Be not overconfident in maidenhood. thy are more melted and liquefied into good, ban þe first in þeir lukewarmness all þeir lifetime. Wherefore, blessed maiden, spouse of þe Son of God, be not pou too confident in þy maidenhood only wiðout oder good and moral virtues, and especially mildness and meekness of heart, after þe example of þat maiden blessed beyond all oders, Mary, þe moder of God. For when be archangel Gabriel greeted her, and brought her pe tidings of Christs conception, observe how low she let herself be when she answered þus of herself: "Behold, þe drall of þe Lord; according to by word," said she, "may it be to me." And þough she were full of all good manners, she only said of her meekness and sang to Elizabeð, "For now my Lord had regarded be low estate of his hand maiden. All people," said she, “shall call me blessed." Take heed, maiden, and understand hereby, þat more for her meekness þan for her maidenhood, she believed she experienced such grace from our Lord. Meekness indis- To all maidenhood meekness is word much, and maiden Luke i. 38. Luke i. 48. pensable. saints, hood widout it is vile and word noðing; for a maiden in her maidenhood wiðout meekness is just like oil in a lamp widout light. Blessed spouse of God! have his same virtue, þat þou seem not darksome, but shine as þe sun in by husband's sight. Vary by maidenhood wið all good Think of Mary manners, which seem to him fair. Have ever in þine and the virgin heart þe most blessed of maidens and moðer of maidenhood, and ever beseech her to enlighten þee and give þee love and streng to follow in maidenhood her excellencies. pink of St. Kaðarine, St. Margaret, St. Agnes, St. Juliana, St. Lucy, St. Cecilia, and of pe oder holy maidens in heaven; how þey not only refused kings sons and earls and of their con- wið all worldly weald and early joys, but endured strong pains raper þan accept þem and a sorrowful deað at last. pink how well þey are off now, and how þey revel now in Gods arms as queens of heaven. And if it ever happens þat þy bodys lust, rough þe false fiend, leade pee towards carnal filð, answer by oughts pus: "pou makest no proCombat the flesh gress, deceiver! Such will I be in a maidens life as is an with arguments and resolution. angel in heaven. I will keep myself intact rough þe grace of God, as nature me made, þat þe joys of paradise may receive me; such as were, before þey sinned, its first cultiva stancy. hire to, B. [Fol. 126a]. meoke of a hondhwile beon imealt mare t izotten in godd þen pe an, B. oðre in a wlecchunge al hare liffide. Forþi eadi méiden lifsiðen, B. godef fune spuse ne beo þu nawt tu trusti ane to þi meiden- sunes, B. had wiðuten oder God t pawfulle mihtest ouer al miltschipet meokeschipe of heorte after þe bisne of þat eadi forbisne, B. meiden ouer all ore. marie godes moder. for þa þe hehe engel Gabriel grette hire. t brohte hire pe tidinge of godes akeneffe; loke hu lah ha lette hire þa ha onswerede pus bi hire felue. low her mi lauerdes pralle; After pi word quod ha mote me iwurden. And tah ha ful were of alle gode beawes; ane of hire mekelec ha feide t fong to Helizabeth. for mi lauerd biseh his pufftenes mekelac me schulen clepien quod ha eadi alle leoden. Nim zeme meiden t underftond herbi. pat mare for hire mekelec pen for hire meidenhad ha lette pat ha ifond fwuch grace at ure lauerd. for al meidenhad; mekelec is muche wurd. t meidenhad widuten hit is exeliche t unwurd for al fwa is meiden imeidenhad wiðute mekelec; as is wiðute liht eoile in a laumpe. Eadi godes spuse haue þis ilke mihte pat tu ne punche peoftri. ah fchine as te funne ipi weres fihde. feahe þi meidenhad wið alle gode peawes. þat þunched him feire. Haue eauer ipin herte pe eadieste of meidnes t meidenhades moder. t bisech ai hire þat ha þe lihte t ziue luue t ftrenge for to folhe in meidenhad hire peawes. pench o. st. katerine. o. st. margarete. st. enneis. st. Juliene. st. lucie. st. Cecille. t ope ore hali meidnes in heuene Hu ha nawt ane forfoken kinges funnest eorles wix alle worldliche weolent eorliche wunnen; ah poleden ftronge pines ear ha walden nimen ham t derf dead on ende. bench hu wel ham is nu. t hu ha bliffe perfore bituhhe godes armef cwenes of heuene. And if hit eauer timeð pat ti licomef luft þurh pe false feond leadeð þe toward leadie, B. fleschliche fule; onfwere ipi poht tus. Ne Geine pe nawt pus, B. fweoke. pullich ichulle beon imeidenes liflade. Jlich heuene engel. Jchulle halde me hal þurh pe grace of godd af cunde bute schipe, B. þe, B. [Fol. 1266.] aa, B. forte folhen, B. me makede. þat paraise felhče underfo me all swuch af [Fol. 126c.] tive were hell. tors. Altogeber, such I will be as is my dear leman, my precious Lord, and as is þat blessed maiden, þat he chose to Resolve to re- himself for moder. Such will I keep myself, truly unpolmain a maiden, luted, since I am to him wedded. Nor will I for a lust of a little while, pough it seems a delight, cast away þat ding, þe loss of which I should repent wi%out recovery, and pay for in hell wið every burning. pou wretched wight! all for nought pou provokest me to commit sin, and forego be bliss upon bliss, pe crown upon crown of a maidens as if the alterna- reward; and hast a wish and a will to cast me as a wretch into by pit of punishment; þat instead of pe song of angels out of maidenhoods grace, greet and groan ever wið pe and wið þine in þe eternal horror of hell." If þou þus answerest to by bodys lust and to be fiends attempts, he shall flee from þee wið shame. And if he still after þis, soon enough, come to pee and continue to irritate by flesh and prick by heart, þy Lord God permitted pis to enlarge þy 1 Corinth. ix. 25. reward; for, as St. Paul said, none is crowned except whosoever fights stoutly in þat fight, and wið strong combating overcomex her flesh; for pen is be devil, wid his own Hide thyself in guile, shamefully overcrown. When pou, as be apostle said, shalt not be crowned, except pou be assailed, for God will crown pee; he will permit pe evil one to assail þee pat þence pou mayst earn crown upon crown. Hence it is of most benefit to pee þat when he grieveð þee most, and wið temptations warre more madly upon pee, if you hidest þyself well under Gods wings: for by his war he prepared bee in spite of his teed, pe bliss and pe crown of Christs chosen ones. And may Jesu Christ grant pee rough his blessed name, and all þem þat quit be love of man of clay, He prays his ex- to be his leman, and grant þat þey so retain þeir hearts hortations may wix him, þat neiper be promptings of þeir flesh, nor temptations of þe fiend, nor any of his early imps, daze þeir hearts wit, nor twist þem out of þe way, on which þey have entered and may He help þem so in Him to hasten to heaven, till þey be thier mounted, as þeir bridal shall be, into all þat ever blissful is, to sit wiðout end, wið þe blessed bridegroom, from whom all happiness is derived. Amen. God. Champions or confessors crown according to B. avail. wið weren ear ha Gulten his earste hearmen. Allunge fwuch ichulle beon as if mi deore leofmon mi deorewurde lauerd. t as if tat eadi meiden þat he him cheaf to moder Al þe, B. fwuch ichulle wite me treowliche unwemmet af ich am [Fol. 126d.] aa, B. -est, B. him iweddet. ne nul ich nawt for a luft of a lute hwile þah ane, B. ef for For, B. [Fol. 127a.] þurh kem pene, B. te, B. wrist for hiles, B. |