Canterbury Tales (Middle English) — The Parson's Tale - Part 6

=De Confessione.

= § 85. Now for-as-muche as the second partie of Penitence stant in Confessioun of mouth, as I bigan in the firste chapitre, I seye, seint Augustin seith: / sinne is every word and every dede, and al that men coveiten agayn the lawe of Iesu Crist; and this is for to sinne in herte, in mouth, and in dede, by thy fyve wittes, that been sighte, heringe, smellinge, tastinge or savouringe, and felinge.

/ Now is it good to understonde that that agreggeth muchel every sinne.

/960 Thou shall considere what thou art that doost the sinne, whether thou be male or femele, yong or old, gentil or thral, free or servant, hool or syk, wedded or sengle, ordred or unordred, wys or fool, clerk or seculer; / if she be of [635] thy kinrede, bodily or goostly, or noon; if any of thy kinrede have sinned with hir or noon, and manye mo thinges.

/ 960. Pt.

Hl.

the circumstances that; Ln.

the circumstance that (_for_ that that).

961. E.

seculeer.

§ 86. Another circumstaunce is this; whether it be doon in fornicacioun, or in avoutrie, or noon; incest, or noon; mayden, or noon; in manere of homicyde, or noon; horrible grete sinnes, or smale; and how longe thou hast continued in sinne.

/ The thridde circumstaunce is the place ther thou hast do sinne; whether in other mennes hous or in thyn owene; in feeld or in chirche, or in chirche-hawe; in chirche dedicat, or noon.

/ For if the chirche be halwed, and man or womman spille his kinde inwith that place by wey of sinne, or by wikked temptacion, the chirche is entredited til it be reconciled by the bishop; /965 and the preest that dide swich a vileinye, to terme of al his lyf, he sholde na-more singe masse; and if he dide, he sholde doon deedly sinne at every tyme that he so songe masse.

/ The fourthe circumstaunce is, by whiche mediatours or by whiche messagers, as for entycement, or for consentement to bere companye with felaweshipe; for many a wrecche, for to bere companye, wil go to the devel of helle.

/ Wher-fore they that eggen or consenten to the sinne been parteners of the sinne, and of the dampnacioun of the sinner.

/ The fifthe circumstaunce is, how manye tymes that he hath sinned, if it be in his minde, and how ofte that he hath falle.

/ For he that ofte falleth in sinne, he despiseth the mercy of god, and encreesseth his sinne, and is unkinde to Crist; and he wexeth the more feble to withstonde sinne, and sinneth the more lightly, /970 and the latter aryseth, and is the more eschew for to shryven him, namely, to him that is his confessour.

/ For which that folk, whan they falle agayn in hir olde folies, outher they forleten hir olde confessours al outrely, or elles they departen hir shrift in diverse places; but soothly, swich departed shrift deserveth no mercy of god of hise sinnes.

/ The sixte circumstaunce is, why that a man sinneth, as by whiche temptacioun; and if him-self procure thilke temptacioun, or by the excytinge of other folk; or if he sinne with a womman by force, or by hir owene assent; / or if the womman, maugree hir heed, hath been afforced, or noon; this shal she telle; for coveitise, or for poverte, and if it was hir procuringe or noon; and swiche manere harneys.

/ The seventhe [636] circumstaunce is, in what manere he hath doon his sinne, or how that she hath suffred that folk han doon to hir.

/975 And the same shal the man telle pleynly, with alle circumstaunces; and whether he hath sinned with comune bordel-wommen, or noon; / or doon his sinne in holy tymes, or noon;

in fasting-tymes, or noon; or biforn his shrifte, or after his latter shrifte; / and hath, per-aventure, broken ther-fore his penance enioyned;

by whos help and whos conseil; by sorcerie or craft; al moste be told.

/ Alle thise thinges, after that they been grete or smale, engreggen the conscience of man.

And eek the preest that is thy Iuge, may the bettre been avysed of his Iugement in yevinge of thy penaunce, and that is after thy contricioun.

/ For understond wel, that after tyme that a man hath defouled his baptesme by sinne, if he wole come to salvacioun, ther is noon other wey but by penitence and shrifte and satisfaccioun; /980 and namely by the two, if ther be a confessour to which he may shryven him; and the thridde, if he have lyf to parfournen it.

/ 964. E.

dedicaat.

965. E.

Cm.

_om.

_ til ...

bishop.

967. wil] E. shal.

968. dampnacioun] E. Cm.

temptacioun.

970. E.

fieble.

973. Pt.

Ln.

H.

whiche; _rest om.

_ § 87. Thanne shal man looke and considere, that if he wole maken a trewe and a profitable confessioun, ther moste be foure condiciouns.

/ First, it moot been in sorweful bitternesse of herte, as seyde the king Ezekias to god: ‘I wol remembre me alle the yeres of my lyf in bitternesse of myn herte.

’ / This condicioun of bitternesse hath fyve signes.

The firste is, that confessioun moste be shamefast, nat for to covere ne hyden his sinne, for he hath agilt his god and defouled his soule.

/ And her-of seith seint Augustin: ‘the herte travailleth for shame of his sinne’; and for he hath greet shamefastnesse, he is digne to have greet mercy of god.

/985 Swich was the confession of the publican, that wolde nat heven up hise eyen to hevene, for he hadde offended god of hevene; for which shamefastnesse he hadde anon the mercy of god.

/ And ther-of seith seint Augustin, that swich shamefast folk been next foryevenesse and remissioun.

/ Another signe is humilitee in confessioun; of which seith seint Peter, ‘Humbleth yow under the might of god.

’ The hond of god is mighty in confession, for ther-by god foryeveth thee thy sinnes; for he allone hath the power.

/ And this humilitee shal been in herte, and in signe outward; for right as he hath humilitee to god [637] in his herte, right so sholde he humble his body outward to the preest that sit in goddes place.

/ For which in no manere, sith that Crist is sovereyn and the preest mene and mediatour bitwixe Crist and the sinnere, and the sinnere is the laste by wey of resoun, /990 thanne sholde nat the sinnere sitte as heighe as his confessour, but knele biforn him or at his feet, but-if maladie destourbe it.

For he shal nat taken kepe who sit there, but in whos place that he sitteth.

/ A man that hath trespased to a lord, and comth for to axe mercy and maken his accord, and set him doun anon by the lord, men wolde holden him outrageous, and nat worthy so sone for to have remissioun ne mercy.

/ The thridde signe is, how that thy shrift sholde be ful of teres, if man may; and if man may nat wepe with hise bodily eyen, lat him wepe in herte.

/ Swich was the confession of seint Peter; for after that he hadde forsake Iesu Crist, he wente out and weep ful bitterly.

/ The fourthe signe is, that he ne lette nat for shame to shewen his confessioun.

/995 Swich was the confessioun of the Magdelene, that ne spared, for no shame of hem that weren atte feste, for to go to oure lord Iesu Crist and biknowe to him hir sinnes.

/ The fifthe signe is, that a man or a womman be obeisant to receyven the penaunce that him is enioyned for hise sinnes; for certes Iesu Crist, for the giltes of a man, was obedient to the deeth.

/ 983. _All_ Ezekiel; _read_ Ezekias (Isaiah xxxviii.

15).

985. E.

ther-of; _rest_ her-of.

986. E.

Ln.

puplican.

993. E.

teeris.

§ 88. The seconde condicion of verray confession is, that it be hastily doon; for certes, if a man hadde a deedly wounde, evere the lenger that he taried to warisshe him-self, the more wolde it corrupte and haste him to his deeth; and eek the wounde wolde be the wors for to hele.

/ And right so fareth sinne, that longe tyme is in a man unshewed.

/ Certes, a man oghte hastily shewen hise sinnes for manye causes; as for drede of deeth, that cometh ofte sodenly, and is in no certeyn what tyme it shal be, ne in what place; and eek the drecchinge of o synne draweth in another; /1000 and eek the lenger that he tarieth, the ferther he is fro Crist.

And if he abyde to his laste day, scarsly may he shryven him or remembre him of hise sinnes, or repenten him, for the grevous maladie of his deeth.

/ And for-as-muche as he ne hath nat in his lyf herkned Iesu Crist, whanne he hath spoken, he shal crye to Iesu Crist at his laste day, and scarsly wol he herkne him.

/ And understond that this condicioun moste han foure thinges.

[638] Thy shrift moste be purveyed bifore and avysed; for wikked haste doth no profit; and that a man conne shryve him of hise sinnes be it of pryde, or of envye, and so forth of the speces and circumstances; / and that he have comprehended in his minde the nombre and the greetnesse of hise sinnes, and how longe that he hath leyn in sinne; / and eek that he be contrit of hise sinnes, and in stedefast purpos, by the grace of god, nevere eft to falle in sinne; and eek that he drede and countrewaite him-self, that he flee the occasiouns of sinne to whiche he is enclyned.

/1005 Also thou shalt shryve thee of alle thy sinnes to o man, and nat a parcel to o man and a parcel to another; that is to understonde, in entente to departe thy confessioun as for shame or drede; for it nis but stranglinge of thy soule.

/ For certes, Iesu Crist is entierly al good; in him nis noon inperfeccioun; and therfore outher he foryeveth al parfitly or never a deel.

/ I seye nat that if thou be assigned to the penitauncer for certein sinne, that thou art bounde to shewen him al the remenaunt of thy sinnes, of whiche thou hast be shriven to thy curat, but-if it lyke to thee of thyn humilitee; this is no departinge of shrifte.

/ Ne I seye nat, ther-as I speke of divisioun of confessioun, that if thou have lycence for to shryve thee to a discreet and an honeste preest, where thee lyketh, and by lycence of thy curat, that thou ne mayst wel shryve thee to him of alle thy sinnes.

/ But lat no blotte be bihinde; lat no sinne been untold, as fer as thou hast remembraunce.

/1010 And whan thou shalt be shriven to thy curat, telle him eek alle the sinnes that thou hast doon sin thou were last y-shriven; this is no wikked entente of divisioun of shrifte.

/ 1000. Pt.

Ln.

Seld.

is in; _rest om.

_ 1005. E.

stidefast; Cm.

Hl.

stedefast.

1008, 1009, 1011. E.

curaat.

§ 89. Also the verray shrifte axeth certeine condiciouns.

First, that thou shryve thee by thy free wil, noght constreyned, ne for shame of folk, ne for maladie, ne swiche thinges; for it is resoun that he that trespasseth by his free wil, that by his free wil he confesse his trespas; / and that noon other man telle his sinne but he him-self, ne he shal nat nayte ne denye his sinne, ne wratthe him agayn the preest for his amonestinge to leve sinne.

/ The seconde condicioun is, that thy shrift be laweful; that is to seyn, that thou that shryvest thee, and eek the preest that hereth thy confessioun, been verraily in the feith of holy chirche; / and that a man ne be nat despeired of the mercy of Iesu Crist, as [639] Caym or Iudas.

/1015 And eek a man moot accusen him-self of his owene trespas, and nat another; but he shal blame and wyten him-self and his owene malice of his sinne, and noon other; / but nathelees, if that another man be occasioun or entycer of his sinne, or the estaat of a persone be swich thurgh which his sinne is agregged, or elles that he may nat pleynly shryven him but he telle the persone with which he hath sinned; thanne may he telle; / so that his entente ne be nat to bakbyte the persone, but only to declaren his confessioun.

/ § 90. Thou ne shall nat eek make no lesinges in thy confessioun; for humilitee, per-aventure, to seyn that thou hast doon sinnes of whiche that thou were nevere gilty.

/ For Seint Augustin seith: if thou, by cause of thyn humilitee, makest lesinges on thy-self, though thou ne were nat in sinne biforn, yet artow thanne in sinne thurgh thy lesinges.

/1020 Thou most eek shewe thy sinne by thyn owene propre mouth, but thou be wexe doumb, and nat by no lettre; for thou that hast doon the sinne, thou shalt have the shame therfore.

/ Thou shalt nat eek peynte thy confessioun by faire subtile wordes, to covere the more thy sinne; for thanne bigylestow thy-self and nat the preest; thou most tellen it pleynly, be it nevere so foul ne so horrible.

/ Thou shalt eek shryve thee to a preest that is discreet to conseille thee, and eek thou shalt nat shryve thee for veyne glorie, ne for ypocrisye, ne for no cause, but only for the doute of Iesu Crist and the hele of thy soule.

/ Thou shalt nat eek renne to the preest sodeynly, to tellen him lightly thy sinne, as who-so telleth a Iape or a tale, but avysely and with greet devocioun.

/ And generally, shryve thee ofte.

If thou ofte falle, ofte thou aryse by confessioun.

/1025 And thogh thou shryve thee ofter than ones of sinne, of which thou hast be shriven, it is the more merite.

And, as seith seint Augustin, thou shalt have the more lightly relesing and grace of god, bothe of sinne and of peyne.

/ And certes, ones a yere atte leeste wey it is laweful for to been housled; for certes ones a yere alle thinges renovellen.

/ 1021. Cm.

Pt.

wexe; E. Hl.

woxe.

1023. E.

_om.

2nd_ thee.

=Explicit secunda pars penitencie; et sequitur tercia pars eiusdem, de satisfaccione.

= § 91. Now have I told you of verray Confessioun, that is the seconde partie of Penitence.

/ 1028. E.

toolde.

[640] The thridde partie of Penitence is Satisfaccioun; and that stant most generally in almesse and in bodily peyne.

/ Now been ther three manere of almesses; contricion of herte, where a man offreth himself to god; another is, to han pitee of defaute of hise neighebores; and the thridde is, in yevinge of good conseil goostly and bodily, where men han nede, and namely in sustenaunce of mannes fode.

/1030 And tak keep, that a man hath need of thise thinges generally; he hath need of fode, he hath nede of clothing, and herberwe, he hath nede of charitable conseil, and visitinge in prisone and in maladie, and sepulture of his dede body.

/ And if thou mayst nat visite the nedeful with thy persone, visite him by thy message and by thy yiftes.

/ Thise been generally almesses or werkes of charitee of hem that han temporel richesses or discrecioun in conseilinge.

Of thise werkes shaltow heren at the day of dome.

/ 1031. Hl.

keep; Pt.

Ln.

kepe; E. Cm.

_om.

_ 1033. E.

temporeel.

§ 92. Thise almesses shaltow doon of thyne owene propre thinges, and hastily, and prively if thou mayst; / but nathelees, if thou mayst nat doon it prively, thou shalt nat forbere to doon almesse though men seen it; so that it be nat doon for thank of the world, but only for thank of Iesu Crist.

/1035 For as witnesseth Seint Mathew, _capitulo quinto_, ‘A citee may nat been hid that is set on a montayne; ne men lighte nat a lanterne and put it under a busshel; but men sette it on a candle-stikke, to yeve light to the men in the hous.

/ Right so shal youre light lighten bifore men, that they may seen youre gode werkes, and glorifie youre fader that is in hevene.

’ / § 93. Now as to speken of bodily peyne, it stant in preyeres, in wakinges, in fastinges, in vertuouse techinges of orisouns.

/ And ye shul understonde, that orisouns or preyeres is for to seyn a pilous wil of herte, that redresseth it in god and expresseth it by word outward, to remoeven harmes and to han thinges espirituel and durable, and somtyme temporel thinges; of whiche orisouns, certes, in the orisoun of the _Pater-noster_, hath Iesu Crist enclosed most thinges.

/ Certes, it is privileged of three thinges in his dignitee, for which it is more digne than any other preyere; for that Iesu Crist him-self maked it; /1040 and it is short, for it sholde be coud the more lightly, and for to withholden it the more esily in herte, and helpen him-self the ofter with the orisoun; / [641] and for a man sholde be the lasse wery to seyen it, and for a man may nat excusen him to lerne it, it is so short and so esy; and for it comprehendeth in it-self alle gode preyeres.

/ The exposicioun of this holy preyere, that is so excellent and digne, I bitake to thise maistres of theologie; save thus muchel wol I seyn: that, whan thou prayest that god sholde foryeve thee thy giltes as thou foryevest hem that agilten to thee, be ful wel war that thou be nat out of charitee.

/ This holy orisoun amenuseth eek venial sinne; and therfore it aperteneth specially to penitence.

/ 1039. E.

espiritueel; temporele.

§ 94. This preyere moste be trewely seyd and in verray feith, and that men preye to god ordinatly and discreetly and devoutly; and alwey a man shal putten his wil to be subget to the wille of god.

/1045 This orisoun moste eek been seyd with greet humblesse and ful pure; honestly, and nat to the anoyaunce of any man or womman.

It moste eek been continued with the werkes of charitee.

/ It avayleth eek agayn the vyces of the soule; for, as seith seint Ierome, ‘By fastinge been saved the vyces of the flesh, and by preyere the vyces of the soule.

’ / 1047. vyces (3)] E. vertues; Cm.

vertu.

§ 95. After this, thou shalt understonde, that bodily peyne stant in wakinge; for Iesu Crist seith, ‘waketh, and preyeth that ye ne entre in wikked temptacioun.

’ / Ye shul understanden also, that fastinge stant in three thinges; in forberinge of bodily mete and drinke, and in forberinge of worldly Iolitee, and in forberinge of deedly sinne; this is to seyn, that a man shal kepen him fro deedly sinne with al his might.

/ § 96. And thou shalt understanden eek, that god ordeyned fastinge; and to fastinge appertenen foure thinges.

/1050 Largenesse to povre folk, gladnesse of herte espirituel, nat to been angry ne anoyed, ne grucche for he fasteth; and also resonable houre for to ete by mesure; that is for to seyn, a man shal nat ete in untyme, ne sitte the lenger at his table to ete for he fasteth.

/ 1051. E.

espiritueel.

§ 97. Thanne shaltow understonde, that bodily peyne stant in disciplyne or techinge, by word or by wrytinge, or in ensample.

Also in weringe of heyres or of stamin, or of haubergeons on hir naked flesh, for Cristes sake, and swiche manere penances.

/ But war thee wel that swiche manere penances on thy flesh ne make nat thyn herte bitter or angry or anoyed of thy-self; for bettre is to caste [642] awey thyn heyre, than for to caste away the sikernesse of Iesu Crist.

/ And therfore seith seint Paul: ‘Clothe yow, as they that been chosen of god, in herte of misericorde, debonairetee, suffraunce, and swich manere of clothinge’; of whiche Iesu Crist is more apayed than of heyres, or haubergeons, or hauberkes.

/ 1052. or by] E. and by.

1053. nat ...

bitter] E. Cm.

thee nat.

1053. sikernesse] Pt.

Ln.

Hl.

swetnesse.

§ 98. Thanne is disciplyne eek in knokkinge of thy brest, in scourginge with yerdes, in knelinges, in tribulacions; /1055 in suffringe paciently wronges that been doon to thee, and eek in pacient suffraunce of maladies, or lesinge of worldly catel, or of wyf, or of child, or othere freendes.

/ § 99. Thanne shaltow understonde, whiche thinges destourben penaunce; and this is in foure maneres, that is, drede, shame, hope, and wanhope, that is, desperacion.

/ And for to speke first of drede; for which he weneth that he may suffre no penaunce; / ther-agayns is remedie for to thinke, that bodily penaunce is but short and litel at regard of the peyne of helle, that is so cruel and so long, that it lasteth with-outen ende.

/ 1058. weneth] E. demeth.

1059. E.

crueel; peynes.

§ 100. Now again the shame that a man hath to shryven him, and namely, thise ypocrites that wolden been holden so parfite that they han no nede to shryven hem; /1060 agayns that shame, sholde a man thinke that, by wey of resoun, that he that hath nat been ashamed to doon foule thinges, certes him oghte nat been ashamed to do faire thinges, and that is confessiouns.

/ A man sholde eek thinke, that god seeth and wool alle hise thoghtes and alle hise werkes; to him may no thing been hid ne covered.

/ Men sholden eek remembren hem of the shame that is to come at the day of dome, to hem that been nat penitent and shriven in this present lyf.

/ For alle the creatures in erthe and in helle shullen seen apertly al that they hyden in this world.

/ 1061. ashamed (1)] E. shamed.

§ 101. Now for to speken of the hope of hem that been necligent and slowe to shryven hem, that stant in two maneres.

/1065 That oon is, that he hopeth for to live longe and for to purchacen muche richesse for his delyt, and thanne he wol shryven him; and, as he seith, him semeth thanne tymely y-nough to come to shrifte.

Another is, surquidrie that he hath in Cristes mercy.

/ Agayns the firste vyce, he shal thinke, that oure lyf is in no sikernesse; and eek that alle the richesses in this world ben in aventure, and passen as a shadwe on the wal.

/ And, as seith seint Gregorie, [643] that it aperteneth to the grete rightwisnesse of god, that nevere shal the peyne stinte of hem that nevere wolde withdrawen hem fro sinne, hir thankes, but ay continue in sinne; for thilke perpetuel wil to do sinne shul they han perpetuel peyne.

/ 1065. E.

_om.

_ the.

1069. E.

perpetueel (_twice_).

§ 102. Wanhope is in two maneres: the firste wanhope is in the mercy of Crist; that other is that they thinken, that they ne mighte nat longe persevere in goodnesse.

/1070 The firste wanhope comth of that he demeth that he hath sinned so greetly and so ofte, and so longe leyn in sinne, that he shal nat be saved.

/ Certes, agayns that cursed wanhope sholde he thinke, that the passion of Iesu Crist is more strong for to unbinde than sinne is strong for to binde.

/ Agayns the seconde wanhope, he shal thinke, that as ofte as he falleth he may aryse agayn by penitence.

And thogh he never so longe have leyn in sinne, the mercy of Crist is alwey redy to receiven him to mercy.

/ Agayns the wanhope, that he demeth that he sholde nat longe persevere in goodnesse, he shal thinke, that the feblesse of the devel may no-thing doon but-if men wol suffren him; / and eek he shal han strengthe of the help of god, and of al holy chirche, and of the proteccioun of aungels, if him list.

/1075 § 103. Thanne shal men understonde what is the fruit of penaunce; and, after the word of Iesu Crist, it is the endelees blisse of hevene, / ther Ioye hath no contrarioustee of wo ne grevaunce, ther alle harmes been passed of this present lyf; ther-as is the sikernesse fro the peyne of helle; ther-as is the blisful companye that reioysen hem everemo, everich of otheres Ioye; / ther-as the body of man, that whylom was foul and derk, is more cleer than the sonne; ther-as the body, that whylom was syk, freele, and feble, and mortal, is inmortal, and so strong and so hool that ther may no-thing apeyren it; / ther-as ne is neither hunger, thurst, ne cold, but every soule replenissed with the sighte of the parfit knowinge of god.

/ This blisful regne may men purchace by poverte espirituel, and the glorie by lowenesse; the plentee of Ioye by hunger and thurst, and the reste by travaille; and the lyf by deeth and mortificacion of sinne.

/1080 1078. E.

fieble.

1080. E.

espiritueel; _om.

_ deeth and.

[644] =Here taketh the makere of this book his leve.

= § 104. Now preye I to hem alle that herkne this litel tretis or rede, that if ther be any thing in it that lyketh hem, that ther-of they thanken oure lord Iesu Crist, of whom procedeth al wit and al goodnesse.

/ And if ther be any thing that displese hem, I preye hem also that they arrette it to the defaute of myn unconninge, and nat to my wil, that wolde ful fayn have seyd bettre if I hadde had conninge.

/ For oure boke seith, ‘al that is writen is writen for oure doctrine’; and that is myn entente.

/ Wherfore I biseke yow mekely for the mercy of god, that ye preye for me, that Crist have mercy on me and foryeve me my giltes: / —and namely, of my translacions and endytinges of worldly vanitees, the whiche I revoke in my retracciouns: /1085 as is the book of Troilus; The book also of Fame; The book of the nynetene Ladies; The book of the Duchesse; The book of seint Valentynes day of the Parlement of Briddes; The tales of Caunterbury, thilke that sounen in-to sinne; / The book of the Leoun; and many another book, if they were in my remembrance; and many a song and many a lecherous lay; that Crist for his grete mercy foryeve me the sinne.

/ But of the translacion of Boece de Consolacione, and othere bokes of Legendes of seintes, and omelies, and moralitee, and devocioun, / that thanke I oure lord Iesu Crist and his blisful moder, and alle the seintes of hevene; / bisekinge hem that they from hennes-forth, un-to my lyves ende, sende me grace to biwayle my giltes, and to studie to the salvacioun of my soule:—and graunte me grace of verray penitence, confessioun and satisfaccioun to doon in this present lyf; /1090 thurgh the benigne grace of him that is king of kinges and preest over alle preestes, that boghte us with the precious blood of his herte; / so that I may been oon of hem at the day of dome that shulle be saved: _Qui cum patre, &c. _ /1092 1086. E.

Pt.

xxv; Ln.

xv; Hl.

29; _read_ nynetene.

=Here is ended the book of the Tales of Caunterbury, compiled by Geffrey Chaucer, of whos soule Iesu Crist have mercy.

Amen.

= [645]