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PASSUS XI. (DO-WEL III.) Passus xjus.

Thanne scripture scorned me and a skile tolde,
And lakked me in latyne and liȝte by me she sette,

And seyde, “multi multa sciunt, & seipsos nesciunt.”

Þo wepte I for wo and wratth of her speche,
And in a wynkyng wratth wex I aslepe.
A merueillouse meteles mette me þanne,
Þat I was rauisshed riȝt þere and fortune me fette,
And in-to þe londe of longynge allone she me brouȝte,
And in a myroure þat hiȝt mydlerd she mad me to biholde.
Sitthen she sayde to me “here myȝtow se wondres,
And knowe þat þow coueytest and come þer-to, par aunter.”
Coueytyse-of-eyes cam ofter in mynde
Þan dowel or dobet amonge my dedes alle.
Coueytise-of-eyes conforted me ofte,
And seyde, “haue no conscience how þow come to gode;
Go confesse [þe] to sum frere and shewe hym þi synnes.
For whiles fortune is þi frende Freres wil þe louye,
And fecche þe to her fraternite and for þe biseke,
To her priour prouyncial a pardoun forto haue,
And preyen for þe, pol bi pol ȝif þow be pecuniosus.”

Set pena pecuniaria non sufficit pro spiritualibus delictis.

By wissynge of þis wenche I wrouȝte here wordes were so swete,
Tyl I forȝat ȝouthe and ȝarn in-to elde.
And þanne was fortune my foo for al hir faire biheste,
And pouerte pursued me and put me lowe,
And þo fonde I þe Frere aferde and flyttynge bothe,
Aȝeines owre firste forward for I seyde I nolde
Be buryed at her hous but at my parisshe cherche.
For I herde onys how conscience it tolde,
Þat þere a man were crystened by kynde he shulde be buryed,
Or where he were parisshene riȝt þere he shulde be grauen.
And for I seyde þus to freres a fool þei me helden,
And loued me þe lasse for my lele speche.
Ac ȝet I cryed on my confessoure þat helde hym-self so kunnynge,
“By my feith, frere,” quod I “ȝe faren lyke þise woweres,
Þat wedde none wydwes but forto welde here godis;
Riȝte so, by þe Rode rouȝte ȝe neuere
Where my body were buryed bi so ȝe hadde my siluer.
Ich haue moche merueille of ȝow and so hath many an other,
Why ȝowre couent coueyteth to confesse and to burye,
Rather þan to baptise barnes þat ben catekumelynges.
Baptizyng and burying bothe ben ful nedeful,
Ac moche more merytorie me þynke[þ] it is to baptize.
For a baptized man may as maistres telleth,
Þorugh contricioun come to þe heigh heuene;

Sola contricio [delet peccatum.]

Ac a barne with-oute bapteme may nouȝt so be saued;

Nisi quis renatus fuerit [ex aqua, &c.;]

Loke, ȝe lettred men whether I lye or do nouȝte.”
And lewte loked on me and I loured after.
“Wherfore lourestow?” quod lewte and loked on me harde,
“Ȝif I durste,” quod I, “amonges men þis meteles auowe!”
“Ȝe, bi peter and bi poule,” quod he “and take hem bothe to witnesse,

Non oderis fratres secrete in corde tuo, set publice argue illos.”

“Þei wol alleggen also,” quod I “and by þe gospel preuen,

Nolite iudicare quemquam.”

“And wher-of serueth lawe,” quod lewte “if no lyf vndertoke it,
Falsenesse ne faytrye; for sumwhat þe apostle seyde,

Non oderis fratrem.

And in þe sauter also seithe dauid þe prophete,

Existimasti inique quod ero tui similis, &c.

It is licitum for lewed men to segge þe sothe,
If hem lyketh and leste eche a lawe it graunteth,
Excepte persones and prestes and prelates of holy cherche,
It falleth nouȝte for þat folke no tales to telle,
Þough þe tale were trewe and it touched synne.
Þinge þat al þe worlde wote wherfore shuldestow spare
[To] reden it in Retoryke to arate dedly synne?
Ac be neuere more þe fyrste þe defaute to blame;
Þouȝe þow se yuel, sey it nouȝte fyrste be sorye it nere amended.
No þinge þat is pryue publice þow it neuere,
Neyther for loue laude it nouȝt ne lakke it for enuye;

Parum lauda, vitupera parcius.”

Al for tene of her tyxte trembled myn herte,
And in a were gan I waxe and with my-self to dispute,
Whether I were chosen or nouȝt chosen; on holicherche I þouȝte,
Þat vnderfonge me atte fonte for one of goddis chosen;
For cryste cleped vs alle come if we wolde,
Sarasenes and scismatikes and so he dyd þe iewes,

O vos omnes scicientes, venite, &c.;

And badde hem souke for synne saufly at his breste,
And drynke bote for bale brouke it who so myȝte.
“Þanne may alle crystene come,” quod I “and cleyme þere entre,
By þe blode þat he bouȝte vs with and þorugh baptesme after,

Qui crediderit & baptizatus fuerit, &c.

For þough a crystene man coueyted his crystenedome to reneye,
Riȝtfulliche to renye no resoun it wolde.
“Þat is soth,” seyde scripture “may no synne lette
Mercy alle to amende and mekenesse hir folwe,
For þey beth as owre bokes telleth aboue goddes werkes,

Misericordia eius super omnia opera eius.”

[Þis matir is merke for mani of ȝow ac, men of holy cherche,
Þe legende sanctorum ȝow lereth more larger þan I ȝow telle!
Ac þus lele loue and lyuynge in treuthe
Pulte oute of pyne a paynym of rome.
I-blessed be treuthe þat so brak helle ȝates,
And saued þe Sarasyn fram Sathanas and his power,
Þere no clergie ne couthe ne kunnynge of lawes.
Loue and leute is a lele science;
For þat is þe boke blessed of blisse and of ioye:—
God wrouȝt it and wrot hit with his on fynger,
And toke it moyses vpon þe mount alle men to lere.]
‘Lawe with-outen loue,’ quod troianus ‘leye þere a bene,
Or any science vnder sonne þe seuene artz and alle,
But if þei ben lerned for owre lordes loue loste is alle þe tyme:’—
For no cause to cacche siluer þere-by ne to be called a mayster,
But al for loue of owre lorde and þe bet to loue þe peple.
For seynte Iohan seyde it and soth aren his wordes,

‘Qui non diligit, manet in morte—

And exciteth vs bi þe euangelye þat, when we maken festes,
We shulde nouȝte clepe owre kynne þer-to ne none kynnes riche;

‘Cum facitis conuiuia, nolite inuitare amicos;

Ac calleth þe careful þer-to þe croked and þe pore,
For ȝowre frendes wil feden ȝow and fonde ȝow to quite
Ȝowre festynge and ȝowre faire ȝifte; vche frende quyteth so other.
Ac for þe pore I shal paye and pure wel quyte her trauaille,
Þat ȝiueth hem mete or moneye and loueth hem for my sake.’
For þe best ben somme riche and somme beggers and pore.
For alle are we crystes creatures and of his coffres riche,
And bretheren as of o blode as wel beggares as erles.
For on caluarye of crystes blode crystenedome gan sprynge,
And blody bretheren we bycome þere of o body ywonne,
As quasi modo geniti and gentil men vche one,
No beggere ne boye amonges vs but if it synne made;

Qui facit peccatum, seruus est peccati, &c.

In þe olde lawe as holy lettre telleth,
Mennes sones men called vs vchone,
Of adames issue and Eue ay til god-man deyde;
And after his resurreccioun Redemptor was his name,
And we his bretheren, þourgh hym ybouȝt bothe riche and pore.
For-þi loue we as leue bretheren shal and vche man laughe vp other,
And of þat eche man may forbere amende þere it nedeth,
And euery man helpe other for hennes shal we alle;

Alter alterius onera portate.

And be we nouȝte vnkynde of owre catel ne of owre kunnynge neyther,
For noet no man how neighe it is to be ynome fro bothe.
For-þi lakke no lyf other þough he more latyne knowe,
Ne vnder-nym nouȝte foule for is none with-oute faute.
For what euere clerkis carpe of crystenedome or elles,
Cryst to a comune woman seyde in comune at a feste,
Þat fides sua shulde sauen hir and saluen hir of alle synnes.
Þanne is byleue a lele helpe aboue logyke or lawe;
Of logyke ne of lawe in legenda sanctorum
Is litel allowaunce made but if bileue hem helpe.
For it is ouerlonge ar logyke any lessoun assoille,
And lawe is loth to louye but if he lacche syluer.
Bothe logyke and lawe þat loueth nouȝte to lye,
I conseille alle crystene cleue nouȝte þer-on to sore.
For sum wordes I fynde ywryten were of faithes techynge,
Þat saued synful men as seynt Iohan bereth wytnesse;

Eadem mensura qua mensi fueritis, remecietur vobis.

For-þi lerne we þe lawe of loue as owre lorde tauȝte,
And as seynte Gregory seide for mannes soule helthe,

Melius est scrutari scelera nostra, quam naturas rerum.

Martha on Marye magdeleyne an huge pleynte she made,
And to owre saueour self seyde þise wordes,

Domine, non est tibi cure quod soror mea reliquit me sola[m] ministrare, &c.?

And hastiliche god answered and eytheres wille folwed,
Bothe Marthaes and Maries as Mathew bereth witnesse,
Ac pouerte god put bifore and preysed it þe bettre;

Maria optimam partem elegit que non [auferetur ab ea.]

Al þough salamon seide as folke seeth in þe bible,

Diuicias nec paupertates, &c.,

Wyser þan salamon was bereth witnesse and tauȝte,
Þat parfyte pouert was no possessioun to haue,
And lyf moste lykynge to god as luke bereth witnesse,

Si vis perfectus esse, vade & vende, &c.;

And is to mene to men þat on þis molde lyuen,
Who so wil be pure parfyt mote possessioun forsake,
Or selle it, as seith þe boke and þe syluer dele
To beggeres þat gone and begge and bidden good for goddes loue.
For failled neuere man mete þat myȝtful god serued;

[Non vidi iustum derelictum, nec semen eius querens panem;]

As dauid seith in þe sauter to suche þat ben in wille
To serue god godeliche ne greueth hym no penaunce,

Nichil inpossibile volenti,

Ne lakketh neuere lyflode lynnen ne wollen,

Inquirentes autem dominum non minuentur omni bono.

If prestes weren parfyt þei wolde no syluer take
For masses ne for matynes nouȝte her mete of vsureres,
Ne neither kirtel ne cote þeigh þey for colde shulde deye,
And þei her deuo[i]r dede as dauid seith in þe sauter,

Iudica me, deus, & discerne causam meam.

Spera in deo speketh of prestes þat haue no spendyng syluer,
Þat ȝif þei trauaille trewlich and trusten in god almiȝti,
Hem shulde lakke no lyflode noyther wollen ne lynnen.
And þe title þat [ye] take ordres by telleth ȝe ben auaunced;
Þanne nedeth nouȝte ȝow to take syluer for masses þat ȝe syngen.
For he þat toke ȝow ȝowre tytle shulde take ȝow ȝowre wages,
Or þe bisshop þat blesseth ȝow if þat ȝe ben worthy.
So is it a goky, by god þat in his gospel failleth,
Or in masse or in matynes maketh any defaute,

Qui offendit in vno, in omnibus est reus, &c.

And also in þe sauter seyth dauyd to ouerskippers,

Psallite deo nostro, psallite; quoniam rex terre deus israel; psallite sapienter.

Þe bisshop shal be blamed bifor god, as I leue,
Þat crouneth suche goddes kniȝtes þat conneth nouȝt sapienter
Synge ne psalmes rede ne segge a messe of þe day.
Ac neuer neyther is blamelees þe bisshop ne þe chapleyne,
For her eyther is endited and þat of ‘ignorancia
Non excusat episcopos nec idiotes prestes.’
[Holy writt,” quod þat weye “wisseth men to suffre;

Propter deum subiecti estote omni creature.

Frenche men and fre men affeyteth þus her childerne,
Bele vertue est soffrance mal dire est pety[t] veniance,
Bien dire et bien soffrir fait lui soffrant a bien venir.
For-þi I rede,” quod reson “rewle þi tonge bettere,
And ar þow lakke [eny] lyf loke if þow be to preyse!
For is no creature vnder criste can formen hym-seluen;
And if a man miȝte make hym-self goed to þe poeple,
Vch a lif wold be lakles leue þow non other.
Ne þow schalt fynde but fewe fayne for to here
Of here defautes foule by-for hem rehersed.]
Þe wyse and þe witty wrote þus in þe bible,

De re que te non molestat, [noli] certare.

For be a man faire or foule it falleth nouȝte for to lakke
Þe shappe ne þe shafte þat god shope hym-selue;
For al þat he did was wel ydo as holywrit witnesseth,

Et vidit deus cun[c]ta que fecerat, et erant valde bona;

“Haddestow suffred,” he seyde “slepyng þo þow were,
Þow sholdest haue knowen þat clergye can and conceiued more þorugh resoun;
For resoun wolde haue reherced þe riȝte as clergye saide.
Ac for þine entermetyng here artow forsake;

Philosophus esses, si tacuisses.