Scala perfecc[i]onis

¶What pryde is / And whan it is synne Caplm lvi▪ (Book 56)

PRyde is not elles as clerkes sayē but loue of thyn owne excellence. y^t is of thyn owne worshyp / Then̄e the mo¦re thou louest & likest in thyn owne worshyp. the more is the pryde / and soo the more is the ymage in the / If thou fele in thyn herte a stiryng of pryde / thou that arte holyer. Wyser bet∣ter▪ and more vertuous than a nother is / that god hath yeuen the grace for to serue hym better than other done / & thou thyn∣kest al other byneth the and the abouen hem / or ony other tho¦ughte of thiself / whiche sheweth to thy syght of thy soule an excellence & an ouerpassynge of other men or wym̄en / and of this stiryng thou felyst loue & delyte and vayn plesyng in thy∣self that thou art so / this is a token that thou berest this blac¦ke ymage / whiche yf it be pryue fro mennes eyen. neuertheles it sheweth hym opēly in goddis syghte / But now sayst thou that thou may not flee suche styringes of pryde / for ofte thou felist hem ayenst thy wyll. and therfore thou holdest hem noo synne / or yf they ben syn̄e they ben nought but venyall / As to this I saye thus that the felyng of thyse stirynges of pryde or of ony other the whiche spryngen out eyther of the corrupcōn of this fowle ymage or by incastyng of the enmye. it is noo synne in as moche as thou felyst hem / and that is a grace & a pryuylege by vertue of the passion of Ihesu cryste graūted to all crystē men baptized in water & in the holy ghost / For soth¦ly to Iewes & sarrazyns whiche trowe not in Ihesu cryst. all suche stirynges are dedely synnes / For saynt poul sayth. Om̄e quod non est ex fide pccm̄ est / All that is done withouten trou¦the in cryst is dedely synne / But we crysten men haue this pry¦uilege of his mercy that suche felynges are noo syn̄e. but thei are payne of the oryginall synne / Neuertheles whan by necly¦gence & by blyndenes of thiself this felyng is receyued vnwar¦ly in thy thoughte. and tourned in to loue & likynge / thenne is there synne more or lesse after the mesure of the loue / somty∣me venyall. and somtyme dedely / whan it is venyall & whan

dedely / fully can I not telle the / Neuertheles a lityll I shall say as me thynketh /