Folio 41. schendfule wordes. Her beod, in peos wordes, two eadie wordes" to noten swide georne, pet limpeð ariht to ancre-polemodnesse, in pere uorme half, 7 in pe latere edmodnesse, of milde 7 of meoke heorte. Vor polemod is pe pet puldeliche abered wouh pet me deð himedmod is pe pet polien mei pet me him missigge. peos pet ich habbe inempned her weren of pen olde lawe: cume we nu to pe neowe. "Inter natos mulierum non surrexit major Johanne Baptist." с Seint Johan baptiste, bi hwam ure Louerd seið, þet among wiuene sunes ne aros neuer betere he teihte us openliche bi his 10 owene deden, pet onlich stude is bode siker biheue. Vor, pauh pe engel Gabriel hefde his burde ibocked, 7 al were he ifulled of pe Holi Goste, anon wiðinnen his moder wombe: 7 al were he, puruh miracle, of barain iboren: he ine his iborenessed upspende his feder tunge into prophecie? vor alle pisse, get ne durste he wunien among men: so dredful lif he iseih per inne: pauh hit nere of nowiht elles bute of speche one forpui, hwat dude he? Lung of zeres ase he was, fleih awei into per wildernesse, leste he mid speche fulde his clene lif. Vor so hit is in his ymne: "antra deserti teneris sub annis, tc." He hefde, ase hit punched, iherd Isaie pet mende him seide, "Ve mihi! quia homo pollutis labiis ego sum." Wummen wo is me, he seid, pe holi prophete, vor ich am a man mid suilede lippen? seið pe ancheisun hwi: "Quia in medio populi polluta labia habentis ego habito." Ant tet is forpi, he seið, pet ich wunie among men pet suiled hore lippen mid misliche spechen. Lo hu Godes prophete seid pet he was isuiled puruh 20 JOHN THE BAPTIST SOUGHT SOLITUDE IN THE WILDERNESS. 159 these words, two excellent [moral qualities] to be carefully observed, which rightly belong to anchoresses. Patience in the former part; and in the latter part, meekness-of mild and meek heart. For he is patient who beareth patiently an injury that is done him; and he is meek who can bear to be evil spoken of. Those whom I have hitherto mentioned were under the old law: come we now to the new. "Inter natos mulierum non surrexit major Johanne Baptista." b Saint John the Baptist, of whom our Lord saith, that among the sons of women there never arose a better, taught us openly by his own actions that solitude is both safe and profitable. For, though the angel Gabriel had foretold his birth, and although he was filled with the Holy Ghost even within his mother's womb; and was, by miracle, born of one barren, and at his birth unbound his father's tongue to prophesy; yet, for all this, he durst not dwell among men. Life appeared to him so dangerous among them; even if it were on account of nothing less but of speech alone. And what then did he? Young as he was, he fled away into the wilderness, lest he should defile his pure life with speech. For so it is in his hymn: "Antra deserti teneris sub annis," &c. He had heard, as it seems, Isaiahwho moaned, and said, "Væ mihi! quia homo pollutis labiis ego sum.” Women, woe is me! saith the holy prophet, for I am a man of unclean lips; and he saith the reason why: "quia in medio populi polluta labia habentis ego habito." And that is, saith he, because I dwell among men who have sullied their lips with indiscreet speeches. Lo! how God's prophet saith that he was sullied by living among men. It is so indeed. For neither gold, nor silver, nor iron, nor steel, is ever so bright that it will not draw rust from a thing that is rusty, if they lay long together. Wherefore Saint John fled from the society of foul men, lest he should be sullied. 0 a C. T. "words," in the original. Isaiah, vi. 5. b Matt. xi. 11. dEx cohabitatione hominum. MS. Oxon. So hit is sikerliche. Vor ne beo neuer so beo ustea among men. him one. Ure leoue lefdi, ne ledde heo onlich lif? Folio 41 b. auh was biloken ueste vor so we iuinded. h Heo nes nohwar ute: "Ingressus angelus ad eam, dixit, Aue, Maria, gracia plena, Dominus tecum." pet is, pe 20 ifuled burh bewiste. T. canres. T. lif. C. g meden. C. b wilderne. C. d limpeð al to him. C. THE VIRGIN MARY A LOVER OF SILENCE AND SOLITUDE. 161 And further, to shew us that we cannot flee from the bad, without fleeing from the good, he fled from his holy kindred, chosen of our Lord, and went into a solitary place and dwelt in the wilderness. And what did he gain there? He gained that he was God's baptist, the high honour that he held in baptism, under his hands, the Lord of Heaven, who upholds the whole world with his might alone; when the Holy Trinity was fully revealed to him, the Father by his voice, the Holy Ghost in the likeness of a dove, the Son in his hands. In solitude. he acquired these three possessions—the privilege of preacher, the merit of martyrdom, and the reward of virginity. These three kinds of men have in heaven a superabundant reward, crown upon crown; and the blessed John, when he was in solitude, earned for himself alone these three dignities. J a Our dear lady, did not she lead a solitary life? She was no where abroad, but was shut up fast, for so we find. "Ingressus angelus ad eam dixit, Ave, Maria, gratia plena, Dominus tecum: that is, the angel went in to her; she was within then, in solitude, all alone. An angel has seldom appeared to man in a crowd. On the other hand, since it is not any where recorded in Holy Scripture that she spoke, except four times, it is a clear proof that she, who thus kept silence, was much alone. What more do we require? One good example may suffice for all. He went himself alone into a solitary place, and fasted when He was alone in the wilderness; to shew thereby that no one can exercise true penitence amidst the multitude. There, in solitude, it is said that he hungred, to comfort anchorites who are in want. There he suffered the fiend to tempt him many ways; but he overcame him. Also to shew that the penitence. per in onliche stude him hungrede, hit seið, uorto urouren ancre pet is meseise. per he polede pet te ueond uondede him ueole weis auh he ouercom hine. Also uorte scheawen þet te ueond fondeð muchel peo pet ledeð onlich lif, vor onde pet he haueð to ham: auh he is per euer ouercumen. d 7 Vor ure Louerd sulf stont per bi pe buihte, 7 beldeð ham hu heo schulen stonden strongliche azein, 7 ziueð ham of his strencde. He, ase holi writ seið, þet no muruhde, ne noise, ne prung of folc ne muhte letten him of his beoden, ne disturben him of his god,--he pauh, no pe later, hwon he wolde beon i beoden, he fleih nout one oder men, auh dude get 10 his holi deciples, q wende one uppon hulles, us to uorbisne, pet we schullen turnen bi us sulf, climben mid him on hulles: pet is, penchen heie, leauen lowe under us alle eoröliche pouhtes, peo hwule pet we beod ine beoden. Powel Antonie, Hilariun q Benediht, Sincletice q Sare, q odre swuche, monie men & wummen Folio 42. bode, uondede sikerlich,f q undergeten soðliche pet te bizete of onliche liue was God icweme, as peo pet duden mid God al pet heo euer wolden. Seint Ieronime nu leate seid bi him suluen, "Quociens inter homines fui, minus homo recessi." As ofte as ich euer was, he seið, among men, ich wende from ham lesse mon pen ich 20 er was. Vor pi, seið pe Ecclesiasticus, "Ne oblecteris in turbis assidua est enim commissio:" pet is, ne punche pes neuer god among monne floc vor þer is euer sunne. Ne seide pe stefne of heouene to Arseinie, "Arseni, fuge homines q saluaberis:" Arseni, flih men q tu schal beon iboruwen. Ant eft him com 4 seide, "Arseni, fuge, tace, quiesce:" pet is, Arseni, flih, q beo stille, q wune studeuestliche i sume stude, ut of monne sihðe. Nu h g ze habbeð iherd, mine leoue sustren, vorbisne of pen olde lawe, q ec of pe neowe? hwui ze owen onlich lif swuð to luuien: 7 a in meseise. C. T. bealded. C. beades. T. hise apostles. C. gne like. C. b bi ham ide. C. d bonen. C. bones. T. f witterliche. C. T. h monnes. T. muche. C. |