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¶How & in what thynges shold a contēplatyf man be ocu¦pied / Caplm xiii. (Book 13)
BVt thou shalt euer seke by grete besynes in prayers that thou myght come to the ghost∣ly felyng of god / And that is that yu might knowe the wisdo¦me of god / the endles myght of hym / the grete goodnes of hym in hymself & in his creatures / For this is contēplacōn / & that other is none. thus saith saynt poul / In caritate radicati & fūdati.* 1.1 vt possitis cōprehendere cū oībus scīs que sit longitu do & latitudo. sublimitas & {pro}fundū / Be ye roted & groūded in charite that ye myght knowe he saith neyther soūde of the ere ne swete sauour in the mouth: ne none suche bodely thynge. but that ye myght knowe & fele wyth all halowes whiche is the length of the endles beyng of god / the brede of the wōder¦full charyte & the goodnes of god / the heyth of the almyghty mageste of him. & the groūdles depnes of the wisdom of god In knowyng & ghostly felyng of thise shold be the ocupacōn of a contēplatyff man / For in thise may be vnderstōde the ful knowyng of al ghostly thynges / This ocupacōn is that one thyng: the whiche saynt poul coueyted sayēg th{us} / Vnū que re¦tro sūt obliuiscēs. in anteriora me extendā. sequor si quo mo do comp̄hendā su{per}num braniū / Thus moche is to saye / ••o thynge.* 1.2 as hoo sayth. is best to me for to coueyte / and that is that I myght fogete all thynges the whyche ben behyndwar¦de or backewarde / and I shall stretche out myne hert euer for∣warde for to fele and to grype the souereyne mede of the ende¦les blysse / Hynwarde are all bodely thynges / Forwarde are go∣ostly thynges / And for saynt poul wolde forgete all bodely thinges: & his owne bodi also. with that y• he myght see ghos¦tly thynges /