Revelations of Divine Love

by Julian of Norwich

It is precisely by love and its dependent affections that we are brought into conscious and active relation with the whole world of person alities outside our own, so as to make therewith in some sort one many-membered spiritual organism.

"Wit it well ! Love is the meaning" a Divine Love which gives us a standard and criterion whereby to discern between love and love, and to guide our feet through the labyrinth of warring affections into the way of peace.

Hence Love is the teacher, and Love is the thing taught in both cases, Love as incarnate in Christ crucified, the revealer and the revealed ; known, and therefore better loved ; loved, and therefore better known.

And in the same shewing, sodeinlie the Trinitie fulfilled my heart most of joy : and so I understood it shall be in heaven without end to all that shall come there. For the Trinitie is God. God is the Trinitie, the Trinitie is our Maker, the Trinitie is our Keeper, the Trinitie is our everlasting Lover, the Trinitie is our endles joy and our blisse, by our Lord Jesu Christ, and in our Lord Jesu Christ

He is our clothing, that for love wrappeth us, and windeth us, halseth us, and all becloseth us, hangeth about us for tender love, that he maie never leave us. And so in this sight I saw that he is all thing that is good, as to my understanding.

God of thy goodnes give me thy self, for thou art enough to me; and I may aske nothing that is lesse, that may be fullie worship to thee ; and if I aske any thing that is lesse, ever me waiiteth. But onlie in thee I have all.

And therefore, we may aske of our Lover with reverence, all that we will : for our kincllie will is to have God, and the goodwill of God is to have us : and we may never cease of willing, ne of loving, till we have him in fulhead of joy.

but faith and belief with charity deserve the meed, and so it is had by grace.

For in faith, with hope and charity, our life is grounded

and the Maker of all ; for in man is God, and in God is all ; and he that loveth thus, he loveth all.

It was a figure and a likeness of our foul black deeds, which our fair bright blessed Lord bare for our sin.

For his working is privy, and he will be per ceived ; and his appearing shall be sweet, sudden ; and he will be trusted, for he is full homely, curteous. Blessed mote he be.

A~1D in this drying, was brought to my mind this word that Christ said, / thirst. For I saw in Christ a double thirst, one bodily, and another ghostly. This word was shewed for the bodily thirst : and for the ghostly thirst was shewed as I shall say after.

I say not that evil is worshipful, but I say the sufferance of our Lord God is worship ful, whereby his goodness shall be known without end, and his marvellous meekness and mild-head by this working of mercy and grace.

highest joy that the soul understood, that God him self shall do it. And I shall do right nought but sin, and my sin shall not let his goodness working.

SIN is the sharpest scourge that any chosen soul may be smitten with.

should we hate sin like as God hateth it, and love the soul as God loveth it ; for these words that God said, is an endless comfort, I keep thec full truly.

One is rightful prayer. Another is siker trust.

For all heavenly, things, and all earthly things that long to heaven, be com prehended in these two dooms.

do : wherefore we deserve pain, blame, and wrath. And notwithstanding all this, I saw verily that our Lord was never wrath, ne never shall : for he is God, he is good, he is truth, he is love, and he is peace ; and his might, his wisdom, his charity, and his unity [i.e. oneness with the soul, see below] suffereth him not to be wrath :

; and our dying is sorrowful. But yet in all this the sweet eye of pity and love departeth never from us, ne the working of mercy ceaseth not

goodness that keepeth us when we sin, that we perish not,

For I saw that God began never to love mankind : for right, the same that mankind shall be in endless bliss

mightily, in reason of the might of the Father, and wise, in mind of the wisdom of the Son. And thus is mans soul made of God ; and in the same point knit to God.

for God is never out of the soul, in which he shall dwell blessedly without end.

which is the godly will before said. And thus in our making God Almighty is our kindly Father. And God all wisdom is our kindly mother, with the love and the goodness of the Holy Ghost, which is all one God, one Lord.

Redemption, Grace, from Father, Son, Holy Ghost.] For the Jirst, I saw and understood, that the high might of the Trinity is our Father, and the deep wisdom of the Trinity is our Mother, and the great love of the Trinity is our Lord.

and he is very Father and very Mother of kinds :

and all kinds that he hath made to flow out of him to work his will, it should be restored and brought again into him by salvation

This is a great profit ; for if a man knew his time, he should not have patience over that time. And also God will that while the soul is in the body,

AND thus I understood that what man or woman wilfully choseth God in this life for love, he may be sure that he is loved without end, with endless love that worketh in him that grace

for the thirst of God is to have the general man into him.

I SPEAK but little of this reverent dread : for I hope it may be seen in this matter aforesaid.

The Seventy-ninth Chapter BY three things man standeth in this life : by which three God is worshipped, and we be speed, kept, and saved. Thejirst is, use of mans kindly reason. The second is, the common teaching of Holy Church. The third is, the inward gracious working of the Holy Ghost.