Chapter XXVIII
"Each brotherly compassion that man has on his fellow Christians, with charity, it is Christ in him"
THUS I saw how Christ has compassion on us for the cause of sin. And right as I was before in the Shewing of the Passion of Christ fulfilled with pain and compassion, like so in this sight I was fulfilled, in part, with compassion of all my fellow-Christians - for that well, well beloved people that shall be saved. For God's servants, Holy Church, shall be shaken in sorrow and anguish, tribulation in this world, as men shake a cloth in the wind.
And as to this our Lord answered in this manner: A great thing shall I make hereof in Heaven of endless worship and everlasting joys.
Yea, so far forth I saw, that our Lord rejoices in the tribulations of His servants, with care and compassion. On each person that He loves, to His bliss for to bring them, He lays something that is no blame in His sight, whereby they are blamed and despised in this world, scorned, mocked, and rejected. And this He does for to hinder the harm that they should take from the pomp and the vain-glory of this wretched life, and make their way ready to come to Heaven, and up-raise them in His bliss everlasting. For He says: I shall wholly break you of your vain affections and your vicious pride; and after that I shall together gather you, and make you mild and meek, clean and holy, by being made one with me.
And then I saw that each kind compassion that man has on his fellowChristians with charity, it is Christ in him.
That same "bringing to nothing" that was shewed in His Passion, it was shewed again here in this Compassion. Wherein were two manner of understandings in our Lord's meaning. The one was the bliss that we are brought to, wherein He wills that we rejoice. The other is for comfort in our pain: for He wills that we perceive that it shall all be turned to worship and profit by virtue of His passion, that we perceive that we suffer not alone but with Him, and see Him to be our Ground, and that we see His pains and His "bringing to nothing" passes so far all that we may suffer, that it may not be fully thought.
The seeing of this will save us from murmuring and despair in the feeling of our pains. And if we see truly that our sin deserves it, yet His love excuses us, and of His great courtesy He does away all our blame, and beholds us with care and pity as children innocent and lovely.