nature departe with her thy grete mercy And in that stedfast fayth bylyue that I haue of thyn endles myght / by the whiche the daye of the generall resurreccion is comen / thou shalt not oonly reyse the bodyes / that thou hast alredy formed / that now be deed / also all thoo that are to be born shall yet be by the created it wyll please the to here my right hūble request prayer / hauyng pyte of my goost longe syn deed / of my soule soo moche vnhappy defoyled spotted with the fylth of synne / in lykewyse of myn abhomynable bodye whiche I haue so moche dysguysed made foule / that I may nomore lyue / bycause namely that I haue not had in the stedfast belyue Alas syre pardōne me by penaūce my synne whiche is double / aswell bycause of the brekyng of thy cōmaūdementes / as of dysperacōn / quyckenyng my contrycion / cōmaunde syre that this lanterne be kyndled with thy fyre / to th ende that takyng trust of thy mercy Indulgence duryng the other parte of the tyme that thou shall gyue me grace to lyue in this worlde I may curyously dylygently kepe as I ought to do thy worthy cōmaūdementes / without to departe from thy drede by all the dayes of my lyfe I may serue the deuoutly And on the sayd Resurreccōn nyght of our lorde sayng these wordes with grete shedyng of teeres he arose from his oryson for to see yf the sayd lanterne sholde be kyndled / so he toke of the syde frō the sayd cawdron but he foūde it in suche astate as when he dyde put it there wherfore yet ayen layeng flatte his vysage to the erthe he prayed god sayng O my lorde my god I wote well that thou hast ordeyned that I sholde fyght ayenst the deuyll to th ende / I myght be crowned / but I haue not be stedfast ne constaūt in asmoche that for the delectacōns of the flesshe I haue chosen to be tormented in helle Syre please the to pardōne me I confesse yet ayen to thy dyuyne bounte my fylthe wyckednesse / not oonly byfore the same I confesse it / but also byfore thy holy sayntes blessyd angels / theym I sholde confesse byfore all men / yf I trowed not to sclaūder or moeue them to shame in my persone My god haue mercy vpon me wyll quycken me to th ende that I may lerne the other And in this maner prayng thre tymes the deuoute Relygyouse penytent / he was of god exalted herde / had veray knoweloge therof by that he rose cam to his lanterne whiche he foūde brennynge full bryght / wherfore reioysshyng hym selfe he was comforted with a hope / wondred full sore of the grete grace the god had done to hym pardōnyng vnto hȳ so benyngly his synne / fullyng his desyre after his petycōn sayd I yelde vnto the graces my lord and my god / of that it hath pleaseth that in this presente world to haue mercy of me poore synnar Indygne of thy grete mysery cordye I gyuyng to all synners by this newe token confyance trust of the self mercy forgyuyng the myserable soules that thou hast created for to come to thy glorye In this maner perseueryng this holy man in his confessyon yeldyng graces thankes vnto our lord / the daye came that he toke so grete reioysshyng / that he forgate hym selfe to take his repast fode corporall And all the dayes of his lyfe he kepte besyly the lyght of the sayd lanterne puttȳg oyle therto when it neded takyng good hede that it sholde not go out / from hens forth the holy goost enhabyted in hȳ / by the helpe of whiche he profyted soo / that he was reputed holden for an holy man of grete renōmee / to whō a lytyll afore his decesse was shewed the daye that he sholde departe out of this world to the royalme of heuē ¶ An other treatyse foloweth / wherin is conteyned that folke of Relygyon ought not to possesse nothyng / begynneth in latyn Frater quidā c A Yonge man somtyme desyrynge to be a Relygyouse / forsoke the worlde and gaaf thou that he had to the poore / except some small goodes that he reserued to hȳselfe for his helpe after came vnto saynt Anthonye requyryng hȳ that he wolde receyue him to the astate of Relygyon Saynt Anthony knowyng that whiche is sayd / sayd vnto hȳ Yf thou wylt that I shall receyue the to be a monke / thou must go to the next cyte here by / that thou bye flesshe / this done that shall make fast the sayd flesshe to thy flesshe naked / then thou shall come to me ayen in that astate / thenne I shall do that thou desyreth of me The yong man desyryng sore for to do that Saynt Anthonye hadde charged hym wente and bought flesshe and fastned it atte his bare flesshe / as he hadde ordeyned hym to doo And gooyng ayen towarde hym the dogges and the byrdes folowed hym whiche by grydynes and glotony to ete of the sayd flesshe rented and knawed his owne skynne in dyuerse places of his bodye And thus he retourned to Saynt Anthonye whiche seeyng his skynne thus tourne and gnawen / he sayd to hym that in lykewyse are tourne and gnawen by the fende of helle and by his temptacyons / they that forsakyng the worlde wyll withholde and possesse theyr moneye or other temporall goodes ¶ The abbot Danyell reherced of the holy fader Arsenye / that a grete offycer Romayne came ones to hym / and brought hym the testamente of a Senatour whiche was of kynne to the sayd Arsenyen / and that by this testamente hadde made hym his heyre leuynge vnto hym many fayre herytages and grete lyuelode The holy fader Arsenye takynge this testamente wolde haue broken it and rented in peces / the whiche thynge seeyng the sayd offycer / dyde caste hym selfe doune byfore hym / besechyng hym that he sholde not doo soo / bycause that yf he hadde not conne exhybe and shewe the same ayen there as it apperteyned / he sholde haue lost his hede ¶ Thenne the holy fader Arsenye toke it agayne to hym / saynge thus Euery bodye knoweth well that I am deed longe tyme agoo afore hym that hath made this testamente / the whiche is but late decessed / and how maye he thenne haue made me his heyre / by the whiche wordes he vnderstode for to saye / that from the tyme that he gaaf hymself to be a monke or Relygyouse he dyde holde hȳ for deed as to the worlde / that he ought neuer to haue nor appropre to hȳ selfe ony thyng worldly or temporall The sayd holy fader Arsenye was ones syke in Sychye / had grete nede of a lytyll moneye for to releue hȳ from his sykenesse So was he constrayned to
aske it for goddes sake / receyuyng the same he sayd Lorde god I yelde vnto the graces of that it hath pleased the to make me worthy that in thy name for to forther helpe my selfe out of my necessyte Indygence I haue asked and receyued an almose ¶ Some reherce of the abbot Agathon that he some of his monkes dyscyples were longe tyme about the makyng of a celle for to make there theyr resydence place to dwelle in And after that they had made an ende of it and had dwelled therin a whyle / the abbot Agathon sawe some thyng that to his aduyse was not prouffytable for hyÌ„ sayd to his Relygyouses / that they sholde departe from the place go with hyÌ„ for to enhabyte an other / wherat they angry and wroth answered suche wordes or in substauÌ„ce Ha fayre fader yf ye had afore determyned in your corage for to departe froÌ„ hens as ye now do shewe it / why haue ye made vs bere susteyne so grete payne and labours in edyfyeng this celle wherat we haue be so longe / they that shall see our departyng thus sodayn shall be sclauÌ„dred in vs / shall blame vs of the vyce of inconstauÌ„ce / and shall mocke vs / sayng that we can not abyde in no place ¶ The sayd holy fader Agathon / seeyng the sayd Relygyouse beynge wayllefull and dredefull / sayd to them My brethern ye wote not what ye saye For yf there be some that wyll speke euyll by vs / also shall there be some other that shall be edyfyed by the same / and shall speke good of vs / and they shall mowe saye / thoos be good deuoute relygyouses whiche for the loue that they haue had to god they are departed and haue haboundonned all theyr goodes And therfore who that wyll come with me / lete hym come / for certaynly I ensure you that I wyll departe Thenne they prosterned themselfe before his fete doÌ„ne to the erth prayenge hym that he wolde graunte to them that they myght bere hym companye whersoeuer he wolde goo ¶ The abbot Euagrius sayd that there was somtyme a brother whiche hadde nor possessed nothyng saufe oonly a boke of gospellys / the whiche neuertheles he solde / to the poore nedy he gaaf the moneye that he receyued for it / sayng a worde whiche is dygne of memorye / that is to wyte / that he had solde the worde that coÌ„mauÌ„ded that men sholde selle all that they haue gyue it to the poore ¶ The abbot Theodore otherwyse called the ferme / had thre good bokes veyle to be redde So was he requyred of some Relygyouses to lene them his bookes Wherfore he wente towarde the abbot Macharye / and sayd to hym suche wordes or semblable My broder I come towarde the / to th ende that thou gyue me couÌ„seyll it is trouth that I haue in bokes wherin I rede gladly / for in redyng therin me semeth that I do my ê“fyte by it neuertheles I am desyred of certayn brethern to leue them vnto them for to ê“fyte in lykewyse therby / so wote I not what I ought to do / wherfore yf it please the thou shall telle me thyn aduyse / where at this Macharye answerd / that it was a good occupacoÌ„n to rede holy scryptures to employe hyÌ„ to do good / but for a Relygyouse / the gretest thyng of all his werkes / is that he shall not possesse nothyng / the whiche answere herde he toke his leue of the sayd Macharye / from that houre he went solde his bokes / gaaf to the poore nedy the penys that he had receyued for it ¶ One of the aeged faders reherced of the holy fader Iohan whiche was of perse / that among his good werkes vertues he was of depe symplenesse innocencye He dwellyng makyng his resydence in Arabye whiche is nygh Egypte / he borowed ones one shelyng of a brother Relygyouse for to bye flockes for to occupye hyÌ„selfe with And after that he had bought some / cam to hym a brother / prayng hym that he wolde gyue hym a fewe of his flockes / for to make a vestemente to his vsage And he gaaf it hym gladly ¶ An other came anone to hym that desyred hyÌ„ for some of it for to make a couerlet / he toke it hym ¶ Lykewyse came to hym many other to whome he gaaf of it gladly And syn after cam towarde hyÌ„ the Religyouse that had leued hyÌ„ the shelyng wherof he had bought the sayd flockes prayed hym that he wolde paye hym ayen / to whom he answered that he sholde go his wayes that he sholde paye it hym within a shorte whyle And bycause that he had noo moneye to paye hym / he wente towarde the abbot Iames the dyspenser for to praye hyÌ„ that he wolde lene or gyue hym a shelyng / but in his waye thytherward he fouÌ„de â—o shelyng / whiche he touched not / syn made his oryson to god that he wolde kepe hyÌ„ from euyll temptacoÌ„n And so done he wente ayen to his celle / where the sayd Relygyouse cam to hym ayen whiche asked his shelyng that he had lened hym / complayned ouer hyÌ„ sore that he toke it hym not ayen Thenne the good Iohan sayd to hym prayng that he wolde haue pacyence for a whyle / he sholde haue it shortly ayen So toke he his waye ayen towarde that sayd abbot Iames for to borowe of hyÌ„ the sayd shelyng And in his waye he fouÌ„de yet the sayd shelyng in the sayd place as he dyde afore / wherfore without to touche it / he made his prayer to god as he had done byfore / retorned ayen to his celle without to goo ony ferther And yet cam towarde hym that other Relygyouse whiche was more worse pleased with hym than he was afore / bycause he had not his shelynge The holy fader Iohan sayng thenne to hyÌ„ abyde me yet a lytyll / I shall bryng it vnto the / departed on his waye cam there as he had seen the shelyng / seyng it yet styll in the selfe place where he had seen hym afore / he made his prayer vnto god / and syn he toke it vp so wente he forth towarde the sayd abbot Iames / to whom he sayd Fayre fader in my waye hytherwarde I haue founde this shelyng / yf it be thy pleasure in shewynge thy charyte thou shalt do to be publysshed knowen to all man / that it is fouÌ„de for to wyt yf ony body hath lost it And the abbot dyde soo / and neuerthelesse noo body came that chalenged it for his owne / wherfore the holy fader Iohan sayd to the abbot Iames. Good fader yf noo bodye hath not lost it I pray the that thou wyll take it to that Relygyouse to whom I owe â—o shelynge / thou shalt do to me a synguler
is made in the worlde / And whanne be hadde taken for to susteyne nature / He retourned to prayer for to Rendre and gyue thankynges to our souerayn lorde god / ¶ To whyche Heremyte many reuelacyons of thynges to come were shewed / But after he fell in to vayne glory for his demerytes / And became slowe and neclygent in his prayers / And prayed not to god soo moche deuowtely as he had ben accustomyd / ¶ And as he was ennoyed to contynue his prayers He therby ranne in to slowthe and Infamye and in to lecherous thoughtes / And neuertheles he soo beynge made his prayers as he was accustomyd to doo / And entrynge in to his Caue he founde brede as tofore / The whyche was not soo fayre but fusty and spotted Thenne he admerueylled and was heuy and sory / By cause this brede was not lyke ne soo good as it had ben byfore / And the thyrde daye after he beynge maculate by vayne thoughtes / supposed verily in his mynde to haue seen the ymage of a yonge woman ¶ And thenne hym semyd that he embracyd and also kyssyd her In makynge fowle attowchynges / ¶ Thys notwythstondyng / the daye folowyng he retourned in to hys prayers / But SAynt Iherom saythe that he saw a nother holy man moche honourable nyghe vnto the regyon of Thebayde namyd Hor / whyche was fader and abbot of many monasteryes And was foure score and ten yeres of aege / Hauynge a longe berde and white heere 's and Ioyous after the Iugemente of his face / And to th ende that the brethern dwellynge in the Foreste had none occasion for to goo ferre for to seche their bodily necessytees / He planted in places nighe the monasteryes trees berynge fruyte In whyche places tofore he dwelled there hadd neuer tree be planted / And yf he was moche besye for theyr refeccyons corporell / Moche more wythout comparison had he more affeccyon vnto the spyrytuell refeccyon / It is sayd that charytee begynnyth at hymself / He ete not of that whiche his brethern ete / For oonly he vsyd rootes and herbes for his mete and for his drynke oonly clere water / yf he fonde it in ocupyenge hymselfe al day and nyghte in fastynges and prayers / ¶ Whanne he was come to maturytee and rypenesse of his aâ—ge / An aungell apperyd to hym in a vysyon sayenge to hym / Many men to the obeissaunte shall bileue the / Grete multytude of peple as thousandes shall be saued by the And after the angell sayd to him that in tyme to come he sholde haue domynacyon vpon as many men as he had conuerted / And that he sholde drede no manere thynge / For all that he sholde demaunde of god he sholde opteyne / ¶ Whan the holy man had herde alle thys· he wente in to a â—elle the whyche he hadd made for hymselfe / And there he vsyd for his sustentacyon but coole wortes after that he hadd longe fasted And notwythstondyng that he ne cowde rede ne wryte / Neuerthelesse his brethern whom he vysyted in places adiacent and nyghe to his Hermytage presented to hym a booke / In whyche as he had knowen all by herte he radde lyightly / He had puyssaunce vpon the deuylles in chacynge theym oute of the bodyes of men / And by vertue of his prayers he guarysshyd and heelyd theym / ¶ Many other Hermytes and relygyous men came to him / Amonge whiche saynt Iherom came whom he receyued benyngly and prayed hym that he myghte wasshe his fete lyke as he had be acustomyd to doo to his ghestis His custome was neuer to receyue hys refeccyon corporall tyll that he had receyued his maker / ¶ On a tyme amoÌ„ge other after that he hadde receyuyd his creatour saynt Iherom aryued / He exorted his brethern and saynt Iherom to take theyr refeccyon corporell / In whyche refeccyon he spake of god and of his werkes wythout to speke of ony vanytees lyke as we doo After the refeccyon take he recounted many hystoryes of holy Heremytes / And fyrst of an holy man whyche was thre yere coÌ„tynuelly wythoute etynge of ony mete / of this worlde / but from thre dayes to thre dayes an aungel broughte to him heuenly meete / Of whyche oonly he was susteyned and fedde wythoute takynge of ony other thynge / ¶ After this he recounted to theim a nother historye / In sayenge that he had seen soo holy an Heremyte To whom the cruel deuylles came in lykenesse of angels bryngynge a charyott aâ—urned and arayed as for a grete lorde / In whyche charyott was one of the deuylles habyl lyd lyke a kynge the whyche sayde to him / Come now hither good man thy penaunce is accomplysshed / There is now nomore to doo but thou adoure worshyp me / To the ende that I enhaunce the in this charyott lyke as Hely was / But the good Relygious Heron thynkynge was admerueyled / sayde to hymselfe / Eeuery daye I adoure my god / And now he woll praye that I adoure hym / He knowyth well that I serue hym day nyght wyth all my power / I byleue that this is not my god / And therfore he said to the same deuyl I haue my kynge whom contynuelly I adoure / Wherfore I byleue that thou art not my lorde souerayne / Thenne the deuylles sawe his constaunce humylyte wente all awaye confused / Saynt Iherom sayth notwythstondynge the holy man Hor in recountynge this hystorye applyed it to be happed to a nother persone than to hym / Neuertheles the brethern affermyd the same Hor. to be it hymselfe / But by his grete humylyte he atrybuted his perfeccoÌ„n to a nother / Whan ony men came for to dwell with hyÌ„ / he was soo pyteuouse of them that he callyd his brederrn and dyde theym for to make an hous for theym There some made mortere other made tyles / And by cause his brethern seenge his charytee enioyed theym to be wyth hym / He dyde not as some done in thise dayes whiche demaunde grete quantite of money for to receyue some relygyous in theyr hous but he delyuerde to them at his dyspence and his brethern hous and vtensyles / ¶ On a tyme it happed that one of his brethern a stonge lyer came to hym the whyche had rente his robe / to the ende that the good abbot sholde see hym nakyd for to haue one newe / ThenÌ„e the holy maÌ„ knowyng by Inspyracyon his Inyquite falsenes repreued hym tofore alle his brethern / And neuer after durste he lye tofore hym / And for fynall conclusyon he was of soo grete vertues me rytes· that from all partyes came to hyÌ„ holy and deuoute relygious men for the excellence of his vertuous lyfe In whyche oughte to take ensample alle men of Relygion / ¶ Of saynt AmÌ„on abbot of thre thousande monkes / And begynnyth in latyn Vidimus autem / Caplm iii. REcyteth saynt Iherom of
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
¶ I knome well that I am not worthy to see the / But neuerthelesse I praye the open to me thy doore / ¶ For surely my frende I shall neuer departe fromhens tyll I haue seen that / Thou susteynest well that brute beestes Wherfor thenÌ„e openest not thou thy doore to me that am a beest resonable I haue sought the. haue fouÌ„de that / And haue knocked to th ende that thou shold open the dore to me / the whiche thyÌ„ge yf thou doo not I shal dey-here in abydyng that / And thê° tofore the dore of saynt Poul· the blessyd saynt Anthonye sorowed / ¶ ThenÌ„e saynt Poul ansuerde to hyÌ„ / O knyght of god noo man threnyth that / in desyrynge like as the desirest / thou thretnest mein wayllynge sayenge that thou shalte deye· yf I opene not to the the dore / And thus in smylynge saynt Poul opened the dore to sayÌ„t Anthonie / whaÌ„ it was opened that one saluted that other by theyr names / And yet hadd they neuer seen eche other / And after that they embracyd and kyssed togyder a long whyle / ¶ Now lete vs thynke what welcomynges and thankes full of deuocyon were thenÌ„e bitwene theim tweyne Certaynly it shold be loÌ„ge to reherce / ¶ After saynt Poul began to saye / Alas my broder thou haste taken grete labour for to see me / And I am noo thynge but a wretchyd carayne all roten for aege / thou seest a man the whyche anone shall be come asshes or duste / But charite enduryth and suffreth all manere traueylle how grete someuer it be / ¶ Now say to me my broder how men ben gouerned in the worlde / Yf ony be deceyued by the temptacyon of the enmye the deuyll / vnder what domynacion is the worlde gouerned / And in sayeng suche wordes togyder came a Crowe or a byrde whiche lete falle a loof of brede tofore thise two holy men / ¶ ThenÌ„e saynt Poul sayd / My right dere byloued broder leâ—e vs thynke on the goodnes of our lorde the whyche hath sente to vs our dyner / Helas he is moche mercyfull lowely / It is now syth .lx. yeres that euery daye I haue had halfe a loof of breede but now at thy comyng god hath multeplyed the porâ—dern and hath sente dowble pytaunâ—e / ThenÌ„e by a welle or fouÌ„tayne whiche was there they rendred gaue thankynges vnto god / And after they were by two houres in doynge honoure that one to that other· whyche of theym sholde departe the brede / Saynt Poul sayd it was saynt Anthonies parte to doo it by cause he was his gheste Sayenge that honoure oughte alwaye to be gyuen to the ghestes / Saynt Anthonye sayde the contrary / But that it apperteyned to saynt Poul / By cause he was more auncyente and more perfyghte / ¶ For vnto the perfyghte and vertuous is honoure due / ¶ And at laste they holdyng the same breede bytwene theyr hondes / It was departed and deuyded by the grace of god that to eche of theym abode his porcyon / ¶ And after that they had eten they dranke a lytyll water of the fountayne in renderyng and gyuynge graces and thankes to god / ¶ That done they putt theym bothe togyder in prayer And woke all the nyghte in prayenge to god deuowtly / ¶ O deuowte soule Thynke what prayer euery man now makyth on his partye / ¶ They had noo fantasye of the worlde In thynkynge what they sholde ete or drynke / Clooth or to hoose or shoo theym / ¶ Alas we that ben in the worlde canne not saye an Aue maria wythoute to haue lettynges wythoute nombre· or empesshements As euery man knowyth in hymselfe / ¶ On the moâ—â—e whanÌ„e it was daye saynt Poul sayd to saynt Anthonye / It is longe syth I knewe that thou dwelledest in thyse Regyons ¶ For god hath promysed to me longe sythe that I sholde haue one his seruaunte wyth me / But bycause that in folowynge the appostle it is longe syth that I desyred to be wyth IhuÌ„ cryst / thou art by hym sent byder to th eÌ„de that thou put my body whiche is but erthe within the bely of his moder whiche is the erthe / with his bredern whiche hen the wormes the ben of the erth / ThenÌ„e saynt Anthony began to wayle wepe so habuÌ„dantly that none can write in prayeÌ„ge hym that he myght holde hym companye in this mortall waye of the worlde Saynt Poul ansuerde / Thou oughtest not to seche that thynge whyche is in thy possessyon / but the strange thynges / ¶ It is necessary to the to leue thy careyne and folowe Ihesu Cryste / And to thyne other bredern that they gouerne theym by the ensample of thy lyfe / Wherfore thou shalt goo to thyne house / And thou shalte brynge the mantell whiche the bysshopp Athanase gaaf to the for to couere my body whan it shal be deed / And thyse wordes sayde saynt Poul to saynt Anthonye not for drede that his body sholde be wythout couerture / For neuer in his lyfe he had not couerde it but wyth leues of palmes / but he sayd this to the ende / that saynt Anthonye sholde departe and that his dethe sholde not be to hym sorowfull / ¶ O how grete charyte is soone come emonge theym that ben perfyghte for one daye oonly that they had ben togyder / ¶ Saynt Poul dradde to angre saynt Anthonye / His requeste herde saynt Anthonye was merueylously abasshyd how he knewe that saynt Athanase hadd gyuen to hym a mantell / And by that he knewe that he had god in his hertâ—â— And therfore he durste not answere· bâ—â— kyssed hym soo swetly soo brotherly / bothe his eyen hondes in weping grete teeres that he myght not well departe from him / ¶ And after he came agayn in to his hermytage / And by cause that saynt Anthonye was moche feble by cause of his abstynences myght not soo soone come as his courage constrayned hym / ¶ And thus as he came in to his lytyll hous / two of his discyples came metynge hym / And sayd to hym ¶ Where haste thou be soo longe fader What haste thou be soo longe from vs Helas we supposed to haue loste that / and doubted that thou haddest ben deed / Thou arte tyght welcome / For the heuynesse that we had for thy departyng Thy comynge agayne hath rendred to vs Ioye without melancolye / ¶ He ansuerde to theym / Helas I am a poore synar vnworthy to be namyd Relygyouse / ¶ I haue seen Helye and Iohan in deserte / ¶ And verely I haue seen saynt Poul in heuen / ¶ And Incontinente he tooke in his celle the mantell for to retorne towarde saynt Poul / ¶ Thenne the bredern demaunded of hym the cause why he was soo heuy soo sorowfull / ¶ And he answeryd to theym / That there was a tyme to speke And a tyme
therfore it is to be noted that after the deth of her husbonde Toxocius / She dystrybuted and dealed that one halfe of his godes vnto the poore people / Of whyche some were nourisshed and other clothed And other after theyr dethe buryed / ¶ And whanne a poore body was susteyned and holpen of a nother thanne of her / Anone she was sory as though she hadd loste moche good / ¶ Whan she had longe tyme ladde suche holy lyfe / She wolde not endure and suffre the praysynge of the worlde ¶ For by the occasyon of that she was of noble lygnage many lordes came to vysyte her / ¶ Thenne she beganne to dyspyse the honoure temporall / In desyrynge to goo to deserte for to doo penaunce / ¶ In that tyme it happed that the bysshoppis of the Eest and of the Weste came to Rome for the decension and stryfe of some chyrches ¶ Emonge whom saynt Paula sawe a notable a good man namyd Paulyn Bysshop of Anthyoche / ¶ And a nother namyd Epysanus bysshopp of the cytee of Salamonye in Cypres / The whyche cyte now is called Constance ¶ And the sayd Epifanus was lodged in her howse ¶ And for the grete vertues of the same Bysshoppis she was enflammed wyth loue of god more thanne tofore / ¶ And concluded in herselfe to leue her house in suche manere / That for chyldren ne for the noblesse of her howsene for possessyons that she had she myght neuer be wythdrawen from her holy purpoos / ¶ And after that the Wynter was passed The same Bysshopps putt theym to the see for to retorne to their chirches ¶ Thenne she wente wyth theym for to goo to the hermytages of saynt Anthonye and of saynt Paule Heremytes ¶ After that she hadde saylled by the see / She descended atte a Porte namyd Fratre / And there came to her alle her parentes and frendes / ¶ And that was more pietoê° came thider her childer whyles they arryued and came a londe The shyppes beyng thenne redy for to saylle and take the see / her chyldren were atte Ryuage or hauen / ¶ The lytyll Toxocius helde vpp his hondes to hys moder saynt Paula / And her doughter Ruffine whiche was redy to be maried wepte and prayed her that she wolde tarie abyde tyll the weddynge were done / But the good lady garnisshed with ferme constaunce helde vp her hondes and eyen vnto heuen / In hauynge more grete pyte on her soule thanne of her chyldren / ¶ To whom she shewed noo more affeccyon / thanne yf they hadde not ben her chyldren / Ne she theyr moder / ¶ Now oughte it here to be noted that Nature oughte to be strongely moeuyd to pytee and compassyon whanue she sawe her chyldren thus strongely wepe after her ¶ But neuerthelesse she was constaunt and stedfaste and retourned not / ¶ Alas there is noo martyrdom more sharpe than to departe from frendes / ¶ Alas is this not a werke agaynst nature To leue forsake and abandonne thus her children Ye maye well thynke that she hadd grete faythe / and synguler loue to god / ¶ And it maye well be byleuyd that she was soo wyse and prudente that she louyd theym of a feruente loue well ordeyned / ¶ For tofore or she departed she hadde gyuen to theym alle her good / ¶ Alas she was dysheryted in this worlde for to make her ryche in a nother worlde / ¶ The shyppe thenne sessyd not to saylle for ony prayer that her chyldren made / ¶ But by cause she myghte not see theim wythoute some heuynesse she torned her eyen from theym / and from the Rynage or cooste where as they were / ¶ In effecte the shyppe saylled soo scire that after many dayes they airyued and came a londe in thyles of Pounce / ¶ And by cause the wynde was not grete but ouer calme amonge the stony see and many peryllous passages Of whiche that one was namyd Cylla / A nother Carthdis An other Adriaticus whyche ben daungeours in the see for the rockes that ben there / They descended and came a londe And in goinge a londe she felte her membres soo wery and ouermoche trauaylled as she sholde haue deyed ¶ There she toke a lytyll refecedcoÌ„n for to comfort her / ¶ After that she had be in Citharee in Rhodes and in other many yles She came in to the yle of Cypre / In whyche place she soiourned bi the space of ten dayes wyth the sayd Bysshopp Epyfanius / ¶ Thenne whanne she hadde vysited alle the monasteryes there she toke the see and came on londe in Scylence ¶ After she came in to Anthyoche there she was a lytyll tyme wyth the bysshopp Paulyne / ¶ Alas the good lady whyche woned to be borne wyth .x. Emuches had not in walkynge all thyse wayes and other here tofore declared but a poore Asle Vpon whiche she sate ¶ And she vysited not oonly the holy places in the yles tofore declared but also she was in theym of Syrye of Fenyce / ¶ How well that of theym saynt Iherom makyth noo mencyon / ¶ For he hath wreten oonly that whyche hathe be founde in holy hystoryes / ¶ After that she had passed Iherico Romayn and Colugne / She entred in to a lytyll towne namyd Sarepta bytwene Thyrye and Syrye / ¶ And by cause she wente abowte alle that londe it were a longe thynge to recounte what she dyde in that vyage / ¶ Fynably she came in to Iherusalem the whiche cytee hath thre names / That is to wyte Iehus Salem and Iherusalem / Whan she was comen thider / The pryncypall of the cytee / hauynge the offyce of Proconsull made to be arayed for her a lytyll place like an hermitage / ¶ But tofore er she soiourned there she wente to vysite the holy places / and to worshipp the holy Crosse wheron oure lorde was crucyfyed for the Redempcyon of man kynde / ¶ Now thynke we how many teeres she lete there thenne falle whanne she byhelde by a merueyllouse câ—mpunccyon / As yf oure lorde had yet ben there / ¶ In lyke wyse she came to the Sepulture / whyche was not wythout kyssynge and worshyppynge deuououtly / ¶ After in to the mount of Syon / whiche Dauyd reedefied / where she sawe the pyler bysprente wyth the precyous blood of our lorde / To the whyche he hadd be bounden for to be beten byfore Pylate / ¶ There also she sawe in the place in whyche after the prophecye of Ioel. the holy ghoste descended vppon syxe score persones / ¶ After she wente to Betheleem / And on the ryghte syde of the waye she taryed to see the Sepulcre of Rachel in the place where Beniamyn was borne / ¶ After she came in to the place where oure lorde was borne in the stable / Where she beganne to be in contemplacyon / And remembred how the chylde was layed and wrapped in lytyll
souerayne cure and besinesse to be alwaye arayed made fayre wyth clennesse of herte and of pure conscyence ¶ And in lyke wyse oughte we for to wake for to fynde the wayes and meanes by the whiche we maye playse him in dooynge to hym seruyse aggreable / ¶ Thise thinges sayde saynt Nonnus toke his deaken by the honde and wente in to the howse / Whyche was ordeyned for theym to be lodged in / ¶ After he wythdrewe hym in to his chambre In whyche he fell downe to the groūde / in wepynge and smytynge his breste and beganne to saye / ¶ O my god that knowest the thynges hidde I may not hyde how that by the deceyuable a rayment and dyshoneste clothinge of a synfull woman / The beaute of my soule hathe be maculate and defoyllyd / In what manere o my god shall I mowe praye to the / ¶ Or how shall I mowe Iustyfye me tofore the / ¶ Thou knoweste alle my thoughte / Maledyccyos or cursydnesse shall come to me For I offre to the sacrefyse And also make fewle my soule b◠synne / The synful woman thinkyth on no thyng but to playse the worlde / ¶ And I haue promysed to the faythe and loyaulte / And haue not kepte it to the ¶ O my lorde god I am oute of thy grace / ¶ Alas I haue noo more hope of my good werkes but onely in thy mercy / ¶ By the whiche I hope and entende my saluacyon ¶ The good saynt Nonnus abode by longe space of tyme in suche heuynesse ¶ And the Sondaye folowynge after that he hadde sayde his Houres wyth his Deaken / ¶ He recounted and shewed to hym a dreme / ¶ But he cowde not erpowne it / ¶ This dreme was of a blacke douue fowle of moche fylthe / ¶ The whyche as it semyd to saynt Nonnus that in syngynge his masse it came to the corner of the awter ¶ And after came fleenge alle abowte hym / And gaaf soo grete a stenche / That he myghte not abyde to fele it / ¶ And after that he hadd songe the masse in comynge oute of the chyrche / The same douue came agayne fleenge aboute as she dyde tofore In gyuynge to hym so grete a stenche that he myghte not endure to smelle it / ¶ Thenne he raughte his honde vppon the same douue soo dylygently that he tooke it / And threwe it in a vessell ful of water / In whiche she lefte all her ordures and fylthes ¶ And flewh a waye also whyte as a Swanne / And soo vanysshed from his eyen / ¶ And alle this sayde the holy man that he hadde seen in his slepe / ¶ Thyse thynges thus sayde they tweyne wente in to the grete chyrche where as the Bysshopp was / Whom they salewed / ¶ Whanne the Gospell of the grete masse was sayde / The bysshopp commaunded to saynt Nonnus that he sholde goo preche / And make a sermon to the people / Anone he went in to the prechynge stole / Introducynge and enfourmynge the people beyng there at the sayde chyrche in the faythe of god / ¶ And syngulerly preched of his grete Iugement to come / And of the glorye of heuen / ¶ And by his fayr Introduccyons and exhortacions was the people moeued to penannce and to contrycōn / In suche wyse that alle began to waylle and wepe for the horrour grete dysplaysaunce that they hadd of theyr synnes / ¶ Now it happed that this synfull woman Pelage whyche had passed fore by and arayed as afore is sayde came to this sermon / The whyche herynge the wordes of the ryghte good holy man / And notwytstondyng that she neuer hadde serued god but alle onely the worlde ¶ She hadde soo grete contrycyon and soo bytter dysplaysaunce of the enormyte of her synnes that she foūdred alle in teeres In suche wyse that she semyd that she mystrusted the mercy of god / And hadd none other countenaunce but contynuelly to waylle and wepe / ¶ Neuerthelesse she commaūded to tweyne of her chyldren that were at that tyme wyth her that they sholde abyde in the chyrche / And take good hede whyther the holy man wente where that she myghte fynde hym / ¶ The chyldren dyde soo· and folowed the holy man vnto the chyrche of saynt Iulian the martyr / And after came and tolde it to theyr moder / ¶ And thenne she wrote to hym a lettre in substaunce / ¶ To the right Reuerende holy man dyscyple of Ihū cryst thou holy man haste prechyd that thy god is soo moche and lowe meked hymselfe that he hathe taken mankynde pryncypally for to saue the synnars and Plublicans ¶ And he whom the aungellis dare not beholde hath wylled to conuerse and dwelle wyth the synnars in this worlde / ¶ O my ryghte dere lorde I haue ofte herde sayde of the / That thy holynesse is moche grete / And that thou ledest a ryght perfyghte lyffe / ¶ And how well that thou haste not seen hym thy sayde god wyth thy bodyly eyen the whyche shewed hymselfe to the Samarytane / Neuerthelesse thou seruest hym / Dredeste worshyppest soueraynly As the Crysten people publisshen and sayen / Therfore I byseche the that thou woll not dyspyse me / Notwythstondynge that I be a synfull woman / And that it maye playse the to teche and enfourme me in suche wyse that I maye perfyghtly knowe myn euerlastynge god / Wythoute whom I maye haue noo pardon / ne remyssyon of my synnes / ¶ The whyche letter seen by saynt Nonne he wrote to her agayne in thys manere / ¶ O woman what some euer thou be / Thou arte knowen of god / The whyche also knowyth thy wylle / I pray the that thou tempte not myn humylytee in folyly prasynge me / For I am a synfull man / and vnworthy seruytour and Seruaunte of god / ¶ But yf thou haue wyll to se me / And by me knowe and receyue oure good faythe / ¶ There ben in this cytee other Bysshoppis notable prelates with whom thou shalte see me / ¶ For it is noo thynge leyffull that thou allone sholde speke to me / ¶ Whan the poore synfull woman hadde seen this lettre / ¶ She Incontynent departed and wente in to the chirche of saynt Iulian / ¶ In the whyche were present all the bysshoppis / ¶ And she dide to saynt Nonnus to haue knowlege of her comynge / ¶ Whyche Incontynent assembled and broughte togyder the sayd bysshoppis / ¶ And that done made her to come to hym / ¶ Anone she felle downe to the fete of the holy Bysshopp saynt Nonne sayenge / ¶ I praye the my lorde that it playse the in folowyng thyne doctryne to stratche vpon me thy mercy / and make me a Crysten woman / ¶ I am the see of synne and the swolow of wyckydnesse whiche asketh and requyreth to be baptysed / ¶ Saynt Nonnus made her to stonde vpp / And sayde to her / My frende
not to praye for me / To the ende that I maye haue mercy atte the ende of my dayes / ¶ Zozimas herkenynge wepte moche strongely / ¶ And she beganne to telle how she was born in Egypte / ¶ And how in forsakynge her fader and moder and theyr fayre Instruccyons and shewynges / she beynge twelue yere of aege transported putte her in to Alexandrye / ¶ After that aege and durynge the tyme of seuentene yeres and more she hadde contynuelly made resydence atte the open bordell of the same towne wyth other comyn wyÌ„men there beynge In abandonnynge and vsynge 〈◊〉 be propre body to all that came / ¶ And wyth noo other thynge gate her lyuynge in passynge soo her yongthe ¶ On a tyme she liuynge in this folye sawe a multytude of people of Lybye and of Egypte / whiche sayden wolde passe the see ¶ Thenne she asked one of theym whyther they wolde goo / And wherfore they made soo grete haste / ¶ To whom he ansuered that shortely sholde be in Iherusalem the feest of the Exaltacyon of the holy Crosse / On whyche god hadde be crucyfyed / ¶ And therfore they made theym redy for to goo to the sayde solempnytee ¶ Vppon that she demaunded and enquyred of theim yf they wolde take her in to theyr companye To whom was answered ye / Soo that she hadde money for to paye the Maronnar / ¶ She sayde that she hadde noo thynge / But yf she wente in to the shyppe / And for her freyghte she sayd that shold abandouned to hym her body / ¶ And this sayd she requyred Zozimas that it sholde playse hym that she sholde telle noo more / For the ayre and he were therof enfected / ¶ Zozimas ansuered / Ha my frende saye hardely wythoute hydynge ony thynge / ¶ Thenne beganne she to recounte to Zozimas this that folowyth / ¶ Whan the yonge man hadde herde alle thyse wordes he beganne to laughe and wente his waye / ¶ Thenne she threwe awaye her spyndle that she helde / wente towarde the shyppe to saylle fourth with the other / ¶ Thenne sawe she x. yonge men atte ryâ—age of the see after her Iugement good and honeste / The other were thenne goon to the shyppe / ¶ And she prayed theym that she myghte goo wyth theym in to the shyppe And that they sholde not refuse her / ¶ And by many lewde and fowle wordes she mouyd theym to laugh / Theâ—e they tooke her in to theyr shyppe / ¶ As towchynge the Insolences by her done in the sayde shyppe she wolde noo more recounte to Zozimas / But prayed hym that he wolde be contente wyth that she hadde sayde wythout to recyte and shewe ony more / ¶ She in lyke wyse arryued in Iherusalem was abandouned to alle synne / ¶ And was not oonly contente to doo synne wyth theym of the shyppe but also with many other pylgrymes ¶ Whan the daye of the feest of the holy Crosse was come / She wente tofore the yonge pylgrymes for to excyte them to the synne of secherye / ¶ But neuerthelesse she wente wyth the other in to the chyrche for to worshyppe and adoure the Crosse And came vnto the porche / Wenynge to entre in / ¶ And notwythstondynge that she was borne wyth grete payne vnto the yate of the chyrche / Yet myghte she not entree / How well that alle the other entred lyghtly that wold entre ¶ But by the power of god whyche wythstode her she was reiecte caste abacke from the yate / ¶ And fyrste she supposid that the cause why she mighte not entree was by cause that she was feble as wymmen ben whiche be not soo stronge as men ¶ Thenne she enforcyd her for to entree more asprely thanne she dyde tofore / But all her enforce auaylled her not / ¶ For she was ofte reiected and caste abacke / In suche wise that her body was shouen and brused / ¶ Thenne she abode longe tofore the gate / in beholdynge alle the worlde whiche entred in wythoute ony force or vyolence / ¶ And began to thynke that the grete multytude of synnes whyche she hadd commysed and done was the cause and lettynge for whyche she myghte not entree / ¶ And thenne she beganne to wayle and wepe bytterly and smote her breste wyth grete contrycyon and dysplaysure of her lyfe / ¶ And beholdynge on hyghe she sawe an ymage of the vyrgyne Marye· whiche hadd borne the god of heuen and of erth / sayenge that for my horryble synnes whyche I haue done and commysed I am not worthy to beholde oonly thyn ymage / For thou arte a vyrgyne tofore thy chyldynge and after / ¶ And therfore it is noo thynge Iuste ne ryghtfull that a poore and a lecherous detestable make prayer vnto the / ¶ Neuerthelesse by cause thou haste conceyued and engendred hym that woll alwaye calle agayne synnars to penaunce / I byseche the that it maye playse to helpe to conuerte me to hym / In gyuynge to me ayde and comforte for to entree in to his chirche / To the ende that I maye worship and adoure his ryght worthy Crosse / in whyche he shedde his precyous blode for to Redeme me from the paynes of helle / ¶ CoÌ„maunde blessyd lady and vyrgygyne that the yate be open to me / And I promyse to thy dere sone whyche is my god and to the also that I shall neuer retorne to synne / But Incontynente that I haue adoured and worshipped this precyous Crosse I shall forsake al the worlde / ¶ She recited and tolde ferdermore to the sayde Zozimas that in contynent after her prayer made as sayd is / She trustynge in the grace of oure lorde Ihesu Cryste and of his blessyd moder wente to the yate / Where tofore she cowde not entree / And in grete fere as half deed she entred lyÈtly wyth oute ony dyffycultee / ¶ And after came to the place where as was the ryghte worthy Crosse of our Sauyour / To fore whyche she knelyd on her knees / â— And in feruente deuocyon she adoured lyke to other / ¶ And after came to the ymage of the virgyne Marye moder of god for to gyue thankynges to her the beste wyse she cowde of that whiche bi her Intercessyon she hadde soo grete a pryuylege to worrhyppe his precyous Crosse / ¶ In sayenge / O gloryous virgyne Mary glorye be to god almyghty whyche by thyne worthy Intercessyons hathe wylled to Receyue me synfull woman to mercy / ¶ What oughte I more to doo thanne to accomplysshe that whyche I haue promysed / ¶ And yet agayne I praye the that thou helpe me to conduyte me and sette me in the way of saluacoÌ„n for to the I yelde me as to her whiche may helpe socour me ¶ Anone she herde a voyce whiche sayde to her / Woman passe ouer the flom Iourdan / And thou shalte fynde there thyne helthe and reste of thyne soule / ¶ Inconcynent
noo grasse ne herbe ¶ That dragon by caas of fortune or otherwyse was put in his right eye a stake of a câ—byte longe / soo came tofore the place where as the holy man was ¶ And bi a sygne oonly that the sayd Symeon made vpon the sayd dragon the stake fell out of his eye / The relygiouses thenne beyng present seeng this myracle with drewe theym togyder to theyr monastery gaaf deuowtly thankynges to god ¶ The sayd beest thê° guarisshed helyd as sayde is wythdrewe hym from theym wythout dooynge ony dysplaysure in ony wyse / ¶ And after that al the brethern relygyous were wythdrawen in to their chirche the same dragon fell downe humbly tofore the dore of the sayd chyrche for to gyue thankyÌ„ges to the holy man Simeon of the good that he had done to hym by his prayers / ¶ In the tyme a woman drynkynge out of a stone potte receyued drynkyng in to her body a lytyll serpente beynge in the same potte / Wherof she was soâ— greuously seke that the Physicyens ne the Magycyens cowde fynde noo remedye / ¶ Thenne was she broughte vnto saynt Symeon / The whyche Incontynent sette her on the grounde / ¶ And wythoute to gyue to her ony medycyne made her to drynke of the water of his monastery / ¶ And as soone as she had drunken therof / The serpente sprange oute or her body as longe as thre cubytes or there abowtes / And the woman was all hoole and guarysshed / ¶ And the same houre the sayde serpente clefte asondre / And was hanged vpp in the same place by the space of seuen dayes for a perpetuell remembraunce / ¶ It was soo that in the sayde place there was no water· In suche wise that not oonly the men but also the beestes â—eyed for thurste ¶ Thenne saynt Symeon was requyred to praye god that he wolde gyue to theym water / ¶ And Incontynent the grounde opened and caste oute water habundantly / ¶ And after he dide delue in the sayde place to the depnesse of seuen cubytes / And neuer after they faylled water / ¶ In that countree there was a beeste namyd Parde / Of whyche beest whan the lyon hadde to doo wyth her he engendred on her a nother beest callyd a Leoparde / ¶ For the crueltee of that beest durste noo persone goo thorugh the feldes / ¶ That seenge the dwellars in that countree For to haue ayde comforte came to saynt Symeon / ¶ The whyche commaunded theym that they sholde sowe and sprynge on the grounde the water of their chyrche in the places where as the sayde beest haunted And soo they dyde / And anone they were of hym delyuered ¶ And anone after they founde the beest myraculously deed / ¶ Thenne they thanked god In the name of whom saynt Symeon made so grete euydent myracles / ¶ And whanne he dide ony on ony persone he deffended theym that he sholde neuer shewe ony thynge but onely they shold thanke god and noothynge hym / Gyuyng to theym to vnderstonde that god hadd helyd theym and not he / ¶ Aboue alle thynges he forbadde theim that they sholde not swere the name of god / but oonly for Iuste cause ¶ And for vniuste they sholde swere by the name of Symeon the poore synnar / ¶ And saynt Iherom sayth that yet in the partyes of the Eest and other straunge Regyons they of the sayde partyes and regions swere oonly and comynly the name of saynt Symeon / ¶ A theyf named Ionathas for the grete and myscheuous euyllis that he hadde done was soo strongely chacyd that he was constrayned to entree in to the chyrche of saynt Symeon / And enbracyd a pylar by the whyche he stode / ¶ Saynt Symeon demaunded hym what he was / ¶ And wherfore he was there entred / To whom he ansuered I am Ionathas whyche haue done soo moche euyll in the worlde But I woll repente me and doo penaunce / ThenÌ„e the holy man sayde to him / Thou arte ryght welcome my brother for the penitentis is the reame of heuen / But come not hither for to tempte me ne also for to retourne to thy synne / ¶ And thus sayeng came the offycers of Anthyoche that sayde to saynt Symeon / ¶ Delyuer to vs the theyf Ionathas or ellys alle the cyte shall aryse and moeue theym agaynst the. For the beestes ben redâ— for to deuoure hym / ¶ Saynt Symeon ansuered My frendes I haue not broughte hym hyther It is a gretter mayster thanne I ¶ And therfore yf ye maye take him wyth you / For as towchynge to me I dare not towche hym by cause I drede god whiche hathe sent hym hyther / ¶ Thenne they retornyd and sayde to the lordes of the Iustyce / where they hadde fonde hym / and that whyche Symeon hadde sayde to them Wherfore they durste not towche hym / ¶ The theyf Ionathas whyche thenÌ„e was conuerted and contynuenge in lamentacyons and wepynges / After that he hadde ben there seuen dayes in holdynge the sayde pylar sayde to saynt Symeon / ¶ My lorde and frende yf it playse the I am redy to goo hens / ¶ Symeon ansuered / Arte thou now wery to doo penaunce And wolt thou retoâ—ne to thy malyce accustomyd Ionathas ansuered / Naye my lorde I am not But the tyme is come that I must deye / ¶ And in sayenge thyse wordes he yelded vpp his spurte to god TheÌ„ne as they wolde haue buryed hym came the Iustyces of Anthyche wenynge to haue taken hym / ¶ saynt Symeon thenne ansuered ¶ My frendes he that sente hym hytheâ— comyth to fetche him wyth all the celestyall courâ—e The whiche maye you and youre cytee make to sinke in to helle / And the poore Ionathas theyf make to ascende in to heuen ¶ And knowe ye that I myselfe yf I hadde knowen that god wolde not haue be dysplaysed wyth me I wolde haue delyuered hym to you / And therfore traueylle ye noo more / ¶ The lordes of the Iustyse herynge thyse wordes retorned agayne And recounted and tolde alle that they hadde seen / ¶ A lytyll tyme after one named Anthony Of whom is tofore spoken and the whyche hadde longe serued saynt Symeon founde hym in prayer / And by cause he had be soo thre dayes that is to wyte the Frydaye Saterday and Sonday Durynge the whyche he had not spoken but was there as vnmoeuable / the good relygyous Anthony was moche abasshed / ¶ And sayde to hym My lorde and my fader it is tyme that thou aryse / For it is thre dayes now sythen the people haue taryed for to haue thy blessynge / To whom saynt Symeon ansueryd noo worde / ¶ Thenne sayd Anthony / Alas what maye I haue trespassed to the. that thou spekest noo thynge to me / And seenge that he spake not / He durste not awake hym / For he dradde hym moche / ¶ Neuerthelesse he abode by hym by the space
of halfe an hour / ¶ And after he approchyd nere to hym / And layed his ceâ—e to his vysage for to knowe yf he were deed or a lyue / ¶ But he felte noo thinge but an odoure soo swete that all the place was replenysshyd wyth all / ¶ ThenÌ„e knewe he wel that he was departed out of this worlde / ¶ Thenne Incontynent he beganne to kysse hym his eyen hys berde Wepynge bytterly and sayde Helas my lorde and my mayster Wherfore leuest thou me / Who shall be he that shall gyue to me doctryne as thou hast doon ¶ What shall I saye to the malades and seke people that shall come hyther to haue helthe / ¶ Helas now I see the. and tomorne I shall lese the / ¶ After many lamentacyons the good Anthony slepte / And as he slepte he beâ—de a voyce that sayde / Anthony I shal not leue the here in this place ne in the mountayne in whyche I am Illumyâ—ed wyth the grace of god / ¶ Thou shalte goo secretely in to Anthyoche / to the ende that the people moeue theym not / And shalt telle the tydynges of my dethe / ¶ For now I am departed lyke as it hathe playsed to my Redemer / ¶ Thou shalte neuer cesse to pray god in this place here / And he shall rewarde the in heuen / ¶ Whanne Anthony was awaked he merueylled moche sayenge ¶ O my lorde and mayster remembre thou me in the glorye in whyche thou arte now ¶ After he kissed his fete and layed his hondes vppon his eyen sayenge / ¶ My lorde I praye the gyue to me thy blessynge / ¶ And beganne agayn to wepe sayenge / Helas for to haue myÌ„de of the. What pyece of a Relique shal I take of thy body / ¶ And soo sayeng the body beganne to moeue Wherfore he was affrayed that he durste not towche it / ¶ And bi cause none sholde knowe therof / He sente secretely one of hys brethern to the Bysshop of Anthyoche The whyche accompanyed wyth two other Bisshoppis and also wyth Ardahoruis Prynce of the chyualrye of Anthyoche transported theym thyder and dyde laye the holy corps tofore the aulter of his chyrche / ¶ And thystorye sayth that the byrdes fledden abowte the place where as he was makynge grete cryes and chaterynge in manere of wepinge and waylynges / ¶ The people also and the beestes assembled in soo grete nombre that they were estemyd well atte seuen thousande demeanynge for his dethe a merueyllouse heuynesse / ¶ The mountaynes the feldes trees and also herbes of the places nighe by suffreden for his dethe / ¶ For ouer alle there abowte they were enuyronned wyth a derke clowde testefyenge and wytnessynge the bytternesse that they hadde ¶ Also the good Anthonye abode seuen houres the aungell of god shynynge as a lyghtnynge And his clothes whyte as snowe Wyth whom were seuen auncyent faders whiche longe tyme were by the corps / But what they dyde ne sayd knoweth none Lyke as sayth saynt Iherom / ¶ Durynge the tyme that the body was in the chyrche The Patryarke of Anthyoche wolde haue taken of his berde By cause he knewe that he was a man of holy lyfe But Incontynent thonde wyth whyche he wolde haue towched it waxyd drye / But after by the prayers of theym that were presente and by the euydente myracle he was heelyd / ¶ ThenÌ„ sware he that neyther man ne woman sholde towche it / ¶ Thyse thynges thus done in grete solempnyte torches and tapres beynge lyghte / The body was borne to Anthioche / ¶ But whan he was withdrawen fiue myle to a place callyd Mere. myghte neuer man make hym departe from that place / ¶ There was a man that hadde be fourty yere deyf and dombe and began to crye / Ha seruaunte of god thou arte ryght welcome / Thy comynge hath yeuen to me heryng and spekynge / ¶ I promyse the yf I lyue long· that alway I shall serue the wyth body and soule / ¶ After he aroos and tooke one of the beestes that ladde the corps of the holy man / And anone he was helyd / The cause of the accydente of this deyf and dombe man was this / ¶ He hadde ben amerous of a fayre yonge woman maryed the whyche he had strongely solycited for to haue her company To the whyche he cowde not come / ¶ And after it happed that she deyed whyche dethe came to the knowlege of this man all enraged for her loue / ¶ And after that she was buryed he wente to her sepulture and there deffoyled her And forthwyth he was deyf dombe lame / and soo abode in the same place duryng fourty yere / ¶ All the cyteyzyns of Anthioche came in grete tryumphe and mete wyth the body and bare it in to the grete chyrche / ¶ And there in the chyrche whiche is namyd Penytence in the whiche after his buryenge to the exaltacoÌ„n of his gloryous name ben shewed done Infenyte myracles / And more merueylous than theâ— that haue be done in his lyfe / ¶ Many prynces lordes haue layed oute of theyr tresours to the layd chyrche for to haue of hym some relyke But none myghte â—e had be cause of the othe that the bysshopp made / that his body sholde neuer be towchyd ¶ Of saynt Symeon byleue ye stedfastly that who someuer for the honour of god of hym shall haue the lyfe of hyÌ„ by wrytynge and shall rede it deuowtly and seruynge hym wyth good deuocyon He shall be rewarded for his merytes in the celestyall glorye ¶ To the whiche by his Intâ—essions lete vs prayes almyghty god that we maye obteyne / Amen / ¶ Of saynt Eufraxe vyrgyn / Whyche begynnyth in latyn ¶ In diebus theodoâ—u / Caplm .xlvii. IN the tyme that regned Theodocyen the Iust emperour of the Romayns There was at Rome a Senatoure namyd Antigonius the whiche had a doughter namyd Eufrare / ¶ The sayd Antigonius was a man soo prudent and of soo godâ— counseylle that he gouerned after the lawe of the Romayns all the countree of â—â—â—ye / ¶ He was soo moche humayn that he had compassion of eche persone and admynystred to the poore all theyâ— necessytees / ¶ The emperour louyd hym not oonly by cause he was his kysnesman· but also by cause he was of right good prouffytable couÌ„seylle / ¶ He hâ— bounded in rychesse goodes temporal asmoche as ony man of the cyte / And he had a wyfe descended of the propre very lygnage of Emperours the whiche also was called Eufraxe a woman Iuste mercyful and garnysshyd with alle other vertues / ¶ Antigonius after thenne certayne tyme that god had sente hym his fayre doughter Eufraxe Thynkynge the saluacyon of his soule / Deuysed wyth his wyfe Eufraxe of holy wordes deuowte / ¶ And emong alle other he sayde to her / ¶ Eufraxe my syster and loue thou knoweste that this lyfe is
transitory and maye no lenger dure thanne foure score yere / Thou knoweste also that the worldly rychesses and the vanytee of this worlde arn noo thynge but a lytyll wynde / ¶ But the rychesses of heuen ben alwaye durable perpetuel / ¶ Now my syster thou oughtest to knowe that all they that louen dysordynatly the honoures of thys worlde ben pryued from the goodes of heuen / ¶ And ofte the rychesse worldly possessyons ben cause of the confusyon and vtterly dystruccyon of theim that haue theym / ¶ His wyfe herynge thyse wordes sayd to hym / What playsyth that that we doo / CoÌ„maunde thy good playsure and I shall accomplysshe it ¶ For thy wyll is myne That whyche thou wolte I woll / ¶ Antigonius ansueryd We haue a doughter god be thankyd / And we oughte to be contente that one wyth that other wythout to haue affectyon to lyue emonge the voluptuosytees of this worlde / ¶ Thenne his wyfe lyfted vpp her hondes to heuen in sayenge / O my lorde loue blessyd be our lorde that hath made the worthy to knowe thyne helthe / ¶ Truely my loue I haue many tymes prayed god / that he wolde humble the. and torne thyne entendemente to wyll to flee thy flesshely coÌ„cupyscences worldly / But I neuer durste declare to the ony thynge therof for the grete fere gode loue that I had to the / ¶ And for asmoche as thy wyll is suche / Lete vs departe of our temporell goodes to the ende that they be not cause to make vs descende in to helle / ¶ Other holsom reasons the lady gaaf to Antigonius her husbond the whiche herof praysynge thankynge god with all his herte Dystrybuted the gretest parte of his goodes to the poore people / ¶ And after lyued not but one yere wyth his good lyfe holy vertuouse in perfyghte deuocyon· chastytee contynence / ¶ Of his dethe was moche sorowfull the emperour whyche was of hys kynÌ„e and also alle the Romayns for the grete vertues that were in hym / And also for the pyte that they hadd of his wyfe Eufraxe whiche had not bâ— but .ij. iij monethes wyth hym / ¶ After that he was buryed the good lady Eufraxe toke her doughter also namyd Eufraxe And presented her to the Emperour to her frendes sayenge ¶ O souerayne emperour and ye alle my lordes frendes I put in to your hondes this poore Orphelyne Humbly you supplyenge that in fauoure contemplacyon of the gode very loue that ye had to her fader Antigonius it wolde playse you to doo her to be Instructe and taughte in gode maners vertues And to be to her gode faders conduytours / ¶ The lordes herynge this pyteuous requeste were in contynent moeuyd to wepynge waylynge / ¶ And a lytyll after that they had resprysed theyr spyrytes the emperour desyred counseylled the good lady that she sholde consente to the maryage of her fayr doughter / of one of the Senatours the rychest of alle the other / ¶ To the whyche she accorded / And the sayde doughter receyued ernest of the maryage / ¶ But after by cause that the sayde doughter atte that tyme that the sayde Maryage was treated / was but fyue yere olde / And that the senatoure was greuyd to abyde tyll that she were suffysaunte of aege for to accomplysshe the sayde maryage / ¶ He concluded to demaunde the moder to his wyfe / ¶ And for to come to his entencyon / He sente notable ladyes to the Emperesse for to labour that the moder wolde take to husbonde the sayde Senatour / The whyche thynge the sayde Emperesse and the sayde ladyes supposyd to haue made and accomplysshed it ¶ But the good lady wydowe wolde neuer in that maner leue her â—eâ—e to here it / But repreâ—yd theym angrely In shewynge to theym the grete Inconuenyent in whyche they wolde brynge her That is to wyte in desyrynge her to leue the way of helthe for to take the worldely waye for to brynge her to eternal dampnacyon / And emonge other wordes she sayde to the emperesse / ¶ A madame to what thynge woll ye Induce me Alas whanne I was wyth my husbonde that was I kepte chastytee And ye labour to me that I sholde folowe the amorouse wymmen I shall neuer doo it / ¶ The emperour induertysed of the enterpryse of his wyfe was euyll contentent wyth her sayenge thyse wordes ¶ Come hyther my wyfe ye be wel presumptuous to woll breke the maryage whyche hath be soo honestely begonne ¶ Ne knowe ye not that oure cosyn kynnes woman Eufraxe woll lede a solytary lyfe / ¶ Haue ye now forgoten the loue that ye had to her husbonde whan he lyued / Woll ye now doo hym Iniurye / ¶ Alas yf ye haue louyd hym whyle he lyned ye oughte after his deth to loue his wyfe whyche is soo good and Iuste / ¶ The emperesse herynge thyse wordes was soo moche trowbled that she was two houres wythoute spekynge and semyd to be deed / ¶ The good Eufraxe knowynge thyse tydynges / was in lyke wyse wrothe Doubtynge that it sholde be layed to her that she sholde be cause of the dyscencyon of the emperoure of his wyfe in suche wyse that she myghte be in daunger of deth ¶ And in waylynge wepynge she sayd to her doughter ¶ Lete vs goo in to Egypte my dere doughter we haue there many londes and possessyons whyche I shall leue vnto the. For alle that I haue is thyne / And soo they wente in to the londe of Egypte / ¶ They â—eynge there arryued vysyted her londes possessyons And fynably came in to the partyes of Thebayde where they dyde many almesses to the monasteries relygyons / ¶ And emonge all other they came to a Relygyon of wymmen in a towne wherin were an hundred thâ—â—ty monasteryes of relygyouses / ¶ There some ete no apples ne fygges ne draÌ„ke no wyne The other ete noo oyle ne other lycour Other fasted an hole day Other wysshe noo fete / And whanne ony spake to theym they were abasshyd ¶ They laye on the erthe and ware euery daye the heyt / ¶ And yf by aduenture one of theym were syke / there was noo medycyne gyuen to her ¶ But the sykenesse that she hadde was reputed for a benedyccoÌ„n of god ¶ They wente neuer out of the monasterye but they hadde a Portiere the whyche gaaf ansuere to alle theym that came thyder / Eufraxe knowynge the honeste and deuowte conuersacyon of the sayde Relygyouses vysyted theym ofte And gaue them lyght to the chyrche for to doo the seruyce of god / ¶ On one daye emonge the other Eufraxe spake to thabbesse and to the pryÌ„cypallis of the monasterye And sayde to theym / My good ladyes I woll yeue to you twenty or thyrty pouÌ„de of golde of reuenue for and to the ende that it wolde playse you
enfourme me in thyne holy lawe ¶ And fynably wyll gyue to me the glorye eternall / ¶ And from thens forth on Pastumyen besyed hym in deuowte comtemplacyons / Alwaye awaytinge that the angell of god sholde come agayne to him ¶ But that notwithstondynge he wente agayne to his crafte / whyche was as tofore is sayde to make cordes of Ionâ—es / ¶ And fynably the aungell apperyd to hym and sayde / Pastumyen wolt thou that I lede the to a preest / Whyche shal baptyse the in the name of the fader of the sone and of the holy ghoste / To whom he ansuered that it was the grettest Ioye that myghte come to hym / And that he desyred none other thynge ¶ Anone the aungell tooke him by the heere 's / and bare hym vnto a place where as was an an holy man named Prisce / To whom the Aungell commaunded that he sholde enseygne and teche hym the faythe and lawe / And to lyue as a good Crysten / ¶ The holy fader seenge the grete bryghtnesse of the aungell Sodaynly he was abasshed in suche wyse that he felle downe for fere / But the aungell releuyd hym and comforted hym sayenge ¶ Be not aferde / for I am the seruaunte of god as thou arte / ¶ And in sayenge thise wordes the aungell chaunged his fourme vnto the semblaunce or lickenesse of a man clad wyth whyte and of a playsaunt face / ¶ After agayne he sayde to hym / Doubte the noo thynge / I come to the for to shewe to the fro god / That it is his playsure that thou take to the this goode man Pastumyen / And that thou enfourme hym in the faythe of holy chyrche To the ende that he maye deserue the glorye eternall / ¶ And Incontinente the aungell departed / ¶ Saynt Prysce thenne toke Pastumien And enfourmyd hym in the faythe / And to faste and to doo other vertuous werkes / ¶ After he baptysed hym and this done he made a prayer vnto oure lorde sayenge thus ¶ O sone of god I yelde to the humbly thaÌ„kynges of thys that it hathe playsed the. by thyne holy ghoste to reconcyle me to god thy fader And thou haste redemyd me from eternall dethe / The whyche dethe suffren perpetuelly alle they that byleue not in thy name / Alas I knowlege now that alle thynges the lasse oughte to obeye the gretter And the symple to theym that ben wyse / ¶ The seconde commaundement that ye oughte / for to kepe is subieccyon To the ende that in reuerent drede ye maye serue god wyth a chaste herte pure and clene / ¶ The thirde is that ye oughte to lyue sobrely and Iustly in hauynge compassyon on youre soules and of others / ¶ The fourth that ye oughte to chastyse youre bodyes by fastynges and abstynence after your possybylyte / For to the spyryte desyrynge to gete vertue it is a synguler delectacoÌ„n and playsaunce to be and enhabyte in a body lene by penaunce / ¶ The fyfthe is for to be ofte in oryryson and prayer in ensâ—ewyng the doctryne of the appostle whyche commaundyth vs to praye god wythoute ceassynge / For after his doctryne alle they that contynuelly faste and pray to god Lyghtly they putt vnder by the vertue of the faythe alle the cautels and subteltees of the deuyll of helle / And causyth also to resyste and wythstonde alle vyces and synnes / ¶ Fyrst and pryncypally to pryde / For of that synne proceden alle euylles And euery daye as one seeth by experyence / Pryde is the orygynall roote of al synnes / ¶ By pryde ben the aungellys caste downe in to helle / By cause that Adam desyrynge to knowe the good euyll ete of the fruyte forboden in transgressynge and brekynge the commaundement of god / ¶ By this concupiscence he deseruyd and bounde him and alle his posterytee and ofsprynge vnto the dethe eternall / Wherof we hadde neuer be quyte yf the blessyd sone of god by his grete mercy and by his worthy dethe and passyon hadde not quyted redemed vs / ¶ The vertue opposyte and coÌ„trary to pryde is Humylytee roote of alle good / And the begynnyng and getâ—nge of al vertues wythoute the whyche was neuer none ne neuer shall persone be perfyghte / ¶ And the cause that most moeuyd oure blessyd Sauyoure to take oure humanyte in the wombe of the vyrgyne of the Intemerate and moost clene and ryght blessyd vyrgyne Marye that was her humylytee For in soo doynge is wryten in the Cantycle / God hathe beholden the humylytee and mekenes of his hondmayde Quâ—a respexte humilitatem ancille sue c ¶ After the holy man Pastumien commaunded theym that they sholde haue charytee fraternall togyder in hauyng perfyghte faythe / Sayenge that the princypall Rule and mooste grettest charge that Religyouses oughte to haue is for to haue one wyth a nother perfyghte loue and charytee / Wythoute the whiche none Relygyouses in the cloystre maye not well gouerne theymselfe / ¶ Whan many brethern ben togyder wythoute loue eche entendyth to his synguler prouffyte / And soo theyr comynte is deuyded / ¶ Soo euery reame and other gouernement of multytude and of subgettes yf it be deuyded wythoute doubte it is desolacyon / ¶ Alas now the mooste parte of Relygyouses in this present tyme enteÌ„de to be Abbottes Pryours and to offyces Desyrynge to be oute from theyr brethern / ¶ Lyke as the byrde sechyth but to escape oute of the cage / ¶ And who sholde demaunde or wyte the reason wherfore I trowe that there sholde be defaulte to haue loue wyth theyr brethern / ¶ For by cause that thei ben ouermoche replenysshyd and fulfyllyd wyth the dampned vyce of Pryde they can not be compatyble and felyshypped wyth the other / But woll be alone ¶ A lorde god well is chaunged the tyme that the holy faders fledd in to deserte sedynge there a solytary lyfe for to renounce and leue the worlde / and to lede a lyfe contemplatyf / ¶ And as it is sayde the Relygyouses whanne they be closyd in an abbay where as they haue ben put for to be oute of the worlde / They thynke on none other synne but to opteyne and gete pryeryes and other benefyces / Whether it be by synne or no synne to the ende to retorne agayne to the worlde / For the whyche thynges all deuocyon is loste / ¶ Perauenture yf the Pryours were vnyed and onyd wyth the abbayes / And that suche Relygyouses had none occasyon for to departe with oute lycence / It sholde be better and lightlyer for theyr helthe / thanne for to seke theyr lodges from vyllage to vyllage / ¶ It hath be seen in tyme passed that the chyldren of kynges for to serue god haue renouÌ„ced and vtterly forsaken all theyr rychesses / ¶ But now whan there ben many in a noble house / they ben made Abbottes tofore that they ben relygyouses ¶ Noo
thynge for deuocyon But to the ende for to enryche theym wyth goodes and rychesses of the chyrche for to lyue atte theyr playsure God knowyth what shall be the ende ANd folowynge thenne the doctryne and tethynge that Pastumyen gaaf to his Religyouses ¶ He commaunded theym ferthermore to loue not oonly the one that other But to loue god pryncypally wyth all theyr herte / That was the fyrste commaundement that god gaaf to Moyses in the moutayne of Synay / ¶ But wyth the same commaundement must be Ioyned the lone that we oughte to haue that one wyth a nother / ¶ Whanne alle Relygyouses louen eche other / and god pryncypally and fyrste / Yet muste they haue the vertue of obedyence / ¶ Loue wythoute obedyence is noo thynge ¶ For lyke as the grasse lettyth the corne to fructefye and encreace / In lyke wyse who that is in obedient and fastyth and prayeth / bryngyth fourth noo fruyte for fawte of obedyence / ¶ After he commaunded theym to excercyse the nyghtes in prayers / ¶ For by nyghte the deuyll makyth moo lettynges to deuowte persones thanne he dooth in the daye Lyke as the Gospel saythe / ¶ Who woll doo euyll Hatyth lyghte / ¶ And to this purpoos sayth the Gospell Awake awake For ye know not the howre whanne the theyf of the soules woll come / ¶ He commaunded theym also that they sholde wryte in a Table of theyr conscyences all the commaundementes of god / And that ofte they sholde laye the clothe for to take refeccyon spyrytuell in sauourynge and etynge the ten loues composyd of the ten commaundementes of the fayth ¶ The twelue artycles of the lawe / And the werkes of mercy / ¶ More ouer he sayde / O ye my brethern / whyche desyre to be very obedyent and charytable to loue eche other / byleue ye after the sentence of Baruth the prophete whyche sayth / that ye ben now the felowes of god / ¶ And in a nother place the holy scrypture sayth well happy â—en the peasyble For they ben the sones of god / ¶ Now they that ben peasyble ben obedyent and charytable / ¶ They thene that shall desyre in this corruptyble world to enioye the fruytes of heuen / He muste renounce and forsake his propre wyll in hauynge perfyghâ—e charyte / ¶ After he coÌ„maunded theym yf they hadde amonge theym ony dyscencyon or debate / that Incontynente it sholde be appeasyd / For god oure lorde dwellyth ne abydeth but in one place of peas / ¶ And the contrarye where as is dyssencyon the deuyll regnyth ¶ And ferthermore he deffended them that they neuer sholde be angry ne wrothe ne to theyr brethern ne to straungeres / ¶ And that for ony gayne of the worlde that they myghte gete They sholde not oâ—cupye theym wyth temporell thynges But oonly in werkes spyrytuell By the whyche they myghte lyghtely gete the herytage of the Reame of heuen / ¶ And whanne ony temptacyons sholde come to theym the whyche with grete payne the ymyghte eschewe / ¶ He admonested theym to torne to god / In lyf tynge theyr hondes to heuen And sayenge ¶ O my god I pray the that it playse the to helpe me / And to enforce my poore freyltee to the ende that I maye vaynquysshe and surmounte my mortall enemye / ¶ And he sayde that anone after oure prayer made to god Comen his aungellis to oure ayde for to comforte vs / ¶ And for to proue thys thynge to be true He tolde thenÌ„e to theym that on a tyme. he beynge on a mountayne came tofore hym a grete companye of deuyllis in lyckenesse of men humayne And bi cause that by the will of god he knewe well that they were deuylles / He all resoluyd / And wythoute hauynge ony drede kneled downe on the erthe in prayenge god that it wolde playse hym to make the same deuylles to departe / ¶ And Incontynent they vanysshed awaye as a fume or a smoke tofore the wynde / ¶ Many other temptacions the deuylles made to hym But god delyuered hym alwaye by the deuowte prayers that he made / ¶ Therfore in concludynge he sayde to his Relygyouses / My chyldren be ye ferme and stable in the faythe in resystynge the deuylles temptacyons / And that ye ben clymynge by feruente charyte to the loue of god / The whyche in soo dooenge he shall to you be alwaye a protectour / And by his helpe ye maye gete the reame of heuen / ¶ Thus endyth the storye of the ryght holy man Pastumyen ¶ Here folowyth of saynt Onuffryen Heremyte / And begynnyth in latyn Beate memorie paphoncius et cetera / Caplm .l. SAynt Phaphunce hauynge desyre for to vysyte alle the Relygyouses that weren in the hermytages for to accomplysshe the helth of his body more lyghtly his waye bare wyth him a lityll water and brede / ¶ And whanne he hadde walked by the space of foure dayes his vytaylle faylled him / And became all confusyd and halfe deed By cause he was soo feble that he hadde neytheyr foote ne legge that myghte susteyne hym / by cause he had neyther to ete ne to drynke / ¶ But neuerthelesse he was by the helpe of god made alle hoole and guarysshed / And hadde as moche strength as though he hadde well eten and dronken / ¶ And thenne beganne to walke agayne And contynued soo foure dayes without mete and drynke ¶ The sayd foure dayes passed / by cause he felte hymselfe feble / He was constrayned to lye downe on the erthe as he hadde be deed / ¶ And he lyenge on the erthe Sodaynly sawe by hym a man in merueyllous glory ferdfull and terryble in shynynge / Worthy of prasynge in beawte / Longe of corpulence and right clere of regarde / Whom Paphunce seenge hadde grete fere but anone after he comforted hym / ¶ For in approchyng towched his lyppes and his houdes / And restored and gauf to hym strengthe / ¶ And Incontynent aroos vpp and walkyd seuentene dayes after tyll he came to a place where as god wolde brynge hym ¶ To whyche place he came and saw a man as he rested hauynge his face terryble all coueryd wyth heer lyke as a brute beest / ¶ And fro the raynes downe alowe he hadde a vestement of leues and of herbes / ¶ Whanne Paphunce sawe thys man soo deformyd / He was sore abasshyd / And not wythoute cause / ¶ For he hadde neuer seen suche lyckenesse of man ne of woman and wyst not what to doo But fledde in to a mountayne whyche was nyghe to that place And there hydde hym vnder the braunches of the trees / He was soo sore aferde / ¶ And there he beganne to syghe merueyllously ¶ Knowynge that by cause of his aege and abstynence he myghte goo noo ferther / ¶ This man seenge that Paphunce was fledde tofore him / and that he was aferde came nyghe to hym And callynge and cryenge with an hyghe
hym they sente messengers thorugh alle the â—â—untrer / Whyche soughte hym by the space of ryghtene dayes / ¶ And att lasâ—e some of theym in retornynge entred in to this lytyll house / Where they founde him on his knees prayenge to oure lorde ¶ Whanne the holy man sawe theym by hym And they beholdynge hym he sayde to theim / ¶ Wherfore be holde ye me soo / Prayse ye wyth me the name of god / Whyche hathe delyuered me from the ordure and fylth and wickydnesse of the worlde / Praye ye hym for me that he woll gyue me myghte strengthe for to bere the faytes of penaunce whyche I haue begonne / ¶ After he prayed theym that they wolde doo to him none empesshement ne lettynge And that noo more they shold come for to vysyte hym there / ¶ Thenne tooke they theyr leue and wente theyr waye / And Incontynent the holy man stopped all the holes and openynges of hys lytyll house excepte a lytyll wyndowe whyche he stopped not to the ende that by the same he myghte receyue his sustentacyon bodyly / ¶ And fro than forthou he dwellyd there longe· excercysynge hymself wyth vertuous werkes and lyuynge in clenuesse and chastyte In deuowte fastynges orisons lamentacoÌ„ns and wepynges in alle humylyte / ¶ His renoÌ„me beganne to growe and to sprede thorugh alle the countree / By whyche many deuowte persones came contynuelly and wythout cessynge there as he was As well for to haue of hym consolacyon in theyr sorowes and aduersytees as to be Instructe and taughte in doctryne example of good lyfe / ¶ Now god had gyuen to hym suche a grace that alle the wordes that he spake were soo merueyllously agreable to theym that herde hym / ¶ And lyghted theim as the rayes of the sonne lyghte the worlde / ¶ Twelue yere after his coÌ„uersacyon to god deyed his fader moder / Whyche lefte to hym golde and syluer a merueylous quantyte of the whiche he beyng aduertised sent anone Incontynent to one his famylyer frende that he sholde dystrybute it for goddis sake to pore orphanes and to other symple myserable persones To the ende that the thoughte that he myghte haue therof sholde not empesshe ne lette hym in his deuocyons orysons and contemplacyons ¶ He was aduertysed that it was soo done Wherof he was gretely comforted as he that after grete traueylle / founde hymselfe in reste and peasyble tranquyllyte / ¶ He appetyted not oonly to flee the worlde But also the goodes of fortune / ¶ And for alle erthely goodes he hadde but one robe or gowne Cours and vnthryfty clothe full of grete heer Wyth a lytyll dysshe in whyche he ete and dranke / And a lytyl pay lett wheron he laye ¶ His custome was to loue as moche the poore as the Ryche / And the vylayne / as the noble / ¶ And generally in alle the estates of the worlde he louyd asmoche one as a nother / ¶ Yf he corrected ony he dyde it not wyth rude wordes / But in grete benygnytee and swetnes ¶ Alle they that herde hym speke or so kyd on hym / Alwaye more and more they desyred to see hym / ¶ Neuer chauÌ„ged he the Rule that he hadde begonne ¶ And was continuelly by the space of fyfty yere wythoute to haue ony reporte to the worlde / ¶ Right nyghe to the cyte where he hadde be nourysshyd there was a towne where as dwellyd paynems and SarrasyÌ„s / Vnto whom had ben sente many Deakens and preestes by some souerayne Bysshops for to coÌ„uerte theym vnto the Crysten faythe / But alle they were retorned wythoute to haue done ony fruyte / ¶ For the sayde Paynyms weren obstynate in theyr ydolatrye / ¶ And it happed that the pryÌ„cypall of the sayde Bysshops beynge wyth his clerkes hadde knowlege of the holy man Abraham / ¶ And sayde to theym that it was nedefull to sende hyÌ„ in to the sayde towne For by his pacyence and holy lyfe he myghte coâ—uerte theym / ¶ The same Bysshopp thenne desyrynge to encreace oure holy faythe accompanyed wyth his clerkes came in to the lytyll house of this holy man / ¶ And whanne he was there arryâ—â—d / he salewed hym After he admonesteâ— and desyred hym to goo in to the sayde towne sayenge / ¶ O my frende I knowe that thou arte agreable to god whyche neuer refusyth to the noo thynge that thou of hym demaundest / ¶ Also thou knoweste ynough the Paynems dwellynge in this nexte towne And how we can not fynde manere to conuerte theym ¶ Wherfore it byhouyth that thou goo for to admonest and styre theym â—â—ke as god shall enseygne and 〈◊〉 the. ¶ The holy man was moche â—â—â—â—bled of the offyce that the bysshopp â—â—de gyue to hym And ansuered to hym ¶ O my lorde I pray that the thou 〈◊〉 suffre me to bywepe my wyckidnesse that I departe not from here ¶ I weâ—e well sayde the bisshopp that thou â—â—ste lefte the worlde and renounced alle erthely goodes for the blysse of heuen ¶ But neuerthelesse yf thou haddest al the vertues of the worlde and thou haue none obedyence they sholde noâ—â—â—ge prouffyte the / ¶ The holy man ansuered to hym / Alas my lorde I and 〈◊〉 other thynge but a deed bounde What thynkeste thou to be my lyfe / Wherfore sayste thou soo moche good of me / ¶ Thenne sayde to hym the bysshopp I saye the to be seruaunt of god Whyche sechest in this place where thou arte in but thy helthe oonly / But thou goo where I woll sende the. Thou shalt be cause of the helthe of Infenite persones by the grace that god shall gyue to the ¶ Ne thinke not oonly to doo thyn helthe / But also that whyche bylongyth to thy neyghbours / And thenne shalte thou haue very charyte / ¶ And by this moyen thou shalte gete more grete meryte anenste god In so moche as thou shalt bryng wyth the many soules in to heuen / ¶ The holy man herynge the bysshop And desyrynge as very obedyente to coÌ„ferme hym to his good playsure ansuered to hym that he was alle redy to go where as it sholde playse hym / ¶ Wherfor the bysshopp seenge his ryght good wyll layed his honde vppon his heed / and constytuted hym a preest / And after he broughte hym to the sayd towne ¶ And in entrynge in the whiche he sayd / O my god ryght pyteuous I byseche the. that it maye playse the to beholde my grete pouertee Freelte Imbecyllyte and the debylyte of myn ygnorauÌ„ce / ¶ Enlarge vppon me thy grace And that now thou helpe me to gloryfye thy holy name ¶ Whanne he was arryued there seenge theyr folysshe ydolatrye / He moeuyd with pyte beganne to waylle and wepe In makynge his prayer to god inlthys manere / O my god whiche arte oonly wythout synne Now I prayse the that it playse the to haue mercy on thise myserable synnars / ¶ Helas my
lamentacyons and waylynges ¶ And thenne she beganne to tere her heer and to bete her breste and her vysage Enforcynge her selfe for to slee herselfe by dyspayr ¶ And thus in lamentynge and bewaylynge she bewaylled merueylously her vyrgynyte soo loste / ¶ And ferthermore / She sayde Alas me poore synnar I haue loste alle the tyme in whyche I haue done penaunce / Alle myne orysons / Fastynges and good operacyons and werkes ben by me synnar loste ¶ O ye teeres and wâ—pynges maye not redememe / ¶ O my vncle whyche is soo moche soo perfighte What shame and dyshonoure haue I done to the / ¶ Certaynly I now fere me that the wrathe of god shall hastely falle vppon me / that am made Illusyon and mocked of the deuyll ¶ Alas what shal prouffyte me from hensforth to do penaunce / It were better for me to deye thanne to lyue / ¶ O very god What synne haue I done Alas my maker how haue I coÌ„mysed and doon agaynst the suche offence How haue I be soo blynde in my thoughte Ne how haue I be soo ygnoraunte ne had noo knowlege of that whiche I oughte to do Ne where or what shal come of me ¶ Alas where ben the goode monyâ—sons and warnynges that mine vncle sayd and warned me of whan I was vyrgyne And that I hadde purposyd to haue kepte my soule Inmaculate and vndefoylled to Ihesu Cryste my spowse / ¶ Alas I am not worthy to beholde the heuen for I am deed as towchynge the worlde / ¶ And as towarde god I dare not retorne to my wyndowe / by whiche I sprange and came oute / ¶ Alas how I that am full of Inyquyte wyckydnesse shall I be hardy ynough to speke to myne vncle / I suppose yf I retourne to my lytyll howse / Incontynent yf I come and approche and come nyghe to the wyndowe by myracle shall fyre to me that shall brenne me / ¶ After thyse pyteous by wayllynges the poore synnar oute of her wytte as deed and ferre from her helth went her way in to a nother cyte / and chauÌ„ged her habyte / And after went to an hous where as dwellyd comyn wyÌ„men ¶ Now it happed that her vncle knewe her synÌ„e / by a reuelacyon whyche was suche / ¶ In his slepe he dremyd that he saw a dragon merueylous grete and so ferâ—ful that he durste not beholde it / The whiche in syflynge enforcyd him to approche come nyghe his chambre or lytyll hous / And hym semyd ferthermore that in comynge nyghe the same place the same dragon fouÌ„de a doune the whyche he deuowred / And after he had deuowred it he retornyd thither fro wheÌ„â— be came ¶ And whan the holy man Abraham a woke He beganne to wepe estemynge that the deuyl wolde sette scysme dyuysion in the chirche or that many crysten men sholde be torned fro the holy fayth ¶ And so the good holy man wyste not what to doo sauf to praye to god that it myghte playse hym to lete hym haue knowlege what the sayd vysyon betokened ¶ And two dayes after he had a nother dreme lyke / And hym semyd whanne the sayde dragon came nyghe to his house he putt his heed vnder his fete was deuyded in two partyes / ¶ After the whyche vysion the holy man sawe wythin the bely of the sayd dragon the sayde doune whyche he had deuoured And him semyd that the douue was alyue / And thenne Incontinent the holy man put his honde in the sayde bely / And drewe oute the doune a lyue / ¶ ThenÌ„e he a woke after that / wenynge to haue founde his nyece Marye in her Oratorye Came smytynge atte her wyndowe and called her two or thre tymes ¶ And by cause that syth ii dayes he had not herde her in her oratory and prayers He ymagyned and bileued that the vysyon was of his nyece Wherfore he fell downe to the grounde in makynge merueyllous lamentacyons and wayllynges and sayd ¶ Alas what is now happened to me / My doughter is now prysoner in the pryson of the deuyll / O cursyd wulfe rauysshynge Thou haste rauysshed my shepe / O sauyour of all the worlde gyue to me a gyfte That is that my shepe maye come agayne in to her folde tofore er I deye / To the ende that in perpetuell ennoye I finysshe and ende not myn olde aege / ¶ My god dyspyse not my prayer But hastely goode lorde enlarge vpon me thy grace to th ende that she maye be deliuered from the golette of the dragon ¶ The poore doughter was two yere liuynge in lubrycyte and lecherye bounden with the boundes of the deuyll and englotted in his bely / ¶ Durynge the whyche two yere the holy man Abraham prayed contynuelly to god That it playsed hym to reduce and bryng her agayne to penaunce / ¶ I thyse two yeres the holy man sende a famylyer freÌ„de of his for to serche and seche in what place she myghte be The whiche wente and fonde her and brought worde where she was and had seen her in an open house wyth comyn wymmen / ¶ The holy man anone dyde doo opene his house and wente oute of it secretely / To the ende that he sholde not be knowen he toke the habyte of a seculer man / And dyde on a grete hode and mufflyd his vysage by cause he wolde not be knowen / ¶ Now lete vs consydre the comparyson and simylytude of the fyrste Abraham And of the seconde of whom this presente hystorye makyth mencyon / ¶ The fyrste wente in to the batayle agaynste foure kynges / And rescowed and brought home his neuewe Loth Whyche was prysonner / ¶ The seconde wente also to bataylle agaynste the deuyll For to redeme his nyece whyche was prysonner and kepte and holden in thraldom and captyâ—â—te of synne to whyche she was submysyd and gyuen / ¶ For to retorne thenne to this present hystorye the holy man Abraham thus habilled and arayed as sayd is lepe vpon an horse that he had borowed for to make this vyage And so longe rode by his Iourneyes that he arryued in the house where as his nyece was And he beynge comen thider by cause he sawe her not amonge thother yonge wyÌ„men whiche were there demaunded of the hooste yf there wythin were ony yonge woman namyd Marye / ¶ The whiche hooste wenynge that the holy man were come for to commyse and perfourme his lecherye Ansuerd to hym that there with in was suche one Whyche he sayd was as fayre as one myghte see / Gentyll honeste of body / And that she hadde in her body none deformyte / ¶ The whyche wordes herynge the holy man was merueylously Ioyous / And prayed him that she myghte come forth For he wolde ete and drynke wyth her ¶ Incontynent the hoost brought her tofore her vncle prowdely and worldely arayed cladde As comynly ben thyse vnthryfty comyn wymmen / ¶ The holy
one namyd Pyceryen bysshopp of the Cenâ—â—ryens / And gaaf hym counseyle that he sholde doo buylde a chirche in the same place / where as thyes Pastours or Shepherdes dwellyd / to the ende that they sholde be for this cause more enclined and deuowte to praye god / And to receyue there theyr ryghtes and sacramentes of the chyrche / And thus made the bysshopp to be doon / ¶ But by cause that there were noo clerkes not yet that dyde the seruyce of the chyrche / He and some of his Relygyouses came to vysyte theim / And shewed theym some hystoryes of the holy scrypture / ¶ And by this he excyted and mouyd the good persones to deuocyon Soo that by hys doctryne many were conuerted to the fayth And his charyte was spradde aswell vpon the mysbyleuyd peple as vppon the Crysten folke / ¶ For whan he sawe ony men or wymmen that were Heretykes or oute of the true byleue He wept / Prayenge god for theym that he wolde torne theym / ¶ Of the coÌ„dempnacoÌ„n of some scryptures of Origenes / The chapytre begynnyng ¶ Per idem tempus et cetera Caplm lxxviii THe same tyme Achanase that perfight was and replenisshed of all vertues was bysshop of Alexandrye / The whyche as he vysyted the chyrches / prechynge the Crysten faythe / Came to the place where saynt Pachomyen was / ¶ Whyche knowynge of his comynge acompanyed of alle his religiouses / Came wyth grete gladnesse agaynst the sayd Achanase syngynge Ympnes and orysons / And was receyued of hym and of his Relygyouses ryght gladly / ¶ But the good holy fader Pachomyen shewed not hymself to hym / But bydde hym amonge hys Relygyouses / By cause that the bysshopp of the Centiryens of whom iâ— spoken aboue had sayd moche good of hym vnto saynt Athanase whiche had be strongly persecuted of the Heretykes Arryens / ¶ And by cause the sayd holy man Pachomyen was very deuowte a good Crysten man Also that he knewe well the persecucyons that the sayd Athanase hadd suffred by the Arryens This Pachomyen whyche wyth alle his myghte bare and mayntened the true Crysten folke / Approuyd strongly the condycyons and holy lyuynge of saynt Athanase / And hertly leuyd hym / And hadde the obstynate Heretykes in fore grete Indygnacyon / And pryncypally Orygenes that was chaced oute of the chyrche by Eraclius bysshopp of Alexandrye / ¶ Orygenes by his false doctryne hadd gyuen many vntrueful techynges contrary to the holy scrypture / ¶ For lyke as they that woll gyue poyson to drinke putt hony amonge it for to haue awaye the euyll taast and the bytternesse therof from the tonge / to the ende that it maye be dronke more lyghtly / ¶ Soo dyde the sayd Orygenes the whyche sayde and broughte forthe fayre and honeste proposicyons But he corrupted theym by false exposycyons that was cause of the losse of moche Crysten peple / ¶ Wherfore the holy man Pachomyen deffended not only to his Relygyouses that they sholde not rede in none of this Orygenes bokes / But also he wolde that yf some other dyde rede theym they sholde not here theym by noo meanes What someuer sentence it were / ¶ One tyme amonge his bokes he founde of the sayd Orygenes volumes / Whyche Incontynent he dyde caste in to a water sayenge / Yf it were not by cause that the name of god is wrytt in the bokes of Orygenes I shold brenÌ„e theym all / ¶ By this apperyth the charyte whyche he hadd to the holy byleue and faythe of Crystendom / ¶ WhanÌ„e some Religyous blamyd his felawe he wolde not here hym / But fledde from hym as moche as he cowde / Consyderynge the worde of the Psalmyste sayenge / I shall persecute hym that shall bakbyte his euyn crysten / ¶ And he sayd that a good persone shold neuer speke none euyll worde ¶ And to this purpoos he alledged many historyes Princypally of one Machayre whiche in blamynge Moyses was Incontynente punysshed by the honde of god / ¶ Of the monastery that saynt Pachomien dide buylde for his suster and beginnyth in latyn ¶ Comperit igitur Caplm lxxix THe suster germayne of the sayde holy man Pachomyen desyrynge to see hym wente to his monastery / Wenynge to her that he as gladde of her comynge sholde receyue and treate her humaynly / But he sent worde to her by the Porter / that he was hoole and sounde / But he wolde not see her wyth his bodily eyen / And more ouer that yf she wolde forsake the worlde and serue god / He shold doo buylde a howse for to lodge her wher she sholde doo penaunce / And that he dowted not yf she wolde begyn to lyue there a holy lyffe Reguler that many other wymmen sholde yelde theymselfe to serue god wyth her / ¶ And she heringe thyse wordes from her brother She was replenysshed att herte wyth so grete compunccyon and suche contrycyon that she promysed to serue god alle her lyfe / ¶ Wherfore the holy man seenge that she was all redy torned gaue graces thaÌ„kynges to our lord ¶ And after he commaunded his brethern that they sholde make her a chapell ferre ynoughe from his monastery / ¶ So it happed soone after by the grace of god that from al prouynces countrees came wymmen that yelded theymself to Religyon with the sayd syster of saynt Pachomyen The whyche he admonested to resyste alwayes ayenst the fleshly temptacyons ¶ And in lyke wyse after the cunnynge that god had yeue hyÌ„ He foreyd him to excyte theym to vertues good maners / Prayenge god that it wolde playse hym to preserue theym in his grace / ¶ More ouer he gaaf to theym suche and lyke rules as his Relygyouses dyde kepe / Sauf that they sholde not were noo gretes fellis / And yf ony Relygyous had a syster or some other kynne whyche she wolde vysyte / She sholde not goo there but that she toke wyth her one of the eldeste of the Relygyon / ¶ And they oughte not to speke togyder / but in the presence of the Abbesse or elles of some of theldest Relygyouses / ¶ Nor she sholde not bere ne gyue noo thynge oute of theyr howses ¶ For the Religyouses aswell the men as the wymmen oughte not fro that tyme to haue noo thynge of theyr owne ¶ And yf by aduenture they sholde of necessytee make some reparacoÌ„ns they chose the moost perfyghte and of moost honeste conuersacyon for to see that that was of nede sholde be doo / But they ete not dranke wyth the other / ¶ And whan by the wyll of god some Nonne derparted from lyfe to dethe / Her felowes broughte her vnto the ryuage of a ryuer that parted the two monasteries And thenne came the monkes agaynste theym there / whyche toke the corps of the Nonne for to be buryed wythin theyr chyrche / And the wymmen of the Relygyon retorned to theyr abbaye / ¶ Of the
trauers letted theym soo that they cowde not depart fro the botomÌ„ of the sayd valey / Some forcyd theim to clymÌ„e vp but anone they fell doune ayen to the lowest parte of the valeye / Some other wepte byneth / And some came vpp the whiche gaue thankes to god of the peryll that they were passyd / ¶ And therfore the holy man thought that there shold be some relygiouses blynde / that whiche sholde not knowe theyr astate / The other sholde bere the habyte of relygyon but they sholde not doo the werkes that longe therto· namly they that sholde haue the rule ouer theym sholde not knowe theimself / Wherof shold folowe grete scismes diuysions in the chyrche / ¶ ThenÌ„ saynt Pachomyen full sory in grete heuynesse made his callyng vnto god / saeng O my god almyghty yf thise thinges happe to come soo / Why hast thou grauÌ„ted that soo many torments shold be edefied done / ¶ Alas yf the prelates ben euyll what shall the relygiouses doo that shall be in theyr gouernaunce / Truely whan a blyÌ„de ledith the other they fall in the pitte bothe atones ¶ Alas that I am well vnhappy I haue well laboured in vayn / My god alas remeÌ„bre the of the labours that I haue take in buildyÌ„ge soo many monasteries to thonour reuerence of thy holy faythe / ¶ Thou knowest that syth the tyme that I receyuyd thabite of relygyon I haue meked me afore the· ¶ And sayeng thises wordes he herde a voys that sayd to hym / Pachomyen prayse not thiself for thou hast nede of the grace of god not onely thiself but also al his creatures / Anone he caste hymselfe to the grouÌ„de / and made to god this requeste / ¶ O mi god almyghty I beseche the that thy mede fulnesse come downe now vpon me to th eÌ„de that I liue distourne not away fro me thy medefull face / For thy trouthe mercy hath euer receyued me mekely / I knowe syre that all thynges resen fall but yf they be holde vp with thyn ayde defence / ¶ And in sayeng this oryson descended vpon him a multytude of angels amonge whom was a chylde crowned with thornes / seeng this vysion / The holy man Pachomyen was lyft vp by the sayd angels well hyghe fro the grouÌ„de in to thayre / the sayd to hym / Pachomyen by cause that thou hast axed the medfulnesse of god mekely thou shalt haue it euyn now / Beholde the very redemer Ihesu cryst· that hath be sent in to this world crucifyed for the sauacyon of mankynde / berynge in his heed a crowne of thornes / ¶ ThenÌ„ sayd the holy man o my god haue I not crucyfyed the / And god swetely answerde to him / Naye not thyself but thy parentes Neuertheles comfort thiself / For thy posterytee shall abyde vnto th ende of the worlde / All they that after the shall come soo that they lyue in deuowte abstynence shall be delyuerde of the paynes of helle / And all they that folowe the shall folowe herafter shal shyne in the lyghte euerlastyng / And the sayd our lorde ascended agayn to heuen compassed wyth soo grete a bryghtnesse that noo tonge mighte telle / ¶ An exhortacoÌ„n for to wythstonde the deuyll / Begynnyth in latyn ¶ TuÌ„c pachomius c. Caplm lxxxxvii THe holy fader after this gadred his bredern and made togyder a seruyse well solempne / ¶ And after the endynge of the same they came all abowte hym for to here his holy prechynge / ¶ Soo he exhorted them for to batayle wyth all theyr strengthe vertues ayenst the deuyll soo courageously that they sholde not be ouercome Shewynge to theym that they that duringe theyr lyfe had be slouthfull neclygent sholde neuer haue but wepynge wayllynges / ¶ After he sayd to theym My chyldren lete vs not lese our dayes in vayne but in eschewyng the dangeroê° vice of ydlenesse lete vs labour seke vertues for to saue our soules / I telle you plainly thise wordes / For yf ye knewe the rewardes that ye shall haue in heuen yf ye ouercome the deuill / And to the contrary the grete tormentes that ye shall suffre in helle if ye be ouercome of him ye sholde neuer cease nother daye ne nyghte but forge armours· speres sheeldes / And euer ye sholde be armyd dysposyd to goo to the felde of bataylle ayenst hym / ¶ Torne your dayes thenÌ„e better better meke yourself to th ende that whan your soules shall depart fro the body that thennâ—ye haue noo cause to accuse it / ¶ What profyteth to a maÌ„ to reyse hyÌ„self by vaynglory syth that we ben but asshes / ¶ Alas why are we proude / I wold fayne wyte syth that we be but erthe asshes / fro whens may comÌ„ our pryde / ¶ Wepe we my bredern wepe we our grete synnes durynge the tyme that we haue space tyme to doo soo / ¶ Alas lete vs consydre the short tyme that we haue here to abyde / And kepe ourself besily in wythstondyng the teÌ„ptacoÌ„ns of the deuill in suche wyse that we haue the Ioye whiche is wythout ende / ¶ The deuyll watchyth contynuelly for to take vs by stelth / Watche we theÌ„ne lyke as he dooth / to the ende that he sleeth vs not by treyson / ¶ Lete vs all â—â—ye haue afore our â—yen our last day whiche is the deth we shall neuer do synÌ„e / ¶ For who shall thynke well vpoÌ„ thise thynges he shall haue the hert meke the thought pure clene And soo shall dispyse pryde vaynglory HauyÌ„ge awaye from his thoughte the curyosytee of the erthly thynges that are perysshyng corruptyble / ¶ Chastyse we thenÌ„e our flesshe by fastynges abstynences / And constrayne our sensualyte to obeye in all thynges to reason in restreynynge our inordynat wylles in suche maner that we ben not enclyned ne redy to doo euyll but besy to lyue vertuosly / wythout to trespace one onÌ„ly mynute / but that it be done to the seruyce of god To th ende that after the shorte paynes wretchydnesse of this worlde we maye haue the Ioyes vnspekable / To that whyche for to come lete vs put our eyen to teeres wayllynges in watchyng euer more in good werkes / ¶ For yf we doo otherwyse / certaynly we shall haue paynes wythout noÌ„bre / ¶ But we woll thynke well to it we shall be the teÌ„ple euerlastyng of god in vs shall dwell the holy ghoste wherby the deuyll shall not gyue vs so many assawtes / but that we shall be more stronger than he / For we shall haue good defence that is the kyÌ„ges of kynges the whyche suffreth neuer the Iuste to perysshe / ¶ After that he had coÌ„forted his relygiouses he made a lytyll oryson / prayeng god that he wolde conferme theym in peas kepe theim in his worthi grace / And
the seruauntes of our lorde to all theim that ben lyuinge vnder our pouertee / that by the suffrauÌ„ce of god are submytted to our rule gouernauÌ„ce / Herke after the sayeng of saynt Poule in his pystle / ¶ Obeye to your prelates yelde yourself subgettes to theym / For certaynly they wake as that they muste yelde acounte of your soules / ¶ My lytylnes byleuyth that yf ye obeye to the wordes of god / ye shall haue your petycyons not onÌ„ly of men but of god ¶ And bi cause I know this that I wryte to you to be trouthe / I praye you of your charite that ye doo noo thyng contrary to the coÌ„mauÌ„dements that I haue done to you but be obeyssaunt / ¶ It is writen in his holy scripture that god hath in hate the grete balauÌ„ce and the lytyl / ¶ After this my warnyng yf ony goo ayenst my biddynge touchyng the weighte the mesure / Wyte he that al his godes shall be dealyd to the pore ¶ How he corrected theym that receyuyd ony yeftes begynÌ„ith in latyn ¶ RelatuÌ„ est autem / Caplm · C.ix. IT was shewed to the sayd saynt IohnÌ„ that some bought men after solde theym ayen to an hyer pryce than they had bought them Soo made theym al to be assembled without grete blame or rebuke shewed theym that it was euyll done / syth toke theym more moneye than they had bestowed in this marchauÌ„dyse And charged theym that they shold not doo in tyme comyÌ„g suche dedes / after this some left theyr takyng of theyr pryce so grete that they were wont to take aboue the comyn taxe of theyr marchauÌ„dyses / ¶ How he gaaf lycence leue to them that wold comÌ„ to hym begynnyth in latyn ¶ DisceÌ„s vero c. Caplm C.x. Saynt IohnÌ„ the Almoner knowyng that some of his subgettes suffred many wronges of theyr enmyes / were aferde to come to hym for to coÌ„playne by cause of his seruauÌ„tes that coÌ„tynuelly assysted hym / ¶ He for the same cause dyde make a chayre iâ— benches byfore the chyrche vpon the whyche the Wenesdaye the Frydaye in comynge fro the sayd chyrche he restyd hym deuysed wyth some notable persones other while he helde the holy gospels in his hondes / And there were certayn his deputes to whom he gaf power leue to stonde nyghe hym / the whiche had the charge to kepe the rightes of the chyrche ¶ And yf ony body came to complayne / they shewed it to the said saynt IohnÌ„ / the whiche coÌ„mauÌ„ded the chapâ—tre sholde be callyd assembled for to purueye therto / And they thê° asseÌ„blyd he proposyd vnto theym sayenge ¶ Yf we men haue lyght dedes to the onÌ„ly god that is aboue all nature for to make to hyÌ„ our requestes whan we pray hym deuoutly we gete that we aske In lyke wyse we ought to doo to theim that come to vs. bryÌ„gyng in our mynde the worde of god sayeng / ¶ Wyth suche a mesure as ye mesure ye shall be mesured / also in recordyng the sayeng of the prophete that shewyth to vs / That lyke as we doo we shall be done vnto / For thise causes the holy bisshop made that thei came to hyÌ„ to be spedd of theyr matere wtout ony delay ¶ And one tyme emoÌ„ge other he was one daye tyll .v. of the clocke beynge in the same place where he was wont to sytt herynge the questions of his peple / And by cause no body came there the daye that wold require of hym ony thyng he departed retorned in his house wepyÌ„g / ¶ So were his folke gretly merueylled wherof came this wayllyÌ„ge none durste axe hyÌ„ the cause why but to a holy man namyd Sophronyen that herof famylyerly axyd hyÌ„ The holy man answerd that he was â—â—â—che of this that none was come speke with him wherby he had spende the day wtout to haue done ony mercyfull dede / ¶ Now it is trouth as it is sayd about that the cause whiâ—he helde hyÌ„ in the open place was by cause he sholde acorde al maner folke / that in manere of processe or otherwise had ony discorde or euyl wylthe one ayenst thother / the whiche oft tymes he acorded peasyd atte his owne propre costes / ¶ Sophronyen thenÌ„e sayd to hym certaynly my lord thou art wel happi / For the subgets that thou hast in thâ— gouernauÌ„ce are by thy meanes soo prasyble soo kynde that they haue noo cause to haue ony hate or rancour theâ—e ayenst thother by this he saw knew that this was the cause that none was came to hym that daye / Wherof he gaue thenÌ„e 〈◊〉 â—â—ynges to our lorde / at this example ¶ We rede that Constanciê° whiche was Emperour sone of Heracle had this custome maner at Rome in peasynge of the Romayns / ¶ How the holy bsshop receyued mekely the folke that were fled for to schewe the madnesse of theim of Percy beginÌ„ith ¶ Cuâ—us sancti / Caplm C.xi. HAngynge the tyme that the holy bysshop Patryarke IohnÌ„ the Almoner being in Alexandrie they of Percy had werre ayenst the Syrryens in the reame of Syrrye the whiche reame the subgettes of the same / â—er brought to thraldom· by the Percyâ—on / ¶ Wherfore many of the sayd Sirâ—â—â—ns / the bare full vnpacyently that they were brought in bondage· came yelded the ymself in the subieccoÌ„n of the sayde Patryarke / The whiche he receyued mekely swetly / in comfortyng theim not as in tharldom fleers but as his bredern / They that were hurt sike he made to be heelyd / after suffred theym goo where as they semyd good ¶ Some of his seruauÌ„tes the grutchyd the grete almesses that were done out of his howse reported shewed to the holy Patryarke how some Sirryens clothyd with clothe of golde of other precyous raymeÌ„tes were come to his house to fetche an almesse / ¶ But not wythstondynge that he was swete of vysage of speche yet he lokyd vpon theym as wroth sayeng ¶ Knowe ye not wel the god hathe coÌ„mauÌ„ded / that men shall gyue to all theym that shall aske vs / And by cause that the goodes that I yeue be not min but they ben goddis / therfore I woll in gyuyng theim kepe his coÌ„mauÌ„dement ¶ Yf ye thynke that the almesse mynisshe in gyuyng theym to theym that ben rychely clothed ye haue lytyll faith / I bileue that yf all the worlde were beggers that they came to Alexandrye that the godes of the chyrche sholde not mynysshe therfore / And by this he comforted hys seruauÌ„tes / And the poore for this cause grutchyd noysed ayenst the other / ¶ Of the shappe of a woman that apered to saynt IohnÌ„ the Almoner Patryarke of Alexandrye / begynnyth in latyn ¶ CuÌ„que illis c. Caplm C.xii. THe sayd saynt
they durste not by cause that one of theyr felowes whiche had spoken of him had be Incontynent tormented of the deuyll / Wherfore they durste neuer be soo bolde to speke therof / ¶ The sayd corps was after honestly brought to sepulcre / ¶ And he that was vexed of the deuyll abydynge vpon the graue / was by the grace of god Incontynent hoole souÌ„de / And forsakyÌ„ge the worlde putt hyÌ„self religyous vnder thabbot Seridoiâ—e desyred that the lytyll hous that the abbot Vytall had in his life shold be delyuerde vnto hyÌ„ / ¶ The holy Patryarke after al thyÌ„ges by him well consydred thanked our lorde god of that he had not synÌ„ed ayeÌ„st the sayd abbot / by cause he byleuyd not lyÈtly theym that accused hyÌ„ of lecherye / ¶ Many sekynge the sayd holy abbot Vitall recouerde helth were heled of dyuers sykenesses / ¶ Of a begger whiche in askyÌ„g an almeses of the sayd Patriarke spake grete wordes ayenst hyÌ„ / And begynÌ„yth in latyn ¶ Precipiens / Caplm C.xli. A Beggar for to aske an almese came to the holy Patryarke that made to be gyuen vnto hym x. peces of money But this beggar not content began to speke euyll ayenst hyÌ„ spekyÌ„ge of hym in his presence dyuerse wroÌ„ges that whiche his seruauÌ„tes myght not endure· but wold haue corrected hyÌ„ But the Patriarke wold not suffre theym doo so / but sayd to his seruauÌ„tes offycers / My bredern leue the poore man It is all redy .lx. yere paste that dayely thrugh my neclygences otherwyse I haue done many offences to my god· that whyche he playeth mekely in yeuynge vnto me example / And for the loue of hyÌ„ I ought well to endure a wrong yf it be done to me / ¶ After he coÌ„mauÌ„ded the men shold open the purs to the poore where the money was put that shold be yeue for goddis sake for to take therof asmoche as he wolde / ¶ Of the questyons that the holy Patryarke made vnto the poore peple Begynnyng in latin ¶ Si vero ca. / C.xlii. OFte tymes the holy Patryarke knowyÌ„g the some of his subgettes were grete almesse gyuers / sent for theym that they shold come vnto hyÌ„ / And aft he questyoned theym how they dyde theyr almesses other naturelly or by constraynt / Some by syÌ„plenes answerde noo thynge / the other gaaf therof certayn reasons causes / Amonge whyche one of theym that was a ChauÌ„ger sayd vnto him suche wordes Certaynly my lorde I dyde neuer noo goode but neuertheles that whiche I haue yeue to the poore / that was for to folowe that / In time past I haue be cruel without mercy / Wherfore I haue had many hurtes / Soo came to me ones in mynde that yf I wexed an almes gyuer god sholde neuer leue me vnpuruâ—yed / Wherfor I hadd of custome that I gaaf euery daye v. pens of syluer / But the deuyll teÌ„pted me put in my entendement that the vpens that I gaaf were suffisauÌ„t for to nourysshe my meyne / by his temptynge I left to yeue for goddis sake / After warde retornyng to myself / I coÌ„mauÌ„ded to my sone that he shold robbe me eche daye v. pens that he shold yeue theym for goddis sake / My sone hath euer done the that I haue coÌ„maunded hyÌ„ ouer this whan he perceyued the godes in my house to be encreased / He dyde encrease my almesse / And in lyke wyse consydering sayd to my sone / My childe I knowe that the .v. pens that the hast gyuen for goddis sake hath profyten me moche / So woll I that thou yeue .x. pens frohens forthe / He answerde to me smylynge / My fader pray for my theftes certaynly yf I had not be a theyf / we myghte well haue deyed for huÌ„gre / yf ony theyf were euer Iust I haue be so / ¶ The holy patryarke knowyng of this thyng / gloryfyed god of the wysdom of this childe / ¶ Of a prynce the hated a nother prynce / begynÌ„yth ¶ MaliciaÌ„ / ca. C.xliii SOmtyme was grete hate bytwene .ii. pryÌ„ces· wherof thoâ—e was by the holy Patryarke many tymes moeuyd to haue agreed with the other but therto he wold neuer acorde / ¶ On a tyme the sayd Patryarke called to hyÌ„ the sayd obstynat prince brought hym in to his oratory wyth a seruauÌ„t of his / ther in theyr presence he songe masse / In sayeng that whiche after the consecracoÌ„n eleuacoÌ„n of the precyoê° body of our lorde where the Pater nost behouyth to be sayd they .iii. sayde togider vnto thise wordes Et dimitte 〈◊〉 his debita â—raÌ„ sicut et nos dimittâ—â—â— debitoribusâ—ris In whiche wordes â—e pray to god our creatour that it wâ—ll playse hyÌ„ to foryeue our defautes like as we foryeue those that ben done ayeÌ„st vs / And afore that they began the sayd clause the sayd Patryarke cessed his speche coÌ„mauÌ„ded his seruauÌ„t to kepe his tonge styll So ended the prince al alone the same clause / the Patryarke after sayd to hyÌ„ Auyse see my broder how thou spekest ferfully to god ayenst thyself In prayenge hyÌ„ that he pardon that as thou pardonÌ„est the other netheles thou doost therof noo thynge / the prynce thenÌ„e meked hymself promysed to the sayd holy Patryarke that he shold do as he wold haue hyÌ„ to doo / ¶ How the holy Patryarke constrayned by his humylyte the proude to be meke / begynÌ„yth in ¶ Suê‘buÌ„ auteÌ„ ca· C.xliiii YF the holy Patryarke knewe in the cyte ony that was proude / He neuer rebuked hyÌ„ opeÌ„ly but in one secrete place or in his house for to doo so he drew hyÌ„self nie him / layed to hym the mekenes of IhuÌ„ cryst / to hyÌ„ shewing how he that was god had take our maÌ„kynde / soÌ„tyme sayd / I merueyle me / syth that my god hath be so meke how man may reyse hiÌ„self other for the godes of fortune or whaÌ„ he is fayrer than other beÌ„ / or whaÌ„ he hath lordshyp ouer some other / Alas we herke not after IhuÌ„ cryste the sayth / My chyldern lerne of me for I am meke / by this ye shal doo the wee le of your soules / We in lyke wyse thyÌ„ke not vpon the mekenesse of sayntes / how they helde themself to be erthe asshes wormes of the erth / pryncipally how Ysayas sayd of hyÌ„selfe / Why am I not meke Haue not I be made of the fylthe wherof the tyles ben made / All the playsure of this world passyth to an ende as the floure or herbe that fro the mornynge to the euen is torned in haye ¶ WhaÌ„ the Patriarke sayd suche wordes / they that felt themself â—ike of the greuoê° euyll of pryde / toke the wordes for theim corrected theimself / ¶ A sermon that the holy Patriarke made to yeue emsaÌ„ple of mekenes begynnyth ¶ Et hec Caplm ·
cure of the thynges that were necessary to be had for the refeccoÌ„n of the bâ—â—derâ— / In sayeng psalmes and orysons she kepte soueraynly a good order / And to all the houres of the seruyce of god aswell by nyghte as by daye soo curyously contynued that she thoughte alle tyme to be loste that was passed wythout graces and praysynges to be gyuen vnto god / ¶ In this holynesse of lyfe she contynued in suche wise / and soo longe That our lorde graunted vnto her soo grete habundance of graces That she chacyd out of menÌ„es bodyes the deuels that tormented theym / Made the blynde to see many other grete myracles she dyde / ¶ AmoÌ„ge the whiche a lady of the londe of AlexaÌ„drie named Melance / amonge other was of grete power heâ— he grete reporte that euery man made of the merueyloê° vertues of the holy virgin Eugene whiche was take as a riÈt holy man came to her for to be holpen heled of a grete feuer that a yere duryÌ„ge more had vexed her body right sore· The whyche Eugene enoynted wyth an oyle anone this woman cast out of her body the corrupt humours that caused wythin her the feuer all hoole so side weÌ„te home ayen to her place that was not ferre Where she toke the grete goblets fylled theym wyth money whyche she sente vnto saynt Eugene / The whyche dispysyng the sayd presents sente theym vnto her ayen forthwyth / Letyng her wyte that of godes she had ouer moche / Wherfor she couÌ„seyled her that she shold deale depart to the poore nedy nedfull the godes presents that she had sent to her / ¶ The sayd MelaÌ„ce heryng thyse wordes was gretly wrothe came toward saynt Eugene / prayeng her that she wolde take receyue agreatly her presents promysyng to gyue her other more grete· but in efect she loste her tyme. For saynt Eugene wold not take theim / This notwythstoÌ„ding Melance left not but she come toward the good Eugene / not knowyng by ony wyse that she was a woman / the beaute of her disceyued the sayd Melance the whyche trowynge that she had be a man and that by hyÌ„ she was heelyd / Not by his holynes but by some crafte or cunnynge of physik lete herself fall by the temptynge of the deuyll in to the synne of flesshly desyre / And thynkynge that the sayd Eugene had refusyd the sayd presents for couetyse to haue had gretter offred other vnto her in more grete habundance than she had tofore / Promysynge to gyue hym yet more of theym asmoche as he wolde aske / ¶ And where she contynued prayenge hym that his playsure were to resceyue the sayde presents / And sawe they were refusyd And to her sente agayne by the goode Eugene / She ranne in to a gretter hete than she was afore / ¶ And atte thys cause feynyng to be syke soo greuously that she sholde not haue moeuyd herselfe out of her bedde / Made saynt Eugene to be prayed that she sholde come and vysyte her And she dyde soo / And beyng there byfore the bedde of Melance that had made the folke to goo oute of her chambre that were there feynynge to declare vnto her some secretes in confessyon as well of her conscyence as of her sikenesse Sayd vnto Eugene suche wordes / ¶ My lorde and my frende Eugene pardonne yf it playse you yf I ouer famylyerly do declare my pouertee vnto you / For I am therto constrayned by the grete sore whyche opressyth me / ¶ Certaynly my lorde the grete and excessyue loue whyche I haue coÌ„ceyued towarde your gracious yongthe The right excellent beaute of the whyche dame Nature hath soo gretly largely endowed you tormentith my pore herte soo sharply that it ne were to me possible neuer to haue Ioye ne playsure in this worlde But yf it come to me of you / ¶ Soo yelde I myself and al my goodes to you alone makynge ordeynynge your goodly persone lorde maister ouer my body and of al my godes ¶ Alas my lord what playsure doo ye take totorment thus greuousli your body by folysshe and vayne abstynences / I haue Infynyte possessions and ryches I haue grete tresours of gold of syluer / I am enhauÌ„sed in auctoryte of noblesse of my kinÌ„e / and this yere I haue loste my childern that are deceased oute of this world / Alas I pray you succede to my goodes in stede of theym / be alone mayster lorde not oonly of me but also of all my possessions godes The deuoute Eugene hering thise fowle wordes dyshoneste exhortacoÌ„ns / answerde to her in this manere / O womaÌ„ daÌ„pned certaynly / thy name beryth truwitnesse of an horrible cursidnes treison / Truely thou hast made redy in the a grete place for the deuyll / DaÌ„pnable disceyuer leue that wyll that thou haste to torne the seruauÌ„tes of god / I woll well that thou knowe that we relygiouses haue wel vsed to lyue otherwise / ¶ The daÌ„pned spyrytes that are to the lyke / take thy godes and not we that haue no appetyte to them nor woll not haue theym / For it is vnto vs a pleysauÌ„t thing to begge our brede wyth our lord IhuÌ„ Cryst / He is habuÌ„dantly ryche that is wyth hym ¶ O Melance the wyll of me is that suche folysshe concupysceÌ„ces depart from the Truely thâ—happynesse that hath assaylled the shall not be cause of thy heele but of dampnacoÌ„n / Thou that art made the house dwellynge of the venymouse dragon shedest spredest a wonderfull venym / But by the callynge of the name of god and by the helpe of hys mercifulnes we haue eschewed and yet we shall eschewe thinfeccoÌ„n of thin abhomynable and horryble poysons / ¶ Thenne this cursyd and wretchyd woman / Impacyent of the repreyffe the the good Eugene had sayd to her / at this cause al enswollen with bytter dâ—Ì„playsure / Knowynge also that she had thus loste her honoure / And doubtynge that Eugene sholde telle her synne for to quenche her feere purposyd herselfe to complayne of hym afore the Iustyce ¶ Wherfore Incontynent she went afore the grete Prouoste of Alexandrye shewed to him in a gret wodnesse and hertly dysplaysure / How for to haue founde the meanes to be holpen of a sykenesse that haue kept her longe she had suffred a yonge relygyous of the Relygyon Crysten that called himself a gode Leche to come towarde her for to hele her / But this Relygyouse replenysshyd wyth treyson Wenynge that she hadde be suche as they were of whom he had taken of a custome his foule delectacyons hadd dare all shame layed asyde speke vnto her shamefull and dishoneste wordes for to haue moeued her vnto his abhomynable wyll / and that worse was / Yf she hadde not callyd her woman abowte her / He sholde haue rauysshyd her and defoyled / ¶ Requyrynge this Melance to
of the worlde / he answerde that it was the same that was vpon the worlde / The wordes of the worlde are swete notwithstondyng that it shall be full bytter to hym that shall lyue in it vyciously / But who that wol be in the worlde maye not obeye his sensualytee serue god / By cause that none shall not serue well two lordes And that the naturell manly desyres are contrary to the saluacoÌ„n of our soules / And therfore my mayster coÌ„maunder sayde saynt Basylle / I praye the lete vs quycken our spirytes that ben deed by syÌ„nes / And for to purchace lyfe euerlastyÌ„ge lete vs folowe the techynges of thapostles of the souerayn god Redemer of all the worlde / ¶ Yf we woll put payne to obeye hym notwythstondynge that we ben alle redy stryken in aege Yet shall we haue asmoche of rewarde by medyacoÌ„n of his grace as they that haue be in his seruyce from the tyme of theyr yongthe / ¶ For it is wryten in the gospell that as grete a rewarde had he that came at the hour of Sexte as he the was comÌ„ at the hour of Prime / The doctour Eubole herynge the warnynges of his dyscyple Basylle began to saye / ¶ O Basylle true shewer expownar of that faythe of Criste thrugh the. I byleue in one god almyghty In tyme past that I knewe I dyde shewe the. now alle that is myne I gyue vnto the. putt in thy possessoÌ„n purposyng to lede wyth the thou remenauÌ„te of my lyfe / yf it playse to my god IhuÌ„ Cryst I shall receyue wtin shorte tyme the holy sacramente of baptym / Saynt Basylle answerde O my mayster blessyd be oure god that hath mekely lyghtned the in giuynge to the wyll courage to forsake leue the foule errours wherin thou were ouerthrowen thrugh the vayn worldly science· and that now thou knowest his mercy ¶ Syth that thou woll be wyth me· I shall teche the how we shal lyue in getynge our wee le in delyueryng ourself from the lettyÌ„ges of this wretched world / ¶ Fyrst we shall selle all that we haue shall gyue it to the poore nedy for goddys sake after we shall goo to the holy cytee of Iherusalem / The whyche thynge they dyde / And clothyd theymself in Raymentes lyke Crysten people / for to receyue Crystendom / ¶ And in goynge thyder they torned many Paynems that they fonde in theyr waye to the Crysten fayth / ¶ How Eubole was crystened in the FluÌ„me Iourdan / And begynnyth in latyn ¶ Apprehendentes autem cetera Caplm C.lx. THenne whan saynt Basylle his doctour Eubole were come in Ihâ—l'm they went vysited al the holy places worshiped theim for the loue of our lorde / After they presented theself tofore the bisshop of the cyte namyd Marimyen kneled byfore him bysechyge him that he wold crysten them in the flum Iordan ¶ The sayd bysshop receyued theim moche mekely / acompanyed with many notable persones sad theim to the forsayd flum / WhaÌ„ theâ— were come to the bryke of the same saynt basyll sate on both his knees / besouÈt god deuoutly that he wold vouchesauf to shewe some token to theim of his grace After he rose vp toke of al his clothes for to entre wythin the flood thenÌ„e the sayd bysshop went crystned hym / Att whiche crystnynge a moche merueyloê° thynge happed there / For a grete lyght as it had be fyre makyng wonderful shinyng came from heuen vpon theim / out of the fyre flewe out a whyte doue / the whiche after she had trowbled the water flewe ayen in to heuen / Of whiche thyÌ„ge those present were moche merueyled For they had neuer seen soo quycke ne soo grete a lyghte / Soo began they to prayse glorifye the name of god and pryÌ„cipally the bisshop the contynuelly remeÌ„bred the loue that saynt Basylle had to the Redemer of the world They .ii. thenÌ„e togyder crystened enoynted with the holy oyle retorned to Ihrl'm there they dwelled a yere ¶ After the knowlege of whiche they toke theyr waye towarde Anthyoche / thenne was saynt Basylle made Deaken / ¶ How sayÌ„t Basylle beyng a bysshop coÌ„posed the masse / in coÌ„posyng of whiche he sawe god his apostles begynning ¶ CoÌ„uenientes c· Caplm C.lxi. MAny bysshops were assemblyd in Anthyoche the whyche chose saynt Basylle to be bysshop And after that he was ordened he made his prayer to god bysechyng hym that he wold gyue him the gyfte of vnderstondynge by the whyche he myght to the exaltacoÌ„n of the fayth his glorioê° name make a seruyce or offyce to hym agreable in makynge vnto hym oblacyon of his precyous blode / And that in this dooyng he myghte receyue the grace of the holy ghost ¶ The gode Basylle after this request was by the space of sixe dayes as al chauÌ„ged wythdrawe fro his thought / But neuertheles he purposed to make the sayde seruyce / ¶ And on a nyghte after the sayd dayes paste / he had a syghte of god the whyche acompanyed of all his apostles as whan he wrote the wordes that preestes proferon vpon the breed sayde to hym / Basylle after thy desyre be thy mouth fulfyllyd of praysynge to th ende that by thy owne worde thou make sacrefyce vnto me of my bloode / ¶ Saynt Basylle that coude not abyde the syght departed with grete fere and went to the awter where he began to saye wryte this that here folowyth / Be my mouth fulfylled wyth loeuynge to th ende that it synge ympne to thy Ioye / Wyth this he made many other orysons that ben customably sayd whan the body of our lorde is to be consecrate of the preest / the whiche are not to be wryten to ony laye folke / Nor to be had in comynicacoÌ„n but onÌ„ly amonge men of the chirche / And after the consecracoÌ„n eleuacoÌ„n of the hoste whyche was of brede he deuyded it in thre partes / of the whiche he vsyd the one in grete drede reuerence the other he kepte for to bere wyth hym / and the thyrde he kepte for to be putt in to a doune of fyne golde the whyche he had doo make for to be hanged ouer the awter in by tokenyng of that same doune that appered ouer hym whan he was crystned in the flum Iordan / ¶ Eubole manâ— other clerkes were thenne afore the gate of the temple beholdinge this mystery they sawe abowte hym a wonderful lyght whyche constrayned them to fall to the grouÌ„de / And wyth this they sawe a grete multytude of men al clothed in whiche rayments / the whyche acoÌ„pamed hym in makynge the sayd sacrefyce ¶ The masse done saynt Basyll gooyng out of the chyrche / al them present worshipped him puttynge byfore hyÌ„ theyr knees to the grounde made hym more grete honour than they had be acustomyd
¶ But this notwithstandynge he serued hym moche swetely kyndely So it happed that when the sayd holy fader Amon came to the last houre of his lyfe that his soule must departe / where many holy faders were present / he toke afore them all the sayd Iohan his seruauÌ„t by the honde thre tymes he sayd vnto hyÌ„ Iohan saued mote that be And thenne he sayd to the holy faders that were with hym My brethern I betake you this good relygyouse / he is no man / but an angell Certaynly duryng my sykenes / he neuer had of me a fayr worde / neuerthelesse in grete humylyte pacyence he hath done to me Infynyte seruyces / so recomeÌ„de I hyÌ„ to you asmoche as I can ¶ The holy fader Agathon where he ones came to the cyte that was moost nygh his hermytage for to selle some hande werke that he had made for to lyue vpon he fouÌ„de at the gate of the sayd cyte a man that was sore lyke whiche was forsake lefte of all men The whiche thyng seeyng that sayd holy fader Agathon he hyred a lytyll chambre where in he brought hyÌ„ cheryshed hyÌ„ kept him the space of four monethes vnto tyme that he was recouered and was hole And after retorned this holy fader in to his hermytage ¶ An other holy fader for to moeue to the vertue of pacyence a dyscyple of his that was sore passyoned tourmented of a greuous maladye / sayd vnto hyÌ„ in this wyfe My sone thou muste bere pacyently thy soroufull afflyccions without to be wrothe with them It is a souerayne vertue to a man for to prayse thanke god in his trybulacoÌ„ns aduersytees Yf that be harde as is the yron thou shalt lese thy Rustynes by fyre / yf thou be golde / thou shalte also be preued by fyre / and from grete thynges thou shalt come to thynges more grete Yf god wyll sende vs some sykenesses we oughte not to grutche there ayenst / yf we bere them not with pacyence we shall haue noo mede for it towarde him So must we be vsed to be pacyent / prayeng hym huÌ„bly that he wyll sende vs all that pleaseth hym / to th ende that by the meryte that we shall gete in enduryng pacyently the afflyccoÌ„ns tourmentes of this worlde / we mowe haue the glorye euer lastynge ¶ An other holy fader that was often takeÌ„ with syknesses / was ones a hole yere without / wherfore he began to wepe strongly beryng his helth noyously / sayeng to our lorde suche wordes Syre thou hast lefte me / thou woldest not vysyte nor see me this yere As he wolde haue sayde / that god vysytyng his frendes sendeth to them pouerte syknes for to make them to be rewarded for it in heuen ¶ Some holy faders reherced of one of them that dyed in Sychye / that they beyng about hyÌ„ / they dothed him as they were wont to clothe the one of thordre at theyr decesse And doyeng this they began to wepe sore for pyte that they had to see hyÌ„ dey He heryÌ„g theyr wepyÌ„g is sorowes opened his eyen / in beholdyng them he lough thre tymes vpon them The whiche thyng seyng the sayd brethern / anone after they asked hyÌ„ why he lough when they wept / he answerd to them I haue laughed twyes to mocke you with all / the fyrst tyme that I lough was bycause that ye fere deth / the seconde tyme was bycause that ye knowe well can not Iuge otherwyse but ye must ones dey ye wote not when / yet ye dyspose not your selfe therto / thyrdly I haue laughed reioysshyÌ„g my selfe / because that in leuyÌ„g the labours of this worlde I goo vnto the place of rest / these wordes thê° sayd he closed his eyen swetely he yelded his goost to our sauyour Ihesu cryste ¶ Thabbot PaÌ„mon at the houre of his deth sayd to the brethern that acompanyed hym My brethern because that syn the tyme that I came to this solytarye place where I haue buylded for myn vsage this lytyll house wherin I do dwelle I am not remeÌ„bred that euer I ete other brede / but of the same whiche I haue goten with labour of myn hondes / nor to haue sayd nor tolde vnto this houre ony vayne worde wherof I ought to repence me in this maner I go now to oure blessyd lord Ihesu cryst / wherof I ought well to thanke hym And I meruaylle gretely how he wouchesaufe take the laste of me / seen that I fyrst was occupyed to gete my lyuyng / haue not as yet begoÌ„ne to hyÌ„ ony suffysauÌ„t seruyse ¶ The abbot Agathon goynge out of this worlde / thre dayes before his deces hylde his eyen coÌ„tynuelly open by no maner he moeued them not The whiche thyng seeyng his brothern that were about hym sore coÌ„playnyng wepynge asked hyÌ„ O our fader telle vs yf it please the wherat thou thynkest now / where thou are atte this houre To whom he answered I am called tofore the presence of god whiche is in his seete for to Iuge me ¶ A as sayd they to hyÌ„ ayen / ferest thou hym To whom he sayd ayen I haue euer with all my strength enforced my selfe for to do that coÌ„mauÌ„dement of god But neuerthelesse I consyder that I am a synner / wherfore I can not say yf my werkes haue be vnto hyÌ„ agreable And how sayd the holy faders haste not thou byleue in thy werkes whiche haue euer be vertuoles after his lawe Thenne he answered I not dare trust therupon in his presence / for there is to moche dyfference betwix his Iugemente the Iugement of men ¶ The abbot Sysonyn beyng att the houre of deth / many aeged faders that togyder were come there for to see him apperceyued sodaynly his face whiche shynyng bryght wonderfully And in that selfe caas he sayd vnto them My brethern see to it / the holy fader Anthonye cometh to vs here ¶ Anone after he sayd ayen My brethern / here is the companye of the postles And sayeng the same his vysage wexed more bryghte ¶ So began he to saye ones agayne that he sawe the postles that came there / and it semed that he sholde speke vnto them And whether these holy faders or some of them dyde Requyre hym that he sholde telle them to whome he spake ¶ He answered that he spake with the angell that came for to sette his soule / and besought them that they sholde forbere a lytyll or they sholde haue hym awaye tyll that he shold haue done some lytyll penauÌ„ce Then sayd there ayenst the holy faders to hyÌ„ / thou hast no nede fayre fader to do ony penaunce ¶ The whiche answered to them Surely my brethern I can not Remembre me that euer I began yet to do ony suffysaunt penaunce By the whiche answere they knewe that he was veray
he wyll drawe hym vyolently nyghe to the sayd welle / god preserued hym therfrom and gyueth hym socours ayde ¶ The abbot Sysoyns had a dyscyple the sayd ones vnto hyÌ„ Fayre fader that thou art alredy olde / that thou hast dyscrecoÌ„n wytte for to withsaye ayenst the temptacoÌ„ns of the worlde / me semeth that thou myght well hauÌ„te a sytyll thrugh the worlde / to whom the holy fader answered / that he wolde well do so / yf he coude brynge hyÌ„ in a place where noo women were The dyscyple hyryng this answere sayd vnto hyÌ„ ayen / that he wyst of no place but the women were there / but only in the solytary places Now ledde me there thenne sayd the holy fader ¶ An olde matrone whiche was an abbesse sayd that many Relygyouses beyng in the montayn / that is to wyt in solytary places / are perysshed there / bycause that they had set theyr thought affeccoÌ„ns vnto thyngis of the worlde / that it is better for to be amonge many one to lede there wylfully a solytary lyfe / than for to be aboue apply his thought to multyplycacoÌ„n of temporall thynges ¶ An olde holy fader sayd / that a monke ought euer to bye rest in suche maner that he dyspyseth it yf he see the ony bodely hurte cometh to hyÌ„ therby ¶ An aeged holy fader shewed that thre grete clerkes moche studyouse gaue theÌ„ selfe to Relygyon / one of whiche chose toke in hyÌ„self this affeccoÌ„n that he wolde pease bryng all persones atte one whiche he myght knowe the ought euyll wyll one to an other or that had ony mater of plee or debate the one ayenst the other The seconde thought / that he wolde vysyte the bedred the syke And the thyrde went enhabyted hyÌ„self in a solytary place The fyrst thenne besyeng hyÌ„self in his entrepryse / fouÌ„de so many noyses dyfferences / debates questyons to be moeued amonge the men that it sholde not haue ben possyble to hym for to pease all Wherfor he fulfylled with noyaunce gryse with it / bycause he coude not satysfye his deliberacoÌ„n / â—am for to see the seconde / the whiche also he fouÌ„de sore wery noyouse / that he myght not serue all the syke folke the poore nedy for the grete multytude that he fouÌ„de of them euery where So these two purposed for to go see the thirde whiche was gone for to lyue solytaryly in the desert And when they were come toward hyÌ„ after that they had made knowlege of broderhode vnto eche other / the tweyne reherced vnto the thyrde theyr grete trybulacoÌ„ns prayeng hyÌ„ that he wolde declare vnto them what thyng be dyde how he profyted in his hermytage To the whiche ouesâ—yon he dyde not answere redely But after that he had kepe hyÌ„self styll a lytyll / he toke water in a vessell sayd to them / beholde a lytyll this water that is trouble And they began to loke vpon / whyse they loked soo / the water began to wexe clere by it selfe Thenne sayd he vnto them when he sawe that it was fayre clene / loke how sodeynly this water is puryfyed by it selfe Thenne they beholden within it they knewe theyr owne vysages therin as it had be in a glasse Thenne he tolde them that in lykewyse he that acompanyed amonge the worlde with grete payne he may knowe there his owne fawtes bycause of the grete troubles that be in the worlde / but when he withdraweth hymselfe in to a solytarye place / than maye he knowe lyghtly his synnes ¶ Here foloweth the treatyse techynge how men ought to styre them to compunccyon / and begynneth in latyn Dicebant de abbate Arsenio THe abbot Arsenye / as some tolde / all the tyme of his lyue syttyng and abydyng within his celle / labouryng werkyng with his handes / had euer in his bosom a hande keuerchyef for to wype withall the teeres that contynuelly ranne out of his eyen / in sorowyng for his synnes for drede of god of the paynes of helle whiche he had euer in his mynde ¶ A brother Requyred the abbot Ammon that he wolde telle hyÌ„ some good worde helthfull / to whom he answered Go to thy celle thynke vpon thy befalle / as the euyll doers doo / that for theyr mysdedes be kept in pryson then questyoned they that come towarde them askyng where the Iuge is / when he shall come / waytyng after the gryuouse punycyon of theyr synnes they wepe weyle ouer theym ¶ In lykewyse the Relygyouse ought euer to be supecte / â—hyde within his soule / saynge Ha me wretched / how shall I dare fynde me afore the grete Iugement of our lorde Ihesu cryst for to yelde hym accomptes reason of my deffautes And yf thou thynkest in thy selfe so / thou shalt may be saued thrugh this meane ¶ The abbot Euagrius sayd / when thou art within thy celle gadre thy spyrytes within thy selfe remembre the of the daye of dethe / thenne thou shalt see the mortyfycacoÌ„n of thy bodye Thynke also vpon the mortall werres of this worlde / be sorowfull for it Haue in hatred the vanytees of this worlde / be temperate curyouse / to th ende thou may euer dwelle in one maner rest / be not syke of the sykenesse of synne Remembre the of them that be in helle / thynke in thy selfe how theyr soules ben in that place / in what bytter heuynesse / in what horryble weylyng / in what drede in what batayll / in what waytynge of sorowe / that without withdrawyng of paynes they be in Infynyte teeres Be thou also Remembryng of the last resurreccoÌ„n / ymagyne the horryble Ingement of god with the wonderfull coÌ„fusyon that the synners shall suffre in the presence of god the fader / of Ihesu cryste his sone / before the angels / archangels postles / afore all the men of the worlde / with this consydere the tourmentes the fyre euerlastyng where they shall be condempned / the remors Inmortall of theyr conscyences / the derkenesse of helle / aboue all thyng the gryndyng of tethe / the paynes the tormentes that be there After coÌ„syder brynge in to the mynde the welth felycytees that be promysed vnto the Iuste / the trust that they shall haue in god the fader his sone before the angels / archangels potestates / before the coÌ„pany of all the heuenly courte And in lywyse the gyftes of grace / the Ioyes the rest wherin they shal be / the recordacoÌ„n remeÌ„brauÌ„ce of the whiche thynges / that is to wyt the euyls atte do syde / the godes atte the other syde / thou must haue in thy selfe wepyng bytterly ¶ The abbot Helye sayd that in all seasons he fered thre thynges that ben to come / the fyrst was
the houre of dethe / the seconde when his soule sholde be presentes afore god for to be Iuged / the .iij. what the sentence sholde be that sholde be cast vpon hym And therfore the good archebysshop Theophyle when he was atte the poynte of dethe he sayd of saynt Arseny / that he was well happy in soo moche that he contynuelly had this houre byfore the eyen of his entendement ¶ The abbot Iames sayd / that lyke as the lanterne lyghtneth the place whiche is obscure derke In lykewyse the drede of god lyghteneth a man when he hath it within hym ¶ Some brethern asked of the abbot Machary how he coude be so drye of so poore of bodye / wherat he answered that when men take a staffe in theyr hande with it they rake styre the brondes that be a fyre the same staffe barneth consumeth awaye fynably In lyke wyse who soeuer shall haue in him the drede of god it shall consume the flesshe of a man awaye vnto the bones ¶ The holy faders dwellyng in the moÌ„tayn of Nitrye sente toward the abbot Machary that was in Sychye prayng hyÌ„ that he wolde come to see them / yf he came not to them / they were purposed for to go to him / bycause that they desyred for to see by afore his dethe And when he was come to the montayn where they dwelled / they togydre asked hym some consolacoÌ„n spyrytuall TheÌ„ne he sayd vnto them that they sholde wepe weyle ouer theyr synnes / to th ende that they sholde not defâ—ende in to helle where men wepe weyle euerlastyngly And they all togydre at ones began to wepe besought by that he wold pray god for them ¶ The abbot Pastor gooyng thrugh Egstpt lawe a woman vpon a graue / the whiche bette herself wept so sore that it semed yf all the Ioyes of the worlde had come to her that she sholde not reioyse herself for it So in lykewyse oughte to doo euer a Relygyouse in this world An other tyme he passed thrugh the parties of Dyolche with the abbot Nub / they fouÌ„de a woman that wepte bytterly for the deth of her husbande / of her sone of her brother Thenne sayd the abbot Pastor to the abbot Nub I belyue stedfastly that no man but yf he slee all concupyscence of the flesshe / but he haue as grete contrycoÌ„n as this woman / he is not worthy to be a Relygyouse And this he sayd bycause that all her thought was sette vpon wepyng And thus we ought to do for our synnes ¶ A brother axed somtyme the sayd Pastor some good conseyll for his saluacoÌ„n And he conscylled hyÌ„ that he sholde do as Abraham dyde when he entred in the londe of promysson / the whiche made a tombe / whiche sygnyfyed wepynges and sorowynge ¶ The archebâ—sshop Athanasy prayed ones the abbot Pambo that he sholde come doÌ„ne from his hermytage for to see hyÌ„ in the cyte of Alexandrye The whiche coÌ„myng doÌ„ne to it mette with a coÌ„mon woman / when he sawe her he began to wepe Athanasy asked hym what moeued hyÌ„ to do so / wherat he answered the two thynges moeued it The fyrst bycause he sawe that the woman daÌ„pned herself the seconde bycause he toke not somoche of payn to please god as she dyde for to please the worlde ¶ The abbot Syluayn beynge ones with his Relygyouses / was rauysshed gostly / so that he fell doÌ„ne that face to the erthe after that he had be there a longe whyle he rose vp ayen wepyng full sore Soo axed hyÌ„ his relygyouses what hyÌ„ eyled fo to wepe thus / but he answered them nothyÌ„g / euer he wept / they neuerthelesse prayed hyÌ„ somoche that they constrayned hyÌ„ by huÌ„ble Requestes to telle them that the they desyred to wyt of hyÌ„ / in effect he shewed vnto them / that he had be rauysshed born afore god holdyng his Iugement / where he sawe many relygyouses that were condeÌ„pned to the euerlastyng payne of helle / many seculer men that were taken receyued for to go to the royalme of heuen / wherof the poore abbot wept euer bytterly / for this cause he becam so solytary / that he wolde not go out of his celle / yf he was somtyme coÌ„strayned to go out of it / he couered his hede with a hode / saynge that it was no nede for to see this lyght temporall where no goodnesse was ¶ A man worthy of holy memory named Synclyeyce / sayd that they the tourne themself from synne vnto vertue / haue grete payn atte begynnyÌ„g to leue theyr euyll lyfe / but at the last they shall haue Ioye vnable to be tolde / euyn so as they the kyndlen a fyre haue atte begynnyng grete akyng of hede with blowyng / at theyr eyen with the smoke or euer the fyre be kyndled Also we must haue many euylles for to kyndle within vs the fyre of the loue of god ¶ The abbot Ypericius sayd that a monke ought to watche daye nyght in oryson / in waylyng in coÌ„punccoÌ„n / to th ende that thrugh this meane he haue the mercy of Ihesu cryste ¶ Many Relygyouses seculers cam togyder to the abbot Felix / be dyuerse tymes prayed hyÌ„ that he wolde gyue theÌ„ som gode doctryne for theyr saluacoÌ„n / but neuertheles he wold not / but only sayd vnto theÌ„ / now haue I no tonge for to spek ¶ The brethern heryng this answere were sore abasshed bycause he wold not teche them Then he sayd to theÌ„ / somtyme that Relygyouses requyred for to be taught of the aeged / they dyde that the was coÌ„mauÌ„ded vnto theÌ„ / wherfor our lord gaaf to the sayd olde faders tonge speche for to lerne them / bycause that the dyscyples now doo nomore nothyng of that is coÌ„mauÌ„ded vnto them / god hath taken from the aeged that worde of veray doctryne / for there is nomore no body that doth this that the olde faders coÌ„mauÌ„de These wordes herde they all togyder began to wepe syghe askyng mercy / that the sayd abbot wolde praye for them ¶ A holy fader sayd when our lord shall come to that daye of dome / yf it were possyble that the soules that then shal be brought to theyr bodyes / myght be departed ayen all that worlde sholde then deye of the drede terrour the euery one shall haue atte thou sayd daye / therfor we ought well to wepe in this world do penauÌ„ce to th ende that at the same ferfull daye we may yelde good acomptes vnto our lord ¶ A broder axed a holy fader wherof cam that he was harde herted that he fered not god The holy fader answered to hyÌ„ that he sholde haue drede of god / yf he wolde rebuke his soule saynge My soule thynke vpon thy lyfe / for thou shal be broughte byfore the myght of
lecherye with the whiche he was enflāmed wōderfully / he contynued all that nyght brennyng hym selfe atte flāme of the sayd candell / so that in this doyng / tyll the morowe in the mornyng he brente bruled all his fyngers Thenne the wretchyd vnhappy woman seeyng that the sayd holy man dyde / brought herself in grete fere drede vnmouable as a stone Thenne came therby that morowe next thoos yong persones to whome she had promysed that she sholde do so moche that he sholde synne with her flesshly / they axed to this holy man yf there was not a woman come vnto hym vpon euen byforn / wherat he answered ye / poyntyng her with the fynger sayd to them Yonder ye maye see her a slepe / they went in trowyng to haue waked her out of her slepe / they foūde her deed And they sayd ayen to the holy man as all aferde / that she was decessed Thenne he dysceueryng hȳ selfe from a noughty maūtell that he had on shewed vnto them his handes all brente sayng to them See my frendes what this doughter of the deuyll hath done to me this nyght / she hath dystroyed wasted awaye my fyngers And after he sayd to them that he foūde in holy scrypture our lord to haue sayd that men ought not to yelde euyll for euyll / wherfore Incontynent he began to praye god for her / his prayer made she anone came to lyue ayen And frō that tyme she tourned her euyll lyfe / spende the remenaūt of the same lyuynge chastly and holyly ¶ An other brother tycyd sore tempted of the sayd synne of fornycacōn / one tyme among other he went to a towne in Egypt where the dwellers of the same worshyped the ydolles And he seeyng there the doughter of the preest of the lawe pagane / was taken of the loue of her / so that he came hȳ selfe towarde her fader / requyred hȳ that he wolde gyue her to hȳ to a wyfe Wherat the preest answered that he sholde not gyue her to hym tyll he had had the coūseyll of his goddes therupon So yede he to speke with the deuyll whiche he worshypped sayd to hȳ My god here is a monke that wyll take my doughter to his wyfe / I requyre beseche the that it wyll please the to teche telle me yf I ought to gyue her vnto hȳ / or what I ought to do in this byhalfe ¶ Thenne the deuyll answered vnto hym / that yf he wolde make hȳ to fulfylle thre thynges / the fyrst is to forsake his god / the seconde to for sake his crystendom / and the thyrde to forsake leue his Relygyon In this dooyng / not ellys / he sholde graunte and gyue vnto hym his doughter to be his wyfe The preest thenne his answere vnderstonde herde / retorned towarde the monke / to hȳ sayd shewed that he sholde gyue hȳ his doughter yf he wolde do these thre thȳges / wherof the monke was well content of this answere ¶ And after that he had promysed hȳ to do that he had sayd to hym / hym thought by lykenesse that he sawe as a whyte doue come out departe from his mouth floughe to the heuen And after this the preest wente ayen to the deuyll / tolde hȳ how the monke had promysed hym for to do fulfyll these forsayd thre thynges Thenne the deuyll defended hym / that neuerthelesse he sholde not gyue his doughter vnto that monke / for his god hadde not yet forsaken hym / but was yet to his helpe So came ayen the preest to hȳ sayd / that he was not yet dysposed for to gyue hym his doughter / bycause that his god helpeth hym yet / was not departed from hym ¶ The Relygyouse herynge these wordes sayd to hym selfe Yf my god sheweth to me his goodnesse so grete / all be it that I vnhappy wretchyd haue forsaken hȳ / my baptesme my Relygyon / yet where I haue done one so grete and horryble a synne / hath wolde wyll yet helpe me now Alas why sholde I go from hȳ Thenne he retournyng to hymself ayen chaunged his euyll purpose cam ayen to the hermytage toward an aged holy fader / to whome he tolde and reherced all these thynges / the whiche y herde the holy fader enioyned hym that he sholde holde hym and fast the space of thre wekes duryng within a pytte that was within the sayd hermytage / and this hangyng he sholde pray for hym And this dyde the relygyouse with a good wyll And syn the olde fader departed from hym / prayed our lorde for hȳ sayng O my god I pray the ryght humbly / that it wyll please the to gyue me the soule of this poore wretched synner / to receyue agreable his penaūce / the whiche oryson request our lorde herde And whan the fyrst weke of the thre was atte an ende he yede towarde the Relygyouse doynge penaunce / and questyoned hym / askyng to hym how he felte hymselfe / yf he hadde seen ony thyng wherby he sholde haue a hope to be saued / wherat the sayd relygyouse answered ye / saynge morouer that in the hyghenesse of heuen he had seen a doune / beynge sore hyghe ouer ayenst his hede ¶ Thenne sayd to him the holy fader Take euer a besy kepe of thy selfe / praye god be syly / and so wente from hym vnto the ende of the seconde weke that he came ayen towarde hym as he had done afore And axed hym yf he had seen ony thyng / he answered that he had seen the sayd doune comyng nygh his hede So cōmaūded hȳ the holy fader that he sholde euer haue a good thought / that he sholde contynue to praye god Fynably the thyrde weke fynysshed he came ayen to hym questyoned as afore yf he had seen ony thyng more / to whom he answered sayng I haue seen the doune whiche is come hath sette her selfe vpon my hede / and moeuyng my hande trowyng to haue taken her / she raysed her selfe incontynent and is entred in to my mouth ¶ The whiche thyng herde / the holy fader began to yelde graces vnto our lorde And after sayd to the relygyouse My frende thou mayst by this vysyon knowe clerely / that god hath receyued agreably thy penaūce And therfore from hens forth take hede to thy self / and see that thou falle not ayen in synne ¶ The Relygyouse answered Ha my fader I thanke the of thy good counseylles / for by the same thou hast be the cause to make me haue the mercy of god / but yf it be thy pleasure / thou shalt be content / that from hens forthon and vnto the deth I shal dwell with the / the whiche thyng the holy fader graunted hym ¶ An olde relygyouse named Thebeyen tolde that he was the sone
hange there theyr cordes and nettes a brode whiche comprysed .xl. mesures in length and brede And in huntyng in the sayd place / the holy fader saynt Macharye with his two dyscyples beynge nygh by the corde was there fouÌ„den by the sayd chyldern theyr people the whiche seeyng the sayd saynt Macharye to be meruayllously rowgh / had a face terryble ferdfull to beholde / werof the syght of hyÌ„ meruayllously abasshed / and began to aske and demaunde of hym yf he were a man or some espyryte To whom he answerde that he was a synfull man whiche byleued on the sone of god the whiche had receyued deth on the crosse passyon for the saluacyon of mankynde / and hym worshypped with all affeccyon / as to hym oonly to whom was due adoracyon honour And heryng his answere they sayd that they wyste not what he sayd / and that they had none other goddes but the sonne / the fyre / and the water / and that it byhoued that they adoured theym / and sholde make to theym sacrefyce Saynt Macharye answered to theym that he neuer sholde soo doo / by cause that the sonne was a planete / and the fyre and water two clementes / whiche had noo puyssauÌ„ce ne power but suche as was gyuen to theym at theyr creacyon of god theyr maker And by this and other reasons Saynt Macharye shewed to them that they erred meruayllously Wherfore he admonested theym to conuerte theym to god whiche had created theym and all other thynges The same childern and theyr folke heryng these wordes of saynt Macharye began to mocke hym in sayeng Sayst thou not that thy god hath ben crucyfyed / yes sayd saynt Macharye And yet I saye more / that it is he whiche by his deth mortefyeth synne sleeth eternall deth After the whiche wordes soo sayd / they dyde to Saynt Macharye and to his dyscyples many tormentes wyllyng to constrayne hem to make sacrefyce to the sonne / to the fyre / and to the water / as to theyr goddes / whiche they vtterly refused and wolde not doo it For whiche cause after dyuerse tourmentes they smote of the hedes of the two dyscyples of saynt Macharye / but they wolde not soo promptly putte hym to deth by cause they wolde put hym to more tourmentes and soo they dyde And among other they sette hym in the myddle of a place where they establysshed to shote at hym / as he had be a butte And they shotte many arowes / some in his backe and other in his brest In suffryng the sayd tourmente saynt Macharye sayd to the two childern False and vntrewe tyrauntes Inhumayne / for as moche as I see that of one accorde and consentement ye be determyned to shede thynnocent blood / and to putte to deth myserably the poore seruauntes of god I wyll aduertyse you and notefye / that to morn at this hour your moder shall be without childern / and shall be pryued fro the syght of you / and that ye shall more hurte and gryeue your selfe / and shall with your arowes shede your owne blood to gydre The sayd childern dyspysyng the wordes of the sayd saynt Macharye and mocked hym On the morn they wente on huntynge as they dyde to forn / And it happed that an herte was taken in theyr cordes / the whiche notwithstondyng escaped Thenne they rode after with all dylygence to th ende that they myght take hym / and in shotyng theyr arowes ayenst hym they slewe eche other / lyke as saynt Macharye had sayd to theym ¶ The abbot Pastor sayd that a Relygyous man is veryly knowen to be a monke in his temptacyons / that is to wyte whan he resysteth theym constantly and myghtyly Yet sayd the sayd abbot beyng in Sychye on a tyme to his relygyouses My brethern ye knowe well that we be hyther come for to labour Now I see well that here is no maner labour / wherfore I determyne that we goo to some other place / where we may fynde to labour / to th ende that in soo dooyng we may fynde rest as who wolde saye / that the grettest batayll that a relygyous man may mene ayenst hym selfe / is to be ydle For in werkyng many euyll thoughtes cogytacyons ben eschewed ¶ Saynt Syncletyce sayd in spekyng to his monkes / yf ye conuerse in the monasterye with the other / chaunge not youâ—â—ace / for ye destroye your selfe yf ye soo doo And in lyke wyse as an henne yf she leue her egges without to couere theym / she shall neuer haue chykens / for they may not be formed for lacke of hete Right soo in lykewyse the relygyous man or woman that transporteth hym selfe from one place to an other / in leuyng the place of his Relygyon shall neuer fructefye in vertuous werkes For he or she is all colde in the vertue of fayth for as moche as he transporteth and chaungeth his owne place ¶ Ferthermore he sayd / that whan the deuyll may not make to falle in to synne a Relygyous persone or other by the pryckynges of pouerte / he admynystreth to hym habundauÌ„ce of Richesses for to make hym synne by the moen of theym And in lyke wyse / whan he maye not excyte hym by Iniuryes and repreues / he maketh to be mynystred to hym praysynges and vayne glorye And there where he procureth to a persone that he haue all the cases of his bodye / and may not begyle and seduce hym by delectacyons and worldly pleasaunces Thenne he enforceth hym to make hym falle by aduersytees and molestacyons whiche he maketh to come contrarye to his wylle And ofte to theym that he wyll teÌ„pte / he maketh to come vpon theym some sekenesses and maladyes / by the whiche he maketh the Relygyouses ferdfull / and troubleth in theym the charyte that they haue towarde god / But how well that the bodye be tourmented by hote feures enflamed with thrust Insacyable / he that suche afflyccyons susteyneth and endureth ought to haue in his remembraunâ—â— mynde the eternall fyre / and the vnspekable tourmentes of helle / And in consyderyng theym well he shall not be slowe ne feble to suffre the aduersytees of this worlde but shall bere theym with grete corage in hym selfe / enioyeng of that whiche our lorde by suche aduersytees vysyteth hym / in hauyng in his mouth the wordes of Dauyd in the psaulter whiche ben these My god whiche chastyseth his synners / hath by his grace chastysed me / and hath not condempned me to deth And yf the Relygyous thus tourmented be a synner and in ruste as the yron / he shall lose his ruste by the fyte of aduersyte And yf he be Iuste beryng his maladyes and aduersytees pacyently fro grete perfeccyon / he shall be promoted to more gretter And yf he be stedfast / he shall be puryfyed to the confusyon of the deuyll / whiche is gyuen to a man for to tempte hym with the pryckynges of his
vs the sayd celle for he wolde departe / to th ende that we sholde byleue hym the better / he sayd he wolde haue lefte it though we had not comen thyder / wherfor we toke it / he wente and made an other with grete labour dyffyculte And after by grete charyte he gaaf it to other pylgryms with alle the vtensylles that were therin And after he made an other in whiche he dwelled ¶ Of two yonge childern the whiche berynng fygges to a seke Relygyous deyed by the waye / begynneth in latyn Quidā c. Caplm .xxx. ABbot Iohan beyng in Sychye cam to hym a brother / whiche brought to hym fygges / the whiche afterwarde sente theym by two yonge childern to an holy man moche seke / the whiche dwelled in deserte in an hermytage dystaunt fro the chirche of the sayd abbot Iohan .xviij. myle or ther aboutes The whiche childeren beryng these fygges went towarde the sayd brother that was seke And thus as they wente they were surprysed with a clowde so thycke that they lost theyr waye / and so gooyng nyght and daye coude not fynde the celle of the sayd hermyte / but were constrayned to abyde in the waye / bycause they were moche wery and trauaylled / as well for cause of the grete hōgre / as for the grete and terryble thurst that they had suffred And soo they kneled on theyr knees in prayeng to our lorde And in soo dooyng they rendred and yelded bothe theyr soules vp to god ¶ After two or thre dayes / the abbot Iohan seeyng that these two yonge childern that they came not agayne / he sente for to seche theym thrugh the deserte / and they were folowed by the trace of theyr paas and feet / the whiche were enprynted in the sonde in suche a wyse that they bothe were founden deed knelyng on theyr knees / and the fygges all hole by theym / of whiche they wolde not ete / but they hadde be more contente to suffre the dethe corporell / than without the permyssyon of theyr abbot to ete that whiche they were cōmaūded to bere to the sayd seke Relygyous brother ¶ Of the monkes of Egypte and of theyr dylygence / begynnyng in latyn Per totū Caplm .xxxi. THrugh all the regyon of Egypte / the Relygyouses ben neuer ydell / but wynne dylygentely theyr lyuyng with labour trauaylle of theyr bodyes / and gyuen for the loue of god that whiche they wynne aboue theyr lyuyng / not only to pylgryms but also to theym of lybye that ben nedy Indygent / also to prysoners / seke malades of townes cytees to theym neyghbours / estemyng that by suche werkes they make a pleasaūt sacrefyce acceptable to god For they saye that a relygyous persone / how well that he do or make some thyng / yet is he alwaye tempted of some deuyll But he that nothyng dooth is vexed and tempted of Innumerable quantyte of deuylles Thabbot Paulus moche holy approued relygyous dwelled in a deserte so barayne that there ne grewe ony thyng but palmes of whiche he lyued For he was so ferre fro men / that whan he had made ony thyng / he coude neuer selle it / bycause of the grete dystaunce of the place And to th ende that he sholde not be ydell / he gadred euery daye of the palmes weyed them oftentymes / to the ende that he sholde not ete more at one tyme than at an other / and made of the leuys of the palmes lytyll mattes or maundes soo many that he fylled with all a fosse or dyke And atte the ende of the yere / seeyng that ther cam no man for to bye haue his werke / he putte fyre on them and brente theym And after the nexte yere folowyng he made as many for to eschewe ydlenes for he sayd that it is not possyble that a relygyous persone may lyue Iustely / yf he be ydell ¶ Of a brother whiche was a blasphemer of god / the whiche by punycōn dyuyne was enbraced with lecherye Capitulum .xxxij. I Haue knowen an other broder the whiche was in suche wyse tempted in the synne of lecherye / that vnneth he myght withstande it / wherfor he cam to an holy man to whom he sayd Alas fader what ought I to do I am all brente with the fyre of lechery The holy fader answered to hym in syghynge I byleue my childe that god hath not sente to the this passyon so stronge and so vehemente / yf thou haddest not blasphemed in some wyse hym or his sayntes The poore Relygyous heryng the holy fader / fylle doun to his fete confessyd hym that he had blasphemed the name of god / that he mought not haue perfeccōn of vertue in his soule ¶ Of dyscrecyon the whiche is moder of all vertues / begynnynge in latyn Quodam Caplm .xxxiij. ON a tyme camen some holy faders to the abbot Anthonye / demaūdyng of hym coūseyll Instruccōn for to lyue salutaryly / thenne he made to theym a collacōn that whiche endured from euyn tyll on the morn in the mornyng / after that he made a questyon the whiche endured to mydnyght folowyng And this was the questyon / whiche vertue amonge all the other preserueth moost the relygyous persones fro the grynnes laas of the deuyll / bryngeth one in to felycyte eteternall To this questyon eueryche of theym answered after his capacyte vnderstandyng And some sayden / that the Relygyous persone was delyuered fro the deuyll by fastynges / by wakynges / other vertues The other sayden that neuer the deuyll shall be surmoūted of a brother / but by very pouerte of speryte The other sayden that oonly they that were in the depnesse of deserte myght surmoūte the deuyll of helle / so that they haue parfyght loue charyte to god The other affermeden that they that receyueden the pylgryms / doon to theym due seruyce myght lyghtely ouercome the fende Thus were these brethern in cōtrauersye vpon this mater / therfore the sayd abbot sayd to theym My brethern this that ye haue sayd is well necessary to theym that wyll folowe god by very relygyon / but this is ouer lytyll for to be delyuerd fro the puyssaūce of the fende For we haue seen some of our brethern lyuynge Iustely in the thyckest of deserte whiche in th ende haue fallen / hath be cause of theyr ruyne faulte of dyscrecyon / the whiche they had not in theyr operacyons And alwaye it is ryght necessary to a relygyous persone / bycause that it sheweth alwaye the ryall waye to paradyse / and it kepeth that one be not ouer moche / ne ouer lytyll contynent in his werkes / and it is manyfeste that without dyscrecyon may be hadde noo vertue And these wordes sayd / the sayd brethern were all of that opynyon / that dyscrecyon is she that may delyuer the Relygyous persones fro the grynne of
for the honour of god Furthermore thou oughtest to knowe / that a man is persecuted in this worlde for many causes Fyrst for to approue his pacyence / in the maner that Iob Thobye were tourmented / the whiche haue be proued ferme constauÌ„t to the ende that we ensyewe theyr pacyence Secondely a man is persecuted to th ende that he be not proude / this proprely apperteyneth to sayntes For thappostle sayth of hym selfe To th ende that I not enhauÌ„se my selfe for the grete reuelacoÌ„ns that I haue had God hath gyuen to me the pryckyng of my flesshe / that is to saye the spyryte of Sathan whiche me teÌ„pteth contynuelly And after the thappostle knewe the prouffyte that he had by the same pryckyng / he sayd I enioyed me right gladly in my temptacoÌ„ns trybulacoÌ„ns to th ende that I had the grace of god Thyrdely a man is tourmented in his bodye for his synnes / whan god wyll not that the synner be dampned for his synnes / but he wyll punysshe temporally / as of the paralytyke to whom 〈◊〉 Thy synnes ben forgyuen that take â—hy bedde go thy waye Thus by the he pardoÌ„ned to hym his synnes to fore or he gaaf to hym bodely helthe / it appyereth that this maladye cam for his wyckednes Fourthely a man is persecuted to th ende that the vertue power of god or of his sayntes / be by that persecucoÌ„n shewed to the people / as it is wryten in the gospell of hym that was born blynde For god sayd that he ne his parentes had not synned / but he was so born for to shewe the glorye of god Fyfthely some man is tormented in this worlde to th ende that he begynne thenne his helle / the whiche after his deth shall neuer ende And this is vnderstonde oonly of euyll cursed people / as Anthyothus Herode / kyng Pharao / the whiche began theyr helle in this worlde And of theym it is wryten Our lorde god punysshed theym with punycyon / that is to wyte temporell eternalle And for as moche as we knowe not wherfore god sendeth to vs the aduersytees Therfore we ought agreably to suffre theym / in wepynge wayllynge our synnes / to th ende that al tourne to our prouffyte For we ought to byleue certaynely / that none euyll shall abyde vnpunysshed / but yf it effaced putte awaye by very penauÌ„ce / or by the mercy of god / or purged in purgatorye / or in helle perpetuelly Thenne byhoueth to haue hope / though so be that one haue synned For what soeuer synne that one hath coÌ„mysed / the mercy of god is moche more grete than is the synne And for as moche as we speke of pardonne of synnes I shall recounte here a fayr hystorye ¶ Theodosius the Emperour the whiche how be it that in a grete furye / he had put to deth .vij. thousande men / Neuertheles in wepyng cryeng god mercy / he receyued grace pardon of the synne And therfor ought noo man to despayre / but with good affeccoÌ„n to demaunde mercy of god And to th ende that the knowe the cause wherfor he dyde do slee theym I shall recouÌ„te herafter the hystorye all alonge to th ende that thou take therby example For fyrste thou mayst haue hope to obteyne pardonne forgyuenes of thy synnes / for as moche as Theodosius that had slayn so moche people had in lytyll tyme remyssyon of his synnes Secondly thou shalt mowe gete humylyte For how well that he was Emperour / alwaye by thercomynycacoÌ„n admonycoÌ„n of saynt Ambrose / he conuerted meked hym in suche wyse / that he reputed hyÌ„ selfe the moost myserable of alle other synners Thyrdely thou mayst be excyted to grete effusyon habundauÌ„ce of teeres / consyderyng that he entryng in to the chirche he arouse wette with his teres the pament of the same And therfore knowe that ther is noman whiche hath not ony InperfeccoÌ„n in hym selfe be it in wyll or in dede For we see that yf a man eschewe lecherye / anone he is in dauÌ„ger to falle in the synne of auaryce / yf he eschewe auaryce / he falleth in enuye / yf he eschewe enuye / anone the fende presenteth tofore hym many other euylles by whiche he maye take hym And therfor it is harde to a man to kepe hym selfe from all the temptacoÌ„ns of the fende But whan our thoughte is ayded holpen with the myght grace of god / he may lyghtlt resyste all the temptacoÌ„ns and machynacoÌ„ns of hym ¶ Here foloweth thystorye of Theodosius of whome is spoken to fore Capitulum .xiiij. IN the cyte of Thessalonye whiche was gretly strongly peopled / ther meued a grete meruayllous deuysyon bycause wherof / by the cytezeyns of the same were some of the Iuges stoned to deth / some other dysmembred / wherof Theodosius themperour was in suche wyse meued in Ire / whiche coÌ„mauÌ„ded expressely that al the cytezeyns good and euyll generally sholde be put to deth And thus for that cause were there cruelly slayn mo than .vij. thousande men without kepyng of ony ordre or attemperauÌ„ce Of the whiche so grete / horryble / cruell occysyon was Saynt Ambrose aduertysed whiche theÌ„ne was bysshop of Mylane whiche declared made denounce the sayd Theodosius accursed excomynyed Notwithstondyng that he was Emperour in shewyng hyÌ„selfe a man constauÌ„t / all gyuen to punysshe correcte the wycked obstynat synners of ennorme gryeuoê° offences whiche they coÌ„mysed ayenst our lorde his chirche The whiche Theodosiê° after that by certayn tyme he had obstynatly susteyned the sayd sentence of excoÌ„mynycacoÌ„n In a solempne daye as he was in the sayd cyte of Mylane / he concluded notwithstondyng the sayd sentence to go to the chirche / as other crysten men dyde / but the seeyng saynt Ambrose cam hastly ayenst hyÌ„ / began corageously to crye in sayeng O Theodosius I am abasshed how the deuyll hath thou so horrybly blynded in makyng that to falle in this dampnable obstynacoÌ„n / that thou ne canst ne wyll knowe the enormyte of thy grete synne / whiche thou hast coÌ„mysed in shedynge cruelly the humayne blood of crysten men / childern seruauÌ„tes of god / how darst thou presume to wyll entre now in to the Temple of our lorde / yf by aduenture thyne Empyre thy lordshyp temporell lette the to knowe thy synne so hyhoueth well the reason surmounte the same domynacoÌ„n seygnorye / thou oughtest to knowe vnderstande that thou art mortall / shalt become pouldre asshes lyke as other men And suppose not for thy pourpre other precyous vestymentes to be more worthe than thy subgettes / yf thou be prynct or lorde / neuertheles thou art a seruauÌ„ For god is the lorde of lordes the kynge of kynges / how thenne darst thou with thyn eyen infecte by Ire in ony wyse see or byholde the