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{"content": "Here begins a short treatise on contemplation taught by our Lord Jesus Christ, or taken from the book of Margery Kempe of Lynn.\n\nShe longed many times that her head might be struck off with an axe upon a block for the love of our Lord Jesus. Then our Lord Jesus spoke in her mind, \"Daughter, I thank you that you would die for my love. For as often as you think so, you shall receive the same reward in heaven, as if you had suffered the same death, and yet no man will slay you.\"\n\nI assure you in your mind, if it were possible for me to suffer pain again, as I have done before, I would rather suffer as much pain as ever I did for your soul alone, than you should depart from me eternally.\n\nDaughter, you can please God no better than by continually thinking of your wickednesses and pondering my goodness. Then she asked our Lord Jesus Christ, \"And how shall I best love him?\"\n\nAnd our Lord replied, \"Have in mind your wickednesses and think on my goodness.\".Daughter, if you were the haberdasher or the one here fasting bread and water, and if you said every day a thousand pater noster, you would please me as well when you are silent and allow me to speak in your soul.\n\nDaughter, to bid many prayers is good for those who cannot do better, and yet it is not profitable. But it is a good way towards perfection. For I tell the daughter, those who are great fasts and great doers of penance, they would have it held the best life, and those who give them many devotions, they would have you live the best life. And those who give much alms, they would have it held the best life. And I have often told the daughter, that thinking, weeping, and high contemplation is the best life on earth, and you will have more merit in heaven for one year of thinking in your mind than for a hundred years of praying with your mouth, yet you will not believe me, for you will bid many prayers..Daughter, if you knew how sweet your love is to me, you would never do otherwise than love me with all your heart.\nDaughter, if you will be high with me in heaven, keep me always in your mind as much as you can, and do not forget me at your table, but think always that I fit in your heart and know every thought that is there, both good and bad.\nDaughter, I have suffered many pains for your love; therefore, you have great cause to love me well, for I have bought your love dearly.\nLord, I pray you let me never have any joy on earth but mourning and weeping for your love; for I think, Lord, though I were in hell, if I might weep there and mourn for your love as I do here, hell would not displease me, but it would be a manner of heaven for your love puts away all manner of fear of our spiritual enemy; for I would rather be there as long as you would and please you than be in this world and displease you. Therefore, good Lord, as you will, so let it be..She had great wonder that our lord would become man and suffer such grievous pains for her, the unkind creature. And then, with great weeping, she asked the Lord Ihu what she might do to please Him. He answered her soul, saying, \"Daughter, have mind of thy wickedness and think on My goodness. Then she prayed many times and often used these words. Lord, for Thy goodness have mercy on my great wickedness. As certainly as I was never so wicked as thou art good, nor ever may I be, for Thou art so good that Thou canst be no better and therefore it is great wonder that any man should ever be parted from Thee.\n\nWhen she saw the crucifix or if she saw a man with a wound or a beast, or if a man beat a child before her, or struck an horse or other beast with a whip, if she might see it or hear it, she thought she saw our Lord being beaten or wounded like she saw in the man or in the beast..The more she increased in love and devotion, the more she increased in sorrow and contrition, in lowliness and meekness, and in holy fear of our Lord Jesus, and in knowledge of her own frailty. If she saw any creature punished or sharply chastised, she would think that she was more worthy to be chastised than that creature for her unkindness against God. Then she would weep for her own sin and for compassion of that creature.\n\nIn nothing that you do or say, daughter, you may please God more, than to believe that He loves you. If it were possible, I would weep with you for the compassion I have for you.\n\nOur merciful Lord Jesus Christ drew this creature to His love and to the mind of His passion, which could not endure to behold a leper or any other sick man, especially if he had any signs of ugliness appearing on him..She wept as if she had seen the Lord Jesus with his bleeding wounds, and she did so in the sight of his soul. Through the beholding of the sick man, her mind was entirely roused towards the Lord Jesus, causing her great mourning and sorrow, for she could not kiss the leper when she met them on the way, due to her disposition in her youth and prosperity. She had desired in her mind to have many priests in the town of Lyn, who could see and read night and day, to serve me, worship me, and praise me, and thank me for the good I had done to them on earth. Therefore, daughter, I promise you shall have reward and recompense in heaven for your good wills and good desires, as if you had done them in deed. You shall have as great reward and as great recompense with me in heaven..for your good service and your good deeds that you have done in your mind as if you had done them with your bodily wits without fail. And daughter, I thank you for the charity that you have to all lecherous men and women, for you pray for them and weep for them many a tear desiring that it might deliver them from sin, and be as gracious to them as I was to Mary Maudeley, that they might have as much grace to love me as Mary Maudeley had, and with this condition, you would have it that each of them should have 20 li. a year to love and praise me, and daughter, this great charity which you have in your prayer pleases me right well. And daughter, I also thank you for the charity which you have in your prayer when you pray for all Jews and Saracens, that they might come to the Christian faith, that my name might be magnified in them. Furthermore, daughter, I thank you for the general charity that you have to all people who are now in this world..\"You are to come to the end of the world / if you wanted to be reduced as small as flesh to the pot for their love / so that I would save them all from damnation if it pleased me. And therefore, daughter, for all these good wills and desires you shall have full reward in heaven, believe it right well and doubt never a del.\n\u00b6 She said, \"Good lord, I would be laid naked upon an hurdle for your love, that all men might wonder on me and cast filth and dirt on me: & be drawn from town to town every day of my life, if you were pleased by it / and no man's soul hundred, your will be fulfilled and not mine.\n\u00b6 Daughters, as often as you say or think you worship, all the holy places in Jerusalem where Christ suffered bitter pain and passion, in that place you shall have the same pardon as if you were present with your body / both for yourself and for all those you give to.\n\u00b6 The same pardon was granted before this time.\"\".It was confirmed on St. Nicholas day, that is, a plain remission, and it is not only granted to you but also to all those who believe, and to all those who shall believe unto the world's end, that God loves you, and if they will forsake their sin and be in full will no more to turn again thereto. But be sorry and heavy for what they have done and do due penance, they shall have the same pardon granted to yourself. And it is all the pardon that is in Jerusalem, as was granted you when you were at Rafns.\n\nThat day that she suffered no tribulation for our Lord's sake, she was not merry nor glad, as that day when she suffered tribulation.\n\nPatience is more worthy than miracles doing.\n\nDaughter, it is more pleasure to me that you suffer despises, scorns, shames, & reproaches, wounds, diseases, than if your head were struck three times a day every day in seven years.\n\nLord, for your great pain, have mercy on my little pain..Whan she was in great trouble, our Lord said, \"Daughter, I must necessarily comfort you. For now you have the right way to heaven. By this way I came, and all my disciples came. Now you shall know better what sorrow and shame I suffered for your love, and you shall have more compassion when you think on my passion.\"\n\n\"O my dear worthy Lord: these graces you should show to religious men and to priests.\"\n\nOur Lord said to her again, \"Nay, nay, daughter, for it is best that they do not love me, and it is shame, reproach, scorn, and disdain of the people, and therefore they shall not have this grace. For he who fears the shame of this world may not perfectly love God.\"\n\nHere ends a short treatise called Margery Kempe's Book. Printed in Flete Street by Wynkyn de Worde.", "creation_year": 1501, "creation_year_earliest": 1501, "creation_year_latest": 1501, "source_dataset": "EEBO", "source_dataset_detailed": "EEBO_Phase1"} |
