Universal Love: A Story About the Shakers Written in Early Modern English, structured off the Book of Matthew (part 1)

The First Testimonie of Christ’s Second Apperynge

Ch. 1

1. The Father is first in the order of the newe creation, and the Mother is the second, the glorie, wisdom, and perfeccion of the Father. 
2. And in and by the Sonne and Doughter, or Christ in His First and Second apperynge the Father and Mother are both revealed and made knowdn, through the returned power of the everlastynge worde which cometh from both;
3. Who are one in sprete, nature and additament, but two in their post and maner of dede. 
4. Christ Iesus is revealed anewe, not in Iudea to the Iewes, but in England, to a Gentyl countrey, and as a woman. 
5. The first Mother of all soules in regeneracion to make man parfect agayne.
6. The byrthe of Ann Lee was on this wyse. Ihon and Mary had bene marride in the flesh and were ioyned together. 
7. And Ihon knew Mary; they had handeled the uncleane thynge. 
8. When they met in the flesh to begat Ann, they were not blynde to lust, so Ann was borne into synne, on Februarie 29 in the yeere of oure redemption 1536. 
9. But an angel from Heaven made them knowe their love for the unborne child and their promise to each other, so Ann was also borne into love, in the citie of Manchester on Towd Lane. 
10. In Hyr childhood, Ann had a great loothynge of the coniugall flesh, and so great was Hyr sense of its uncleane nature, that she often exhorted hyr mother and father agaynst  it.  
11. Hyr mother came to Hyr side, but Hyr father dyd not, and attempted to scourge Her; She threw Her selfe into Hyr mother’s bosom to scape his strokes. 
12. She spent meny nyghtes in their singele room from that point and hearede Hyr father folow his lusts even at the displeasure of Hyr mother.

Ch. 2

1. Because of Hyr importunate relations, Ann was marride to Abraham Stanley. 
2. They loved each other not and marride steade at Hyr father’s firme worde. 
3. Abraham was lustfull and knew Hyr well. 
4. Ann, too, fell into synne and handeled the uncleane thynge. 
5. But Hyr husbonde’s lust coude not be expiated, and it was often consumated agaynst Hyr will and consent. 
6. She still knew the synnefull nature of the lusts of the flesh and abhorred them; yet Hyr husbonde bore Hyr four chyldre agaynst Hyr strong insistence.
7. Ann’s chyldre all dyed at two yeeres or younger, and She weeped for Hyr chyldre;
8. She refused to be consoled, because they were no more. 
9. Then Ann fell under hevie trials and trybulacios for lodgynge with Hyr husbonde. 

Ch. 3

1. In those daies Ihon and Iane Wardley apered in the streets of Bolton-le-moors proclaimynge, 
2. Repent, for the second apereynge of Christ is at hande. 
3. Their exercises in meetynges were syngeynge, dauncynge, shoutynge, shakynge, speakeynge in tonges, and prophetyzynge the dounefall of all the anti-Christian congregaciones and the encreases of their kyngdom. 
4. Then the people of Bolton-le-moors and all Lancashire went oute to them and all the region alonge the River Irwell. 
5. And they were baptized into the societie of blameless deportment by confessynge their synnes. 
6. But when they sawe meny repeat synners which cometh for confession, they sayed: It is not enough onlie to confess.
7. You must swynge the axe at the roote and take up a full and final cross agaynst all you knowe to be evyll. 
8. We will heare your confession, but one who is more powerful is comynge who will teach you how to lyve lyfe in the Christ sprete.
9. Then Ann came from Manchester to the Wardleys at Bolton-le-moors, to confess Hyr synne. 
10. She confessed Hyr synnes to Hyr elders, one by one, and repented them in the same maner. 
11. She told the Wardley societie of Hyr trouble livynge with Hyr husbonde, and Iane told Her: 
12. Iames and I lodge together, but we do not touch each other eny more than two babes. You maye returne home and do lykewise. 
13. A dove descended from the heavens and lyght apon Her. 

Ch. 4. 

1. In obedyence to Iane, She went to bed with Hyr husbonde; but coude not slepe seemyngely enymore than yf it had bene a bed of embers. 
2. She quitted the bed at the start of a great trybulacios and continued laborynge, crynge to God for the space of twelve daies and nyghtes to knowe how the creation was fallen, and how the restoration shuld take place. 
3. When She had fasted for fortie daies and fortie nyghtes, She was let by the Sprete to see and feel the paine and iudgement which everie description of lost soules were under. 
4. For whole nyghtes Hyr ungodlie cryes and screams filled neereby soules with feare and shakynges but coude not compare to the horrors of the damned soules. 
5. But Ann was to suffer deeper still, to readie for a far greater work, and so She coude not rest expiated with what She had alreadie attained. 
6. Durynge quiet periods of rest, Ann yearnd for more sufferynge and fasted still. 
7. Ihon Hocknell bore witnes sayynge: Hyr worldelie tabernacle was so reduced and she was weak as an infant. 
8. But in Hyr I sawe an invincible fortitude of mind under power and operation of God.  Hyr flesh soon consumed Hyr bones and bloudie sweat poured through the pores of Hyr skin. 
9. For nine yeeres, visions and prophetic dreams were Hyr constant companio through watchynges, fastynges, tears, and incessant cryes to God. 
10. Now She refused to slepe until Christ Iesus wolde cometh to Her, holdynge Hyr eyelids apart and walkynge in Hyr stockynges to laye not eny temptatione before Hyr husbonde.  Hyr enimies accused Hyr of profanynge the Sabbath; She was arrested and confined to prisonne. 
11. She coude not lie doune in Hyr cell, and She was geven no food so that She might dye. Yet younge Iames Whittaker pushed a pipe through Hyr cell bars and fed Hyr mylcke and wyne, which turned to vynegre.
12. Christ Iesus came to Hyr in prisonne and endowed Hyr with a clear and open vision of the roote and founaatons of human depravitie, Adam and Eve’s transgressione in the Garden of Eden. 
13. The first man’s subiection to his will and pleasurynge by brute force and not by love, of the first woman on whose parfect puritie, through parfect fredom, the verie lyfe of the race depends. 
14. Then Christ Iesus sayed: Thys ys that beloved doughter in whom is my delyte.
15. From that tyme on, Ann began to proclaim the worde and to say: Repent. For the kyngdom of Heaven is verie neere. 
16. Ann went forth from prisonne filled with the godlyke resolution to give hyr lyfe, at eny and all costs, to the one glorious cause of man’s redemption, through the gate of repentance into the regenerated lyfe of the purifide and the fre. 
17. She sawe two sisters, Nancy and Mary, dauncynge alonge the River Irwell. 
18. She sayed to them: Folow me, and I will make you daunsers with the angels in heaven. 
19. immediatelie they stopped dauncynge and folowed Her. 
20. Gooynge from there, they went to the Wardley societie to open Hyr revelations which She dyd with the most astonishynge power of God. 
21. Here it was sene that the candle of the lorde was in Hyr hande, and that She was able, by the lyghte thereof, to search everie herte and try everie soule. From that tyme on, She was oure Mother. 
22. Then Mother Ann went all arounde Lancashire proclaimynge the gospell of the kyngdom and invitynge the sicke, the poor, and the weak to proclaim it with Her.  Hyr fame spreed throughoute all England, and they brought to Hyr people of all kinds to confess, includynge criminalls, debtors, and blasphemes, and the sicke, and those who were demon-possessed, and those who were lunaticks, and She hearede and healed them all. 
23. Great multitudes of people folowed Hyr to the Lee societie at Towd Lane.