To give my posts context this week, Julian of Norwich was an anchoress. She lived in a room (anchored) adjacent to the church. She saw 16 visions or revelations of divine love and provided spiritual direction to people who came to see her.
Let’s unpack today’s post to see what is needful and how it relates to generosity. I admit, the language is Middle English and can be challenging to understand, so let’s work through it together.
In Him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. John 1:4
“I had, in part, touching, sight, and feeling in three properties of God, in which the strength and effect of all the revelation standeth: and they were seen in every showing, and most properly in the twelfth, where it saith oftentimes: [It is I] The properties are these: Life, Love, and Light.
In life is marvellous homeliness, and in love is gentle courtesy, and in light is endless Nature-hood. These properties were in one goodness: unto which goodness my reason would be oned, and cleave to it with all its might. I beheld with reverent dread, and highly marvelling in the sight and in the feeling of the sweet accord, that our reason is in God; understanding that it is the highest gift that we have received; and it is grounded in nature.
Our faith is a light by nature coming of our endless day, that is our Father, God. In which light our Mother, Christ, and our good Lord, the Holy Ghost, leadeth us in this passing life. This light is measured discreetly, needfully standing to us in the night. The light is cause of our life; the night is cause of our pain and of all our woe: in which we earn meed and thanks of God.
For we, with mercy and grace, steadfastly know and believe our light, going therein wisely and mightily. And at the end of woe, suddenly our eyes shall be opened, and in clearness of light our sight shall be full: which light is God, our Maker and Holy Ghost, in Christ Jesus our Saviour. Thus I saw and understood that our faith is our light in our night: which light is God, our endless day.”
Julian of Norwich (c. 1342-c. 1416) in Revelations of Divine Love (Grand Rapids: CCEL, 1966), p. 94.
Julian celebrates three key properties of God: life, light, and love.
She sees them in her reason which is our highest gift which helps her unite to God. God measures the light to us (which is Himself) discreetly and needfully, so we are not overcome by the night.
That’s an ancient way to say that He helps our understanding grow over time. We do not see fully until we are with our Triune God experiencing endless day.
And it relates to generosity because these three traits of God – like, light, and love – come together in one goodness. That word ‘goodness’ in ancient English means generosity.
In plain terms. God’s generosity to us is that we can be united with Him, get the light we need to grow in maturity, and rest assured that in Him we have everything we need.
We will not be overcome by the darkness and chaos in our world. We can think clearly and have reason though it is limited until the time of endless day.
And look at the cool bonus in view. Serving Him who is our life, light, and love, “we earn meed” which in Middle English means, we gain reward.
In life after Lent, we have everything we need and He measures out more as we need it discreetly and needfully – though it may seem limited in the moment – and we can anticipate eternal reward.