to the petycyon of the Iuge The abbot Poemen sent anone suche or semblable wordes vnto the Iuge Syr Iuge Poemen hath no childern of his body begoten ouer whome he ought to sorowe ne make coÌ„passyon The Iuge herynge this wordes / sent him a letter contaynyng this that foloweth Abbot Poemen yf thou wylte not come to speke with me to th ende that thy neue we may be delyuerd / wryte vnto me in forme of a supplycacyon / I shall grauÌ„te all that y shalte desyre of me Thenne at the exhortacoÌ„n of som thabbot Poemen wrote to hym in this maner Thy noblenes shall make good informacoÌ„n of the lyfe of my neuewe / yf he hath deserued deth make hym deye / to th ende that in this presente worlde he be punysshed of his synnes / wherby he maye eschewe that payne euerlastyng And yf he hath not done that thynge wherby he sholde be worthy to suffre deth for it / make of hym that whiche thou maye suffre to be do after thy lawes ¶ A nother of the holy faders of Egypt named Agathon very pacyent humble was of some bretheren vysyted / by cause they desyred to knowe his grete pacyence humylyte that men sayd was in hym And for to preue hyÌ„ they sayd to hym many grete Iniuryes hym repreuyng that all his holy faders were sclauÌ„dred thrugh his pryde / that by his exaltacoÌ„n he setted all the other to nought in bachytyng and blasphemyng them / With this they sayd to hym / that the cause why he blaphemed his felawes / it was by cause he was lecherous And to th ende that men sholde not suppose nor deme hym selfe allone to be lecherous / he contynuelly sclaundred the other The holy man Agathon to these Iniuryes other answered humbly / that he coude not denye the synnes of the whiche he was by them
grete to see with the spyrytuell eyen / than with the bodely eyen / to possesse rather suche eyen / by the whiche a synne as lytyll as for to take vp a strawe can not be done / than the eyen that by one oonly loke of concupyscence maye make a man to falle in to the gryÌ„nes of deth with tormente euerlastyng ¶ A Relygyouse dwellyng in the desertes of Nytrye whiche was more sparynge than a couetouse man / not takyng hede that our lorde was solde for .xxx. penys / left behynde hym when he was deed a hondred shelyng whiche he had spared with weuyng of clothes The relygyouses his neyghbours that dwelled in the same desertes as two or thremyle one from an other / hadde togydre counseyll / what they ought for to doo with this hondred shelyng Some of them sayd that men ought to deale it to the poore folke for goddes sake / some sayde that it sholde be gyuen to the chyrche / and some sayd that they ought to sende it to the parentes of the forsayd relygyouse that was deed ¶ But saynt Macharye / the holy fader Pambo / saynt Ysodore and some other holy faders beynge atte the same counseyll and spekyng out of the mouthe of the holy goost decerned concluded that it sholde be buryed with theyr mayster that hadde spared them / saynge Thy moneye be with the to thy losse and destruccoÌ„n And to th ende that this thynge be not thought cruelly done It is to be noted / that by this was moeued suche a feere and soo grete a drede amonge all the monkes and Relygyouses of the londe of Egypte / that euery of them thought a right grete and abhomynable synne in a man to leue onely oo shelyng after his deth ¶ A yong stryplyng borne of Grece became a Relygyouse in the desertes of Egypt And how well that he was sore abstynente and made lene his bodye with paynfull fastynges / grete labours and longe watchynges / neuerthelesse he coude not putte out in hym the mocyons of flesshely concupyscence And where this thyng was shewed vnto the fader abbot of his monasterye / he fouÌ„de the maner for to preserue him therfrom by suche a meane He coÌ„mauÌ„ded to a grete man moche hughe and sore harde / that he sholde goo chyde fyersly / and saye many grete wronges to the sayd Relygyouse / and that yet after grete shame sayd and done to hym / he sholde not gyue hym leue to scuse hym selfe / but sholde euer contynue his blames and complayntes ayenste hym / the whiche thynge this man Incontynent fulfylled And for to moeue and trouble more the sayde yonge Relygyouse / all be it that he was not gylty of the shames that he sayd by hym / he called some persones for to be presente when he spake vnto hym suche shames / the whiche as they hadde be lerned afore helde with the sklaunderar and bare out his dede to the blame of the poore Relygyouse Innocente Where by he consyderynge the grete outrage and shame of the wronges that hym were layed vpon agaynste all truthe / toke hym selfe for to wepe and syghe soo sore that it was grete wounder And contynued his teeres a longe space of tyme as he that was Replenysshed other fulfylled with moche grete heuynesse and putte from all ayde and socoure and other comforte as to hym semed But that he Retourned to god his creatour and Redemer / vnto whome lyenge flatte and castynge hym selfe to the erthe / he made Ryght sorowfull and bytter complayntes of the grete wronges Iniuryes and Rebukes whiche wrongfully and without a cause hadde be putte vpon hym And he contynued this lyfe well an hole yere the whiche ended and acomplysshed / this yonge man was questyoned and asked / how he bare hym selfe touchyng his lecherouse temptacyons / and yf he was passyoned therwith ony more bycau-of them Where vnto he andswered sayd vnto them Alas when it is not honest for me for to haue aptyte to lyue lenger / that I ought to desyre my selfe deed for the grete shames that haue be layd vpon me / how sholde I remeÌ„bre of ony lecherouse appetyte to be within me / as he wolde haue sayd / that detraccyon whiche Iniustly had be done ouer hym / had taken awaye from hym all other cogytacoÌ„ns thoughtes And by this meane the sayd yong Relygyouse was thrugh the aduyse of the sayd holy fader saued kept from the sayd temptacyons / came syn ayen casely to the right waye when he knewe that the sayd wronges had be done to hym for to make hym for to forgette the temptacyons aboue sayd ¶ Here after consequently foloweth a lytyll boke or treatyse conteynyng many instruccyons for folke of Relygyon other contemplatyue / how they owe to behaue them selfe that one with the other / to profyte in Relygyon / whiche begynneth in latyn Interrogauit c. A Relygyouse Requyred the abbot Anthonye that he wolde teche hym how he myght sooneste please our lorde To the whiche Relygyouse the same abbot answered / that to what soeuer place that he sholde goo / he sholde alwayes haue god afore his eyen / and that in the thynges that he sholde doo / he sholde euer haue the wyenessynge and prouynge of the holy wryte / and that he sholde not be vnstedfaste / but in all places where he hadde to dwelle / he sholde perseuerantly abyde therat and not to departe sodeynly therfrom Tellyng morouer vnto hym that in kepyng and obseruyng curyously these thre thynges / he sholde purchace his saluacyon ¶ The abbot Pambo askynge of the abbot Anthonye / how he ought to ledde hym selfe for to lyue vertuously This anthonye sayd to hym / trust not vpon thy holy lyfe Repente not of the thyng that is passed where no remedy can not be hadde to it Refrayne thy tonge from ouermoche and vnprofytable langage kepe also that thou fylle not thy bely ¶ Saynt Gregorye sayd that our lord asketh thre thynges to be pryncypally kept by euery crysten man / the fyrst that he haue a veray fayth kepe it with all his soule / the seconde that he be true in his wordes / the thyrde that he be contente chaste of bodye ¶ Saynt Euagrius sayd that the mere that is dyre without craftly sauer as fruytes herbes rotys is a couenable â—â—ete for men of Relygyon / that suche mete bryÌ„geth them to the hauen of saluacoÌ„n Impassyble / that is to saye to the blysse that euer shall last without ende ¶ Ayen he sayd / that a Relygyouse to whome the deth of his fader was tolde / answered vnto hym that brought hym this tydynges My frende leue of blame no more my fader / saynge by the that he is deed / for thou sayst not well / bycause that I knowe well that he is Inmortall By the whiche wordes / the sayd Relygyouse gaue to vnderstande / that he reputed not hym selfe to
heryng the noyse of the rede / as he wolde haue sayd / that a man that desyreth for to do the saluacyon of his soule / can not be to moche withdrawen parted from the charges besynesse of the worlde / whiche are to hym of more lettyng / the more that he delyteth hym to lyue solytaryly ¶ Men fynde that his cellle was departed ferre from all habytacoÌ„ns of folke .xxxij. myle or there about / wente not out often / but he had folke that admynystred vnto him his necessytees ¶ And some holy fader sayd somtyme that the londe of Sychye was destroyed that no bodye dwelled there / the sayd holy fader sayd these wordes The worlde hath lost Rome / the Relygyouses Sychye ¶ The sayd abbot makynge a whyle his abydyng in a place called Canap / a holy matrone an olde virgyne born of Rome the cyte whiche was moche riche / dredyng god / desyrynge hertely to see the sayd holy fader Arsenyen / and came in to Alexandrye towarde the archebysshop Theophyle / and besought hym that he wolde be the meane towarde the sayd holy fader / that his pleasyr were to graunte that she sholde see hym And the sayd Theophyle seeynge the grete affeccyon of the sayd Matrone wente towarde the sayd holy fader Arsenyen / made vnto hym the sayd Request / to the whiche he wolde not consente ¶ So came Theophyle agayne made his report to the matrone / whiche not contente therwithall / made all thynges redy for her selfe to goo there sayeng I byleue haue this stedfaste trust in god / that he shall suffre me to see hym / for all be it that in our cyte of Rome be many holy men that maye comforte me / neuerthelesse for his grete fame I haue purposed for to vnder take this vyage to th ende that I maye see hym ¶ So laboured she so moche by her Iourneyes / that she came to the place where he dwelled ¶ And it happed as our lorde wolde suffre it / that for to haue by her leyser to see the sayd holy fader / she fouÌ„de hym walkyng without his celle She thenne layed herself IncoÌ„tynent to his fete / but neuertheles he toke her vp agayne anone by grete dyspyte / beholdyng vpon her â—yerlly he sayd vnto her ¶ Now yf thou wylt see me in the face beholde me thenne ynoughe here I am ¶ She heryng his rygorouse wordes / was so sore ashamed / that she wyst not what she sholde answere namely she was not too bolde that she durst loke hym in his vysage ¶ And to her sayd agayne Arsenyen / My ymagynacyon is that syth that the woldest see me / thou haste herde speke of my werkes what neded the for to vndertake so grete awaye for to see me / the whiche that hast herde saye of me myght haue suffysed the Knowest not the well that thou art a woman / that it apperteyneth not to thyn astate that the sholdest go from thy place for to go in a strange place I byleue that thou art come hether to th ende that the mayste to telle to the women of Rome Incontynente as that shall come there ayen / that thou hast seen me / to thentente that by the meane the waye be founde in the see for to make the women to come towarde me ¶ Thenne she sayd vnto hym I promyse the holy fader / that yf it please god that I maye retourne to Rome ayen I shall not tell that I haue ben here / nor I shall not be the cause that ony bodye shall come to that / but I praye the that it wyll please the for to praye for me / with this to haue alwayes remeÌ„braunce of me ¶ Wherat he answered I praye god that he wyll put the soone out of my thought She heryng these thynges wente awaye from hym alle wrothe sory And Incontynent that she was come ayen to Alexandrye the cyte because of the grete sorowe heuynesse that she had / a sykenesse toke her with a sharpe fyuer The whiche thynge was tolde vnto the holy archebysshop Theophyle So came he towarde her for to comforte her ¶ And he askynge what she eyled / she answered to hym Alas my lord wolde god that I hadde not come here At my departyng from that holy fader I prayed hym that he wolde woushesauf to haue me in mynde And he hath answered me / that he prayed god / that he wolde take awaye from hym the Remembraunce of me The whiche answere hathe angred troubled me so sore that I am in dauÌ„ger for to deye ¶ Thenne sayd to her Theophyle / knowest not that that the art a woman / that by woman the deuyll tempteth the holy men For this cause the holy man hath gyuen the this answere But neuerthelesse thou ought not thynke but that he wyll praye god besyly for thy soule The good Matrone thenne heryng these wordes ceassed anone her wrath / in grete Ioye gladnesse retourned ayen to the cyte of Rome ¶ The abbot Euagrius sayd that he that wyll kepe hym that he shall not falle in trybulacoÌ„n / to kepe his goost with rest / ought nought to haue dyuerse affeccoÌ„ns towarde many folke ¶ A brother cam in to Sychye towarde the abbot Moyses / to whom vysytyng hym he requyred hyÌ„ that he wolde telle hym some good worde edyfycatyue for to bere it in his mynde to the ende that he sholde haue remembrauÌ„ce of hym So answered vnto hym Moyses / that he sholde go kepe hyÌ„ within his celle / it sholde lerne hym all thynges that be good ¶ The sayd Moyses sayd / that the man that fleeth the companye of men / is lyke a grape of Reysyns rype and swete / but he that seketh theyr felysshyp acompanyeth with them / is lyke vnto the grape that is sowre and bytter ¶ The abbot Nyle sayd that the man that loueth to lyue solytaryly / yeldeth hymselfe soo stedfast to denye withstande ayenst the arowes / that is to wyt ayenst the temptacyons of the fende / that they sholde not touche nor entre in hym / but he that hauntyth comynyth with the men is oftentymes dauÌ„gerously wounded ¶ The abbot pastor sayd / that to apply his thought vnto dyuerse thynges / is the begynnyng of all euylles / more ouer he sayd / that to flee from the temporall thynges was a good a sure lyue Certaynly when a man dresse hym self nyghe a place where men fyght bodely / he is lyke hym whiche is vpon a depe water / to th ende that at suche an houre as his aduersary shal seme good he maye take hym make hym for to falle vnto the botom But yf he partyth hym selfe gooth ferre from the bodely thynges / he is lyke hym that is ferre from the welle / when the fende wyll cast hym from aboue to benethe / for to do this
not wonte to see ony men / wolde not gyue vnto her broder none occasyon to come vnder her shadowe for to comoÌ„ne amonge women of Relygyon / wherfore she lete him wyt that she wolde nother see hym nor speke with hyÌ„ / that he sholde retorne to his owne monastery ayen that he wolde praye god for her / to th ende the helpyng the grace of god she myght see hym in the Royalme of heuen ¶ A monke walkyng by the waye mette somtyme an abbesse acompanyed with some Relygyouse wyÌ„men whiche this monke made grete force to loke vpon them for to knowe what they were and of what monastery / and for this cause lefte his waye toke theyrs To whome the abbesse sayd / that yf he had be a parfyte Relygyouse he sholde not haue putte hym in payne for to loke vpon them somoche that he sholde haue knowyng that they had be women / as she wolde haue sayd / that in goyng on his waye / he ought to open so soberly his eyen that he sholde not see nor apperceyue thoos that cam ayenst hym or that passed theyr wayes by hym ¶ An holy man whiche was Archebysshop of the Cyte of Alexandrye / and hadde to name Theophyle requyred som holy faders Relygyouses / that they shold come toward hyÌ„ in the sayd cyte of AlexaÌ„drye / trustyng that by theyr prayers merytes he sholde dystroye some temples where were done many ydolatryes within the sayd cyte in the contree about it These holy faders ones among other etyng with the sayd archebysshop were serued with veell where of they ete not takyng hede to theyr mete The archebysshop whiche desyred to make theym good there toke a capon that was in his dysshe afore hyÌ„ and sette it before one of the sayd holy faders / saynge that it was good that he sholde ete of it The holy fader answered vnto hym Certaynely I haue wende to this houre that I hadde eten coles / but syn I perceyue that it is flesshe I shall no more ete of it After the whiche wordes sayd the other Relygyouses lefte theyr etynge of suche flesshe that was brought before them ¶ An other Relygyouse desyred some for to ete of his lytyll loues of newe brede that he had baken hym selfe vnder the asshys And when they hadde ete eche of them one of this small loues / they left theyr etyng The brother that had boden them therunto seeyng the pacyence of theyr abstynence / and that they sholde well haue eten yet more of them / prayed them in the name of god that they wolde yet ete some / tyll that they had theyr fylle of them So began they ayen for to ete of the sayd loues of brede to the nombre of ten euery man / whiche thyng they dyde as veraye Relygyouses / not for noo necessyte that they had of it / but pryncypally for to obey vnto the request of the sayd Relygyouse that therto had desyred them in the name of our lorde god ¶ An other holy fader was somtyme syke of a gryuouse sykenesse whiche was suche / that out of his entraylles he casted blood by grete plente And for to socoure hym atte his nede a Relygyouse brought hym some almauÌ„des / wherof he made hym a cawdell whiche he presented vnto the good holy fader saynge Fayr fader I praye the that thou wyll ete this / for I hope that it is good for to Restowre the thy helthe And after that the holy fader had loked vpon hym a long whyle / he sayd to hym Certaynly my brother I dyde desyre that god sholde holde me .xxx. yere in this sykenesse / for this cause he wolde not obeye to the Request of the sayd Relygyouse / nother ete of the candell the he had brought to hym / was coÌ„strayned to bere it ayen with hym to Retourne in to his celle ¶ An auncyent fader hauyÌ„g his celle ferre within the desertes / and departed from all folke / was vysyted of a brother whiche founde hym sore syke So he wasshed hym his face that was all bespoted and wasted for bycause of his sykenesse And after he made redy certayne thynges for hym to ete that he hadde brought there with hym And the good olde fader seeyng this / he sayd vnto hym Certaynely my brother I hadde forgoten that men hadde taken ony solas or pleasures in etynge And after he presented hym with a cuppe of wyne for to drynke / whiche good aeged fader beholdynge the sayd cuppe beganne for to wepe and sayd / that he hoped not to drynke of ony wyne tyll that dethe sholde take hym ¶ An other olde fader purposed ones in hymselfe that he sholde not drynke duryng the space of .xl. dayes contynuelly And there as he was in a grete necessyte bycause of the hete / he dyde fylle a glasse full of water / that whiche he henge vp before hym within his celle And when his brethern asked hym why he dyde so / he answered he dyde it to th ende that in seeyng the same water within the sayd glasse / where as he sholde haue a lust and desyre to take of it for to stynte his thrust withall neuertheles sholde not cast of it / he myght by this meane receyue of our lorde more grete Rewarde ¶ An other broder walkyng by the waye with his moder that was alredy come to a grete aege / fouÌ„de a streâ—e thrugh whiche they must passe / whiche thyng his moder sholde not haue conne doo withstandyng her olde aege feblenes Wherfore the brother constrayned for to haue her ouer / toke of his mauÌ„tell and be wrapped her handes withall / to th ende that he sholde not couche her naked flesshe And thus he toke her vp on his necke bare her ouer the sayd streme And where his moder asked him why he had be wrapped her handes in his mantell he answered that he had done it / bycause that he knewe that the bodye of a woman is lykened vnto fyre that all wasteth And for this cause to thentente he sholde eschewe that in touchyng her naked flesshe the remembrauÌ„ce of other women sholde not be brought in his mynde / he wolde thus be wrappe her handes ¶ An other aeged holy fader sayd that he knewe a Relygyouse whiche was wonte to fast all the holy passyon weke And the satyrdaye of the sayd weke whan he came to the masse with the other Relygyouses he wayted tyll the masse were begonne for to entre within the chirche And the masse done / after he had receyued the holy sacramente of the aulter he departed hastly out of the chirche / to the ende that he sholde not be constrayned by his brethern for to ete with them / for he loued better to lyue solytaryly etynge within his celle alone some colles or beetes soden in water salt than for to comyn with them ete other metes ¶ Many brethern in Sychye were ones
moneye whiche was alredy inutylly spende / began for to wepe syghâ— full sore / repentyng hyÌ„self that he had so offended god the poores / began to saye thus O my god I beseche vnto thy benygne bouÌ„te that thou wyll not take hede vpon my grete ingratytude towarde the / but please that to haue remeÌ„brauÌ„ce of the lytyll almoses that I haue done for thy sake in tyme passed the tyme that I dyde labour in my gardyn / wherof I dyde fede thy poore seruauÌ„tes And sayng the same the angell of god descended afore hyÌ„ whiche sayd to hym Come hether good man I praye the telle me where the hope that thou haddest in thy moneye is now which so curyously thou had spared kept The good man herkenyng after these wordes answered Alas syre I haue syned pardoÌ„ne it me / from hensforthoâ— I shal nomore do so Thenne the angell of our lord touched his fote whiche was anone hole / redyly he stode vp / went to labour in his gardyn as he was wonte to do He beynge in his gardyn the cyrurgyen cam to the house of this good man bryngyng with hyÌ„ his yrons instrumentes for to haue cutte of his fote with / but men tolde hyÌ„ that he was rysen in the mornyng erly was gone for to werke labour his gardyn The whiche thyng herde / beleuyÌ„g the same the sayd cyrurgyen / he wente towarde the poore man whiche he fouÌ„de deluyng that erthe his fete ouer the spade And seeyng in hyÌ„ the trouth of that was tolde him / the grete socours that our lord had gyuen to hyÌ„ / he began to gloryfye to prayse the dyuyne puyssance ¶ A Relygyouse questyoned an aeged holy fader askyng of hym yf he wolde well that he sholde holde kepe towarde hyÌ„ the value of two shelyng for to helpe socour to hyÌ„selfe ayenst syknes yf ony happed to come vpon hyÌ„ The olde fader knowyng the affeccoÌ„n that the sayd Relygyouse had to reserue kepe this two shelyng / sayd that he wolde well that he sholde do so Thenne this Relygyouse retourned to his celle thynkyng vpon the answere that the olde fader had done to hyÌ„ cam vnto hyÌ„ dyuerse cogytacoÌ„ns thought the tormented hyÌ„ all his corage sayd to hyÌ„selfe / wenest thou myserable man that the olde fader hath tolde the trouth certeynly I can not say whether he sayd it in ernest or no / in effecte for to pease his corage / he departed ayen out of his celle went ayen towarde hym repentyng hyÌ„selfe sayd to hym Good fader I praye that in the name of god that it wyll please the to telle me trouth touchyng that the I haue asked to the / that is to wyte yf I sholde kepe my two shelyng or no for to ayde to my necessyte / for I fynde me sore tourmenâ—ed of thought cogytacoÌ„ns whiche come to me bycause of the same wherat the olde holy fader answered to hyÌ„ Certes my broder bycause I dyde see the wyll that thou haddest for to kepe them to the ward I dyde telle the that thou sholdest kepe them / but neuertheles I wyll well that thou knowe / that it is not well done to kepe or withholde towarde hym selfe more than it nedeth for the bodye / yf thou withholdest these two shelynge / doubte not but that thy hope shal be sette therupon And yf by aduenture they be lost / syn that thy hope was torned therupon / god shall nomore haue a cause to remembre thynke â—pon the. And therfor we ought to fixe tourne all our hope thought oonly in god / thus dooyng he shall see that we shall be holpen socoured in oure affayres necessytees ¶ An other lytyll treatyse herafter consequently foloweth of the vertue of force of pacyence / and it begynneth in latyn Sanctus abbas Anthonius c SAynt Anthonye the abbot he beyng in his hermytage was meruayllously vexed his corage sore perturbed confuse by the occasyon of dyuerse thoughtes cogytacions the cam ouer hym / began to say to our lorde Alas syre I wolde fayne be saued / but the dyuerse thoughtes fantasyes whiche come me ouer / letten me totally from the gettyng of my saluacoÌ„n Alas syre what ought I to doo in this trybulacoÌ„n / or how shall I mowe saue my selfe And after he yssued out of his celle sawe a man that satte wrought / whiche anone after rose cessed his labours sette hyÌ„selfe to praye make oracoÌ„n vnto god / thenne after he wente ayen to his werke toke labour to haÌ„de makyÌ„g mattes or mauÌ„des soone after went to oryson ayen as he dyde afore It is to wyte that this man was an angell that had tourned hyÌ„ selfe in that forme of a man / the whiche hadde be sente from our lord vnto saynt Anthonye for his correccoÌ„n / for to gyue hyÌ„ a good cautele awaye for to resyst ayenst the temptacoÌ„ns of the deuyll So herde he the voyce of this angell the sayd vnto hyÌ„ Anthonye werke labour as I do / thou shalt be saued Saynt Anthony heryng these wordes was moche reioysshed takyng in this vysyon a veray hope of his saluacoÌ„n / he began to do as he had seen the angell do / thê° doyng he fouÌ„de the salute that he sought ¶ A relygyous sayd to the abbot Agathon that he had be sente for / for to come to a place that was not vnto hym well agreable / bycause he hoped not to be there without batayll nor in peas of his coÌ„scyence / but nethelesse he was purposed to go theder for to obey to that was to hyÌ„ coÌ„mauÌ„ded / how be it that he fered redoubted sore to go theâ— for the cause abouesaid ¶ The abbot Ammoras sayd that he had dwelled .xiiij. yere in the desertes of Sychye prayng god there nyght day the pryÌ„cypally he sholde gyue hyÌ„ vertue strength for to ouercome the passioÌ„s of yre ¶ The abbot Besaryon sayd / that he had soyourned by .xl. dayes amonge the thornes without slepe ¶ An other solytary broder that was in his werkes sore synguler was bycause of the same oftentymes in his corage / wherfore he went towarde the abbot Theodore called the ferme / tolde hyÌ„ how he was thus sore troubled often To whom he sayd My sone thou must huÌ„ble thy corage put thyselfe vnder the other brethern / thus thou shalt mowe in lykewyse dwelle with them This Relygyous went incoÌ„tynent to the montayne / dwelled there with the other a certayne whyle / theÌ„ne he cam ayen towarde the sayd abbot Theodore / sayd to hyÌ„ that in coÌ„uersauÌ„t with the men / he coude not fynde there no rest / wherat the holy fader answered yf thou canst not haue peas by thyself alone nor with the relygyouses / why hast
of hedges or busshes / how be it that somtyme he be hurte with thornes that he fyndeth in his waye / netheles be setteth not therby tyll that he hath taken the hare ¶ In lykewyse the relygyous persone or other that seketh oure lorde Ihū cryste / that is to wyt he that desyreth by good werkes to obteyne his grace Incessantly applye his entente to be scourged tourmented by penaūce / passe lyghtly all the sclaūdres that may come to hym / vnto the tyme that he come to the glorye celestyall / in comyng to the same he take Ihesu cryste at that cours / that is to wyte in rennyng after hym / in folowyng hȳ by good maners And thenne that he come to the same Ioye / he take his praye whiche is the fruycyon of his precyous vysyon / in the whiche delyteth all the court celestyall ¶ An other aged fader sayd that lyke as a tree whiche is ofte dysplaunted transported from one groūde to an other may bere no fruyte Lykewyse the relygyous persone that ofte goth from one place to an other may not prouffyte ne doo ony werke that is helthfull ¶ Ther was a relygyous persone whiche fonde hym strongly oppressed and tempted to leue his monastery And for as moche as he myght not well withstande it / he declared to an olde fader askyng hym herupon some remedye / the whiche coūseylled hym that he sholde go to his celle / that he sholde leye his bodye to wedde that he sholde not go out And in so doyng he sholde payne hȳselfe to cast his thoughtes away say to his body that he sholde thynke all that he wolde sauf oonly that he go not out of his celle And in so doynge the sayd Relygyous vaynquysshed the sayd temptacyon ¶ An other aged fader sayd that the celle of a relygyous persone is lykened to the fornays or chemyney of Babylon where the thre childern Sydrac Mysaell / and Abdenago fonde the sone of god whiche kepte theym from brennȳge Or ellys to the busshe / pyler / or cloude in whiche god spack to Moyses ¶ A relygyous persone was tempted contynuelly by the space of .ix. yere for to forsake the company of his brethern And to that ende euery daye he dyde of his pylche or skynne in the whiche after his rule he hadde be accustomed to lye slepe in And whan it was euyn he sayd to hym selfe I shall departe go hens to morn / on the morn I shall abyde yet this daye for the loue of god And whan he had contynued thus in this varyacyon by the space of .ix. yere in doyng euery daye as sayd is / our lorde toke awaye from hym that temptacyon ¶ An other Relygyous by force of tēptacōns fonde hȳ selfe so troubled that he lost lefte the rule of relygyon And lyuyng dyssolutely / as he wolde somtyme sette hymselfe to do well come agayn to lyue Relygyously / his temptacōns letted hym / wherfore he had grete sorowe And in bewaylyng the tyme that he had lost wasted in lyuȳg myschaūtly sayd in hym selfe Alas whan shall I fynde my selfe in suche astate as I was wonte to be And in makyng suche sorowe he purposed to amende him selfe But neuertheles he had a corage so slouth / that he coude not ne wolde take ayen his relygyous lyfe / wherfore on a daye he transported hym vnto an holy aged fader / to whom he reherced all his myserable lyfe / how he coude not put hym to lyue well The aged fader knowyng his myschaunt caas for to reduce hym to good lyfe / recoūted to hym suche an example as foloweth ¶ Ther was a man somtyme / whiche had a fayr pyece of londe / the whiche he lefte by his grete neclygence tourne in to so grete ruyne that hit was ouer charged growen with thystles / thornes / and grete buysshes Thynkyng on this caas / a certayne tyme after he cōcluded that he wolde sette ayen in value the same pyece of londe And sayd to his sone that he sholde go see in what astate it was / that he sholde make dylygence to wede take away the thystles buysshes / refresshe it Thenne he faynyng to wyll obeye his fader / went to the sayd pyece of londe And as he behelde the grete multytude of thornes buysshes thystles that grewe theron / he fonde hym selfe so slouth feble of corage / that he coude not begynne to werke / sayneg in hym selfe thus A lorde god how shall it be to me possyble to stubble make clene this pyece of londe here Certaynely I shall neuer conne make an ende therof / and leyde hym selfe doun on the groūde by slouthe latchesse / began to slepe And so contynued many dayes without doynge of ony labour And the fader desyryng to see what his sone had done in the sayd loude On a daye he wente thyder / fonde that he had nothyng laboured / asked hym why he had noothyng done And he answered to hym wenyng to sense hym / that whan he was come had seen the grete habundaūce of thystles thornes / he coude not enterpryse soo grete labour / for that cause he leyed hym doun slept His fader heryng his answere / repreued hym of his slouth latchednes / sayd to hȳ that he sholde begynne to labour / sholde not do but a certayn one daye / as moche an other daye / vpon whiche he soo dyde in obeyng the cōmaundement of his fader And whan he sawe in labouryng that it began to amende / he toke therin grete pleasyr / that in short tyme / it was refresshyd made clene In lyke wyse my brother sayd the olde fader It byhoueth to the a lytyll lytyll to werke / in so dooyng the corage shall not faylle the / god by his holy grace shall restore the in to thy former astate This heryng the relygyous man toke leue of the holy fader in thankyng hȳ mekely in good pacyence And with grete constaūce made resydence in his celle / began to werke lyke as the holy fader had instructe taught hȳ And in this maner fyndyng reste / he was promoted by our lorde to right deuoute vertuous lyfe ¶ There was an olde fader the whiche had be accustomed to be ofte enfebled by sekenes And it happed that it was the pleasyr of god that duryng an hole yere he was hooll in good poynt without to be touched ne gryeued with ony bodely sekenes And consyderyng in hȳselfe that he was in ouer grete helth he entred for this cause in a grete melancolye / of the whiche he was strongly tourmented / wepte sayeng that god had lefte forgoten hym bycause that he vysyted hȳ no more with sekenes ¶ An other aged holy fader sayd that an other broder was by the space of .lx. yere so sharply tempted
a good entente / as for cause of sekenesse or other necessyte ¶ A broder cam to thabbot Pastor the seconde weke of lente / in declaryng to hyÌ„ his thoughtis / fouÌ„de in hyÌ„ some rest of coÌ„scyence / theÌ„ne sayd the broder to hyÌ„ I had thought to haue dyfferred this daye for to haue come to the for lytyll thyng The abbot asked hyÌ„ wherfor / the broder answered I doubted by cause that it was lente that the yate sholde not haue be opened Thenne sayd to hyÌ„ the abbot we haue not be acustomed to shette the yate / by the whiche men entre herin / but we desyre more besyly to close shette the yate of that tongue As who wolde say that it is more vayllable to close refrayne his tongue from spekyng in tyme place / than to close and shette the materyall dore of his hous ¶ A broder sayd to thabbot Pastor / yf I gyue ony thyng to my neyghbour / anone the deuyll tempteth me with the synne of vayne glorye / wherfor I drede to do almesse The holy man answered / we ought to socour the necessyte of our neyghbours for the loue of god The same olde fader sayd to the broder one suche a parable Two men labourers dwelled in a cyte / of the whiche the one of that he had sowen gadred but lytyll good therof / yet that whiche he had gadred was not very clene That other dyde sowe nothyng / also he gadred nothyÌ„ge I aske the thenne yf it so happed that ther cam an honger or famyne / whiche of thyse myght best escape this dauÌ„ger The broder answered that he that had sowen gadred TheÌ„ne sayd the holy maÌ„ lyke wyse we ought to sowe good werkes / to th ende that the tyme of famyne beyng come / that is to saye / that we may nomore deserue / the whiche thyng theÌ„ne we wolde haue done may not recouuer it / that we deye not eternally ¶ An other broder cam to speke to a good fader / in departyng froÌ„ hyÌ„ bycause he had supposed to haue letted hyÌ„ sayd to hyÌ„ Fader pardoÌ„ne me / for I haue letted that in thy rule maner to lyue relygyously / to whom the holy man answered thou hast not letted me in my rule for acordyng to the same I ought in good charyte mercy receyue all comers ¶ A man moche solytary strayt of lyuyng / the occupyed hyÌ„self in excercyse of dyuerse werkes dwelled nygh by a monastery in whiche were a grete multytude of bredern / soÌ„tyme it happed that they that went to vysyte cam vnto this holy maÌ„ whiche was so moche solytary they coÌ„strayned hyÌ„ to ete aboue the hour determyned after that they asked hyÌ„ sayng fader art not thou wroth bycause thou etest to fothyn hour / he answered I am neuer wroth / but whaÌ„ I do after myn owne wyll for asmoche as I do this coÌ„trary ayenst my wyll I am nothyÌ„g wroth ne sory therfore ¶ Ther was in Syrye vpoÌ„ that way of desertes an olde man whiche had a custome to receyue all the relygyoê° ê‘sones that passed by that way On a tyme amoÌ„g the other passed a moche so lytary man that whiche for what prayer that the olde fader made / he wold not dryÌ„ke ne ete / sayeng that in no wyse he wolde breke his fast / but the holy maÌ„ sore displesed by cause he wold not acorde to his prayer sayd to hyÌ„ I pray the syth thou wold not ete ne dryÌ„ke with me / at the lest that thou wyle holde me coÌ„pany to pray vnto god vnder a tree whiche is here by / of it bowe doun at my prayer tofore thyn / thou shalt do that I shall requyre the / the whiche thyng that holy fader accorded to hyÌ„ TheÌ„ne began he to praye that was so strayt in his fastyng but the tree bowed nothyng doun warde TheÌ„ne after that other begaÌ„ to praye / all sodaynly the tree bowed it doun / the seeyng that other / he obteÌ„pred obeyed to his wordes / praysed god both togyder of the caas that was to theyÌ„ happed ¶ Two relygyoê° persones cam to an holy man / that whiche had of custome not to ete of all the longe daye / but whan he sawe theyÌ„ he was moche Ioyous / and sayd to theyÌ„ / the fastyng hath his rewarde For who the eteth for charyte / he accoÌ„plyssheth two coÌ„mauÌ„dement / for he leueth his owne wyll / accomplyssheth the coÌ„mauÌ„dement of god in fedyng refresshyng his brethern ¶ A relygyoê° man of Thebes had receyued of god suche a grace / that he myght gyue to all Indygent nedy that whiche was to theym necessary One tyme amonge thother as he dyde his almesse in a strete / he sawe tofore hyÌ„ for to haue some thyng / a woman clothed with olde clothes all to rente that it was pyte to see The relygyoê° man hauyng on her coÌ„passyon / toke his hoÌ„de full of money wenyng to haue gyuâ— it to the sayd woman / but by the grace of god / his honde closed myght gyue to the womaÌ„ but a lytyll parte therof / wherby it appered that she was not so indygent / as it appered withoutforth And after that ther cam an other woman well clothed / whan be sawe her / he sayd in hyÌ„selfe / this persone had no nede toke in his hoÌ„de a lytyll almesse for to gyue to her / but in openyng his honde she toke more than he had put in / in sygnefyeng that this woman was more indygent than her clothes sheweth withoutforth Thenne he meruaylled moche / enquyred of the astate of these two wyÌ„men / he fonde that this womaÌ„ that was well clothed was of grete kynne / was falleÌ„ in pouerte / for that cause she was ashamed for to be euyl clothed / but the other was so clad for to moeue the people for to gyue to her theyr almes And now in these dayes ouer al the worlde be many suche abusyde therfor it is not euyll sayd / see wel to whom that gyuest / for oftymes men gyue to hyÌ„ that is rycher than he that gyueth / how be it that men suppose by cause he is euyl clothed that he hath no thyng ¶ Ther was a relygyoê° man whiche had a broder seculer / that whiche was moche poore / all that the relygyous man myght wyÌ„ne he delyuered to hyÌ„ / but how moche more he gaf to hyÌ„ / the more poore he was / of whiche thyng that relygyoê° meruaylled / declared it vnto a good holy man / whiche sayd to hyÌ„ in this maner yf thou wylt byleue me gyue to hyÌ„ nomore / whan he shall come to the / saye to hyÌ„ My broder whyâ—e I had ony good I gaaf it to that / therfor labour now / of that thou wyÌ„nest sende to me for my dyner / whan ony
that it was god For it is wryten in the psalmyste God is our refuge / strengthe vertue in trybulacōns whiche persecute vs strongely ¶ A brother asked hym what prouffyten the fastynges and wakynges that men make The holy man answered / that they make the soule humble and meke For it is wryten Lorde god beholde my mekenes my labour / and forgyue me my synnes / yf it pleaseth the. And therfore yf we take on vs payne / god shall haue pyte mercy on vs. ¶ A brother demaunded of an olde fader / what ought a man to doo agayne the temptacōns of the fende To whome he answered / he ought fyrst to wepe to th ende that god helpe hym And yf he praye deuoutly / god shall socoure hym For it is wryten Yf god helpe me I fere noo man ¶ A brother asked yf a bondeman haue trespaced / what shall he saye to his lorde / yf he wyll punysshe hym To this he answered that he sholde saye My lorde I haue trespaced / but yf it please the. I praye the to pardonne me / anone his mayster shall forgyue hȳ Thus we that be boūde and seruaūtes to god / whan we haue synned / and we retorne to hym in confessyng our synnes / he wyll pardonne vs Incontynent The ende of our operacyons is not to Iuge ony persone For whan god slewe all the fyrste begoten in Egypte / ther was not one hous but there was one therin deed Thenne asked a brother what was that that soo saye And he answered to hym / that yf we behelde well our synnes / we sholde thynke noo thyng of the synnes of our neyghboures It is grete folye to a man to forsake his deed corps in his hous / for to go by wepe one in his neyghbours hous he is deed towarde his neyghbour / the whiche thynketh not on the werkes of other / and dooth no harme to ony persone / ne thynketh none euyll in his corage / the whiche also despyseth no man bycause he is a synner / and the whiche is not vnyed to hym that dooth euyll to his neyghbour / ne speketh yll of ony persone / but sayd to hym selfe God knoweth the thought of euery man / I not It behoueth thenne to flee the detractours For it is sayd in the gospell Iuge no man / to th ende that ye be not Iuged of god One ought not also hate ony persone / though he were his enemye Ne despyse a man bycause he chydeth with his neyghbour For otherwyse thou sholdest haue noo reste ne peas in thy conscyence ¶ An other olde fader sayd / thou man lyuyng thynke that thy god is born of the virgyne Marye for the loue of the / he hath be made man and alwaye abydeth god / he hath be made a lytyll childe / he was a redar and prechar whan he toke the boke in the synagoge and sayd The speryte of god is vpon me / by cause he that hath enoynted me / hath sente me to preche the gospell to the poore synners / he had be subdeken / whan he chaced out of the temple theȳ that solde and theym that bought / he was deken whan he weeshe the feet of his appostles / in cōmaūdyng theym to wesshe the feet of theyr brethern / he was made preest whan he abode in the myddell of the temple techynge theym / he was made bysshop in takyng the brede and in delyueryng to his dyscyples / he hath be beten for the loue of the / he hath be crucyfyed / he aroos the thyrde daye And after ascended in to heuen / and all for vs / and all he hath doon for to saue vs. And neuertheles we wyll nothynge endure ne suffre for the loue of hym Late vs thenne be sobre and wake we / praye we deuoutly and kepe we his cōmaūdementes to th ende that we may be saued / was not Ioseph solde in to Egypte in to a straunge londe The thre childern were they not brought prysoners in to Babylon And how well they had no knowlege / god was theyr helpe and were saued in th ende / for as moche as they dradde / who that gyueth hym all to god hath no free wyll / but doth as god cōmaūdeth hym without payne of conscyence And yf thou wylt do after thyn owne wyll without helpe of god / thou shalt haue ouermoche payne in thy conscyence ¶ A brother asked of thabbot Pastor fader what is that to saye / that one ought not to thynke on the next daye folowynge The holy man answered / that is to vnderstonde of a man that is in temptacyon / that is to saye / that he ought to resyste it the same daye / without to thynke to resyste it on the morn ¶ A brother demaūded from whens it cam / that a man how well he be a grete synner / neuerthelesse he is not a shamed to detracte the renōmee and fame of an other To whom the holy man answered by suche a parable / ther was a poore man whiche had a wyfe the whiche sawe an other woman that was moche fayrer than his wyfe with out comparyson / and desyred her and dyde soo moche that he had her in maryage / but she was as poore as that other It happed thenne / that tho two wyues / wente with her husbonde to a market And by cause they were both naked / they put theym selfe in a tonne but that one seeyng that the people were departed / sprang out of the tonne / and founde olde clothes and ragges / couered her in suche wyse / that she myght well goo amonge the people / without to haue ony shame Thenne that other woman hauyng therof enuye sayd to hyr husbonde This folysshe woman is all naked / and neuerthelesse she is not a shamed to goo amonge the people Thenne answered to hyr the husbonde in grete angre / she hath some what couered and hydde hyr pouerte and confusyon / but as for the / thou art all naked / and yet thou mockeste her as moche as thou mayste ¶ Thus sayd the holy fader / is eche man a detractour / the whiche not consyderyng his owne synnes / cesseth not to saye euyll of an other whiche ben better than he ¶ The abbot Iohan sayd to some of his brethern / that there were thre phylosophres the whiche were good frendes to gydre Of whiche one of theym deyeng lefte his childe to that other And whan he was grete / he defoylled the wyfe of his moneytour / wherfore he was put out of the hous And how well that he dyde grete penaunce / neuerthelesse the phylosopher wolde not suffre hym to reentre in to his hous But sayd to hym that he sholde goo amonge theym that were Iuged to the deth for to dygge gadre with them metall within the Ryuer thre yere longe And whan he hadde soo doon and fulfylled that penaunce / he sholde retourne to the phylosophre and than he
the prestes other men clerkes lettred And bycause that the prestes coude not appease this errour by theym selfe They ordeyned a prouoost cruell and terryble whiche corrected the sayd errours / whiche he dyde in grete cruelte / that the relygyouses were constrayned to flee had no place where they durste enhabyte ne dwelle ¶ Of the conuersacoÌ„n of Ierome Iherosolymytayn begynnynge in latyn Igitur inde Caplm .iij. THenne leuynge that contree I traÌ„sported me in to Bethleem whiche is not ferre fro Iherusalem / and aryued in the hous of Ierome that was a man prudent wyse meruayllously Instructe / not oonly in lettres greke latyn / but also in the langage hebrew / wherof he had so grete renoÌ„me / that none was knowen the durst compare to hym in scyence And I abode there .vi. monethes with hyÌ„ / the whiche contynuelly sharply stroof ayenst theym that were euyll obstynate For I knowe that in his bokes is nothyng but that it hath ben ouerseen corrected of hym And pryncypally he blamed auaryce pryde He sayd also all a longe the famylyaryte ought to be amonge the relygyouses both men wyÌ„men / by cause he sayd trouthe many hated hyÌ„ specyally theretykes / for he cessed not to enpugne repreef theyÌ„ / after the prestes For he declared repreued theyr vyces synnes / but the Iuste and good men loued hym for his holy lyfe conuersacoÌ„n And therfore they that wyll saye that he was an heretyke ben fooles ouerseen / for his doctryne is good holy And he slept not daye ne nyght so moche he gaaf hymself to studye in holy scrypture And yf I had not be relygyous I wolde neuer haue departed from hym Neuertheles I lefte there my felawes that folowed me / wente my selfe to vysyte the brethern that dwelleden in the last parte of Egypte For ther ben there meruayllous hermytages good relygyoê° folke It sholde be ouer longe to recounte all those thynges / but neuertheles I shall reherce the pryncypall parte in substaunce ¶ How the abbotes were bouÌ„den to gyue theyr lyuyng to the brethern whiche they receyueden in to theyr couentes / begynnyng Hand longe Caplm .iiij. IN an hermytage by the Ryuer of Nyle / there were many abbayes / and the brethern of the same dwelleden to gydre / and ben subgettes to one abbot / and doo nothyng after theyr wyll / but all after the wyll of the abbot And for this cause yf ony of theym wolde go in solytude or wyldernesse for to be more parfyght / it behoueth hym that he doo that by the consentynge of theyr sayd abbot For it is the fyrste and the pryncypall vertue for to obeye the coÌ„maundement of his superyor And whan they be receyued in to thermytage by the auctoryte of the same abbot / there is admynystred to theym brede and other mete after theyr necessyte ¶ Of a Relygyous brother whiche in his hermytage was fedde with heuenly brede / begynnyng Casu super illos dies Caplm .v. A Frere or broder solytary was a lytyll ferre fro this monasterye to whom for his lyuyng thabbot sente to hym brede by two childern of whiche that one was .xv. yere olde that other .xij. One tyme amonge the other thus as these two yonge childern wente towarde the sayd hermyte cam to theyÌ„ a serpent meruaylloê° cruel for to deuoure theym / but by the bouÌ„te Innocence of theym the serpent laye doun at theyr feet And anone the yongest of theym both toke hym with his honde put hym in his robe and bare hym to the freres in the cloystre without ony auauntyng or vayne glorye Thenne sayden alle the relygyouses that these two childern were sayntes But the holy abbot of the monasterye doubtyng that these two childern sholde wexe therof proude punysshed theym ryght well with roddes sayeng that the cam from god This knowyng the sayd solytary brother was moche abasshed aswell for the betynge as for thynuasyon of the serpent And therfor he prayed the sayd abbot that he sholde sende to hym nomore ony thyng And he was by that space of .viij. dayes without ony mete in so moche that he was alle drye / but his thought was alwaye enhauÌ„ced to god And there where the bodye faylled for hungre the soule was rauysshed to heuen The sayd abbot by thynspyracoÌ„n of the holy ghoost wente to vysyte the sayd solytary relygyous for to knowe wherof he lyued The whiche seeyng his abbot cam to fore hym brought hym in to his celle / and as they entred in / thabbot felte a sauour of brede all hoot And there they fouÌ„de a loof whiche had be sente from heuen to the sayd brother / the whiche was nygh deed for hunger And sayd to the abbot that by his merytes and vertues that wele and good was comen to theym Thabbot sayeng the contrarye / that it was by hym that was solytarye And after in praysyng thankyng god they brake the loof ete therof / and this doon the abbot retourned shewed it to his brethern / whiche for this cause they desyreden to be hermytes to lede a solytary lyfe ¶ In that monasterye had ben two holy men whiche had not gone out by the space of .xl. yere / they were neuer angry ne neuer wente out of theyr cloystre But by cause ye haue herde the lyfe of one hermyte I wyll that ye here the lyfe of an other ¶ How a lyonesse ete out of the hande of an holy man / lyke as she hadde be tame / begynnyng in latyn Ego vbi Caplm .vi. INcontynent after that we were come in to the fyrst partye of deserte with a man that knewe the places we wente atte fote of a montayne there where we founde an holy man whiche had a pytte / which thyng was not moche fouÌ„de in that contrey Also he had an oxe whiche with a whele drewe the water out of the pytte whiche was ryght depe Also he had a gardyn full of cooles whiche was ayenst the nature of deserte / where for the ardeur and hete of the sonne myght nothyng growe ne fructefye / but by the labour of this holy man / whiche aroused ofte watred the grouÌ„de / that it becam fertyle in suche wyse that coules other herbes fructefyed And of these coules lyued this hermyte his oxe / the whiche hermyte gaaf to vs plente ryght Ioyously Thenne after souper he broughte vs vnder a palme of the whiche he lyued otherwhyle And ther be none other herbes in thermytages but suche palmes wherof ben nourysshed the holy hermytes and they that ben solytary Whan we cam to the place of the sayd palme we fouÌ„de a lyon / the whiche made vs sore aghaste / but the sayde solytary man without drede approched to the sayd beest / made hym to recuyelle go a backe a lytyll ferre After he gadred with his hondes of the
of a woman / but also the abyllemētes For on a day as he wente to vysyte an holy fader he was recoūtred of a woman / but al incontynent as he sawe her he retorned in to his celle more Impetuously than yf he had be chaced of a lyon or a nother beste And for as moche as he had the wȳmen in ouer grete abhomynacyon nothyng by presumpcōn / but by feruent chastyte / yet god suffred his bodye to be smyten with the palsye / in suche wyse / that he had no membre of whiche he myght helpe hym selfe / not oonly the feet / but the tongue the eeres dyde not in hym theyr offyce / for he myght not speke nor here / but was as a statue or ymage vnmeuable And for this cause he foūde noman that myght suffyse to hym to suffre the maladyes / wherfore he was constrayned to suffre to be born in to a monastery of women / there where as the holy Relygyous wȳmen admynystred to hym by the space of .iiij. yere all his necessytees / after deyed with theym And how well that he was thus enfeblysshed in his membres / alwaye he hadde this vertue / that what oyle the touched his bodye / guarysshed heled the seke men / lo that they were therwith enoynted And therfore it is notorye that this maladye was come to hym by the wyll of god / the whiche wolde manyfeste the Inestymable vertues of the sayd holy fader ¶ Of thbbot Moyses begynnyng Secundus Caplm .xliiij. FOlowyng the abbot Moyses the seconde how well that he was Iuste an holy man / neuertheles bycause that he had repreued thabbot Machary of some thynges / he was possessed of the deuyll / in suche wyse that he toke the fylthe ordure that cam of men / put it in his mouth The whiche punycōn was sente to hym to th ende that he sholde not falle in to a more greuous synne For incontynent as the abbot Machary fyll on his knees and prayed humbly to god for the sayd Moyses The deuyll of helle lept out of his bodye / therfore we ought not to despyse theym that ben strongly tempted or demonyake For we ought byleue two thynges Fyrst the none is tempted of the deuyl without the suffraūce of god Secondely that all the whiche god sendeth to vs / is for our prouffyte helthe For he knoweth well that whiche is necessarye to vs prouffytable ¶ Of a Relygyous whiche sawe by nyght a multytude of deuylles begynnyng in latyn Quidā antē frater c. Caplm .xlv. OO relygyous brother walkyng thrugh deserte was cōstrayned by cause he was surprysed of the nyght to entre in to a fosse or caue where he began to saye his seruyce after his custome tylle after mydnyght And after he wolde haue rested slept a lytyll But incontynent as he so wolde haue doon he sawe tweyne caterues companyes of deuylles accompanyeng theyr prynce / that one companye tofore / that other behynde The whiche prynce was more grete terryble than the other After he sette hym on a chayr / asked all what they had doon And they that had not vaynquysshed the men whiche they had tempted / he put them out as meschaūt foles / but theȳ that had begyled deceyued some / he praysed theym / sette theȳ about the other / to th ende that eueryche of theym sholde do so Among the whiche ther came one that sayd that the same nyght / he had made a monke to falle in to fornycacōn / the whiche he had tempted by fyue yere tofore / and at this relacōn eche of theȳ enioyed / he was gretly praysed of the prynce of the other And thēne they wente theyr waye / after the sprynge of the daye began to come / in the whiche this brother whiche doubted whether it had be trewe or none that whiche he had dremed And thenne this holy man cam in to a place named Pelusiū in whiche place dwelled the same relygyous of whom the deuyll had auaūted hȳ to haue deceyued by the sayd synne of fornycacōn And ther dwelled an other deuoute relygyous whiche knewe well the broder that had herde the sayd relacōn / to whom he asked how that the other relygyous fared / foūde that he had be deceyued as sayd is For he had forsake his monasterye / but afterwarde whan he herde saye these thynges / he cam agayn in to his sayd monastery / with grete habundaūce of teres made dyde holsom penaūce ¶ Of two phylosophres whiche went to saynt Anthonye begȳnyng in latyn Quodā vero tempe c. Caplm .xlvi. ON a tyme two phylosophres heryng the good renōmee of saynt Anthonye wente to hym And whan they were with hȳ bycause that he answered not to theȳ to theyr pleasyr of the questyons whiche they proposed to hȳ / retourned sayeng that he was a fooll ygnoraūt The whiche phylosophres of enuye that they had that many cam to saynt Anthonye as seruaūt of god / they sente to hȳ by theyr arte magyke two deuylles for to tempte hȳ / but the holy man by his prayer by the sygne of the crosse / kepte theym soo well that they approched hȳ not Thenne they retorned to the two phylosophres without doyng to hȳ ony thyng But neuertheles they sent two strenger deuylles whiche dyde to hȳ nomore dyspleasyr than the fyrst Thyrdely they enraged and wood sente to hȳ more cruell fendes by the halfe / but they dyde nothyng to hȳ but cam agayn all confused For they foūde saynt Anthonye constaūt stedfast And for so moche they knewe wel what vertues the good crysten men haue For these deuylles whiche were so terryble myght not gryeue ne noye saynt Anthonye ne his hous Thenne these two phylosophres moche meruayled came to saynt Anthonye / confessynge theyr synne dyde do baptyse theȳ After saynt Anthonye asked of theym what daye they had sente those deuylles to hȳ And by theyr answere he knewe that in thoo dayes he had be sore trauaylled in temptacōns / neuertheles he had resysted them by the moyen of his prayers / in whiche he was right besy contynuell For on a tyme thus as he prayde fro the euyn tylle on the morn seeyng the sonne aryse appyere / he began to crye saye O thou sonne wherfore lettest thou me / what enforcest the now for to shewe thy selfe / for to preue take awaye fro me the clerenes of this very lyght / whiche now presently I see ¶ Here fynysshed the thyrde partye of this present boke ¶ Here foloweth the fourth parte ¶ Here begynneth the prologue of saynt Paschayse vpon the fourth parte of the lyfe of holy faders as well of Egypte as of Grece O Venerable lord fader Martyn preest and abbot Paschayse Salute Ryght holy deuoute fader Yf it had be leefful to refuse thy cōmaūdement I had gladely
that is our wyll / by the whiche he beteth our tree / that is to saye our soule Thenne yf we refuse to hym the helue / he maye not hewe doun with his axe the tree of our soule ¶ How a man may mortefye the vyces OO brother demaūded of thabbot Moyses / how a man myghte mortefye hȳselfe To whom the holy man sayd Yf a man repute not hȳself to haue be thre yere in his sepulture / he may not be veryly mortefyed in this worlde whiche hath two thȳges / that one is that he hate the rest of his bodye / the seconde that he loue no vayne glorye ¶ An holy man sayd that a relygyous man that is occupyed in good operacōn may not be surmoūted of the fende For whan the deuyll cometh fyndeth hym besy in good werkes / he departeth Incontynent / but yf he excercyse ony euyll werke / he is persecuted ofte of the fende / maketh hym to do werse yet yf he may ¶ Here foloweth of perseueraunce THabbot Anthonye sayd that yf a monke labour / soone after resteth without to contynue thenne agayne laboureth / thenne agayne leueth his labour / he is not very perseueraūt For perseueraūce must be contynued vnto the ende Also the scrypture sayth he that shall perseuere vnto the ende / he shall be saued ¶ Here foloweth of the payne labour of the olde holy faders AN holy man sayd that a man ought alwaye to labour vntyl that he hath wōne Ihesu cryste by grace For he that shall haue goten hȳ ones shall neuer retche of the daūger of the fendes of helle / alway a man oughte contynuelly labour to th ende that in thynkyng on the payne he kepte hȳselfe that he drede to lose his rewarde / for god for this cause wolde that the childern of Israell were in captyuyte in deserte by the space of .xl. yere in suffryng there grete payne to th ende that in hauyng remembraūce of theyr payne they sholde not forgete god by synne Here foloweth exhortacōn of doctryne A Man on a tyme demaūded of thabbot Permenyon / how an obstynat man myght lerne the worde of god To whom he answerd that the nature of the water is to be softe the nature of the stone is to be herde / yet alwaye by contynuacyon not by force yf the water falle vpon the stone it maketh there a concauyte And all in lyke wyse it is of the worde of god / for it is swete softe / our herte is harde / but yf one here it ofte / thynke on it affectuously / the drede of god shall come to the soule / whiche was fyrst enharded / shall make it to relynte in to an hole or concauyte whiche shall be replenysshed fylled of grace ¶ How curyosyte ought to be eschewed AN holy man sayd that a good relygyous persone ought not to demaunde how that one lyueth / ne how lyueth that other / to the ende that by the answeres that he sholde here / he be not withdrawen fro holy prayer And therfor to be more sure / he ought to be stylle saye nothyng ¶ A brother demaūded of his abbot / yf ony come in to my celle / that to me recoūteth vayne wordes vnprouffytable / ought I to saye to hym / that he be stylle The holy man answered Ne saye to hym nothyng / for thou mayst not kepe hȳ fro spekyng / ne thy selfe some tyme. And therfor we ought not to repreue our neyghbour of a vyce / in whiche we falle after Thenne sayd the brother / what ought thenne to be doon The holy man answered / yf we wyll do well / we ought to gyue good example to our neyghbour / for the good example is of more grete effecte / than ben the wordes ¶ How one ought teschewe noyse AN holy man sayd / yf ony speke with the / eyther of scrypture or of ony other mater / thou oughtest neuer to stryue with hym / But and yf he saye well / accorde ye to hym / and yf he saye euyll / saye to hym Ye knowe and can better than ye saye In folowynge the Appostle whiche sayth Stryue not with wordes And yf thou thus doo thou shalt eschewe hate / shalt gete parfyght humylyte And yf thou abyde in thyn opynyon in defendyng thy wordes / thou shalt mowe engendre sklaundre Some tyme also by ouermoche praysyng an other foloweth noyse / of the whiche moeuyng thou oughtest soueraynly to kepe the. For ther myght to the come soo grete Inconuenyente / that thou sholdest neuer be in peas nor in reste Wherfore it auylleth more to be styll in resystyng his euyll thought to reyse hȳselfe dylygently in the drede of god for to praye as well on euenyng as on mornyng / yf thou so do thou shall not fere ne drede the temptacōn of the fende ¶ How one ought to kepe scylence SAynt Anthony sayd to his dyscyple / yf thou desyre to haue scylence / thou owest not for that / to esteme that thou be for that cause the more vertuous / but in kepyng it / thou oughtest to repute thy selfe vnworthy to speke ¶ A brother sayd to thabbot Sysoy that he desyred to saue his soule / but he wolde knowe the maner how he myght do it Thenne thabbot answered to hym / how may we saue our soules / whan our tongue alwaye speketh As who sayth / he that is not styll kepeth not scylence may not be saued ¶ An other broder asked yf it neded alwaye to be stylle / to whom was answered / that ye / atte leste vnto that he were asked For yf a man be stylle / he shall be in peas ouer all whersomeuer he be in kepyng alwaye scylence / the whiche to kepe is none other thyng but to make a defycyle pylgrymage ¶ An holy fader sayd that the pylgrymage that is made for the honour of god is good / so that he kepe scylence ¶ Here is made mencōn of the medytacōns of .xij. deuoute hermytes TWelue holy faders hermytes deuoute and solytarye were togydre as brethern touchynh the pryncypall thoughtes and cogytacōns spyrytuell that they had herde in theyr celles habytacōns for to lyue vertuously to resyste the temptacōns of the deuyll Thenne sayd the fyrst whiche was moost oldest I haue enforced my selfe with all my power to resyste the operacōns exterior or outwarde / contrary to my helthe / hauyng remembraūce of the psalmyste sayeng Lete vs breke the bondes of our enemyes / and caste we abacke behynde vs all theyr temptacōns And I haue edefyed in my thought / as a walle bytwene my soule the bodely operacōns / to th ende that I see theym not For all in lyke wyse as he that is within the walle seeth not hym that is without All in lyke wyse ought not a man to see ne to beholde his outwarde werkes / to th ende that he gloryfye not hym selfe