Companion to the English prose works of Richard Rolle : a selection / from the edition by Carl Horstman.

¶ The tenth chapytre.

O ye chyldren of holy chyrche that hath forsaken the worlde for the helth of your soules & pryncypally to please god: comforte you in hym whome ye haue chosen to loue and serue / for he wyll be to you full free and large: as ye may se by example of Peter in the gospel where as he asked our lorde Ihesu cryst what rewarde he sholde haue that had forsaken all thynge to folowe hym, And our lorde answered hym and sayd that he sholde Iuge with hym the twelue trybes of kynredes of Israell at the daye of dome; and ferthermore our lorde sayd also vnto him that not onely one or two or some / but he sayd all tho that forsake for his loue kynne / frendes / possessyons / or ony erthly goodes: they shall haue in this lyfe an hondred folde more / and after blesse withouten ende. Therfore syster cast awaye all suche false dredes that wolde trouble and lette you from loue and hope of our mercyfull lorde god / for no thynge pleaseth soo moche the fende as to se the soules withdrawe from the loue of god And therfore he besyeth hymselfe full sore daye and nyght to lette and trouble loue and peas in mannes soule / and on the other syde noo thynge confoundeth nor dyscomforteth hym so moche as whan he seeth a man sette all his desyre to haue the loue of god. Alas though ye fele not that feruent loue of god / shall ye by your Imagynacyon fall in dyscomforte and heuynes of herte / & thynke yourselfe lost? Nay / nay / put awaye all suche dyscomfortable heuynes & thynke well it cometh of your enemy the fende / & euer haue a good wyl to loue and please god / and prynte well these wordes in your herte that a good wyll is accepte[d] as for a dede in the syght of god; and comforte you alwaye in the name of Ihesu / for Ihesu is as moche to saye as a sauyour / & therfore thynke well euer therupon / & bere it in your mynde with his passyon / and also his other grete vertues / for nothynge shall so soone put awaye all dredefull temptacyons & fantasyes as the remembraunce of this name Ihesu / his bytter passyon and gloryous vertues. These thre be shelde and spere / armure / & strength to dryue downe the fendes power be he neuer so fyersly set to tempte man or woman; & specyally to thynke on his grete vertues: how god the fader in hymselfe hath all dyuyne nature & in whome is all myght and power and to whome is all thynge possyble and no thynge impossible to hym, And god the sonne is all wysdome that all thynge may make and gouerne / and god the holy ghoost is all loue and bounte that in a moment of tyme all synnes may forgyue. I saye not to you thre goddes but thre persones and one god / in whome is all blysse and glory. He is so fayre and bryght shynynge that all the aungelles meruayle of his beaute / his gloryous blessydfull beaute & presence fedeth and fulfylleth all the courte of

heuen with suche myrthe and melody that is euerlastynge. In hym is all benygnyte kepynge vs from vengeaunce / and in hym is all grace and gentylnes / curtesy / fredome / and largenes / pyte / mercy / and forgyuenes / Ioye / swetenes / and endles helth; our socour he is in all trybulacyons whan we call vpon hym / our comforte / our strength / our helpe / and our soules helth. Iwys syster this is [y]our spouse / whome ye desyre to loue and please; the gretenes of his vertues ne the multytude of his Ioyes whiche spredeth to all them that be in the courte of heuen noo herte can thynke nor tonge tell / for the blessydness of his presence can neyther be sayd nor wryten. Ioye ye therfore [in] our lorde cryst Ihesu / for he hath bought you full dere to brynge you to that blysse / and therfore saye to hym: O holy god in whome is all goodnes / whose pyte and mercy made the to descende from the hygh trone downe in to this wretched worlde the valay of woo and wepynge / and here to take our nature / and in that nature thou suffre[d]st payne and passyon with cruell sharpe deth to brynge our soules to thy kingdome: Therfore mercyfull lorde forgyue me all my synnes that I haue done / thought / and sayd. Gloryous trinite sende me clennes of herte / purete of soule / restore me with thy holy vertues / strength me with thy myght / that I alway may withstande the fende and all euyll temptacyons. O good lorde comforte me with thy holy ghoost and fulfyll me with perfyte grace and charyte: that I may from hens forth lyue vertously And loue the with all my herte / with all my myght and with all my soule / so that I neuer offende the but euer to folowe thy pleasures in wyll / worde / thought and dede; now graunte me this good lorde that arte infynyte / whiche eternally shall endure. And now good syster yf ye doo thus I hope it shall do you grete ease. And thoughe ye fynde noo maner of comforte, swetnes nor deuocyon whan ye wolde / be not therfore dyscomforted / but suffre it mekely. For ryght many there be that stryue with themselfe as thought they wolde haue swete deuocyon by maystry: And I saye you for trouth so wyll it not be had / but by mekenes moche sooner it may be goten, And that is as thus that a man holde and thynke hymselfe vnworthy to haue ony swetnes or comforte & offre hymselfe lowly to the wyll of god and put his wyll fully to the wyll and mercy of that blessyd lorde; for a man sholde not desyre to haue that swetnes & deuocyon for his owne comforte and pleasaunce: but purely and onely entendynge to please god and to folowe his wyll / and than it suffyseth vnto vs whether we haue it or noo. Some also weneth that and they haue not suche swetnes & deuocyon that they be out of grace: but certaynly some there be that in themselfe feleth noo swetnes nor deuocyon that be in more grace then the other that feleth it / for they haue many comfortes / and better it were mekenes without felynge than felynge without mekenes. Therfore syster suffre mekely and pacyently what euer falleth vnto you / & euer haue a good wyll to do that may be moost pleasynge to god / and whan ony dyscomforte cometh by temptacyon or ymagynacyon of your enemy haue the wordes in your mynde that ofte is sayd in this wrytynge before, whiche is that a good wyll shall be accepted for a dede / for and ye desyre to be vertuous and to loue and please god it is accepted as for dede before our lorde god / yf you so folowe

it with your myght and power / as whan reason cometh to you with a desyrefull wyll to lyue and doo well; and yf ye ony tyme fele comforte & swetnes and after fele these temptacyons as ye dyde before / yet be ye not dyscomforted therfore ne thynke therupon, Say not alas it is comen agayne it wyll neuer away from me, And by the meane of your owne ymagynacyon fall agayne in discomforte; doo not soo / but comforte you in god / & be gladde that the fende hath enuy vnto you / for whyle the lyfe is in the body he wyll alwaye trouble and tary the seruauntes of god / he is so fully sette ayenst them with al malyce to dysease and dyscomforte theym in all the dyuerse maners that he can or may. Saynt Augustyne sayth þat in many maner wayes temptacyons be hadde by the whiche the serpent adder enemye to all mankynde tourmenteth mannes soule. And saynt Gregorye sayth that there is noo thynge in the worlde [in] whiche we ought to be soo syker of god as whan we haue these tourmentes and troubles. And yf a man saye that bodely turmentes be medeful and not ghoostly turmentes he sayth not ryght / for doubtles the ghoostly tourmentes be more greuous and paynefull that come ayenst mannes wyll than be bodyly tourmentes / and soo moche more be they medefull / and therfore many men doo dyshonour to god that sayth with full aduysement that the fende in this world may more turment than god may gyue meryte / wherfore truly there is no thynge more medefull, charytable nor more godly than for to strength and comforte the soule that the fende soo troubleth / for who so comforteth them that be dyssolate and in sorowe the lorde of comforte Ihesu cryste our lorde and god wyll comforte them without ende in the blysse of heuen / the whiche lorde thorugh the myght and meryte of his paynefull passyon and precyous blode hath puth downe þe power of þe fendes / & hath graunted to crysten soules the vyctory ouer them to the worscyp of all the hole trynyte / fader / sone / and holy ghoost that lyueth & reyneth with-outen ende. Amen.