Two sins & Love

 

It is proper for us to have three kinds of knowledge: the first is that we know our Lord God; the second is that we know ourselves, what we are by Him in nature and grace; the third that we know humbly what we ourselves are as regards our sin and our weakness. And the whole showing was given for these three, as I understand it.

All this blessed teaching of our Lord God was shown in three parts: that is to say, by bodily sight, and by word formed in my understanding, and by spiritual insight...

God showed two kinds of sickness of soul that we have: the one is impatience or sloth (for we bear our labor and our pains gloomily); the other is despair or doubtful fear (as I shall say later)....And these two are those which most trouble and tempt us (according to what our Lord showed me), from which He wills that we be put right...

And the cause why we are troubled with these sins is because of our ignorance of Love, for though the three Persons of the Trinity are all equal in themselves, the soul received most understanding in Love; yes, and He wills that in everything we have our contemplation and our enjoyment in Love.

To this knowledge we are most blind; for some of us believe that God is all Power and is able to do all, and that He is all Wisdom and knows how to do all, but that He is all Love and wills to do all, there we stop.

This ignorance is that which most hinders God's lovers, as I see it, for when we begin to hate sin and amend ourselves by the command of Holy Church, still there persists a fear that hinders us...And we do not know to despise it as we do another sin which we recognize (which comes through lack of true judgement) and it is against truth, for of all the properties of the blessed Trinity, it is God's will that we have most confidence and delight in Love.

 

from Chapters 72 and 73