The Ellesmere ms of Chaucer's Canterbury tales / edited by Frederick J. Furnivall.

Et sequitur secunda pars eiusdem .

[316]

THe seconde partie of Penitence / is Confession / that is signe of contricion / [317] ¶ Now shul ye vnderstonde / what is confession /. and wheither it oghte nedes / be doon or noon /. and whiche thynges been couenable to verray Confession

[318] ¶ ffirst shaltow vnderstonde / that confession / is verray shewynge of synnes to the preest. [319] this is to seyn verray /. for he moste confessen hym / of alle the condiciouns / that bilongen to his synne / as ferforth as he kan / [320] al moot be seyd / and no thyng excused ne hyd ne forwrapped / and noght auaunte thee of thy goode werkes [321] ¶ And forther ouer/ it is necessarie to vnder|stonde / whennes that synnes spryngen / and how they encreessen and whiche they been

[322] ¶ Of the spryngynge of synnes seith seint Paul in this wise /. that right as by a man / synne entred first in-to this world. and thurgh that synne deeth /. Right so thilke deeth entred in-to alle men that synneden / [323] and this man was Adam / by whom / synne entred in-to this world / whan he brak the comaundementz of god. / [324] And therfore / he that first was so myghty / that he sholde nat haue dyed / bicam swich oon that he moste nedes dye wheither he wolde or noon / and al his progenye in this world that in thilke man synneden [325] ¶ Looke / that in thestaat of Innocence / whan Adam and Eue

[6-text p 613] naked weren in Paradys / and no thyng ne hadden shame of hir nakednesse /. [326] how that the serpent that was moost wily of alle othere beestes / that god hadde maked seyde to the womman /. why comanded god to yow / ye sholde nat eten / of euery tree in Paradys? [327] The womman answerde /. Of the fruyt quod she / of the trees in Paradys / we feden vs / but sooþly [folio 216b] of the fruyt of the tree / that is in the myddel of Paradys / god forbad vs for to ete / and nat touchen it/. lest per auenture we sholde dyen [328] ¶ The serpent seyde to the womman /. nay /. nay /. ye shul nat dyen of deeth / for sothe god woot. that what day / that ye eten ther-of /. youre eyen shul opene / and [ye] shul been as goddes / knowynge good and harm. [329] ¶ The womman thanne saugh / that the tree was good to feedyng. & fair to the eyen / and delitable to the sighte / she took of the fruyt of the tree / and eet it / and yaf to hire housbonde / and he eet and anoon the eyen of hem bothe openeden /. [330] and whan that they knewe that they were naked / they sowed of fige leues a maner of breches / to hiden hire membres [331] ¶ There may ye seen / that deedly synne / hath first suggestion of the feend /. as sheweth heere by the naddre /. And afterward. the delit of the flessh / as sheweth heere by Eue /. And after that the consentynge of reson /. as sheweth heere by Adam / [332] ffor trust wel / though so were / that the feend tempted Eue / that is to seyn the flessh / and the flessh hadde delit in the beautee of the fruyt defended /. yet certes / til that reson / that is to seyn Adam / con|sented to the etynge of the fruyt. yet stood he in thestaat of Innocence [333] ¶ Of thilke Adam / tooke we thilke synne original /. for of hym flesshly descended be we alle and engendred / of vile and corrupt mateere / [334] and whan the soule / is put in oure body. right anon / is con|tract original synne /. and that þat was erst but oonly peyne of concupiscence / is afterward / bothe peyne and synne /. [335] and therfore / be we alle born / sones of

[6-text p 614] wratthe and of dampnacion perdurable / if it nere baptesme that we receyuen / which bynyneth vs the culpe /. but for sothe / the peyne dwelleth with vs. as to temptacion. which peyne / highte concupiscence / [336] whan it is wrongfully disposed / or ordeyned in man /. it maketh hym coueite by coueitise of flessh / flesshly synne / by sighte of hise eyen / as to erthely thynges /. and coueitise of hynesse / by pride of herte

[337] ¶ Now as for to speken of the firste coueitise / that is Concupiscence after the lawe of oure membres / that weren lawefulliche ymaked and by rightful Iugge|ment of god [338] ¶ I seye for as muche / as man is nat obeisaunt to god that is his lord therfore / is the flessh to hym disobeisaunt thurgh Concupiscence which yet is cleped norrissynge of synne / and occasion of synne /. [339] therfore / al the while that a man hath in hym / the peyne of Concupiscence /. it is impossible / but he be tempted somtime and moeued in his flessh to synne ./ [340] and this thyng may nat faille as longe as he lyueth /. it may wel wexe fieble and faille by vertu of baptesme / and by the grace of god / thurgh penitence / [341] but fully / ne shal it neuere quenche /. that he ne shal som tyme be moeued in hym self. but if he were al refreyded by siknesse / or by malefice of sorcerie / or colde drynkes /. [342] ffor lo / what seith seint Paul ¶ the flessh coueiteth agayn the spirit/ and the spirit agayn the flessh /. they been so contrarie and so stryuen /. that a man may nat alwey doon as he wolde / [343] ¶ The same seint Paul after his grete penance / in water [folio 217a] and in lond /. in water by nyght / and by day in greet peril / & in greet peyne /. In lond / in famyne / in thurst in coold and cloothlees and ones stoned almoost to the deeth // [344] yet seyde he / allas I caytyf man /. who shal deliuere me fro the prison of my caytyf body [345] ¶ And seint Ierome / whan he longe tyme hadde woned in desert /where as he hadde no compaignye / but of wilde beestes / where as he ne hadde

[6-text p 615] no mete but herbes / and water to his drynke / ne no bed / but the naked erthe / for which his flessh was blak as an Ethiopeen for heete / and ny destroyed for coold /. [346] yet seyde he / that the brennynge of lecherie boyled in al his body / [347] wherfore / I woot wel sykerly / that they been deceyued / that seyn / that they ne be nat tempted in hir body / [348] witnesse on Seint Iame the Apostel /. that seith / that euery wight is tempted in his owene con|cupiscence /. that is to seyn that euerich of vs / hath matere and occasion to be tempted of the norissynge of synne / that is in his body /. [349] And therfore seith Seint Iohn the Euaungelist ‖. If that we seyn / that we beth with oute synne /. we deceyue vs selue / and trouthe is nat in vs

[350] ¶ Now shal ye vnderstonde / in what manere / that synne wexeth / or encreesseth in man ¶ The firste thyng /. is thilke norissynge of synne of which I spak biforn /. thilke flesshly concupiscence /. [351] and after that/ comth the subieccion of the deuel / this is to seyn / the deueles bely / with which he bloweth in man / the fir of flesshly concupiscence /. [352] and after that a man bi|thynketh hym / wheither he wol doon or no thilke thing to which he is tempted /. [353] And thanne /. if that a man withstonde and weyue the firste entisynge of his flessh / and of the feend / thanne is it no synne / and if it so be / that he do nat so / thanne feeleth he anoon a flambe of delit. [354] and thanne is it good to be war / and kepen hym wel or elles / he wol falle anon in to consentynge of synne. / and thanne wol he do it. if he may haue tyme and place ‖. [355] And of this matere seith Moyses by the deuel in this manere ¶ The feend seith / I wole chace and pursue the man / by wikked suggestion ./ and I wole hente hym by moeuynge / or stirynge of synne. / I wol departe my prise or my praye by de|liberacion / and my lust shal been accompliced in delit. I wol drawe my swerd in consentynge /. [356] ffor certes / right as a swerd departeth a thyng in two peces / right

[6-text p 616] so consentynge / departeth god fro man / and thanne wol I sleen hym / with myn hand in dede of synne / thus seith the feend /. [357] for certes / thanne is a man al deed in soule /. And thus is synne Accompliced by tempt|acion by delit. and by consentynge /. and thanne is the synne / cleped Actueel

[358] ¶ ffor sothe / synne is in two maneres /. outher / it is venial / or deedly synne ¶ Soothly / whan man loueth any creature moore than Ihesu crist oure creatour / thanne is it deedly synne ‖. And venial synne is it. if man loue Ihesu crist lasse than hym /. [359] ffor sothe / the dede of this venial synne / is ful perilous for it amenuseth the loue / that men sholde han to god moore and moore [360] And therfore / if a man charge hym self with manye swiche venial synnes /. certes / but if so be that he som tyme descharge hym of hem by shrifte /. they mowe ful lightly amenuse in hym al the loue that he hath to Ihesu crist. [361] and in this wise / skippeth venial in-to deedly synne [folio 217b] ffor certes the moore that a man / chargeth his soule with venial synne the moore is he enclyned / to fallen in-to deedly synne /. [362] and therfore / lat vs nat be necligent to deschargen vs of venial synnes ¶ ffor the prouerbe seith that manye smale / maken a greet [363] ¶ And herkne this ensample ‖. A greet wawe of the see comth som tyme with so greet a violence / that it drencheth the shipe ¶ And the same harm dooth som tyme / the smale dropes of water/ that entren / thurgh a litel creuace in to the thurrok. and in the botme of the shipe / if men be so necligent that they / ne descharge hem nat by tyme /. [364] And therfore / al though ther be a difference bitwixe thise two causes of drenchynge /. algates / the shipe is dreynt. [365] ¶ Right so fareth it somtyme of deedly synne / and of anoyouse veniale synnes / whan they multiplie in a man so greetly / that thilke worldly thynges that he loueþ thurgh whiche he synneth venyally /. is as greet in his herte as the loue of god / or moore / [366]

[6-text p 617] and therfore the loue of euery thyng. that is nat biset in god ne doon principally for goddes sake /. al though that a man loue it lasse than god / yet is it venial synne /. [367] and deedly synne / whan the loue of any thyng. wexeth in the herte of man / as muchel as the loue of god / or moore / [368] ¶ Deedly synne / as seith seint Augustyn / is. whan a man / turneth his herte fro god / which that is verray souereyn bountee / that may nat chaunge / and yeueth his herte / to thyng that may chaunge and flitte /. [369] And certes / that is euery thyng saue god of heuene /. ffor sooth is / that if a man yeue his loue / the which þat he oweth al to god with al his herte /. vn-to a creature /. certes / as muche as he yeueth of his loue to thilke creature / so muche he bireueth fro god / [370] and ther fore dooth he synne /. for he that is dettour to god /. ne yeldeth nat to god al his dette / that is to seyn al the loue of his herte

[371] ¶ NOw sith man vnderstondeth generally / which is venial synne /. thanne is it couenable / to tellen specially of synnes / whiche that many a man per auenture / ne demeth hem nat synnes / and ne shryueth hem nat of the same thynges / and yet nathelees / they been synnes [372] ¶ Soothly / as thise clerkes writen / this is to seyn /. that at euery tyme that a man eteth or drynketh / moore than suffiseth to the sustenance of his body / in certein he dooth synne [373] ¶ And eek whan he speketh moore than nedeth / it is synne ¶ Eke / whan he herkneth nat be|nignely the compleint of the poure [374] ¶ Eke / whan he is in heele of body and wol nat faste whan hym oghte faste / with-outen cause resonable ¶ Eke whan he slepeth moore than nedeth /. or whan he comth by thilke encheson to late to chirche / or to othere werkes of charite [375] ¶ Eke / whan he vseth his wyf. with-outen souereyn desir of engendrure to the honour of god / or for the entente / to yelde to his wyf the dette of his body [376] ¶ Eke / whan he wol nat visite the sike and the prisoner if he may

[6-text p 618] ¶ Eke / if he loue / wyf or child /. or oother worldly thyng. moore than reson requireth ¶ Eke / if he flatere or blandise / moore than hym oghte / for any necessitee [377] ¶ Eke / if he amenuse or withdrawe the Almesse of the poure ¶ Eke / if he apparailleth his mete moore deliciously / than nede is / or ete to hastily by likerous|nesse [378] ¶ Eke / if he tale vanytees at chirche / or at goddes seruice / or that he be a talker of ydel wordes / of folye / or of vileynye /. for he shal yelden [folio 218a] acountes of it at the day of doome ‖. [379] Eke / whan he biheteth / or assureth to do thynges / that he may nat perfourne ¶ Eke / whan that he / by lightnesse or folie / mysseyeth / or scorneth his neighebore [380] ¶ Eke / whan he hath any wikked suspecion of thyng ther he ne woot of it no sooth|fastnesse ‖ [381] Thise thynges and mo with-oute nombre / been synnes / as seith seint Augustyn.

[382] ¶ NOw shal men vnderstonde / that al be it so / that noon erthely man / may eschue alle venial synnes /. yet may he restreyne hym / by the brennynge loue / that he hath to oure lord Ihesu crist. and by preyeres and confession and othere goode werkes /. so that it shal but litel greue ‖. [383] for as seith seint Augustyn ¶ If a man loue god in swich manere / that al that euere he dooth / is in the loue of god / and for the loue of god verraily / for he brenneth in the loue of god / [384] Looke how muche that a drope of water/ that falleth in a fourneys ful of fyr anoyeth or greueth / so muche anoyeth a venial synne vn-to a man / that is perfit in the loue of Ihesu crist / [385] ¶ Men may also / refreyne venial synne / by receyuynge worthily / of the precious body of Ihesu crist ‖. [386] by receyuynge eek of hooly water/. by Almesdede /. by general confession of Confiteor at masse and at Complyn / and by blessynge of Bisshopes and of preestes and oothere goode werkes