Pp. 98-102:

How our blessed Lady is ready to help all, both the wives, widows and maidens.

"Hear," said the Mother of God to Saint Birgitta, "that with all your heart you pray to God that your children may please God. Truly, such prayer is pleasing to God. For there is no mother who loves my Son above all things and asks the same of her children, but that I am immediately ready to help her to effect what she asks. There is also no widow who firmly prays for the help of God to remain in her widowhood consecrated to God until her death, but that I am immediately ready to fulfill her will with her. For I was as a widow, in that I had a Son on earth who had no bodily Father. There is also no virgin who desires to keep her maidenhead to God to her death, but that I am ready to defend her and to comfort her. For I myself am truly a Virgin. Nor ought you to marvel why I say these things. It is written that David desired King Saul’s daughter, when she was a maiden. He received her also, when she was a widow. He had also the wife of Uriah, while her husband lived. Nevertheless, the desire and lust of David was not without sin. But that spiritual delight of my Son, who is Lord of David, is without all sin. Therefore, as these three lives, that is, maidenhood, widowhood, and wedlock, pleased David bodily, so it pleases my Son to have them in his most chaste delight spiritually. Therefore it is no marvel though I help them and draw their ghostly delight into the delight of my Son, for his delight is in them."

The mantle of meekness. [11.23]

Our Lady Saint Mary speaks to the spouse of Christ, Saint Birgitta and says: "Many marvel why I speak to you. It is certain therefore that my humility is shown, for as the heart delights not in a member of the body which is diseased before it receives back its health again, and when it is whole, the heart rejoices, so do I; sins a man never so much, but if he turn again to me with all his heart, and with true repentence soon, I am ready to receive him. And I take no heed how much he has sinned, but with what intent and will he turns back. I am called the Mother of all mercy. Truly, daughter, the mercy of my Son made me merciful, and his Passion made me have compassion. And therefore he shall be wretched who comes not to mercy when he could. Therefore, you, my daughter, come and hide yourself under my mantle, which is despicable without, but inward it is profitable far three things. First, it shelters from tempestuous winds. Second, it protects from biting cold. Third, it keeps away rain. This mantle is my humility.* This seems to lovers of the world to be most despicable and foolish to follow. What is more despicable than to be called a fool, and not be angry nor cry out? What is more despicable than to leave and forsake all things, and to be needy in all things? What is more sorrowful among worldly people than for a man to suffer while pretending no wrong is done to him, and to believe and hold himself lower and more unworthy than all others? Such, daughter, was my humility. This was my love, this was all my will, that I would please no one but my Son.

"And this, my humility, is valuable against three things. First against tempestuous wind and weather; that is, against criticism and contempt from men, for as wind and weather that is full and great with storm troubles a man on all sides and makes him cold, so reproaches bear down quickly a man who is impatient, and who does not think on the time and things that are to come and they make his heart cold from charity. But whoever takes heed intently of my humility, he must think what I, Lady of all, heard, and seek my praise and not his, and consider that words are but wind; and soon he shall be refreshed and find ease. For why are worldly people so impatient in suffering words and reproaches, but because they seek their own praise more than the praise of God? And there is no meekness in them, for they have their eyes closed from seeing their sins. Therefore, though the justice that is written says that a man is not bound to suffer or to hear reproaching words without cause, it is a virtue and a worthy reward to hear and suffer patiently contrarious things that are said or done to them.

"Second, my humility protects from biting cold, that is to say, from carnal friendship and fleshly love. There is a kind of friendship and love by which a man is loved only for those things that are present, as with those who say: ‘Feed me and I will feed you while you live. For I do not care who will feed you after you are dead. Praise me and I shall praise you, but I care little what praise might follow hereafter.’ This friendship is cold and without the warmth of God’s love. And it is like snow before the love and compassion of his neighbor who is in need. And it does not reward fruitfully, for when the friendship is ended and the table taken down, soon all the profit of their friendship and love is dissolved, and the fruit of it gone. But whoever follows my humility, he does well to all of God, both to enemies and to friends. To friends because they remain steadily in the praise of God; and to enemies,

because they are the creatures of God, and in the hopes they should become good.

"Third, is the sight of my meekness protecting from rain and from the uncleanness of water that comes from the clouds. From where come clouds or skies, but of humors and moisture going up from the earth which are lifted up into the firmament; and which thicken? And so come three things from them, rain, hail and snow.58 This cloud means man’s body, which comes from uncleanness. This body has three things with it, as does the cloud: for the body has hearing, seeing and touch. In that the body has sight, it desires those thing which it sees; it desires good things and fair faces, and it desires many possessions. And what are all these things but as if rain coming out of clouds befouling the heart in its desire and love to gather goods together, making the heart restless with much business, distracting the heart with many, sterile thoughts, and troubling it with leaving those things it has gathered together. In that the body has hearing, it listens gladly to its own praise and the love and friendship of the world. It hears also all that is delightful to the body and harmful to the soul. And what are all these things, but as snow which is soon melted and makes the soul cold to God and hardened to meekness? In that the body has touch, it feels with delight its own lust and comfort of the flesh. And what is this but hail drawn together from the waters of uncleanness, making the soul unfruitful to spiritual things, strongly attached to worldly things, and compliant to the desire of the body? Therefore whoever desires to be defended from this cloud, he should flee to my humility and follow it; for with that he shall be protected from the greed of sight, so that he not desire unlawful things; and from the pleasure of hearing, that he hear not things that are against truth; and from the lust of the flesh, that he not be overcome by unlawful impulses.

"Truly, I say to you that the sight of my humility is like a good mantle, warming those who wear it. That is to say, not those who wear it only in thought, but also in deed; for a bodily mantle does not warm a body if it is worn and threadbare, nor my humility help those who merely think about it, but only if each of them strives to follow it in act according to their power. Therefore, my daughter, put on yourself this humility to your power; for women of the world wear mantles which have much pride outside and in, but to little profit. Such clothing you should avoid in every way; for only if the love of the world be first foul and loathsome to you; and only if you think continually upon the mercy of our Lord God shown to you, and your unkindness again towards him; and only if you think always to do those things that you have done and which you ought to do, and what sentence of judgement you deserve for these acts, you may not obtain the mantle of my meekness. Because I humbled myself so much; so much therefore do I deserve grace, unless I thought and knew well that I was worth nothing and had no rights for myself. Therefore I would not praise myself, but praise and worship him only who was giver and maker of all. Therefore, daughter, run to the mantle of my humility, and think and consider yourself as a sinner above all others. For though you see any wicked one, you do not know what shall happen to them tomorrow. Also you do not know with what intent nor with what knowledge they do it, whether out of weakness or conscious will. Therefore do not prefer yourself above others; and you ought not to judge anyone in your heart."

The Son of God speaks to Saint Birgitta and says: ‘You ought to humble yourself in four ways. First, against them who have power by rank or by office in the world. For since man has come to despise and leave off obeying God, it is worthy that he at least obey man. And because people must not be without rulers, therefore reverence and praise must be given to their power. Second, you must humble yourself towards those who are spiritually poor, that is to say, towards sinners, praying for them and thanking God for the ways you are not nor have been any such. Third, towards them who are spiritually rich, that is to say, towards the friends of God, thinking yourself unworthy to serve them or to be conversant amongst them. Fourth, towards the poor of the world, by helping them and clothing and washing their feet."