Here Mercy Pledyth for the Sowle
Capituloa
`Syre Prouost', quod she, `I
haue wel herde and sene how that Reason, Trouthe and
Iustyce haue spoken in this mater, and haue ententyfly herkened to theyr wordes, wherfore I requyre yow that I also wel may
haue wilful audyence for the poure partye. For yf I
dyde not my deuoyre & myn
offyce, sothly my name that am clepeth,
as ye wele knowe wele, Misericord, I bere it but in
veyn.
'Good skyle it is that
Iustyce and Trouthe att al tymes be seruyd. And sothely
Reason wylle that I with my swetnesse modefye and
amende the rygoure of ryghtwysnesse.
Ye knowe wel, Syre Iuge, that by the weye that men mote
nedes passe, ther nys no pylgrym that goth so redyly
but that oftymes he mote foruoyen.
And somtyme he muste passe by foule weyes. Neuertheles
somme more and somme lesse fayleth in this wyse, and
eueryche knoweth wel that here is now present, there
was neuer yet no pylgrym so holy ne parfyte,
that he ne had oftymes erryd and fayled in his weye,
excepte the Souerayne Lord that ones bycome a trauaylour and a pylgrym to teche
men the weye. For er the tyme that he hadde done this,
there was neuer pylgrym that acheuyd parfytely the ende
of his iourne. I excepte also the Souerayne Lady his
owne blessid Moder, to whom was neuer erthly creature
able to be resembled. [23r] But this iourney was
only done by my purueaunce, at whiche tyme it is not
her vnknowen.
`Dame Iustyce, that now is here present, withsaid me ful sore and let me ful long of my purpoos. Nought
for thy at the laste we
felle to accord. And soo hope
I at this tyme, that we shal also here in your presence
of thynge that I shal seye ayenst hir rigour, whiche is
somwhat ouerstraite bent
vpon this mater.
`Sith it soo is that this Blessid Lord Ihesu Crist
somtyme soo ferforth
remittid his rigour, descendinge downe to the Erthe out
of his heuenly trone to helpe wesshe
and releue his peple, whiche the
wretchyd horrible owle of Helle had drawen out of their
nest, hit semyth me that good reason wylle that tho,
whiche ben subgettes to this
Souerayne Lord, owen for to drawen hym after his
example. Yow selue thenne, that sytteth here as iuge in
this present assyse, oweth, as me semeth, holde and sewe the maner and the guyse of this
Noble Lorde, namely in youre iugementes. Also ye owe
for to helpe and defende fro this cursyd owle pryncipally al tho that bere
skryp and burdon, and haue kept it manfully to theyr
weyes ende.
`Now apperceyue I wel that it standeth thus, that this
present pylgrym hath done his deuoyr
duely at al tymes in kepynge his scrip and his burdone.
And also be it that he hath at some tyme erryd and
mysgone, and ben empechyd in his
forseyde iourney, as it is knowen in this Court, yet
hath he douteles done some maner of penaunce &
withdrawen hym often fro euyl for loue of his Creatour.
And at somme tyme the ensamples
of other seyntes - though it soo be that he ne hath
nought done as they dyde - that whylome
were feruent in the loue of Crist by vertue of his
Passyon and of his Blessed Blood, that at thylk tyme
was yet newe shed, al smokyng hoote, for ryght as fyre
warmeth and eschaufeth tho
that stonde nyhe wel more than other that stonde after,
ryght soo thylke hooly men that were nye that tyme
hadde more encheson, and
more Heuenly receyued by vertu of this Precyous Bloode,
than these that now ben come so long tyme therafter, al
be it that the vertu of his Passion nouther
passyth ne dispendyth. For why though this pylgrym haue
nought gouerned so hym, ne wonder I nought. This seye I
not in purpoos to excuse him,
for wel I wote as muche is he byhalden to his Lord as
tho that shedde for him al theyr herte blood, and dyde for his sake, wherfor I seye to
my purpoos that this forsayd pylgrym oweth nought to be
furclosyd fro the Grete Grace
whiche oure Lord Ihesu dyde to synful men, [23v]
what tyme that he suffred dethe for their redempcyon,
whiche Grace withouten ony fayle shal endure for euer.
`My Souerayne Lady also, whiche that bere hym in hyr
Blessyd Body and norysshed with her mylke, ne may
nought ne wylle not suffre it yf soo is that it come to
hyr knowyng. For why she is for
synners specyal aduocate syth tyme
that she receyued the salutacion of Gabryel Archangel,
that seid to her "Heyl
Mary, ful of Grace"22;,
she hath receyued of that salutacion, that she ther by
conceyued Goddes Sone of Heuene, wherby she gat that
power to do what she wold in chaungyng his rygour in to
pyte and swetnesse to that ende that synners, whiche by
rigour of Iustyce shold be dampnyd,
mowe be taken hooly in to the Lordys Grace, wherfor,
Syre Prouost, ye owe not by suche rygour punysshe this
pylgrym, and namely in peyne withoute ende.'