Sequitur remedium contra peccatum Ire.
The remedie agayns Ire is a vertu that men clepen
mansuetude, that is debonairetee; and
eek another
vertu, that men callen pacience or suffrance.
Debonairetee withdraweth and refreyneth the
stirynges and the moevynges of mannes corage in his herte, in
swich manere that they ne skippe nat out by angre ne by ire.
Suffrance suffreth swetely alle the anoyaunces and the
wronges that men doon to man outward.
Seint Jerome seith thus
of debonairetee, that "it dooth noon harm to no wight ne
seith; ne for noon harm that men doon or seyn, he ne eschawfeth
nat agayns his resoun."
This vertu somtyme comth of
nature, for, as seith the Philosophre, "A man is a quyk
thyng, by nature debonaire and tretable to goodnesse; but whan
debonairetee is enformed of grace, thanne is it the moore
worth."
Pacience, that is another remedie agayns Ire, is a vertu
that suffreth swetely every mannes goodnesse, and is nat wrooth
for noon harm that is doon to hym.
The Philosophre
seith that pacience is thilke vertu that suffreth debonairely
alle the outrages of adversitee and every wikked word.
This
vertu maketh a man lyk to God, and maketh hym Goddes owene deere
child, as seith Crist. This vertu disconfiteth thyn enemy. And
therfore seith the wise man, "If thow wolt venquysse thyn
enemy, lerne to suffre."
And thou shalt understonde that
man suffreth foure manere of grevances in outward thynges, agayns
the whiche foure he moot have foure manere of paciences.
The firste grevance is of wikkede wordes. Thilke suffrede
Jhesu Crist withouten grucchyng, ful paciently, whan the Jewes
despised and repreved hym ful ofte.
Suffre thou therfore
paciently; for the wise man seith, "If thou stryve with a
fool, though the fool be wrooth or though he laughe, algate thou
shalt have no reste."
That oother grevance
outward is to have damage of thy catel. Theragayns suffred Crist
ful paciently, whan he was despoyled of al that he hadde in this
lyf, and that nas but his clothes.
The thridde grevance is
a man to have harm in his body. That suffred Crist ful paciently
in al his passioun.
The fourthe grevance is in outrageous
labour in werkes. Wherfore I seye that folk that maken hir
servantz to travaillen to grevously or out of tyme, as on haly
dayes, soothly they do greet synne.
Heer-agayns suffred Crist
ful paciently and taughte us pacience, whan he baar upon his
blissed shulder the croys upon which he sholde suffren despitous
deeth.
Heere may men lerne to be pacient, for certes noght
oonly Cristen men been pacient for love of Jhesu Crist and for
gerdoun of the blisful lyf that is perdurable, but certes, the
olde payens that nevere were Cristene commendeden and useden the
vertu of pacience.
A philosophre upon a tyme, that wolde have beten
his disciple for his grete trespas, for which he was greetly
amoeved, and broghte a yerde to scoure with the child;
and
whan this child saugh the yerde, he seyde to his maister,
"What thenke ye do?" "I wol bete thee," quod the
maister, "for thy correccioun."
"For sothe,"
quod the child, "ye oghten first correcte youreself, that han
lost al youre pacience for the gilt of a child."
"For
sothe," quod the maister al wepynge, "thow seyst sooth.
Have thow the yerde, my deere sone, and correcte me for myn
inpacience."
Of pacience comth obedience, thurgh which
a man is obedient to Crist and to alle hem to whiche he oghte to
been obedient in Crist.
And understond wel that
obedience is parfit whan that a man dooth gladly and hastily,
with good herte entierly, al that he sholde do.
Obedience
generally is to parfourne the doctrine of God and of his
sovereyns, to whiche hym oghte to ben obeisaunt in alle
rightwisnesse.
