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
louable vertu of chastyte / He had to the same desyred and persuaded her therto syth and after that she hadd hadd by hym thre chyldren / That by the space of xxx yere· durynge the whyche they had contynuelly ben playsauntly in maryage that one wyth that other / Yet had they neuer towched flesshely that one wyth the other / ¶ But at suche tyme as they were prycked desyred tacomplysshe theyr flesshly delectacoÌ„ns / they haue myghtly wythstode and resysted theym duryng the tyme aforsayd / as they yet done / ¶ Secondly he sayd that all his lyfe he had not cessed to lodge pylgryms And that he hymself went fyrste to receyue theym in / He had neuer dyspysed the poore peple but had benygnly mynystred to theym theyr necessytees / In doynge Iustice he spared noo more his chyldren than the estrangers / The godes of other he neuer retayned / Yf ony dyscorde hadd be moeuyd emonge his men / he neuer cessed tyll he hadd made theym acorded / Neuer man founde his seruauntes doynge ony euyll to other his beestes had neuer done ony doÌ„mage to the graynes or corne of his neygboure ¶ Who some euer wolde sowe ony corne on his loÌ„de he wolde neuer for bydde it hym ne also to gadre take the prouffyte / ¶ And more ouer he wolde neuer suffre the riche to offende ne hurte ne greue the poore / But had alway studyed to doo playsure to other / And also of all theym that had pleeted tofore hym he neuer condempned one / but had constreyned theym tacorde theymself / ¶ And this seenge the fader heremyte bowynge his heed / gaaf to hym his blessynge / The blessynge of god of Syon be yeue graunted to the. to the ende that thou mayste eternally see the goodes of Iherusalem all thy lyfe / ¶ And for asmoche said saynt PaphuÌ„ce that thou haste acomplysshed thy dayes in vertues werkes good maners / There abydeth one thynge whiche is necessary / That is that the leue alle thy mouable goodes herytages / And renounce theim in folowyng thy lorde Instructour Ihesu cryste / And incontynent withoute to dyspose his godes the sayd lord with the sayd holi fader wente soo ferre that they came to a ryuer where neuer ony persone had passed wythout boote / The holy fader constreyned hym to entre therin / And notwythstondynge the water was moche depe Neuerthelesse they passed it lyghtly wythout to entree more depe than theyr sydes / ¶ After they went so longe that they came to the deserte / Where saynt Paphunce delyuerd to hym a lytyll celle a lytyll hous nyghe vnto his monasterye / In exposynge to hym the Rules of holy conuersacyon and the excersyte of perfyghtnesse / ¶ And after that he duely and suffysauntly Instruct / The sayde holy fader Paphunce wente hys waye and constreyned hymself to lede a more straytter lyfe than he had done byfore / And also to doo make greter abstynences / And the payne that he had to for suffred and the penaunce that he had borne suffred· he reputed ouer lytyll Seeng that they that were in the worlde dyde thynges of soo grete vertue / Lyke as dyde they two aforsayd / ¶ After that the lord of whom is tofore spoken had lyued the space of longe tyme in the hermytage in augmentynge multeplyenge his perfeccyon / The sayd Paphunce beynge there in his celle or lytill house sawe the soule of the sayd lorde borne by angelles in to heuen sayenge / Blessyd is he whom thou hast chosen / For he shall dwelle wyth the / And by that knewe the holy fader that the sayd lorde was sauyd / ¶ Wherfore the sayd holy fader constreyned himself to doo yet more grete abstinences than he dyde tofore / And in lyke wyse prayed he yet god agayne that he wolde shew to hym to whom he was semblable amonge the men / To whyche request a voys answerde / Thou shalt be semblable to a marchauÌ„t whyche anone shall come hyder for to vysite the / Wherfore aryse and goo to mete hym / ¶ Anone the holy fader aroos and wente downe for to mete the sayd marchaunt that whyche came fro Alexandrye and brought fro Theybayde many marchaundyses the whyche he had in thre shyppes whiche was worth of theyr money .iii. thou sande shyllynges or there abowte And by cause he was a good man louyd well relygyon· be broughte to the sayde holy fader ten sackes full of pesen and benes for to make wyth potage / And whan Paphunce sawe hym he sayd to hym / What doost thou man of god / What lyfe ledest thou in erthe or what consolacoÌ„n hast thou wyth theym that ben celestyall / Leue vnto erthly worldly peple the goodes of the world And doo somoche that thou be marchaunte solicytour of the reame of heuen and folowe thy sauyour / The whiche shall calle the in shorte tyme ¶ The whyche thynge soo happed / For the marchaunt folowynge the good admonycyons of saynt Paphunce made to be gyue dealed his goodes to poore men / seruauntes of god / And ledde a lyfe solytarye / And soone after he passed fro this corruptyble worlde / in to the glory of heuen / ¶ And in lyke wyse after deyed the holy fader Paphunce / But yet the angell shewed to hym his dethe sayenge / ¶ Come thou holy man blessyd of god Loo here the prophetes whiche hen with me for to receyue the. The whyche grace I haue not shewed to the byfore / to the ende that thou sholdest not be proude / ¶ The holy man lyued one day after and recounted this that sayde is to some preestes whiche were come thider for to vysyte hym ¶ And after he gaue to theym many techinges / ¶ Amonge all other he shewed to theym / that they sholde neuer despyse other of what estate or what vocacion he was though he were vycyous / ¶ For in euery ordâ—e of mannes lyfe there ben two soules pley saunt to god by doynge some thynges secretly and vnknowen / ¶ And thus may be concluded / that the habyte makyth not the man pleysaunt ne agreable to god / but oonly the clennesse of lyf ¶ After that the sayde holy fader Papounce hadd gyue to his brethern enseygnements and many other techynges And that he had take leue of theym in grete humylyte / he rendred his soule to god / Whyche the holy angelles bare in to heuen in the presence of the assystences In syngyng songes and dyctees celestyall / ¶ Of the monastery of saynt Ysodore begynnynge in latyn ¶ Vidimus apud thehaidam / Caplm xvii IN Thebayde was a monastery and couent of saynt Ysodote playsaunte and gretly renoÌ„med / ¶ The relygyouses that were there wythin hadde moche grete and large howses / ¶ There were many pondes gardynes and trees berynge frute / Wyth this there were all thinges necessary for the bodyly lyfe In suche wise
she prayed the blessyd lady that she wolde be alwaye helpynge atte her nede / And soo wente from the cytee / ¶ And in gooynge she founde a man whyche gaaf to her .iii. pens with whyche she bought her thre loues of brede / ¶ And after askyd of hym that solde the brede whyche was the waye to goo to flom Iourdan / ¶ And whanÌ„e she knewe the gate by whiche she sholde goo / Alle the daye she wente wepynge and waylynge / ¶ And from the houre of Tyerce vnto the houre of Syxte and abowte the sonne gooynge downe She wente and arryued atte a chyrche of saynt Iohan Baptyste by the sayde flom Iourdan / In to whiche chyrche she entred for to make her prayers· The whyche accomplysshed she descended in to the flode aforsayd wisshe her face her body wyth the holy water of the sayd flom Iourdan ¶ And after that she had admynistred the holy sacrament of th aulter she ete halfe a loof the same nyghte she lay all nakyd vpon the erthe / ¶ On the morn she made her prayer to the glorioê° virgyn Mary / prayeng her that she wolde adresse her for to goo where as sholde be good for her helthe ¶ Fynably she was come to the place where as Zozimas hadde founde her / ¶ And as she sayde she hadde ben there fourty yere / ¶ Zozimas ferthermore demaunded questioned of her what thynge she had eten / ¶ She answered two looues and an halfe of brede / Whyche were bycomen as harde as stones as soone as she was passed ouer the flom Iourdan / ¶ Zozimas sayd to her / Haste thou thê° passed thy lyfe soo longe tyme wythoute payne or sykenesse / ¶ She ansueryd My fader I dare not telle the the perylles that I haue endured / ¶ Zozimas sayde Leue noo thynge but saye alle / ¶ Truely my fader sayd she I haue be seuentene yere that I hadde contynuelly desyre to ete and drynke suche mete / as I ete in the worlde / ¶ And by cause I myghte not haue it· I was in soo grete heuynesse that I myghte not endure it / ¶ In lyke wyse the flesshely thoughtes and deuyllyssh songes came to my mynde / By the whyche I was gretely tormented / ¶ But Incontynent I wepte and smote my breste in sayenge to fore myne eyen the promyse that I hadd made to god and to the blessyd vyrgyne Marye / ¶ Whanne I departed from the chyrche of Iherusalem / Pryncypally I came for socour to the holy vyrgyne Marye ¶ And in wepynge and lamentynge I prayed her to haue consolacyon comforte / ¶ Towchynge the flesshely temptacyons that came soo moche tofore me that I can not expresse ne telle ¶ For they made me soo enflamÌ„ed of my fyrste synne that I myghte not bere it / ¶ But whan I was in thyse passyons I fell downe to the erthe for to wepe and waylle abundantly / ¶ And in soo dooynge I knewe spyrytuelly that the blessyd vyrgyn Marye whyche had holpen me came for to socoure me / And I neuer lyfte vppe myne eyen from the erthe tyll I was out of thise cursyd thoughtes / In hauynge alwaye myn herte to our lady Tresorye of grace comfortresse of desolate / ¶ And the very adresseresse of theym that ben out of the waye / ¶ Zozimas after demauÌ„ded of her â—aste thou had noo mete ne clothing The holy Egypcyen ansuered / I haue eten the two loues and an halfe as I haue tolde / ¶ And the resydue of the tyme I haue ete herbes of the deserte ¶ By cause that my clothynge was all to torne in pyeces I haue lefte theym and am alle nakyd / ¶ Lete vs thynke here how many alte racoÌ„ns as well by raynes and grete coldes as by extreme hetes of the sonne that she endured / ¶ Thynke we also how many carnall temptacyons she threwe fro her / Whyche ben somoche dyffycyle to ouercome to theym that haue ben accustomed therin more thanne ony other temptacoÌ„n / ¶ After she sayd to Zozimas / Alas my frende I am nourysshed and cladde onÌ„ly wyth the worde of my god whyche hath done to me so many graces / The whyche sayth that one lyueth not oonly by brede but also by his worde whiche quykenyth more than the bodily mete / ¶ Zozimas herynge that she spake of holy Scrypture sayde to her ¶ Moder haste thou lerned the bokes of Moyses / The Psaulter and other holy scrypture / ¶ She thenne smylynge sayde to hym Fader byleue me certaynly that syth I passyd the flom Iourdan I sawe neuer man lyuynge but the. ne other beest of the worlde / ¶ I neuer lerned booke Ne neuer herde the Psaulter radde ne songen / ¶ But the worde of god whyche hathe soo grete vertue hathe enformyd myn entendement / ¶ And thys suffiseth to the. that I haue tolde to the ¶ And from hens forthe praye for me poore synfull lecherous woman / ¶ And whanne she hadde sayde thyse wordes / Zozimas kneled downe on his knees and beganne to saye / ¶ Blessed be the oonly god that dooth thynges so merueylous and in soo many persones ¶ Blessyd be thou my god whyche haste shewed to me the goodes that thou doost to theym that dreden the. and kepe alle thy commaundementes / ¶ Verely my god thou leuest neuer theym that sechen for to serue the / ¶ The good woman suffred hym not to lye on the erthe / ¶ But prayed hym that he wold neuer shewe that she had sayde to man lyuynge / ¶ And after sayd to him / My fader goo now forth on thy waye in peas / ¶ And wythin a yere herafter I shall come agayne shewe me to the / Yf god gyue vs the grace ¶ Wyth thys I praye the to doo that whyche I shall ordeyne / ¶ By cause that in your monasterye whanne ye make your holy fastynges whyche is called Lente / You re custome is to goo in to Deserte eche by hymself for to kepe his fastynge ¶ Whan that tyme shall come thou shalt not goo oute of the chyrche but kepe the monasterye / ¶ Zozimas was more abasshyd thanne tofore of that she knewe the rule of the monasterye / and began to crye ¶ O my god glorye be gyuen to the / I know that thou gyuest more grace with oute comparyson to theym that serue the truely thanne they demaunde or aske / ¶ The holy Egypcyen reprysed his worde and sayde / Fader herken / ¶ For whanne thou woldest departe from the monastery Thou shalte not mowe ¶ But the holy Thursdaye of Cene. thou shalt take the precious body of oure lorde Ihesu Cryste and his precyous blood in lyke wyse in an holy vessel and shalte come to me on that other syde of flom Iourdan withoute to passe ouer / ¶ And thenne by the grace and mercy of my god and of thyne I shall receyue hym benygnely / ¶ For I neuer receyued hym syth
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
I knowe that I shal not lyue longe And that god hathe holpen me to fyghte agaynste the deuyll vnto now / It restyth oonly that I gyue the consolacyon of thy doughter Eufrosyne / ¶ Byleue surely that I am she / And therfore be constaunt and myghty wythoute in ony wyse to angre the ¶ And this that I shewe to the. ne shewe ne declare it to ony man lyuynge / ¶ But thou allone tofore that I be putt in the erthe shall wasshe me To the ende that noo man knowe that I am a woman / ¶ I haue promysed many londes and possessyons to the chyrche here wythin / ¶ And therfore thou shalte accomplysshe and fulfyll my promyse It is a place of grete deuocyon / ¶ Praye for me I commaunde the to god and my body and my soule / ¶ And in sayenge thyse wordes she rendred and gaaf her spiryte to god ¶ Whanne Pafunce the fader of the good lady hadde herde thyse wordes / seenge that she was thenne deed fell doune to the erthe as deed / ¶ After this ranne Agapytus and he seenge that Smaradyn was deed And Pafunce fallen downe to the erthe casted water in to the vysage of Pafunce In sayenge / ¶ What eylest thou my lorde and frende Aryse vppe / ¶ Pafunce ansuered Alas that I deye not ryght here / This daye haue I seen thynges enarrable / ¶ After he roos vp and fell vppon the face of his doughter wysshe her wyth his teeres / ¶ And whan̄e he hadde longe waylled and wepte vppon the body / He sayde wyth an hyghe voyce ¶ Alas my swete doughter why haddeste not thou more sooner shewed and manyfested thyselfe to me To the ende that I hadde deyed gladly with that ¶ Vnhappynesse is comen to me syth that· thou haste hydde thyselfe soo longe from me ¶ Alas how haste thou vaynquysshed and putt vnder thy fete the aduersytees of this worlde And now thou arte in eternall glorye / ¶ Agapyton that herynge wente to the Abbot and shewed hym alle the caas / ¶ Whanne the Abbot was comen / In lyke wyse he began to wepe wyth Pafunce in sayenge / ¶ O Eufrosyne spowse of Ihesu Cryste / The tyme is comen that thou oughtest to remembre thy brethern / ¶ Praye for vs. to the ende that we maye come to the porte of helthe / ¶ Alle the bredern there assembled and seenge this myracle gloryfyed worshypped god in sayeng ¶ Honour and praysynge be to god of heuen and of erthe / Whyche that makyth not oonly to men merueyllouse thynges but also to wymmen / ¶ And thus as alle were there assembled for to burye the corps / A brother whyche hadde but one eye kyssed her And Incontynent he sawe clerly wyth that other eye / ¶ Her fader dystrybuted and dealed al his possessyons and lyuelood to the sayde chirche and monastery And rendred and became hymself Relygyous in the same place and monasterye / Where as he lyued ten yeres after / And after hys dethe fynably was buryed bi saynt Eufrosyne his oonly doughter and sauyd in heuen / ¶ To the whrche by theyr intercessyons and prayers it maye playse god that we maye all come atte the ende of oure dayes / ¶ The whyche graunte vs the fader sone and holy ghost / Amen / ¶ Thus endyth the lyfe of the gloryous saynt Eufrosyne / ¶ Of saynt Frontynyan Whyche begynnyth in latyn ¶ Quomam sepe desideratis / Caplm .xlv. ¶ Those ben the condycyons of theim that lyuen in the worlde / ¶ Lete vs demaunde and aske fyrste the Reame of heuen / ¶ And lete vs doo after Iustyce ¶ And by this moyen alle good thynges shall come to vs / ¶ After that euer yche of theym after his power entended to prayer the beste wyse they myghte ¶ But the good fader prayed not onely for hymselfe but for alle the other ¶ Longe tyme after that they hadde lyued in the sayde Deserte / The enmye of nature whyche is alwaye enuyouse / Pryncypally of theym whyche done penaunce / Tempted theym· and assayled wyth many assaultes / In suche wyse that he made theym alle to murmure and to grutche agaynst theyr Abbot / And sayde that one to that other / Wherfore is it that oure Abbot hathe made vs to come in to this Deserte / ¶ They that ben in townes and castellis shall haue as well heuen as we Soo that they done good werkes ¶ And we slee ourselfe here by fastynges And by abstynence we deyen for hungre / ¶ And thus the moost parte of theim were mouyd to retourne to the worlde / ¶ This knowynge saynt Frontinyan came to theym and sayde / Wherfore alye my bredern come ye hyther with me for to murmure and grutche agaynste god / Knowe ye not well by holy scrypture that a Iuste man shall neuer deye for hungre / ¶ And yf he haue not for to ete God shall sende hym some by his aungell Lyke as he hathe doon to many of whom we rede / ¶ Thynke that god hathe alwaye his eye vppon the deuowte soules / Thynke also how god nouryssheth the rauen̄s wythin theye neest whanne the fader ne the moder woll not nourysshe them by cause they ben whyte / ¶ Whanne they ben fyrste hayghte or borne / ¶ My brethern haue ye alwaye the loue of god in youre hertes And I assure certefye you for trouthe that ye shall neuer haue defaulte of mete ne of drynke / ¶ And yf it soo happened / whyche I byleue shall neuer come that ye sholde haue hungre or thurste / And whan̄e it soo were / Thenne myghte ye haue cause to accuse god of the wordes that he hathe sayde in the gospell / thus sayenge to hym / ¶ O god we haue kepte thy commaundementes And haue byleuyd that thou haste sayde that is to wyte that thou shalte nourysshe thy seruauntes wyth heuenly mete / We haue had in the hope neuertheles thou haste lefte vs / But I praye you alle ne murmure ne grutche noo more thus in likewyse as oure faders auncyente dyde in Deserte whanne they were delyuered from the honde of kynge Pharao / ¶ Abyde ye and tarye a whyle And ye shall knowe how god pourneyth to theym that dredyth hym and louyth hym ¶ After thyse wordes of saynt Frontynyan alle they ceaseden theyr murmuracyons and grutchynges / ¶ And of that they hadde soo done they were moche sorowfull and dysplaysaunte / ¶ On a nyghte after that they had soo ben corrected / An aungell apperyd to a Ryche man / ¶ And sayde thus to hym / ¶ Thou man that lyuest in grete delyces worldly playsures and hauinge habundaunce of goodes and the poore seruauntes of god ben in Deserte whyche haue grete hungre / ¶ I aduertyse and counseylle the that thou aryse vppe And that thou sende theym some mete for to ete / ¶ Or ellis thou shalte renne in to the Indygnacyon of
and courage to withstonde the temptacyon of the deuyll whyche soo moche enforcyth hyÌ„ to ouercome me / ¶ Alle the tyme passyd here tofor I haue born but one pott to the water / ¶ But from hensforth in dyspyte of hym I shall bere tweyne soo she dyde / ¶ The deuyll seeng that he cowde not make her to deye by synne / Supposyd ofte to slee her / and make her to deye bodyly / ¶ On a tyme as she hewe wode for the kechyn / The deuyll tooke held her arme in suche a maner that whaÌ„ she supposyd to haue smyten wyth her are vppon the wode she smote her legge and hurted herselfe to grete effusyon and shedynge of bloode / ¶ The gode Eufraxe seenge the bloode rennyng oute of the wounde by merueylous habundaunce and plentee / ¶ Promptely she knelyd downe sayenge / O my goode god I byseche ayde and strength thi poore seruaunte whyche suffreth somothe harme for to serue the / ¶ And anone after she felle to the erthe ¶ Her syster Iulyan sodaynly aduertised and hauynge knowlege of this aduenture beganne to crye soo hyghe that the abbeise and alle her systers came to theym beganne to wepe / ¶ The abbesse spake to her and sayde My doughter reioyce the. and speke to thy systers / ¶ Thenne she tooke her by the honde and lyfted her vppe / ¶ After that she bounde her legge wyth a piece of hayâ—e / ¶ Whyche was of suche lynnen clothe as she was att that tyme clothed with / She was not doon to as is done to vs whanne we ben hurte ¶ For to vs ben gyuen oynementes softe and lynen kyuerchyefs And yet we ben not contente / ¶ The Abbesse wolde haue ladde her to the chirche but the good Eufraxe seenge the wood lyenge there sayde to her systers that she wold not goo to the chyrche tyll she had borne the wood to the kechyn as she hadd be acustomyd / ¶ Her syster Iulyan an â—ucred to her My loue ye maye not soo For ye be ouersore hurte / Neuerthelesse she wolde none otherwyse doo But layd the wodd on her necke / ¶ The deuyll seenge her grete constaunce hurted her more thanne he dyde tofore / For in lyâ—â—ynge vpp she fell vpon the wood And in fallynge entred in to her eye a stycke soo depe that the sisters supposid that she hadde be loste / ¶ Thenne her good frende Iulyan beganne to crye / And sayde to her / Alas my syster I sayde to the wel that thou myghtest not beâ—e the wood / ¶ Eufraxe sayde to her / My syster drawe hardely the stycke oure of myne eye for it is hoole / Thenne Iulian drewe it oute and Incontynente sprange oute grete habuÌ„dance of blood / ¶ The Abbesse came thyder whyche putted oyle vppon the wounde and coÌ„maunded her that she sholde goo lye vppon her hedde / ¶ And commaunded after that the other systers sholde doo that that she was wonned to doo / ¶ But what commaundement that the Abbesse made Eufraxe entremeted alway to serue god contynuelly and alle her systers / ¶ Notwithstondynge that the blode ranne oute of her woundes ¶ A nother tyme she wente vppe in to a Solyer wyth her syster Iulyan / ¶ And in gooynge vp the deuyll threwe her downe from the hyghest grece to the loweste ¶ Her systers hadd supposyd to haue founde her deed / but she aroos and came to theym all hoole / ¶ A nother tyme the deuyl supposed to haue slayne her she beynge in the kechym / ¶ For in holdynge the potte full of wortes made her to falle backewarde / ¶ And after threwe boyllynge water vppon her visage / ¶ Wherof her systers were moche admerueylled / ¶ But she beganne to laughe Sayenge that she felte noo thynge but colde water ¶ The Abbesse seenge thyse thynges assembled and broughte togyders alle the auncyente systers for to gloryfye the name of god / ¶ And thenne they knewe anone right well that she was well bylouyd of her espowse Ihesu Cryste ¶ The custome of the countree was that whanne children were seke of ony maladyes or sykenesses they broughte theym to the sayde monasterye / ¶ And anone by the prayers of the systers they were helyd and guarysshed / ¶ Emonge alle other there came a woman that broughte her chylde / whyche was paralytyke deyf and dombe / ¶ The Portâ—er sawe it / And forthwyth wente and tolde it to the Abbesse / ¶ The whyche sente it to saynt Eufraxe / ¶ Whom seenge the chylde tremblynge and quakynge and soo seke was moâ—uyd with pyte and compassyon ¶ And made her prayers for the chiylde sayenge / ¶ My childe he that hathe made the. yeue the sanacyon and helthe atte thys presente tyme / ¶ Thenne she tooke the chylde beynge alle hoole and bare it in her armes / ¶ And anone the chylde beganne to speke and to crye after his moder ¶ Whanne Eufraxe herde it she was aâ—erde by cause it was tofore dombte and myghte not speke and layed it down on the grounde / And In contynent he wente his waye to his moder / The whyche thynge was shewed to the Abbesse by the Portyere / ¶ The whyche yet not knowynge how the chylde hadde helyd / Came to the moder / sayenge to her angrely that she dyde euyll soo to mocke the Relygyouses / ¶ The mode swaâ—e that her chylde hadde neuer goon spoken ne herde But syth that the gode Eufraxe hadde borne it in her armes / ¶ In the sayde monasterye was a woman whiche hadde be longetourmeÌ„ted wyth a deuyll / ¶ And her sykenesse was soo terryble and merueyllous that contynuelly she scumed or cryed soo terrybly and soo ferfull that none of the systers durste goo to her for to gyue to her mete But from a ferre in a vessell bounde to a corde they delyuered to her and admynystred that whyche she sholde take for her refeccyon / ¶ On a tyme amonge the other / The Abbesse coÌ„maunded to saynt Eufraxe / that she sholde bere to her mete / And soo she dyde / ¶ And in approchynge to the poore pacyente / The fende of helle whyche was wythin her body tourmented not her / And the poore pacyent dyde al that she commaunded / ¶ And yet more there was / ¶ Whanne the other Relygyouses wente thyder / Yf they broughte not wyth theym saynt Eufraxe what some euer they dyde she wolde neyther drynke ne ete ¶ But ofte she casted the vessell atte theyr heedes / ¶ It happed that Germayne whiche alwaye hadde enuye on her / Sayd that she wolde as well bere to her mete as saynt Eufraxe / ¶ Whanne the vnhappy Germayne came nyghe to the paciente / She tooke her and rente alle her vestymentes vnto the bare flesshe / And beganne to ete her membres ¶ ThenÌ„e came some of the good systers and shewed it to saynt Eufraxe / The whyche anone ranne thyther and toke her by the necke hondes
theyr frendes / ¶ The eyghte daye after whyche was Sondaye he tooke leue of the sayd wydowe and wente openly thorugh the strete / ¶ And in gooynge he founde in his waye a man moche olde / whom he salewed demaundynge whether he went and yf he wolde holde hym companye ¶ To whom the olde man ansuered that he wolde doo as it sholde playse hym / ¶ And soo they wente togyder oute of Rome in sechynge theyr mete fro dore to dore / ¶ And longe tyme they wente togyder by the wayes the whyche the threpilgryms tofore namyd hadde holden / ¶ And after the good Machaire recyted that whan he came a .xxx. myle nyghe to the place where as he was / and recyted thyse thynges that same olde man whyche had acompanyed hym syth he departed from Rome vanisshed a way and wyste not where he became / ¶ Thenne was saynt Machaire sore trowbled In soo moche he wyste not what to doo / ¶ But layed hym downe on the erthe / and there wayled and weâ—te habundauntly / ¶ And he beynge in this poynte wayllynge and wepynge The same man that was in his companye / apperyd to hym agayne and sayde / ¶ Ryght dere brother angre the noo thynge / ¶ For I am the Aungell Raphaell sente from god for and to helpe the in thy necessytees / ¶ And knowe the that by the coÌ„maundement of god I haue brought the hyther ¶ Oure lorde hathe alwaye holpen the In gyuynge waye prosperouse / By the whyche thou haste passed alle the derâ—e places / And theim where as ben the tourmentes of soules / Now thou art in lyght / And therfore thou oughtest now to drede noo thynge But goo forthe in the waye that thou haste begonne / ¶ Thyse thynges thus sayde the aungell departed from hym / Thenne reprysed and tooke agayn saynt Machaite his strengthe and wente forthon / ¶ And ryght soone after he founde a wylde asse / The whyche he adiured in the name of god that he sholde adresse and gouerne hym the waye by whyche he myghte surely goo / ¶ After the sayne coniuracyon the asse wente forth by a lytyll path / And soo folowynge hym saynt Machaire wente wyth hym two dayes / ¶ And the thyrde day he founde an herte without comparyson more greter thanne ony of the countree / ¶ The sayde asse seenge the sayde herte / hadde grete drede and left the holy man whyche was thenne sore trowblyd By cause he myghte not know ne see ony wayne pathe ¶ He thenne soo abasshyd that he wyst not what to doo / He adiured the herte that hadde be cause to make hym to lese his guyde / That he hymselfe sholde guyde him and lede hym surely ¶ And Incontynente the sayde herte came to hym lyke as a good came beest / ¶ And in a strayte waye he beganne to goo to fore the good holy man / In lokynge be hynde hym yf he folowyd hym alwaye ¶ And soo they wente togider thre dayes / ¶ The fourthe daye they founde a dragon merueyllous whyche laye alonge in the waye / ¶ And whanne the herte sawe the dragon he fledde a waye and the good man abode alone / And wyste not what to doo but to calle on the name of god / And felle downe prostrate to the erthe for to make his prayer / ¶ After he blessyd him wyth the sygne of the Crosse / ¶ And commaunded in the name of god the sayde dragon that he sholde doo to hym none harme ne lettinge / ¶ And thenne it haped by myracle and agaynst the comyn vsage of nature that the dragon spake and sayde to hym / ¶ Come on hardly come on well happy and seruaunte of god Machaire ¶ The aungell Raphaell shewynge me thy face hathe commaunded me that I sholde come to the / for to lede the to the place whiche is arayed for the by the commaundement of god / ¶ It is foure dayes sythe I haue abyden for the wythoute mete or drynke / ¶ In this nyghte I haue seen the in a clowde ryght shynynge / And haue herde a voyce whyche sayde to me that I sholde haste me for to lede the and conduyte Bi cause thou were not ferre frome / ¶ Wherfore come on promptely folowe me And drede the noo thynge / ¶ For by the ayde and helpe of god I shall lede the to the place Whyche by hym is made redy to the / In whyche thou oughtest to loue and prayse god / Thyse wordes sayde by hym that semyd to be a dragon / Sodainly he transfygured and chaunged hymselfe in to lykenesse of a yonge man / As the same holy fader sayd / brought him vnto the holy place where he recited al thise thyÌ„ges / And where as the sayde pylgryms had founden hym / ¶ And he sayde yet ferthermore that he beynge arryued in the sayde caue / The sayde yonge man vanysshed awaye / ¶ And thenne he huÌ„bly thanked god in gloryfyenge hym of the graces that he had done to hym / In preseruynge hym fro the grete daungers wherin he hadde ben er he was comen vnto the sayde place / ¶ Neuerthelesse he sayde that he hadde be ofte tempted of the deuyll / Whyche ofte came to vysyte hym for to gyue to hym empesshement and lettynge in his contemplacyons ¶ And emonge his other temptacyons he hadde presented hym a lytyll bende to swadle a lytyll chylde brynge in his cradle / The wyche bende the holy man hadde taken and putt it in his caue forgetynge to blesse hym ne to make prayer in takynge it / ¶ A nother tyme he hadde layed tofore his caue a payr of shoes of a woman / whyche semblably and in lyke wyse he hadde taken and layed bi the layd bende / ¶ And the thyrde tyme the deuyll apperyd to hym in lyckenesse of a woman cladde wyth ryche habyllements And was aourned arayed wyth precyous stones / ¶ Whanne the sayde holy man sawe that / Not ymagynynge that it was the deuyll spake to her famylyerly demaunded what she was / And how she was comen in to his â—aue / ¶ Thenne she as heuy and sorowfull beganne to wepe and caste out greâ—e syghynges / ¶ The holy man seeng that she wepte mouyd of pyte and compassyon beganne to wepe wyth her / ¶ And thenne the deuyll beganne to speke to hym sayenge O holy man seruaunte of god I am the doughter of a noble Romayne / whyche some tyme was fyaunced and trouthplyght in maryage to a noble man of Rome ¶ But whanne the day was comen in whiche we sholde haue made the maryage He to whom I shold haue be spowsed and maryed wente his waye secretely that neuer syth was seen / ¶ And whanne I sawe that he was departed from Rome And that his parentes and kynnesmen and frendes soughte hym in grete heuinesse / I was not Ioyous But the same nyghte departed also pryuely wyth oute takynge leue of ony persone And haue passyd
as well by mouÌ„taynes and valeyes as by many other dangerouse places without guydynge of ony lyuynge persone / ¶ And thus alle allone am I comen hyther / ¶ Saynt Machaire wenynge that she was his wife / Toke her swetely by the honde and ladde her in to his caue / ¶ But the deuyll contynuelly wepte / Wherfore the holy man was the more redy to byleue that it hadde ben his wyfe / And wepte semblably and in lykewyse wyth her / ¶ After theyr lamentacyons and wepynges the holy man tooke akehornes herbes and wolde haue made her to ete wenynge that she shelâ—e cesse her sorowe / ¶ Now the holy man Machaire vnderstode not the cautelles and dysceytes of the deuyll / The whiche atte begynnynge were ouer subtyll and straunge for to be vnderstonde ¶ And soo they deuyseden longe wyth in the sayde caue that one syttynge by that other / ¶ And in spekynge togyder the forsayde woman towchyd his hondes by manere of flaterye As now many done for to moeue the men to vs â—â—â—ouse and fowle synne of lecherye / ¶ And in thus dooynge the poore man without to blesse hym ne comauÌ„dynge him to god fell a slepe / As yf he hadde be traueylled of many labours / ¶ Now it happed in slepynge by th art or subtyltee and shrewdenesse of the deuyll / That he dremyd to be wyth hys wyfe and to haue her companye in suche wyse that whanne he awoke he founde hymselfe alle dyscoueryd and ponished oâ— defoylled / as he hadde flesshly done wyth his wyfe / ¶ Thenne knewe he that it was the deuyll By cause that after he hadde slepte he sawe ne apperceyued her noo more / ¶ Thenne he beganne to lamente and make sorowe and make many exclamacyons and cryes to god In requyrynge hym humbly of pardonne and mercy / ¶ Now it is to be noted that the two lions whyche he hadde founde in his caue whanne he there fyrste arryued After he hadde done this synne forsoken hym and departed fro hym The whyche thynge by hym knowen And for the grete dysplaysaunce that he hadde for his synnes He put him agayne to prayer Prayenge god that he wolde enseygne and shewe hym / what suffysaunt penaunce he oughte to doo / And that it wolde playse hym to sende agayne to hym his two lyons / ¶ And Incontynente after by the wyll of god whyche herde his requeste and petycyon wolde reduce and brynge hym to the waye of heâ—the The sayde lions retourned / and beganne promptely to make a fosse or a pytte of the largenesse depnesse suffysaunt to the comyn stature of a man ¶ The holy man that seenge / thoughte that god wolde that he sholde doo his penaunce in the sayd pytte / ¶ And commaunded the lyons that they sholde couere hym in the same / And so they dyde / ¶ He beynge in the sayd pytte by the space of thre yere / Happed that by the grete InundacoÌ„n and flowynge of waters the whyche descended there the sayd caue was broken And a parte fell vppon his heed in suche wyse that by the moyen of the sayde rumpure and brekynge where as he hadde not seen noo lyghte in thre yere He sawe the sonne clerely shyne and gyuynge lyghte / ¶ Thenne he tooke the herbes whyche he founde besyde hym and ete of theym / ¶ The lyons after came agayne And they seenge the caue broken and dysconuerte They dyffeated the pytte / and brought hym oute alle hoole wythoute ony gryef or brusure / ¶ Thenne he came oute of the fosse or pytte / And rendred than kynges of that he hadde lyued soo longe wythoute seenge of sonne ne mone And also wythoute to haue ony harme of his body he was delyuered from the same caue / ¶ And knelyd downe to the grounde and was fourty dayes and fourty nyghtes wythoute moeuynge hyÌ„selfe Lyke as he hadde he Inmobyle in gloryfyenge the name of god / ¶ The sayde fourty dayes passyd He came agayne in to his caue ¶ And there he sawe foure aungellis whyche shone soo merueyllously that alle the caue was enlumyned ¶ And in the myddle of theym was our lorde and Redemer Ihesus Cryste in fourme of a man Holdynge in his honde a rodde of golde / made a sowne so strongly resownyng lyke the voys of ten men / ¶ The same noble companye songen longe / ¶ And whanne theyr songe was accomplysshed and fulfyllyd / Thre voyces togyder ansuered Amen ¶ And Incontynent oure Sauyour Ihesu Cryst wyth his aungellis whiche acompanied him vanysshed awaye and wente in to heuen / ¶ And after in a voys descended a douue wythin the sayde caue / And Incontynente was herde a noyce romblynge as thundre / and also lyghtnynges Innumerable / ¶ He herde also many voyces from heuen whyche songenâ— Sanctus Sanctus Sanctus Dominus deus / c ThenÌ„e the holy man herynge and seenge the sayde woundres was alle taken in a traunce and rauysshed in spyryte And felle downe to the erthe On whyche he was ryght dayes wythoute moeuynge honde ne fote / The whyche passyd he awoke / ¶ And thenne he knewe that god hadde sanctefyed and halowed that place / And giuen there his benedyccyon and blessynge / And thenne he recuâ—ned in to the sayd caue and praysed the name of god / in gyuyng to hym thankynges and louynges of his vysytacyon And that his grace hadde made hym worthy to haue his companye / ¶ Atte the tyme of the same vysyon He was in the aege of fourty yere And hadde dwellyd but seuen yeres in the sayd caue ¶ Whanne he hadd recounted and tolde alle thyse thynges to the thre Relygyous pylgrymes / That is to wyte Theophyle Sergius and Thimus / ¶ He Instructe and shewed to theym the maner how they myghte voyde the cursyd temptacoÌ„n and decepcyon of the deuyll of helle / In sayenge to theym that they sholden remembre and haue in mynde alwaye how the deuyll hadd dysceyued hym subtylly / ¶ And after he admonested and desyred them to abyde wyth him Or yf it playsed to theym not to abyde there that they sholde retourne in to theyr monasterye / ¶ Alle thyse consydered by the thre Relygyouses / they were moche abasshed and fell downe to the erthe in gloryfyenge the name of god / Whyche oonly dooth soo many merueyllous thynges / ¶ And also they rendred to hym thankynges of that he hadde broughte theim to the knowlege of the holy man / ¶ Theyr oryson fynysshed they prayed to the glorious saynt Machaire that he wolde praye for theym to the Sauâ—our of the worlde / That he wolde saue and kepe theym in retournynge in theyr abbaye / To the ende that by all the monasteryes where as they sholde goo They myghte also well recite and tell that whyche they hadde seen / For to ercyte and moeue alle Relygyous men to lyue vertuously / ¶ For they byleuyd fâ—â—mely that god hadd broughte theym to the sayde
cause he made thedefice so grete sayd to hȳ My broder leue this that thou haste begon it is a thynge superfluous to make so large this place that we dwelle in / The holy man Pachomyen hering thise wordes ansuerd to hȳ noo thyng but endured in his courage how wel that he was euyll content wyth hȳ estemyng to be eniuryed bi the wordes aforesayd / The nyght folowynge Pachomyen descended in to a lowe place that he had begon to edefye fell downe place in prayer wepinge waylyng· by cause that for thoccasōn aforsayd he had be wrothe ayenst his broder / in his lamentacions he sayd / Helas maledyccōn is happed to me I walke yet in obeyenge to the flesshe / Lorde god haue pyte on me to the ende that I perisshe not / also that by decepcōn of the deuil I be not deceyued Alas lord yf I be withdrawe fro thy grace / the deuyl fynde ony vyce in me he shal subdue me sore in his vile seruytude for it is wryten that he that is of ony put vnder he is made his serfe or bonde man / And yet ayen it is wryten that he that shall haue entyerly kepte obseruyd the lawe / after in one on̄ly sȳne shall haue offended he shall be as towarde god reputed of all culpable out of his helthe / Notwythstondyng my lorde god I byleue that thy mercyes ben soo grete that they shall helpe me how someuer poore myserable sȳnar I be / For soo haue ben thyne seruauntes by thy sure proteccōn preserued fro the power of the deuyll in th ende enlumyned wyth thy glorye felycite eternall ¶ Thenne haue I hope by that thou shalte giue me knowelege of thy name That after my dethe I shall be of the nombre of theym that shall be sauyd / ¶ Ellis my lorde god yf thou gyue me not scyence and cunnyng lyke as thou haste promysed to me / I shal not cunne teche ne enseygne the relygyous people whyche thou haste commysed and gyuen the charge and gouernaunce to me Seen and consydered that I haue not curyously ouercome the voluptuosytee and passyons of the flesshe / ¶ Ne also obseruyd and fulfyllyd thy ryght worthy lawe wyth vndefoylled thoughte as I oughte to doo / ¶ Wherfore I am not worthy to be ruler and gouernour vnder thy honde of so many relygyous men whyche shall come to me / ¶ And therfore my lorde my Sauyoure and my Protectour I beseche the that it maye playse the to pardonne and forgyue me In grauntynge to me absolucyon of all my synnes / ¶ The holy man was alle the nyghte contynuelly in wepynges and lamentacyons / In suche wyse that his robe or vesture and his body was alle bayned and bydewed in teres and water / And how wel that he was replenysshed and endowed wyth alle vertue Neuertheles he Rendred hym selfe alle obeyssaunte to his brother germayne vnto his deth and endynge of his lyfe / Whyche happed soone after ¶ In buryenge makynge sepulture of whom he was an hoole nyghte / wepynge vpon his body makynge for him prayers and deuoute orysons how well that his soule was in heuen / ¶ How saynt Pachomyen resysted the temptacyons of the deuyll / And begynnith in latyn ¶ Tūcinfatigabilis c. Caplm .lxvii. SAynt Pachomyen Incōtynent as one afflyccyon came to him Sodaynly by the grace of god he putt it abacke / For he was alwaye in the deede of god / ¶ Now who someeuer dredith god He employeth him in good werkes ofte remembrynge on the paynes of helle Lyke as fyre whiche is eternall / ¶ And on the wormes whiche wroten the dampned soules Whiche neuer shall deye / ¶ The deuyll enuyouse of alle good / supposyd to haue bendyd his grynnes to haue caught and taken hym in some synne / ¶ But neuerthelesse by cause he was armyd wyth the shelde of stedfaste faythe He ouercame alwaye his aduersarye / ¶ Of the Illusyons that the deuyl made to the sayde Pachomyen And begynnyth in latyn ¶ Quadam vero die c. Caplm lxviii ON a daye as the holy Pachomyen came fro sayēge of his deuoute orysons prayers a goode waye fro his lytyll celle lyke as he had be acustomyd came tofore hȳ many deuyllis in grete nōbre sayēg one to a nother lyke as they had be tofore a Iuge Make place to the seruaūt of god· but the holy man hauȳge in our lorde ful hope dispised all theyr machinacōns lyke as it had be barkynge of dogges / whan the deuillis sawe the grete constaūce of hȳ they enforcid theim to bete downe that is ūdement of his edefyce whyche he begon / Thenne began to say the holy man O my god whihe art on̄ly refuge the defence of our good people whom thou comforteste in alle theyr trybulacyons / yf our enmyes meue and take the erthe awaye tofore v◠ye for that we fere ne drede theym no◠¶ And Incontynente theyr Impetuosyte sessed and as a fume or smoke vanysshed awaye / ¶ But yet they came agayne after as wood houndes / ¶ And in the same wyse an other tyme as he came from his prayer / The deuyll apperyd to him in lykenes of a capon makynge a crye soo merueylous / That alle the place redounded / The whyche thynge seenge the holy man / he blessyd hym wyth the sygne of the holy Crosse / And bleugh agaynst the deuyll And Incontynent he departed / ¶ And thus he helde him as as a stronge tour inexpugnable tofore his enmyes / ¶ Ofte tymes he moche thanked god as here after shall be shewed / And after the deuyll shewed hym to hym in lykenesse of a fayre woman Enforcinge hym by lokes dyssolute subtyll yllusyons to excyte and moeue hym to the dyshoneste detestable synne of lechery ¶ But the holy man seenge tofore hys cursyd temptacyons And for to eschew theym closyd his bodily eyen Openynge the syght of his entendement towarde god Whiche enseyneth vs to gete the vertue of strengthe and of charyte sayenge to the ryghtfull men / ¶ My frendes drede ye not For I am wyth you for to kepe you / ¶ How saynt Pachomien was greuously beten of the deuyll / ¶ And begynnyth in latyn ¶ Alia quoque et cetera Caplm .lxix. THe deuyll tooke hym a nother tyme / and bete hym soo moche that he was constrayned by feblenesse to lye downe fro the mornynge to the euenynge wythout to cunne speke / But notwythstondyng that he made noo mencyon by wordes of god Neuertheles his herte woke and callyd vppon hym as he whiche neuer leuyth the good in temptacōns / ¶ Thenne came there a religyous man named Appollo for to vysite hȳ· to whom the holy man expowned his decepcōns of the deuyll how he had be beten ¶ The holy fader Appollo sayd to hym in this maner / A holy fader it is nede that that thou take in the
C.xlv FOr to styre his peple to mekenes· openly gaaf the holy Patryarke thise exortacoÌ„ns / My chyldern lete vs consyder put in our hertes the grete godenes of god his grete merci And certaynly we shal not desire to be put in grete honours that ben so dangeroous / But playnly we shall desyre to lyue in symple astate and pouertee / ¶ Alas what pouertee cowde we haue for to be also poore as hath be the lord our Sauyour and Redemer Ihesu Criste that kyng was bothe of heuen of erthe / ¶ Lete vs thynke vpon his mede fulnesse grete goodnesse that hath be shewed to vs / Where as we neuer shold haue ben yf he bi his grace had not formed Adam / The whyche by Inobedyence caused vs subget vnto euerlasting dethe / ¶ And alwayes thrugh his grece mercy paynfull passyon so moche benygnely he hath boughte vs ayen ¶ We also shall consydre that at all times that we fall in dedely synÌ„e the deuyll maye slee vs. brynge in to helle / And in dede he sholde doo it ne were the perfyghte loue that our lord hath to vs ¶ For coÌ„tynuelly by his doughter that is the chyrche· he prayeth vs to retorne to penaunce to th ende we maye haue hys grace / ¶ O moost swetnes whan he that may both daÌ„pne saue vs at his wyll And that alle thynges maye wythoute vs / And wythout hym we maye no thyÌ„ge / Neuerthelesse he prayeth vs that we woll loue him / ¶ How many theues euyll dooers are in the worde that god punysshyth not but coueryth theyr synnes / How many ben in the see that god preseruyth that they ben not robbed of the Pyrates / or drowned in to the deppest botomes But coÌ„maundeth the see that it suffreth theym to come to porte sauf / in abydynge the amendement of theyr lyfe / ¶ How many receyue the body of our lorde in dedely synne whiche he punysshyth not forth with / How many brybers theues are kepte from the wylde bestes / ¶ How many synÌ„ars ben preseruyd the anone after theyr synÌ„e thei ben not take of the deuyll of hell How many lurdens lye bi harlottes aduoutrers dronkelew glosâ—ets and other to all vyces ben wrapped / neuerthelesse god abydeth theym to gyue vnto them his mercy yf they woll aske it ¶ The bee fleeth in Somer in hylles valâ—es for to make hony swete for oure monthes that haue vttred sayd soo many fowle wordes and shamful / The floures shewe theim for to reioyce our â—yen whiche enforce theym for to loke on comyn wymmen / Or dysceyue a manÌ„es wyfe / ¶ We thenne that done suche dedes / And haue soo many rewardes of god / What drede oughte we for to haue whan oonly we consydre the last hour of oure dethe / ¶ Dyuerse ensamples of dethe gaaf the holy Patryarke to the ende that they that were prowde folysshe louers sholde mekely and lowely obeye theymself for to haue contrycyon / takynge sorowe for theyr synnes ¶ This holy man sayde It suffysyth me for to be sauyd to haue a coÌ„tynuell mynde of dethe / For at the selfe hour none shal acoÌ„pany wyth vs / but onÌ„ly our gode bad dedes ¶ Alas lete vs thyÌ„ke how our gode angel shal be wroth whaÌ„ aft our deth he shall finde noo gode dedes done bi vs wherby he miÈte kepe defeÌ„de vs ayeÌ„st thacusyÌ„g of our enmie the deuyll of hell / Alas thenÌ„e shall we pray god the he wol yeue vs space to liue yet a lytyl while to doo penauÌ„ce but to vs shal be answerd / Pore creature that haste euyl speÌ„ded the time that thou hast lyuen thou shalt neuer haue no respite sayd of hyÌ„self / Alas pore IohnÌ„ how shal thou passe the way for to goo in paradys / whaÌ„ afore the thou shal see somany enmies of horrible accusars byfore the rightwys Iuge / ¶ Alas IohnÌ„ what fere and drede shalt thou thenne haue whan Incontyâ—â—â—e after thy dethe thou shalt be presentes afore the Iugement of god ¶ This holy man had euer in his remembrauÌ„ce the good Symeon that had be so iusce And that whiche whan the hour of his dethe was come / that his soule ascended to paradys / mette wyth a grete coÌ„pany of deuilles in dyuers orders / Fyrst mette the soule of the sayd Symeon the order of proude deuylles And there she was questioned yf she had not be proude After he mette with the deuylles princes of sklaundrynge / and in lyke wyse she was there askyd yf she had not reported euyl of other / After this she met wyth other deuylles prynces of fornycacoÌ„n the whiche wolde accuse hym of flesshely dedes and flesshely desyres / And whan the soule is styed vnto heâ—uen and that she muste nedes yelde acounte afore god / the angels gyue her nomore socours / and hath thenne noo comfort ne helpe but of suche good dedes as he hath done in this worlde / As to this tyme the good Patryarke consydered how the soule hath noo comforte but onÌ„ly of her good dedes / ¶ And for to moue the more his spyryte / he broughte vnto his mynde the dethe of saynte Hâ—larion the whyche at the laste houre of his deth sayd vnto his soule / O my soule goo hardly out of my body Lxxx. yere thou hast serued god / Why ferest thou now thy departynge / ¶ O wonderfull a thyng / o moost drede o charyte vnable to be colde The good Hilarion the was ·lxxx yere al his lyfe had seruyd god in doynge grete penauÌ„ce neuer had synÌ„ed dedely but al his dayes was Ioyned to the goodnesse of god as he had hadde in erthe the perfeccyon of an angel / This notwythstondyng that he lyued an heuenly lyfe in makyng wonderfull miracles yet he feryd the dethe namely the sayd holy Patryarke that sayd ¶ What shall thou my soule answere to the horryble accusars that somoche ben subtyll / I fere me full sore that we shall be taken at our answers whaÌ„ the deuyls shall gyue vnto vs somany accusacoÌ„ns As of leesynges of couetise of myssayeng of vnpyte of euyll mynde· of hate and of all other synÌ„es / TheÌ„ne shall we well nede to haue gode aduocates that shall speke for vs / ¶ For the grete fere that we shall thenne haue shall kepe vs that we shall not answere noo thyng / And therfore we must pray god that we maye haue good angels for to lede vs in all our dedes whan that we oonly goo fro one cyte to a nother we take our guides / to th ende that they lede vs the streight waye / ¶ ThenÌ„e muste we well praye whan we shall depart from the erthe to heuen / that we be not ladde from our streyght waye but ledd guyded by good conduytours / Thys holy patryarke layed suche medyacoÌ„ns afore his eyen for to meke hyÌ„self / And who that
he was a paynem and wyste not what he dyde as touchyng our fayth The preest sayd to hym Certes I am touched with compunccoÌ„n thrugh thy salutacyon / by the whiche I haue knowen that thou arte goddes man / but I haue mette with one I wote not what a wretched monke that hath wronged me ouer moche And also rewardynge by of his scornefull wordes I haue gyue vnto hym greuous wouÌ„des Incontynent he was tourned and swore that he sholde not lat hym go / tyll that he made him a monke ¶ After they two wente togydre to the place where the dyscyple was hurte / and bare hym in the chirche ¶ Alle the monkes were glad of the conuersyon of the preest / for by him many were tourned ¶ So sayde the abbot saynt Macharye to this purpose / that oftentymes proude and scornefull wordes tourne and tyse the good folke for to doo euyll Also humble langage moeueth the euyll folke vnto goodnesse ¶ Saynt Anthonye sayd often / that none can be good how well he desyreth to be so / yf god be not with him for no man is good but he oonly / what soeuer vertue is in vs thenne / we muste euer accuse our selfe and holde vs for euyll folke And thus mekyng our selfe we shall gette mede ¶ One tyme the good saynt Anthony sawe all the grennes snares of the deuyll spredde ouer the erth Thenne began he to wepe to weyle askynge to god Alas who shall mowe eschewe the subtyll snares of the deuyll Incontynente he herde a voyce that sayde to hym Anthonye humylyte all oonly maye preserue folke fro the wyckednesse of the deuyll / to the whiche the proude can not come by no wyse ¶ An other tyme as he was in his oratorye / he herde a voyce that sayd Anthony thou hast not yet knowen the vertues of a man that taweth leder in Alexandrye And in the mornyng nexte after / after this voyce y herde / saynt Anthonye toke his staffe / departed ceassed not his pas tyll he came atte AlexaÌ„drye the cyte Whan saynt Anthonye had fouÌ„de hyÌ„ he questyoned hyÌ„ of his vertues Then the sayd holy man sayd to hym that he dyd no good att all / but that euery mornynge when he rose fyrst he sayd in hym selfe that all they of the cyte sholde be saued by theyr Iustyce And to the contrarye for the synnes that he made / he demed that he was worthy of euerlastynge dampnacyon And in lykewyse when he yede to bedde att nyght / he remembred this thyng as for trouthe ¶ This seynge saynt Anthonye answered to hym / certaynly my sone I haue be longe in the desertes with grete besynesse care / but I had neuer so vertuouse a coÌ„syderacoÌ„n ¶ A broder axed ones to the abbot Poemen what betokened a proposycyon of the postle whiche is suche / that is to wyte that to those that be clene without spot of synne / all thyng semeth clene The abbot answered vnto hym / that he that myght come therto in maner that he coude vnder stande it well / he sholde holde hymself the lowest of all other creatures The broder sayd there ayenst / how can it be / shall I holde my selfe for a gretter synner than is a mansleer ¶ The abbot sayd / whan we see a maÌ„sleer we ought to consyder / that by aduenture he dyde neuer none other synne / we haue done Infynyte offenses / haue be murdred of ourselfe sleeyng ourselfe thrugh synne ¶ And where the sayd broder asked hym how this coude be do / he answerd to hym The Iustyfycacyon oonly of man is to repreue correcte hymselfe / then is the man Iuste / when of hyÌ„selfe he accuseth condeÌ„pneth his syÌ„nes ¶ Many Relygyouses were ones with the abbot Poemen / wherof one began to prayse a nother sayeng Yonde is a good man / for he hath horrour of synnes The abbot then asked hym / what horrour of syÌ„nes was to saye To whiche askyng the relygyouse not knowyng what answer he shold saye / requyred the abbot that he wolde expowne what it mente So the sayd abbot expowned it sayng that he that hath horrour of that is done amys / the blessyth loueth his broder / he hath horrour of his synnes ¶ A broder axed of the abbot Poemen how he myght kepe hyÌ„ that he sholde not saye yll of his euen crysten / wherat he answered that he his euen crysten were two ymages / when he sholde dispyse his / he sholde Iuge the other that is to wyt his neyghbour to be good fayre And to the contrarye in praysyng his owne / he sholde dyspyse that other his euen crysten / when one repreueth his owne selfe â—esyly he habyteth none other persone And he that consydereth his freyltee / he doeth lyke as he that dyspyseth a vertuous bodye ¶ The abbot Ipictus sayd the lyke as a lyon is ferfull to the wylde asses / the whiche he enforceth hyÌ„ to deuoure / all thus a Relygyouse that is proued knowen for a stedfast man / is ferfull corageouse to withstande ayenst flesshly desyres ¶ Morouer he be sayd that lyke as a proude horse is sodeynly taken by the brydell lykewyse by fastynge is a Relygyouse refrayned from the synne of coÌ„â—pysâ—ence ¶ He sayd also that the bodye of a monke drye lene by fastyng mayâ—eth his soule from the lowe thynges vnto the souerayne / all the delecâ—aâ—oÌ„ns sensuall carnall he dryet and sleeth ¶ Item the monke that it chaste shall be honoured in erthe / crowned in paradyse ¶ Item he that can not kepe his tonge besyly ayenst wrathe / with grete payne he shall coÌ„ne be mayster of his passyons or temptacyons ¶ Item men ought not to speke of nothynge but it be vertuouse or longyng to vertue for after the comon prouerbe of yeâ—abondauÌ„ce of herte speketh the mouth ¶ He sayd yet / that the vyne bereth neuer no thornes that it were better to a relygyouse for to ete flesshe drynke wyne than for to ete his euen crysten by bakbytyng ¶ And he tolde the somtyme in Sychye was made a grete feest where men wolde haue gyuen wyne to an holy fader for to drynke / whiche makyng refuse of it / sayd that they sholde haue it a waye / that the drynkyng of it sholde be his deth ¶ An other tyme men broughte vnto certayne brethern some wyne of the fyrst makyng out of the cuppe / or haply as for theyr thydes wherof many of this brethern dranke ¶ An olde broder that sawe his brethern drynke of it / fledde anone to his caue / the whiche IncoÌ„tynente fell donne vpon hyÌ„ The other brethern seeyng this Inconuenyente raÌ„ne therat founde hym halfe deed Thenne sayd some of them / that by his syÌ„ne vayn glorye he was gone in to his sayd caue But theyr abbot sayd to them / lat hyÌ„ alone it is my sone / the caue
/ he asked what made it so to complayne Where at the hede answered / that it was the bede of a preest of the paynemyes lawe whiche had be a prynce of the synagoge of Ydoles that in the same place were reuerenced and worshypped / and by cause I knowe the fulfylled with the holy goost I am moeued for to requere thy grace / knowyng that atte ony tyme that it wyll please the for to praye for them that be in payne / they shall fele some consolacyon ¶ Thenne the sayd holy abbot Macharye sayd to hyÌ„ Now answer me / what is your comforte / what is your payne Wherat the same hede more stroÌ„gely weylyng than tofore began to saye ¶ Ha holy fader our payne is so grete / that we be from the fete to the hede thrawen within a feerful fyre / whiche is more hyghe than there is space betwene the heuen the erthe / that more encreaceth our sorowe It is not vnto vs possyble for to see eche other / but the faces of euery one of vs ben Ioyned ouerthward vnto our backes ¶ And when thou prayest for vs / thenne see we the one the other openly / whiche is vnto vs some comforte ¶ These wordes sayd / the holy man Macharye began to wepe sayd Cursed be the daye in whiche the man hath presumed to despyse or breke the commauÌ„dementes of god ¶ And after he enquered agayne of the sayd hede / yf in the place where they were tourmented / were ony grete paynes To whom it answered that in that wretched place were many one that were moche more lowe therin than the paynemes were ¶ And where the holy fader asked what they were / the hede answered sayd / we that haue had no knowloge of the souerayne god haue some what of mercy / but as to them that haue knowen hym forsaken / they be vnderneth vs traueylled tourmented with dyuerse tourmentes ¶ The whiche wordes y herde by the good abbot forsayd / after that he hadde shoued the sayd hede in to the erthe / he wente forthon his waye ¶ An other brother axed of an aeged holy fader / why men of Relygyon were oftentymes tempted and befought of the deuyll of helle / wherat he answered It is bycause that we caste awaye from vs our armour deffenses that are pacyence / humylyte / debonarete / wyllefull obedyence ¶ An other broder requyred the abbot Sysonyns that he sholde telle hym / yf the deuyll dyde persyewe soo strongely the Relygyouses that thenne were / as they dyde the other in tyme passed The whiche Sysonyns answered vnto him that they more prycked and pursyewed them / than they hadde done the older because that the deuyll knoweth the endynge of the worlde whiche draweth nyghe / where his tourmentes shall encreace multyplye in dyuerse maners wherin he desyreth to acoÌ„panyed with Infynyte legyons of synners for to be brenned and tourmented with hym in fyre and in sulphure where he wayteth to brenne perpetuelly And for this cause he pursyeweth the folke / not oonly soo besely the wycked folke whiche he knoweth to be lyghtly torned to obeye his cursed moost grettest wyles / but also more curyously with more grete dylygence he pursyeweth the good folke where he knoweth them to be of more stable stedfast corage ¶ Some other brethern knowyng an other aeged fader to be wounderfull prudente and wyse / asked hyÌ„ by what meanes he had goten so grete wysdom Wherat he answered / that he had neuer reteyned nor suffre to soyourne in his herte ony euyll thoughtes / by the whiche he doubted to haue prouoked our lord god to be wroth ayenst hym ¶ Saynt Anthonye sayd that a Relygyouse yf to hym were possyble ought to gyue acomptes vnto his elders / not onely of all the passes that he maketh in his celle or in his monasterye / but also of all the water that he drynketh of euery tyme that he taketh of it for to drynke / to th ende he sholde make hym contente certayne of his lyuyng gouernemente for to kepe hym selfe that he shall not trespasse nor take awaye contrarye to them ¶ The abbot Poemen sayd that the fende in no thyng taketh so grete a gladnesse as he dothe whan he maye ouer come a synner so that he wyll not vtter nor shewe his synnes by confessyon ¶ A yâ—ng relygyouse sayd to an aeged fader that oftentymes he questyoned the olde faâ—ers to th ende they sholde tell hym also that he sholde serue of them some good lore Instruccyons for his soule to be saued but what soeuer they tolde hym he coude not withholde no thynge Now had this olde fader to whoâ—â— he spake two vesselles that were empty So comaunded â—e to the yong Relygyouse that he sholde take one of them wasshe it clene with fayte water sette it ayen in his place whiche thyng be made hym do ones ones agayne ¶ Thenne sayd to hym the olde fader that he sholde brynge hym bothe the vesselles he dyde so ¶ And thenne he asked hym whiche of them two was clener Wherat the yong answered that it was that selfe wherin he had putte water with the whiche he had wasshed it The olde sayd there ayenst My sone it is thus of our soule when it herkenneth often the wordes of god / for how be it that it kepeth noo thynge of thoo wordes that it hereth or of those that it Requyreth to be tolde vnto it for to saue the soule by / neuerthelesse it is more clene therby / than yf it herde not nor asked noo thyng of it / by this namely / that thus doyeng she escheweth euyll thoughtes and ouercometh the temptacyons of the deuyll ¶ An other sayd also to an olde fader that when a Relygyouse haunted and occupyeth hym selfe to good werkes / the deuyll coÌ„myng to hym for to torne hym can not haue no power ouer hym bycause that he fyndeth noo place for him ¶ And by this cause he departeth and gooth awaye anone leueth the same Relygyouse in peas ¶ To the contrarye yf he suffreth and applyeth hym selfe in euyll werkes / the deuyll fyndeth anone a place for to kepe him companye ¶ And all be it that the teâ—hynge of god wyll often shewe hym for to doo good / neuerthelesse withstandynge his obstynate and frowardnesse she departeth from hym syghtely and seueth hym / wherfore it is of nede / but yf he wyll be loste / that with alle his herte he tourne his affeccyon vnto almyghty god ¶ And thus doyeng the sayd shewyng shall soone come to him agayne ¶ To an other yonge relygyouse that asked of an auncyent holy fader / how longe a monke ought to labour / was answered by the sayd holy fader / vnto the tyme that he shall possesse Ihesu Cryste / because that he that hath hym in possessyon / nedeth not to labour
weke euery man by hymselfe alone without to speke the one to the other / they dyde soo And it happed this hangyng that the abbot Nub sawe within the sayd temple the stature of an Ydole / euery mornyng the sayd abbot Nub rose casted stones atte hit / syn atte euen he Requyred her pardon / the whiche thynge he contynued all the same weke And when the satyrdaye cam that made an ende of that weke / these holy faders coÌ„myng agayne togydre / the abbot Poemen demauÌ„ded of the abbot Nub why he had all that weke beten thus that selfe Ydole / sayng to hym / that he meruaylled moche / how he that was a dyscrete man full of veray fayth had done so namely of that he asked her pardon after that he had beten her / wherat the holy fader Nub answered that he had done that for the edyfycacyon of hymselfe of them all / sayeng thus Haue ye not seen how this Ydole whan I haue beten her she hath not grutched nor sayd nothyng there ayenst / in no wyse she hath not angred her selfe And agayne when I haue besought her pardon / she hath not exalted or praysed her selfe for it Certaynly it is trouthe sayd the abbot Poemen ¶ Now my brethern sayd the abbot Nub I shall tell you / it semet me that we seuen yf we dwelled togydre / we sholde doo moche more fruyte / than yf we were parted the one fro the other / but it is nedefull that this Ydole be sette tofore our eyen for an exemple / in suche wyse / that yf the one of vs is in ony wyse wronged / he myght not be angry for it / also yf men aske hym pardon that he booste nor prayse hymselfe therof And yf ye wyll not do so I say after myn aduyse that it is best that euery of vs goo dwell by hymselfe alone where he shall seme hyÌ„ moost good ¶ The other heryng his wordes layed them selfe donne to the erthe afore hym promysed that they sholde do so And by this meanes they dwelled togydre by many yeres in grete humylyte pacyence ¶ They toke theyr reste duryng four houres oonly By other four houres they songe psalmes / duryng other four houres they laboured / after vnto none tyme they gadred pared palmes leues / this done they gadred some herbes and made them redy for theyr mete to lyue there vpon ¶ Men fynde also that seuen other hermytes right aprouyd men dwelled soÌ„tyme in an hermytage nyghe the marches of the sarrasyns / had theyr celles habytacoÌ„ns y sette not one ferre fro the other / but also they were wouÌ„derfully Ioyned knytte togydre by the bouÌ„de of charyte The one of them was called Peter that other Stephen / the .iij Iohan / the .iiij. George / the fyfthe Theodore / the .vi. Felix / the .vij. Laurence This hermytes theÌ„ne dwellyng in a place wylde barayne / as inhabytable to men / had of custome that they coÌ„â—noued togydre ones in a wyke for to see eche other And for to do this vpon the satyrdaye euer aboute the houre of none eyther of them departed oute of his owne place for to come vnto the place comon where they sholde fynde eche other / euery man brought there with hyÌ„ of suche as he had / the one brought some nuttes / the other some letues / an other some fygges / the other brought other fruytes and herbes couenable for theyr lyuyng / coÌ„monly pryncypally they eche none other thyng And as for brede oyle drynke yf they had at som season ony / that was ouer aboue theyr customable pytauÌ„ce / for they susteyned theyr owne bodyes oonly of the fruytes herbes aboue sayd And in that place where they were was fouÌ„de no water they dranke none other thyng but of the dew that felle donne from the heuens whiche in grete habondauÌ„ce fell vpon the herbes The whiche dewe the holy hermytes goyng in the mornyng thrughe the wood toke it vp dranke it ¶ And as to the regarde of theyr vesture / theyr clothes were made of leuys palmes togydre weued And when they dyde fynde them selfe atte place where they sholde coÌ„mone togydre euery satyrdaye as before is sayd / they all toke ther theyr repast wherof they gaue graces thankes vnto our lord god This done / vnto the houre of euynsonge tyme they talked deuysed togydre of holy scryptures without to speke of ony fables or vayne wordes nother of the cure of besynesse of the worlde / nor of the shewynges or dedes of the erthely thynges / but besely they spake talked of the right desyrable royalme of paradyse / of the blysse that is to come / of the vnspekable glorye of the Iuste / of the horryble paynes whiche is ordeyned for synners / of the rest of the gloryouse sayntes whiche all redy reioyce them selfe in the blessyd setes of heuen And remembryng these thynges in theyr myndes / they gaaf grete sobbynges out of theyr herter / wept with grete plenteuousnesse of teeres And after this that duryng all the nyght they had songe deuoute songes vnto our lorde / the sondaye folowyng about the houre of none they sette theyr deuyses talkynges at an ende for all that wyke that was next comyng / eueryche of them went ayen in to his owne celle or lytyll house where they beyng alone were ocupyde both daye nyght to the seruyce of god ¶ They thenne in this maner of lyuyng settyng theyr corages affeccions / the sarrasyns in grete multytude raÌ„ne ouer the deserte fouÌ„de them there hunted them out / yet not contente with this they hange them by the fete doynge to them grete wronges shamefull dyspytes ¶ And fynably they beyng thus hanged / the sarrasyns made a fyre of herbes grene bytter vnder them / wherof they were so cruelly tourmented / that of the bytternesse of the smoke / they lost the lyght of theyr eyen And after that in this maner other moche cruell / they had thus scorged tourmented them / they forsoke lefte them as halfe deed ¶ The abbot Poemen was questyoned by a Relygyouse askyng hym what be tokenen the wordes that our lord sayth in the gospell whiche are suche ¶ Noo greter loue can haue noo man / than he alone that lyeth his soule for his frende ¶ How sayd the brother maye this thyng be done ¶ To the whiche askyng the sayd holy fader Poemen answered Yf ony man is wronged of his neyghbour to whome he maye answere in lykewyse ylle agayne and yet he dothe not soo / but where he is moeued of corage to do soo / he fyghteth ayenst hym selfe refraynyng his anger in suche wyse that he dothe to hyÌ„ nother gryffe nor harme be that soo dothe leyth his soule for his frende ¶ The abbot
of temptacyons by our grete slowthe neclygence For yf we dyde thynke consydere that god dwelled enhabyteth within vs when we be in the astate of grace / we sholde not ordeyne no strange vessell within vs / that is to saye / that we sholde not gyue none occasyon to the fende of helle to lodge hym there by synne / puttyng our lorde awaye Certaynly our lorde dwellyng within vs with vs / he besyly beholdeth kepeth our lyfe And therfore we that bere hȳ contemple hym in our entendementes corages / ought not to contempne nor dyspyse hym / but in worshyppyng hym halowe our selfe / as he is ryght holy worthy Lete vs thenne be constaū◠stedfast vpon the stone / that is to saye in our lorde Ihesu cryst / whiche is the stone the foundemente of our fayth / and lete vs befyght the wycked spyryte / saye euery one in hym selfe that that the holy prophete Dauyd sayth in his spalter They that trust in god and that be stedfast constaūt / as the montayne of Syon / whiche is among all other the hyghest the strongest / the whiche shall be neuer dysmoeued / shall not be ouercome of the temptacyons of the fende / but shall come at the last to Iherusalem the souerayne Cyte whiche is tokenyd vysyon of peas ¶ A yonge Relygyouse questyoned an aeged fader sayng thus Yf a Relygyouse rēneth in to some synne / he is scorged and tourmented in spyryte / as he that that leueth to do his proffyte and falleth in to pouerte / and seeyng his astate thus chaunged / he ceasseth not to labour and traueyll tyll that he cometh vp ayen from his pouerte / and that he be sette ayen in his fyrst astate ¶ And he that come from the worlde to take and lyue a solytary lyfe / he is lykened vnto hym that forsaketh and dyspyseth his enmye / and begynneth to prouffyte for hym selfe ¶ Thenne he axed hym how he ought to lede him selfe for to eschewe to these inconuenyences ¶ The olde fader answered vnto hym / that a monke whiche is assayled and tempted of the fende / is lyke a house whiche is in daūger for to falle donne / but and yf in his temptacyons / he ledeth hymself sobrely withstondynge ayenst them / he buyldeth the house vp ayen whiche was in waye for to fall and he fyndeth maters good and proffytable to the buyldyng ayen of the same / as good and strong prayers for to sette and make withall the foūdementes / and sande to make morter withall and other thynges that be necessary to the forsayd buyldyng And in this house thus strongly buylded he profyteth But he that delueth not in the erth for to sette the foundementes / is vnpurueyed of suche thynges that be nedefull to the reedyfyeng of the sayd buyldyng / but lyueth vnder a hope he passynge forth the tyme / yf his house by some wyse happeth to be fulmade / that is a thyng harde and strong for to be done and in grete aduenture ¶ And all thus it is of a Relygyouse / the whiche after that he is fallen in temptacōn / yf he torned hym selfe to godwarde / than maye he haue a grete appetyt to buyldyng / that is to wyt / to thynke vpon godes lawes to rede psalmes / to labour to praye to do suche thynges that be the foūdementes buyldynges of holy Relygyon But he that begynneth of newe / that is newe in conuersacyon / he fyndeth this maner of buyldyng ryght straūge vnto tyme he hath lerned these thynges ¶ A brother Relygyouse whiche was tempted of the synne of fornycacyon / wente towarde an other holy fader well famed / prayed hym that he wold wonthesauffe for his lernyng shewyng that he had a loue charyte towarde hym / to praye god that he wolde gyue hym some comforte for to withstāde ayenst the sayd temptacōn whiche thyng the holy fader dyde ¶ And an other tyme after came the sayd Relygyouse ayen / makyng vnto this olde fader suche an other Request whiche he graūted hym prayed our lord for hym saynge My god I praye the that it wyyll please the to shewe vnto me wherof this euyll tēptacyon cometh to this brother / that he fyndeth therin nother ende nor Reste / how be it I haue prayed the soo longe for hym ¶ And anone after our lorde made hym vpon his request suche a reuelacyon / that is to wyte / that he sawe the sayd yong relygyouse syttyng ydle without ony werke that he made / the goost of fornycacōn by hym playng with hym And at the other syde of hȳ was the angell of god that was sente vnto hym for his helpe whiche was wrothe not contente / that he cast not hȳselfe donne to the erthe for to praye god / but toke delectacyon pleasure in his thoughtes bowyng all his affeccōn vnto the same ¶ The holy fader knowyng that the cause grewe more of the sayd Relygyouse than otherwyse / dyde celle hym that he was well enformed that he was hymselfe cause of the contynuacyon of his temptacōn / bycause he dyde sette his wyll to lyghtly there vnto ¶ And syn after he taught hym how he sholde withstande from hens forth ayenst suche temptacōns Fynably the brother takyng a corage by the prayers and doctryne of the sayd holy fader founde hymselfe peasyble of the sayd temptacyon ¶ The dyscyple of an olde fader was ones tempted of fornycacyon The holy fader seeyng his dyscyple fyght with grete labour and payne / axed hym / yf he wolde that he sholde praye god for hym / that he wolde releue hym from this vnrestfulnesse / wherat the dyscyple answered ¶ Ha my fader I see well consydere / that yf I haue grete labour and payne for to withstonde I lese not my lone nor my rewarde I knowe well thus dooyng that by the weyght of my labour I prouffyte / wherfore it is not nede to praye god for to take awaye this temptacyon fro me / but I wyll well I praye the so / that it wyll please the to praye god that he wyll gyue me myght stedfastnes / by the whiche I may euer fyght corageously there ayenst The holy fader answered vnto hym Now I knowe my sone that thou art well dysposed for to proffyte gretly that thou shalt passe vs in all vertues ¶ Men reherse of an olde fader / that came in to the desertes of Sychye / that he had a childe so yonge that he was not yet wended from the brest / from his yonge age he was with his fader norysshed in the monastery where he kepte hymselfe / soo that he wyst not what wȳmen were And when he was become a man / the deuyls shewed hym by nyght dyuerse formes to the lykenesse of wȳmen / whiche thynge he tolde vnto his fader / that was sore marueylled of it And it
good maners And therfore a brother asked thabbot Alonius and demaunded hym what it was of contennement ¶ Thenne he sayd that it was to be amonge bestes vnresonable / as they that ben in deserte / that haue renounced all worldly honour And to that purpose he called the vertue of humylyte erthe In the whiche god our sauyour wyll that sacrefyce be made and accomplysshed ¶ Also after his doctryne and techyng he that excedeth not his astate shal not be reputâ—d proude / but he shall be praysed and honoured of eueryche / he hym selfe by moche grete humylyte serued the brethern beyng at the table / whan they toke theyr refeccyon to gydre And oftentymes the brethern sayd ofte grete praysynges of hym amonge theym But neuerthelesse he answered to they not one worde And whan he was asked and demaunded wherfore he answered to theym not in sayeng some thyng / he sayd for this reason Yf I hadde answered / it sholde seme that I were gloryoê° of theyr praysynges ¶ The abbot Ioseph was on a tyme with the abbot Pastor and in spekyng togydre of one named Agathon The sayd Pastor named hym Abba / whiche is as moche to saye as fader And by cause it was a name of honour and of auncyent The sayd Ioseph asked for what reason he hadde called hym fader / seen that he was yet moche yong To whome he answerde his tongue / that is to saye tacyturnyte / and prudence in langage made hym to deserue to be named fader / for the aege made hym not soo to be called / but the vertue Therfore the sayd Pastor neuer gaynsayde by wordes with an holy fader / but all theyr wordes he enhaunsed praysed ¶ In the tyme that Theophyle bysshop of Alexandrye cam from thou sayd place of Alexandrye / in to the desertes of Sychye / the relygyouses for to come speke to hym were assembled / prayde to an abbot named Pambo / that he wolde make a predycacyon att the comyng of the sayd Theophyle for to comforte hym in esperyte The whiche answerd yf he be not wel edefyed with my scylence / he shal be lasse by my wordes ¶ A brother that was named Pystus / and seuen other brethern hermytes his felawes vysyteden thabbot Sysoy dwellyng in that yle whiche is called Clysmatos / to whom they prayde / that he wolde gyue to theyÌ„ some admonycoÌ„ns / by the whiche they myght be the better gete theyr helth To whom he answered My brethern pardonne me yf it please you / for I am not but a best a Idyote without entendemeÌ„t But I shall recouÌ„te to you that whiche I haue seen in .ij. holy faders That one was named thabbot Or / that other abbot Atrem that whiche I haue vysyted long tyme for to knowe theyr coÌ„uersacoÌ„n / theÌ„ne whan I was arryued with theyÌ„ I prayed theyÌ„ in lyke wyse as ye haue prayed me / that they shold gyue to me some doctryne for my helth wherto the sayd abbot answered / broder do here in all that whiche thou shalt see doon by vs here / other thyng can I not saye repreche Thou shalt knowe here my fader Atrem / whiche dooth by the moyen of the grace of god more than he maye in all vyolence And in lyke wyse dooth god to all other that enterpryse this rule and maner of lyuynge They were not both of one prouynce But in theym was all plenytude of grace And pryncypally Atrem was of grete obedyence / and Or of parfyght humylyte / as it appereth fayttes whiche shall after be sayd ¶ On a tyme a certayne man brought a fysshe for to ete / the whiche thabbot Atrem wolde make redy for theyr dyner And as he putte the knyef in the fysshe for to deuyde and cutte it / the abbot Or began to crye Atrem atrem / and incontynent the sayd Atrem lefte his knyfe within the fysshe without to drawe it out and deuydyng of the fysshe And the sayd Atrem ranne to the sayd abbot Or / without to saye that he sholde tarye tyll he hadde appoynted the fysshe ¶ Thenne demaunded the holy fader Sysoy of the sayd Atrem how he hadde goten soo grete obedyence / he answered that it was by the merytes of his abbot Or / and thenne he knewe his obedyence For the sayd fysshe was not rosted ne appoynted lyke as it apperteyned Notwithstandynge the sayd Atrem wolde haue done it gladdely to th ende / that the sayd Sysoy sholde knowe his obedyence / whan they cam to dyner / the sayd Atrem delyuered fyrst a parte of the sayd fysshe but halfe soden / the whiche the sayde holy fader Or ete in praysyng it as ryght good and well appoynted After he presented of the sayd fysshe to hym an other parte / whiche was not but / but halfe soden sayeng Fader forgyue me for this pyece hath ben by me euyll soden and appoynted ¶ The holy fader Or answered My broder I byleue that thou hast doon the beste that thou coudest doo arter thy power / and therfore it is to me agreable ¶ Whan this was doo the sayd Atrem spacke to the sayd Sysoy sayeng these wordes ¶ My brother and frende thou seest well that thobedyence that is in me procedeth of this good abbot Or / whiche is soo humble and obedyente that I am constrayned to ensyewe and folowe his maners and condycyons ¶ After this the sayd Sysoy departed moche Ioyous and conforted And rewled hym selfe vpon that whiche he hadde seen in the sayd two holy faders Therfore answered the sayd Sysoy to one of the brethern whiche was with the sayd Pystus whan he asked hym / broder shewe to vs sygne and example of charyte towarde vs / and gyue to vs some doctryne My frende who hath plenytude of vertues / and pryncypall humylyte aboue all other he compryseth all the holy scrypture ¶ An other brother asked and demauÌ„ded of hym what was of very pylgremage To whom he answered / that it was to kepe hym selfe stylle And in what someuer place that he were / to blame nothyng / but all to prayse / with out to haue ony desyre of ony worldly thyng that it were ¶ An hermyte on a tyme vysyted the abbot Sysoy in a place named the montayne of saynt Anthony / to whom the sayd broder sayd these wordes Fayr fader it is a longe tyme that thou hast he here I suppose and bylere certaynly that thou hast not yet the noble vertues that had the holy fader Anthonye / the whiche answered to hym Alas my brother and my frende what sayst thou / yf I had one sparkle of his charyte whiche was in hym I sholde be all in a fyre Notwithstondynge I wote not ne knowe man so parfyght that may bere the penaunces / whiche made and suffred the good and holy abbot saynt Anthonye After he asked yf in tyme passed the deuylles tempted the relygyous people as they dyde thenne that
that one to that other ¶ Furthermore sayd the same preest that to fore his cōuersyon / he had herde the deuylles complaynyng them to gydre sayeng / that whan a monke was falle in dedely synne / anone some of theym dyde penaunce for hym / wherfore all theyr power was nought / in suche wyse that they myght not gryeue ne ennoye the sayd Relygyous persones ¶ Here begynneth the vertue of pacyence FOr to lerne and knowe how we myght haue the vertue of pacyence Euery persone that wyll rede this presente treatyse / note in his herte / and also reteyne thexamples and dyctes of holy faders here after declared The whiche ben of moche valew and prouffyte For they moeuen to deuocyon / also to haue strengthe and pacyence ayenst aduersyte ¶ On a tyme for certayne cause was made a congregacōn of many relygyouses / amonge whom was an holy fader called Euagrius / the whiche proposed amonge the brethern his opynyon of the mater wherof was the questyon To whom the souerayn abbot of the sayd congregacōn sayd Fader abbot we knowe well / that yf thou were in thy contree thou sholdest be a bysshop or chyef of many relygyouses And now as a pylgryme straūger thou syttest with vs. The good deuoute man Euagrius without to moeue hym selfe / but in speryte / answered not one worde / but wrote in the erthe Brethern it is so as ye saye ¶ The abbot Iohan the lytyll beyng on a tyme sette to fore the gate of his chirche / many brethern satte with hym And of dyuerse thought scrupulous cogytacōns they asked hym / to whom by the helpe of god he gaaf so good answere / that they all were comforted That seeyng an olde fader moeued of enuyee sayd these wordes Fader Iohan thy vyole is full of venym To whom he answerde / my fader thou sayste trouthe / but yf thou sawest that whiche is in my herte I wote neuer what thou sholdest saye / whan thou seest not but that whiche appereth without forth And thus to the Iniurye that was sayd to hym / he answered pacyently ¶ Of the grete pacyence of the abbot Ysydore dwellyng in Sychye wytnessen the holy faders / that whan an olde fader had a dyscyple frayle or Iniuryous he wolde put hym awaye The same Ysydore prayed that he wolde gyue hym to hym / for all theym he sholde make vertuous by his pacyence ¶ Of lasse pacyence was not the holy fader Macharye / the whiche whan he founde a theef in his celle / whiche charged or laded vpon his hors or other beste all his goodes / he wolde helpe the theef to lade his hors / as yf he hadde be his felawe And in soo dooyng he sayd suche wordes as folowe Whan we cam in to this worlde we hadde no thynge God gyueth all And as he wyll soo be it doon / and praysed be he in all thynges / ben they contrarye or prouffytable ¶ In lyke wyse the abbot Moyses with many other was in a congregacōn made in Sychye / in the whiche some brethern for to preue his pacyence / sayd to hȳ these wordes Come hyther thou Ethyopyen as blacke as thou art who hath made the so hardy to presume to come with vs. To the whiche wordes he answered not After they asked hym / they that hadde so Iniuryed hym / yf he was ony thyng wroth To whom he sayd that he had be troubled in his herte / but that not withstādyng he absteyned hym to speke / for pacyentely he had endured ¶ Paysius brother of the holy fader Pastor / hadde famylyaryte with some brethern / wherof the sayd Pastor was euyll contente And for to correcte hym he went to make of hym complayne to thabbot Ammonas in sayeng to hym / that he myght nomore endure suche thynges ¶ Thabbot Ammonas answered to hym to gyue hym mater of pacyence / ha Pastor thou hast yet good lyue stronge Go go in thy celle / consydere that thou hast an hote hede an hyghe corage / how well that thou art nyghe the poynt for to be leyde in thy graue or tōbe And by that concluded the sayd Pastor / that all labour aduersyte whiche cometh to vs is lyght to bere / soo that we haue scylence and peas in our herte without grutchyng ¶ Ther was an hermyte a broder whiche was hurte of an other / for to be auenged he complayned to the abbot Sysoy / sayeng that yf he wolde not do right to hym reason / that he hymself wolde auenge it The holy man Sysoy prayed hym affectuously / that he sholde do nothyng to hym that had hurte hym ne to do to hȳ ony dysplesyr / but to leue to god the vengeaūce The brother fulle of malygnyte abode in his euyll wyll protestyng alwaye to auenge hym Thabbot seeyng his obstynacōn / prayed hym that fyrste he sholde make his oryson prayer to god / after accomplysshe his wyll / of that whiche request the sayd broder was content / so put theym both to praye vnto our lord togydre This doon the abbot Sysoy sayd god is not moche necessary to euyl people / for he wyll venge hym of theyr wronges done by theym The hermyte heryng that chaūged his wyll fyll doun to the abbot Sysoy in promysyng that he wolde do no dyspleasyr to hym that had hurte hym ¶ An other brother seeyng his felawe beryng a deed man to the erthe / prayed hym that he wolde here with hym the lyuyng / that is to saye / that he shode endure that / whiche the lyuyng men shlode saye to hym or doo / and in soo doyng he sholde bere theym ¶ And to this purpose is foūden of a brother / the whiche ofte frequented and honoured all theym that dyde to hym repreef and wronges / and by that he refrayned ther Ire ¶ In lyke wyse it happeth oftymes that they / the whiche correcte theym by wronges / geten good maners / by the moyen of suche wronges For it is wryten / they that blesse and prayse you / begyle your soules ¶ Certayne theues on a tyme entred in to the celle of an holy aeged fader / and sayd to hym Fader we wyll haue all that is here within ¶ To whome he answered / that they sholde bere awaye all that whiche semed to theym good ¶ And soo they bare awaye all that was in his celle / sauf a lytyll sacke / whiche laye in a corner And whan the holy fader founde it he ranne after theym and bare to theym the sayd sacke sayeng My childern ye haue forgoten this sacke / take it with you to th ende that ye haue all The theues meruaylled theym of his grete pacyence / rendred all to hym agayne / and were after all theyr lyfe penytent sayeng eche to other / verayly this holy fader is the seruaunt of god full of the vertue of pacyence ¶ The holy faders wytnessen