Scala perfecc[i]onis

¶That noo good dede maye make men saaf wythoute charyte / And that charyte fele they on̄ly y^t bē meke / ca lxviii (Book 68)

ANd therfore it is a grete maistry a man to cun loue his euen crysten in charyte / All this sayeng may be openly proued by saynt poulis wordes thus / Si linguis ho∣minum loquar & angelorum / caritatem non habuero. nichil sum / Et si habuero omnē fidem ita vt montes transferā.* 1.1 ca∣ritatem autē nō habeam. nichil sum. Et si nouerim misteria oīa. et si destribuero om̄es facultates meas in cibos pauperū / et tradidero corpus meum igni vt ardeam / caritatem autem

non habuero nichil michi prodest / Saynt poul in praysynge of charytee sayth thus / If I speke the langage of all men and of angels also / yf I haue noo charyte I am ryght noughte And yf I haue soo grete fayth that I maye tourne hylles and bere hem awaye / and I haue noo charite I am ryght nought And also though I had all maner of knowyng of all pryu••¦tees / without charyte I am ryght nought / And yf I yeue al y^t I haue to poor men and my body to the fire to be brent. and I haue no charyte it profyteth me ryʒt nouʒt / Here it semith by saynt poules wordes that a man maye doo alle good dedes bodily wythouten charyte / And that charyte is noughte elles but for to loue god and his euen crystē as hymself. How shol¦de thenne ony wretched caytit liuyng in erth what that he be haue delyte or trust or sykernes in hymself for ought that he can or maye doo wyth all his bodily myghtes or his kyndely reason / syth all this is nought worthe wythouten loue & cha¦ryte to his euen crysten / And this charyte maye not be goten wyth werkyng of hymself / for it is a free yefte of god sente in to a meke soule / as saynt poul sayth. who thenne dare har¦dely saye that I haue charyte or I am in charyte / Sothly noo man maye saye it sykerly / but he that is perfytly and sothfast¦ly meke / Other men maye trowe of hemself / and hope that they ben in charyte by tokens / But he that is perfytly meke felyth it / and therfore myghte he sykerly saye it / Thus meke was saynt poul / and for thy sayd he thus of hymselfe / Quis seperabit nos a caritate dei? Tribulacō an angustia. &c / who shall departe me fro the charite of god? Tribulacōn or angu¦ysshe. &c / And he answereth hymselfe and sayth / There shall noo creature put me fro the charyte of god whiche I haue in cryste Ihesu / Many men doon dedes of charyte and haue noo charite as I haue sayd· For to repreue a syn̄er for his syn̄e to his amēding & in couenable time it is a dede of charite. but to hate the syn̄er in stede of y^e syn̄e: it is ayenst charyte / He that is

verely meke can depart that one fro that other. and noo man but he / For though a man had all morall vertues of all phy∣losophers he cowde not doo this / He sholde cūne hate the syn̄e in all other men for he hateth it in hymselfe / But he cowde not loue the man in charytee for all his phylosophye / Also yf a man had knowynge of all clergye & of diuynite. and be not sothfastly meke he shall lyghtly erre & stomble and take the o¦ne for that other / But mekenes is worthy to receyue a yefte of god the whyche maye not be lerned by cunnynge of man / And therfore he that is meke can hate the synne and truely lo¦ue the man / But now perauenture thou begynnest to drede for that I haue sayd that charytee maye not be goten by noo werke that thou maye doo / How shalt thou thenne dooo / As vnto this I saye that there is noo thynge soo harde to gete as charyte / this is soth as wythin our traueyle / And on the cōtra¦ry wyse I saye that there is noo yefte of god that may so lig¦htly be had as charyte / For our lorde yeuyth noo yefte soo fre¦ely ne soo gladly ne soo comynly as he dooth charytee / How shalt thou then̄e haue it sayst thou. Be meke & lowe in spiry∣te and thou shalt haue it / And what is lyghter for to doo thā for to be meke? Sothly noo thyng / Thenne semyth it y^t the∣re is noo thyng that soo lyghtly maye be had as charyte / and therfore the nedeth not to be moche adradde / Be meke & haue it / Thus sayth Iames thapostle. Deus superbis resistit· hūili¦bus autē dat graciā / Our lorde he sayth ayenstondeth proude men / but to meke men he yeueth grace / whiche grace is pro∣pirly his charyte / for after the mesure of thy mekenes so shal thou haue charyte / If thou haue mekenes inperfitly oonly in wyll: not in affeccōn. thenne shall thou haue inperfyte charyte This is good / for it suffyseth to saluacyon as dauyd sayth Inperfectū meum viderūt oculi tui / Lorde wyth thyn eyen of mercy thou seest myn inperfeccyon / But yf thou haue meke¦nes perfytly.* 1.2 then̄e shalt thou haue perfyte charyte. and that is

best / The tother behouyth vs nedely to haue it yf we wyll be saaf. and this shold we desire / Thenne yf thou aske me who is perfytely meke / thou shalt noo more haue of me of meke∣nes at this tyme but this / He is meke that sothfastly know∣ith hymself as he is /

Notes

• * 1.1

  p̄. cor· i3
• * 1.2

  P.