1316. About turmoil in the heaven of spirits caused by a clash of opinions about truths
Several times earlier a similar turmoil had in fact arisen [see Gen. 11:7-9], a chaotic mass of opinions about certain truths to which their thoughts are especially directed. Thus a spiritual chaos seems to arise.
1316. CONCERNING A TUMULT IN THE HEAVEN OF SPIRITS FROM A CONFLICT OF OPINIONS CONCERNING TRUTHS
A similar kind of tumult has sometimes arisen on former occasions, and I then knew no otherwise than that it was the confusion of all things, and thus the Last Judgment, for there was a certain idea of the Last Judgment, as it were. It appears like a chaos, for there is heard a confused murmur, or the murmuring noise of very many spirits who know no differently than that all things would then be confounded together, for the societies are dissolved, and everyone is ruled by his own opinion and has thought for himself, thus not in consociation or community from one spirit, as it were, but from many. And because these opinions vary, such a tumult or muttering noise is heard from their tacit thoughts and at the same time from their murmuring speech. It is an image as if of the Last Judgment. The spirits also imagined this, for they could not but be ignorant of the fact that they would thus no longer be connected, be in harmony, and be at rest. I did not know before what such a tumult was and with the spirits imagined that all things would then be confounded, for it is like a confusion of tongues or a chaos of opinions concerning certain truths which are the special objects of their thoughts. Thus a spiritual chaos seems to exist.
1316. De tumultu in coelo spirituum, ex conflictu opinionum de veritatibus
Aliquoties prius quidam tumultus similis quidem ortus est [cf. 243], nec tunc scivi aliud, quam quod omnium confusio esset, et sic ultimum judicium, nam quaedam idea ultimi quasi judicii est; apparet sicut chaos, nam auditur confusum murmur aut murmurans strepitus perplurium spirituum, qui nec aliter sciunt, quam quod tunc confunderentur omnia, societates enim dissolvuntur, et quilibet suamet opinione regitur, et quilibet pro se cogitat, ita non in societate seu communione, uno quasi spiritu, sed multis, quae quia variant, ex tacitis cogitationibus et simul ex murmurantibus loquelis, talis tumultus seu murmurans strepitus auditur, est quasi imago ultimi judicii, sic opinati etiam erant spiritus, nam sic num connecterentur amplius, consentirent, et quiescerent, non possunt non ignorare 1
; nesciveram prius quid tale esset, et cum spiritibus opinatus, quod tunc confunderentur omnia, nam est quasi confusio labiorum [cf. Gen. 11:7-9] , seu chaos opinionum de certis veritatibus, quae cumprimis sunt objecta eorum cogitationum, ita chaos spirituale existere videtur.
Footnotes:
1. The Manuscript has ignorare