Confessio Amantis; Or, Tales of the Seven Deadly Sins. John Gower

And Pride was a vice holde.

       Of holy cherche the largesse

       Yaf thanne and dede gret almesse

       To povere men that hadden nede:

       Thei were ek chaste in word and dede,

       Wherof the poeple ensample tok;

       Her lust was al upon the bok, 230

       Or forto preche or forto preie,

       To wisse men the ryhte weie

       Of suche as stode of trowthe unliered.

       Lo, thus was Petres barge stiered

       Of hem that thilke tyme were,

       And thus cam ferst to mannes Ere

       The feith of Crist and alle goode

       Thurgh hem that thanne weren goode

       And sobre and chaste and large and wyse.

       Bot now men sein is otherwise, 240

       Simon the cause hath undertake,

       The worldes swerd on honde is take;

       And that is wonder natheles,

       Whan Crist him self hath bode pes

       And set it in his testament,

       How now that holy cherche is went,

       Of that here lawe positif

       Hath set to make werre and strif

       For worldes good, which may noght laste.

       God wot the cause to the laste 250

       Of every right and wrong also;

       But whil the lawe is reuled so

       That clerkes to the werre entende,

       I not how that thei scholde amende

       The woful world in othre thinges,

       To make pes betwen the kynges

       After the lawe of charite,

       Which is the propre duete

       Belongende unto the presthode.

       Bot as it thenkth to the manhode, 260

       The hevene is ferr, the world is nyh,

       And veine gloire is ek so slyh,

       Which coveitise hath now withholde,

       That thei non other thing beholde,

       Bot only that thei myhten winne.

       And thus the werres thei beginne,

       Wherof the holi cherche is taxed,

       That in the point as it is axed

       The disme goth to the bataille,

       As thogh Crist myhte noght availe 270

       To don hem riht be other weie.

       In to the swerd the cherche keie

       Is torned, and the holy bede

       Into cursinge, and every stede

       Which scholde stonde upon the feith

       And to this cause an Ere leyth,

       Astoned is of the querele.

       That scholde be the worldes hele

       Is now, men sein, the pestilence

       Which hath exiled pacience 280

       Fro the clergie in special:

       And that is schewed overal,

       In eny thing whan thei ben grieved.

       Bot if Gregoire be believed,

       As it is in the bokes write,

       He doth ous somdel forto wite

       The cause of thilke prelacie,

       Wher god is noght of compaignie:

       For every werk as it is founded

       Schal stonde or elles be confounded; 290

       Who that only for Cristes sake

       Desireth cure forto take,

       And noght for pride of thilke astat,

       To bere a name of a prelat,

       He schal be resoun do profit

       In holy cherche upon the plit

       That he hath set his conscience;

       Bot in the worldes reverence

       Ther ben of suche manie glade,

       Whan thei to thilke astat ben made, 300

       Noght for the merite of the charge,

       Bot for thei wolde hemself descharge

       Of poverte and become grete;

       And thus for Pompe and for beyete

       The Scribe and ek the Pharisee

       Of Moises upon the See

       In the chaiere on hyh ben set;

       Wherof the feith is ofte let,

       Which is betaken hem to kepe.

       In Cristes cause alday thei slepe, 310

       Bot of the world is noght foryete;

       For wel is him that now may gete

       Office in Court to ben honoured.

       The stronge coffre hath al devoured

       Under the keye of avarice

       The tresor of the benefice,

       Wherof the povere schulden clothe

       And ete and drinke and house bothe;

       The charite goth al unknowe,

       For thei no grein of Pite sowe: 320

       And slouthe kepeth the libraire

       Which longeth to the Saintuaire;

       To studie upon the worldes lore

       Sufficeth now withoute more;

       Delicacie his swete toth

       Hath fostred so that it fordoth

       Of abstinence al that ther is.

       And forto loken over this,

       If Ethna brenne in the clergie,

       Al openly to mannes ije 330

       At Avynoun thexperience

       Therof hath yove an evidence,

       Of that men sen hem so divided.

       And yit the cause is noght decided;

       Bot it is seid and evere schal,

       Betwen tuo Stoles lyth the fal,

       Whan that men wenen best to sitte:

       In holy cherche of such a slitte

       Is for to rewe un to ous alle;

       God grante it mote wel befalle 340

       Towardes him which hath the trowthe.

       Bot ofte is sen that mochel slowthe,

       Whan men ben drunken of the cuppe,

       Doth mochel harm, whan fyr is uppe,

       Bot if somwho the flamme stanche;

       And so to speke upon this branche,

       Which proud Envie hath mad to springe,

       Of Scisme, causeth forto bringe

       This newe Secte of Lollardie,

       And also many an heresie 350

       Among the clerkes in hemselve.

       It were betre dike and delve

       And stonde upon the ryhte feith,

       Than knowe al that the bible seith

       And erre as somme clerkes do.

       Upon the hond