46. "He is Good, Life, Truth, Love, Peace: His Clarity and His Unity do n... (Observations (regarding certain points in the foregoing fourteen Revelations)) (Revelations of Divine Love) (Julian of Norwich)

BUT our passing life that we have here in our sense-soul knows not what our Self is. [And when we truly and clearly see and know what our Self is] then shall we truly and clearly see and know our Lord God in fulness of joy. And therefore it behoves needs to be that the nearer we be to our bliss, the more we shall long [after it]: and that both by nature and by grace. We may have knowing of our Self in this life by continuant help and virtue of our high Nature. In which knowing we may exercise and grow, by forwarding and speeding of mercy and grace; but we may never fully know our Self until the last point: in which point this passing life and manner of pain and woe shall have an end. And therefore it belongs properly to us, both by nature and by grace, to long and desire with all our mights to know our Self in fulness of endless joy.

And yet in all this time, from the beginning to the end, I had two manner of beholdings. The one was endless continuant love, with secureness of keeping, and blissful salvation, for of this was all The Showing. The other was of the common teaching of Holy Church, in which I was before informed and grounded and with all my will having in use and understanding. And the beholding of this went not from me: for by the Showing I was not stirred nor led therefrom in no manner of point, but I had therein teaching to love it and find it good : whereby I might, by the help of our Lord and His grace, increase and rise to more heavenly knowing and higher loving.

And thus in all the Beholding I thought it was needful to see and to know that we are sinners, and do many evils that we ought to leave, and leave many good deeds undone that we ought to do: wherefore we deserve pain and wrath. And notwithstanding all this, I saw soothfastly that our Lord was never angry, nor ever shall be. For He is God: Good, Life, Truth, Love, Peace; His Clarity and His Unity suffers Him not to be angry. For I saw truly that it is against the property of His Might to be angry, and against the property of His Wisdom, and against the property of His Goodness. God is the Goodness that may not be angry, for He is not [other] but Goodness: our soul is united to Him, unchangeable Goodness, and between God and our soul is neither wrath nor forgiveness in His sight. For our soul is so fully united to God of His own Goodness that between God and our soul may be truly nothing.

And to this understanding was the soul led by love and drawn by might in every Showing: that it is thus our good Lord showed, and how it is thus in the truth of His great Goodness. And He wills that we desire to learn it that is to say, as far as it belongs to His creature to learn it. For all things that the simple soul understood, God wills that they be showed and [made] known. For the things that He will have privy, mightily and wisely Himself He hides them, for love. For I saw in the same Showing that much privity is hid, which may never be known until the time that God of His goodness has made us worthy to see it; and therewith I am well-content, abiding our Lord's will in this high marvel. And now I yield me to my Mother, Holy Church, as a simple child owes.