wHan that Apprill with his shouris sote and the droughte of marche hath p[er]cid þe rote ...

.Sequitur de Auaricia.

AFter accidye now wil I speke of auaryce and of co¦uetyse of whiche synne saith seynt Poule / The rote of alle synne is couetyse. For sothly whan the herte of a man is confounded in hit self and troblid and that the soule hath lost the comfort of god. Thenne seketh ••e an ydle solas of w••••ldy thingis •• Auaryce after descripcion of seynt Austyn is a lichorousnes in herte to haue erthely thin¦gis / Som̄e other folke saye that auaryce is for to purchace many erthly thyngis •• and nothyng yeue to hem that haue nede / And vnderstande wel that auaryce is not oonly in good & ••n catel / but ••umtyme in science & in glorye & in euery outrageous thingis is auarice •• couetyse / And the diffe∣rence bitwene auarice and couetyse is this / Couetyse ••s for to cou••yte suche thingis as thou hast not / and auarice is to witholde & to kepe suche thingis as thou hast withoute right¦ful nede •• Sothl•• this auar••ce is a synne ful dampnable for al holy wryt cursith hit & speketh ayenst hit for it doth wrong to Ih••su Crist. For hit bereuyth fro hym the loue that men to hym owen and torneth hit bacward ayenst al reson and makyth that the auarous man hath more hope in his catel than in I••••su Crist. And therfore saith seynt Paule / that an au••rous m••n hath more h••pe in his thral∣dom of ydolatrye than in god / What difference is betwix an ydolastre & an auar••cious man / ••auenture an ydolastre hath but on mawmet or two / And the auaricious man hath many For certes 〈◊〉〈◊〉 floreyn in his cos••e is his mawmet. And certes 〈◊〉〈◊〉 synne of mawmetrie god forbedeth in þ^e ten co¦mandem̄ts as 〈◊〉〈◊〉 witnes 〈…〉〈…〉. Thou shalt haue no false goddis ••iforn me ne þ^u shalt make to þ^• no grauid thing

But an Auaricious man loueth more his tresour forgid And thurgh this synne of auarice and of Couetyse co∣myth thyse hard lordshippis thorugh whiche men be strey∣ned by talagis customs and cariagis more than her dute or reson is / or els take they of her bonde men amercementis Whiche myght more resonably be callyd extorsions than amercementis / Of whiche amercementis & raunsonyngis of bonde men som̄e lordis stywardis sayn that it is right∣ful / for as mykyl as a chorle hath no temporel thing that it ne is his lordis as they sayn / But certis thyse lord∣ships don wronge that bereuen her bonde folke thinges that they neuer yaf hem / Augustinus de Ciuitate dei libro .ix^o. Sayth that soth is that the condicyon of thraldom and the first cause of thraldom is for synne / Genesis .v^o. thus may ye see that the gilte deserueth thraldom and not na∣ture / wherfore thyse lordes shold not glorye hem in her lord¦shippis / sith that by naturel condicion they be not lordis of her thrallis / but that thraldom com first by synne •• And ferth••rmore ther as the lawe s••yth that temporel lordes of bonde folk ben the goodes of her lordshippis ye that is for to vnderstonde the goodis of the emperour to defende h••m in her right but not to robbe hem ne to reue hem •• And ther••fore sayth Seneca / Thy prudence shold lyue benygnely with thy thral •• that thou clepest thy thral ben goddis peple For humble folk ben crystes frendes •• they be contubernyal with the lord / New cometh disceyt betwene marchaunt and marchaunt / And thou shalt vnderstande that mar¦chandyse is in many maners / That one is bodily and that other is goos••ly / that one is lesful •• And that other

is dishonest and vnleefful / That bodily marchandyse that is leefful and honest is this / that there as god hath ordeynd that a royame or a contre is suffycyent to hym self it is honest and leefful that the habondance of this contre may helpe anoth••r contre that is more ne∣deful / . And therfore ther muste be marchandyse to b••ynge from on contre to another their marchandyse / . That other marchandise is that men haunten false othis with fraude trecherye and disceyt with lesyngis cursid and dampnable / Spirytuel marchandyse is properly sy¦monye / that is ententyf desire to thing spirytuel / that is thing that apperteyneth to the seyntwary of god and to cure of sowle / This desyre yf so be thar a man do his dyligence to perfourme hit / al be it that his desyre take non̄ effect / yet is it to hym a dedely synne / and yf he be ordryd he is Irreguler / . Certes symonye is cleped of Symon Magus that wold by temperall catell haue bought the yeft that god had yeuen by the holy gost to seynt P••tir and to the apostlis / And therfore vnder∣stonde ye that both he that sellith and he that byeth thin¦ges spyrytuel ben clepyd symonyaks / be it catel be it procuryng or ••y flesshly prayers of his frendes or of spi∣rytuel frendis / . Flesshly in two maners as by kynred and by other frendis / sothly yf they pray for hym that is not able ne worthy / it is symonye yf he take the bene fyce / And yf he be worthy and able it is none / That other maner is ••han men or women prayen for folke to auance h••m only for wicked fle••••hly affection that they haue to ••he persones / that is foul symonye / But certis

in seruyse for whiche men yeue thingis spirytuel vnto her seruauntis it muste be vnderstande that the seruys•• be ho∣nest or els not / And eke that it be withoute barganyng and that the persone be able / For as saith saynt Damas Alle the synnys of the world at regard of this synne ben as thing of nought / For it is the grettest synne that may be after the synne of lucifer and of anticryst / For by this synne god for lesith the chirche and the soule that he bought with his precyous blood by hem that yeuyn chirchis to hem that be not digne / For they put in theuys that stelyn the sowlis of Ihesu Crist and distroye his patrym••nye / By suche vndigne preestis and curates haue men the lesse reue¦rence of the sacraments of holy chirche / And suche y••uers of chirchis put out the children of Crist and put in to the chirchis the deuyllis owen children / They sellen the soules that shal kepe the lambis to the wolf that strangle hem. And therfore shal they neuer haue parte of the pasture of lambis that is the blisse of heuen / Now comyth hasard••••e with his appertenauntis as tablis / quardes and reuell••s. of whiche comyth disceyt false othis / chidyngis / and alle raueyns / blasfemyngis / reynyng of god / h••te of his neygh¦bours / wast of goodis / myspendyng of tyme / And som̄e¦tyme manslaghter / Certes hasardours may not be with oute grete synne whyles they hauntyn that craft / Of aua∣ryce comyth eke / lesyngis / thefte / falswitnes / and fals•• othis / And ye shal vnderstande that these ben grete synnys and expres aye••st the comandements of god as I haue said Fals witnes is eke in word and in ded•• •• In word as to byreue thy neyghbours good name by thy fals witnessyng

or accusest hym by thy fals witnes / or ellis excusest thy self falsely / ware ye questmongers and notaryes / Certes for fals witnes was ••usanne in grete sorowe and peyne and many another mo / The synne of thefte is expresse also a∣yenst goddes heest / And that in two maners / temporel & spirytuel / The temporel theft is as for to take thy neygh∣bours catel ayenst his wil be it by fors or by sleyght be it in metyng or mesure / by stelyng by false endytements vpon hym / and in borowyng thy neyghbours catel in en∣tent neuer to paye and semblable thingis / Sp••rytuel thefte is sacrylege that is to saye ontyng of holy thyngis / or of thyngis sacryd to Crist in two maners / by reson of the holy place / As chirchis and chircheyerdis for euery violent synne that men do in suche places may be clepid sacrylege. Also they that falsely witholde the rightes of holy chirche. And pleyn̄ and generally sacrylege is to yeue holy thing out of holy place / or vnholy thyng out of holy place / or holy thyng out of vnholy place / Now shal ye vnderstande that releuyng of auaryce is Myserycorde and pyte lar∣gely taken / And men myght axe why that myserycorde and pyte is releuyng of auaryce / Certes the auaricyous man shewith no pyte ne myserycorde to the nedeful man. For he deliteth hym in kepyng of his tresour / and not in the rescowyng ne in the releuyng of hys euen crysten / . And therfore speke I first of mysericorde / Thenne is my¦sericorde As saith the phylosophre a vertu by whiche corage of man is styred by the mysese of hym that is mysesid. vpon the whiche myserycorde wyth pyte in perfourmyng of Charytable werkis of mercy helpeth and comforteth

hym that is mysesed / And certes this meueth men to th•• misericorde of Ihesu Crist that hym self suffrid for our gilt He suffryd deth for misericorde / And foryaf vs our origi¦nal synnys / And therby relecid fro the peyne of helle and amenusid the peyne of purgatorye / The spicis of misericorde ben as for to lene and eke for to yeue / and forto fory•••••• and for to relece / and for to haue pyte in herte and com∣passion of myschyef of thyn euen cristen / And eke chastyce there as nede is / Another remedye ayenst auaryce is reso∣nable larges / But sothly here behoueth the consideracion of our lord Ihesu Crist and of his grace and of his tempo∣rel goodis and eke of the go••dis perdurable that Crist yaf vs / and eke to haue remembrance of the deth that ••e s••al dye and receyue / and he woot not whan / And eke t••at he shal forgoon alle that he hath dispendid and goten in goodis / But for as muche as som̄e folk be vnmesurable. men oughten eschewe fool largesse that men clepen wa••••. Certes he that is foollarge he yeuyth not his catel but ••e lesith his catel / Certes what thinge that ••e y••••••th for veyn glorye as to mynstrals and to ••••lk that bere his renome in the world he hath do synne and none almes / Certes ••e lesith fowle his good and sekith no thyng but synne / ••e is lyke to an hors that seketh rather to drynke dropp•• wa∣ter and troubly / than water of the cleer welle / To ••em ap¦perteyn••n th•• malison that Crist shal yeue a••te daye of d••me to hem that shull be dampned.