The Book of Margery Kempe (15 page)

Then, through the provision of our merciful Lord Christ Jesus, a priest, a good man, came from England to Rome with other companions, asking and inquiring diligently after the said creature, whom he had never seen before, nor she him. But while he was in England he heard tell of such a woman who was at Rome, with whom he highly longed to speak, if God would grant him grace. While he was still in his own country, and intending to see this creature whenever he, through the permission of our Lord, might come to where she was, he provided himself with money to bring to relieve her if she needed it. Then, by inquiring, he came to the place where she was, and very humbly and meekly he called her ‘mother', praying her out of charity to receive him as her son. She said that he was as welcome to God and to her, as to his own mother.

So by holy conversation and communing she felt sure he was a good man. And then she, disclosing the secrets of her heart, revealed what grace God wrought in her soul through his holy inspiration, and also something of her manner of life. Then he
would no longer allow her to beg her food from door to door, but asked her to eat with him and his party, unless good men and women by way of charity and for spiritual comfort would ask her to meals. Then he wished that she would accept in the name of our Lord; but otherwise she ate with him and his party every day, and he gave her enough money to return to England. And then was fulfilled what our Lord said to her a little before: ‘Money will come to you.' And so it did, indeed, thanks be to Almighty God.

Then some of her companions, with whom she had been to Jerusalem, came to this good priest who had newly arrived in Rome, complaining about her and saying that she had been confessed by a priest who could not understand her language or her confession. Then this good priest, trusting in her as if in his own mother, and desiring the health of her soul, asked her if her confessor understood her when she spoke to him or not.

‘Good son, I beg you, ask him to dine with you and your companions, and let me be present, and then you will know the truth.'

Her confessor was asked to dinner and, when the time came, was seated and served with this good priest and his party – the said creature being present – and the good English priest chatting and conversing in their own language, English. The German priest, a worthy cleric as is written before, confessor to the said creature, sat quietly in a sort of gloom, because he did not understand what they said in English, but only when they spoke Latin. And they did it on purpose, unbeknown to him, to prove whether he understood English or not.

At last, the said creature – seeing and well understanding that her confessor did not understand their language, and that it was tedious to him – partly to cheer him up and partly, or much more, to prove the work of God, told him in her own language, in English, a story of Holy Writ, which she had learned from clerics while she was at home in England, for she would not talk of any vanity or fantasies.

Then they asked her confessor if he understood what she had said, and he straightaway in Latin told them the same words that
she said before in English, for he could neither speak English nor understand English except from her tongue. And then they were astonished, for they knew that he understood what she said, and she understood what he said, and yet he could not understand any other English person. So blessed may God be, who made a foreigner to understand her when her own countrymen had abandoned her, and would not hear her confession unless she would leave off her weeping and talking of holiness.

And yet she could not weep except when God gave it to her, and often he gave it so abundantly that she could not withstand it. But the more she tried to withstand it or put it aside, the more strongly it worked in her soul with such holy thoughts that she could not stop. She would sob and cry very loudly, all against her will, so that many men, and women too, were amazed at her because of it.

Sometimes when the said creature was at sermons where Germans and other men preached, teaching the laws of God, sudden sorrow and heaviness filling her heart caused her to complain with mournful expression at her lack of understanding, desiring to be refreshed with some crumb of spiritual understanding of her most trusted and most entirely beloved sovereign, Christ Jesus, whose melodious voice, sweetest of all savours, softly sounding in her soul, said, ‘I shall preach to you and teach you myself, for your will and your desire are acceptable to me.'

Then her soul was so delectably fed with the sweet converse of our Lord, and so fulfilled with his love, that like a drunk she turned herself first on one side and then on the other, with great weeping and sobbing, powerless to keep herself steady because of the unquenchable fire of love which burned very strongly in her soul.

Then many people were amazed at her, asking her what was wrong with her; to which she, like a creature all wounded with love, and in whom reason had failed, cried with a loud voice: ‘The Passion of Christ slays me.'

The good women, feeling sorry for her sorrows and astonished at her weeping and crying, loved her much the more as a result. And therefore they, wanting to cheer her up after her spiritual labour, through signs and tokens – for she did not understand their language – prayed her, and in a way compelled her, to come home with them, not wanting her to leave them.

Then our Lord sent her grace to have great love and great favour from many persons in Rome, both religious men and others. Some religious came to such of her countrymen as loved her and said, ‘This woman has sown much good seed in Rome since she came here; that is to say, shown a good example to the people, through which they love God more than they did before.'

One time, this creature was in a church at Rome where the body of St Jerome lies buried,
¹
which was miraculously translated from Bethlehem to that place and is now held in great reverence there, beside the place where St Laurence lies buried.
²
To this creature's inward sight St Jerome appeared and said to her soul, ‘Blessed are you, daughter, in the weeping that you weep for people's sins, for many shall be saved thereby. And daughter, don't be at all afraid, for it is a singular and a special gift that God has given you – a well of tears which man shall never take from you.'
³

With such manner of conversing he highly comforted her spirits. And he also gave great praise and thanks to God for the grace that he wrought in her soul, for unless she had had such spiritual comfortings it would have been impossible for her to have borne the shames and wonderings which she suffered patiently and meekly for the grace that God showed in her.

When Eastertime had come and gone,
¹
and this creature and her companions were intending to go back to their own native land, they were told there were many thieves along the way who would relieve them of their goods and perhaps kill them.

Then the said creature, with many a bitter tear in her eye, prayed to our Lord Jesus Christ, saying, ‘Christ Jesus, in whom is all my trust, as you have promised me many times before that no one should be harmed in my company, and as I was never deceived or disappointed in your promises as long as I fully and faithfully trusted in you, so hear the prayers of your unworthy servant all wholly trusting in your mercy, and grant that I and my companions, without hindrance to our bodies or possessions -for over our souls, Lord, they have no power – may go home again to our land just as we came here, for your love, and never let our enemies have any power over us, Lord, if it please you. As you will, so may it be.'

Then our Lord Jesus Christ said to her mind, ‘Don't be afraid, daughter, for you and everybody in your company shall go as safe as if they were in St Peter's church.'

Then she thanked God with all her spirit, and was bold enough to go where God willed, and took her leave of her friends in Rome and especially of her confessor, who for our Lord's love had supported her and succoured her very tenderly against the wicked storms of her envious enemies, and with whom her parting was very miserable, as was witnessed by the teardrops running down the cheeks of both of them. She, falling on her knees, received the benefit of his blessing and so they parted, whom charity had joined in one, and through which they trusted to meet again, when our Lord willed, in their common homeland, after they had passed this wretched worldly exile.

And thus she and her party set off for England, and when they were a little way out of Rome, the good priest, whom as is written before this creature had received for her own son, had great fear
of enemies, and so he said to her, ‘Mother, I fear being killed by enemies.'

She said, ‘No, son, you will make good progress and travel safely by the grace of God.'

And he was much comforted by her words for he greatly trusted in her feelings, and along their route he treated her as warmly as if he had been her own son, born of her body.

And so they reached Middelburg,
²
and then her party continued their journey over to England on the Sunday. Then the good priest came to her, saying, ‘Mother, will you go with your companions or not on this good day?'

And she said, ‘No, son, it is not my Lord's will that I should go so soon hence.'

And so she stayed with the good priest and some others of her party until the Saturday after, but many of her companions took ship on the Sunday. On the Friday after, this creature went out into the fields for a break, with some of her own countrymen with her, whom she instructed in the laws of God as well as she could -and she spoke to them sharply because they swore great oaths and broke the commandment of our Lord God.

And as she was talking to them, our Lord Jesus Christ bade her go home quickly to her lodging, because a great and perilous storm was coming. Then she hurried homewards with her companions, and as soon as they got home to their lodging the storm broke, as she had felt by revelation. And many times, as she went by the way and in the fields, there were great flashes of lightning with terrifying thunder, such that she feared she would be struck and killed, and very heavy storms of rain which caused her great fear and grief.

Then our Lord Jesus Christ said to her, ‘Why are you afraid while I am with you? I am as mighty to keep you safe here in the fields as in the strongest church in all this world.'

And after that time she was not so very afraid as she was before, for she always greatly trusted in his mercy – blessed may he be, who comforted her in every sorrow.

Afterwards an Englishman happened to come to this creature
and swore a great oath. She, hearing that oath, wept, mourned, and sorrowed immeasurably, quite powerless to restrain herself from weeping and sorrowing, because she saw her brother was offending our Lord God Almighty, and would pay little heed to his own fault.

Early the next day
¹
the good priest who was like a son to this creature came to her and said, ‘Mother, good news! We have a good wind, God be thanked.'

And straightaway she gave praise to our Lord, and prayed him of his mercy to grant them that the good wind and weather should last so that they might reach home in safety. And it was answered and commanded in her soul that they should go their way in the name of Jesus.

When the priest knew that she would in any case depart, he said, ‘Mother, there is no proper ship here; there is only a little smack.'

She replied, ‘Son, God is as mighty in a little boat as in a big ship, for I will go in that boat, by God's leave.'

And when they were in that small ship, the weather began to turn very stormy and dark. Then they cried to God for mercy and grace, and then the storms ceased, and they had fair weather, and sailed all through the night and the next day till evensong time, and then they came to land. And when they were on land, the said creature fell down on her knees kissing the ground, highly thanking God who had brought them home in safety.

Then this creature had neither penny nor halfpenny in her purse, and so they happened to meet up with other pilgrims, who gave her three halfpence because she had, in conversation, told them some holy tales. And then she was very glad and cheerful,
for she had some money with which she could make an offering in reverence of the Trinity when she came to Norwich, as she did when she was on her way out of England.

And so when she got there she very gladly made an offering, and afterwards she went with her companions to the Vicar of St Stephen's, Master Richard Caister, who was still alive at that time. He led them with him to the place where he took his meals and made them very welcome.

And he said to this creature, ‘Margery, I am amazed how you can be so merry, when you have had such great troubles and travelled so far.'

‘Sir, it is because I have great cause to be merry and rejoice in our Lord, who has helped me and succoured me and brought me home again in safety – blessed and worshipped may he be.'

And so they talked of our Lord for a good while and had much good cheer. And then they took their leave, and she went to an anchorite,
²
who was a monk from far away and lived in the Chapel-in-the-Fields.
³
He had a name for great perfection and previously had loved this creature very much. But afterwards, through evil talk that he heard about her, he turned completely against her, and therefore she went to him on purpose, to humble herself and draw him to charity if she could.

When she came to him, he welcomed her home shortly, and asked her what she had done with her child which was conceived and born while she was abroad, as he had heard tell.

And she said, ‘Sir, the same child that God has sent me I have brought home, for God knows I never did anything since I went abroad through which I should have a child.'

And he would not believe her for anything that she could say. Yet nevertheless she humbly and meekly told him, because of the trust that she had in him, how it was our Lord's will that she should be clad in white clothing. And he said ‘God forbid', for she would make everybody amazed at her. And she replied, ‘Sir, I don't care, so long as God is pleased with it.'

Then he bade her come again to him and be governed by him, and by a good priest called Sir Edward.
⁴
And she said she would
find out if it were the will of God or not, and with that she took her leave at that time. And as she went away from him, our Lord said to her soul as she went along, ‘I do not wish that you should be governed by him,' and she sent him word what answer she had from God.