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Homily 15, Sexagesima Sunday

HOMILY 15, SEXAGESIMA SUNDAY: FOOTNOTES

1 Sexagesima Sunday. The Gospel according to Luke. In that time

2 Latin rubric (Luke 8:4–15): And when a very great multitude was gathered together, [and hastened out of the cities unto him, he spoke by a similitude. The sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it. And other some fell upon a rock: and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, because it had no moisture. And other some fell among thorns, and the thorns growing up with it, choked it. / And other some fell upon good ground; and being sprung up, yielded fruit a hundredfold. Saying these things, he cried out: He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. And his disciples asked him what this parable might be. To whom he said: To you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to the rest in parables, that seeing they may not see, and hearing may not understand. Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. And they by the wayside are they that hear; then the devil cometh and taketh the word out of their heart, lest believing they should be saved. Now they upon the rock, are they who when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no roots; for they believe for a while and in time of temptation, they fall away. And that which fell among thorns, are they who have heard, and going their way, are choked with the cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and yield no fruit. But that on the good ground, are they who in a good and perfect heart, hearing the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit in patience.]

HOMILY 15, SEXAGESIMA SUNDAY: EXPLANATORY NOTES

Abbreviations: CA: Catena Aurea, ed. Newman; McIntosh: McIntosh, “Some Words in the Northern Homily Collection”; MED: Middle English Dictionary; NEHC: Gerould, North English Homily Collection; NHC: Northern Homily Cycle; NIMEV: The New Index of Middle English Verse, ed. Boffey and Edwards; OE: Old English; OED: Oxford English Dic­tionary; OF: Old French; PL: Patrologia Latina, ed. Migne; Tubach: Index Exemplorum, ed. Tubach. For manuscript abbreviations (ED, A, D, G, L, V), see the Introduction.

The text for this Sunday, which occurs sixty days (more or less) before Easter, is the well known Parable of the Sower (Luke 8:4–8). Because Jesus himself explicates the parable, the NHC-poet, rather than repeating Jesus’ interpretation, takes the opportunity to expand on the theme of “tholemodenes” or “patience.” This allows him to introduce the tale of Marina, whose life exemplifies the virtue of patience, but whose tale also belongs to a large and highly popular group of stories of cross-dressing female saints.

NIMEV 1519, 89. Manuscripts: A: fols. 54r–59r; G: fols. 55r–59r; D: fols. 83r–87r (fol. 86 lost); L: fols. 21r–22r.

Before 1 In illo tempore. This is the usual form of the rubric in A which, as seen by the addition of these words, differs slightly from that of the Edinburgh manuscript.

29–30 Bot other men behoves be kende / With ensawmpils to hevene at wende. These lines offer what most would consider to be a generous interpretation of their biblical equi­valent (Luke 8:4–15; see the Latin rubric, p. 93; compare Mark 4:11–12). Mo­dern commentators acknowledge the difficulty of the passage in Luke, but the meaning is generally thought to be something along the following lines: Jesus speaks in parables in order that the truth be veiled from outsiders — the secrets of the kingdom should be given only to those who have already committed them­selves to him (International Bible Commentary, ed. Farmer, p. 1395; C. Evans, Saint Luke, pp. 368, 374). The CA notes Bede’s Commentary on Luke, which sup­ports this typical reading: “Rightly then do they hear in parables, who having closed the sense of their heart, care not to know the truth” (3.269; compare CA 2.75–78, on Mark 4:11–12). The NHC-poet indicates instead that through parables those without faith will be brought to understand. Whether he has misunderstood the text or deliberately changed its meaning, his own inter­pretation is consistent with the urgent and positive desire to bring his audience into the community of the faithful as expressed throughout NHC.

33 This ensawmpil that I sayde here. In distinction to the Lucan text, I have not included lines 34–62 as part of Jesus’ speech. In this passage the NHC-poet seamlessly interweaves a representation of Jesus’ words with his own homiletic expansion of them. The poet is clearly speaking at line 63, when he says that “Bot Criste betaknes in oure Gospell,” but there is no obvious break between this line and the one that precedes it, and I have therefore chosen to attribute the passage as a whole to the poet, whose voice is more akin to the commentaries than to Luke.

73–74 Bot of a worde that tharein es, / That es to saye of tholemodenes. Gregory’s Homily 12 also deals with this text and also speaks about patience, but much more briefly; his exemplum is different, though it also illustrates patience. There is otherwise little similarity between the two.

137 A ryche man be alde daies. Tubach 3380: Monk, girl disguised as. The source for the NHC version, as Gerould notes (NEHC, p. 45), is probably the Vitae Patrum (PL 73.691). The legend of Saint Marina is one of numerous tales of holy women (other examples include Theodora, Euphrosne, and Pelagia) who disguised them­selves as men. These tales were very popular in the Middle Ages, as can be seen by the more than thirty women who figure in them. Generally speaking there is little evi­dence to prove the historicity of these legends and their form certainly approxi­mates more closely to romance than to history (Hotchkiss, Clothes, pp. 13–15). The earliest versions are set in the eastern Mediterranean; lives written originally in Greek were translated into Latin in the early Middle Ages, enjoying wide circulation in such works as Vincent of Beauvais’ Speculum Historiale and the Legenda Aurea of Jacobus de Voragine (chapter 84, vol. 1, pp. 324–25).

165–66 This monk eftir his doghtir yede / And cledde hir all in careman wede. The prohibition in Deuteronomy 22:5 against cross-dressing (“A woman shall not be clothed with man’s apparel, neither shall a man use woman’s apparel: for he that doeth these things is abominable before God”) was repeated in church canons throughout the Middle Ages. Since, however, according to most medieval theologians, women were not created equal to men, female cross-dressing was tolerated, because of the assumption that such women were striving to become more male-like, and hence better persons (Bullough, “Cross-Dressing,” p. 225).

178 devotabile. The meaning is apparent, as cognate with ME devout (from OF devo[u]t, Latin devotus), but as McIntosh notes this form does not appear either in MED or OED (p. 198).

179–80 Hir wommanhede so wele scho hidde / That mannes maners wele scho kidde. Although Marina’s successful assumption of a male disguise appears complete here, the events that subsequently unfold bear out Hotchkiss’ claim that the transvestite saints rarely embody masculine qualities; more often “they retain stereotypical feminine characteristics, including sexual vulnerability and sinfulness, maternal instincts, and concerns for family” (Clothes, p. 30).

213 And Mawryne stude and hir bethoght. Hotchkiss groups Marina with two other cross-dressing saints, Margareta and Theodora, whose disguises emerge as signs of humility, since they reflect voluntary disregard for self in favor of serving God. Their willingness to suffer for the sins of others “evokes the figure of Christ” (Hotchkiss, Clothes, p. 25). Marina’s conscious approximation of her “sinless suffering” to that of Christ is original to NHC. In the Vitae Patrum, and the Legenda Aurea, for example, she simply responds to the accusation by saying that she has sinned.

259–60 And thus twa wyntir scho fedd it thare, / Right als it hir awne childe ware. As Hotchkiss points out, the child is left with its putative “father,” but Marina’s role is more like that of an unwed mother (Clothes, p. 26). When she is finally readmitted to the convent she must perform menial housekeeping tasks. In other words, though she is punished for her transgression as a man, she nonetheless conforms to the model of a female sinner.

301 Oute of the kirkgarthe hir to delve. Exceptions to the expectation that a Christian would be buried in the churchyard were very unusual, according to Daniell (Death and Burial, pp. 95–105). Some indication of those who might be so excluded can be found in the First Statutes of Salisbury (c. 1217–1219), which listed usurers, named excommunicates, and strangers to the parish. The Statutes of London (1245–1259) excluded those who married without banns. Less formal, but closer to the abbot’s decision with regard to Marina, based on her supposed sinfulness, is John Mirk’s list, which included, among others, women who died in childbirth, lechers, and those who died suddenly.

313 oghane. MED: Gaelic, compare Middle Irish ochan, “woe!”

341 He gert schroude that corse right thare. Once Marina’s true (and sinless) identity has been discovered, the monks deal with her body in a manner that follows closely the practice of the community at Cluny. There the body was washed, clothed in a hair-shirt and hooded habit, and placed on a bier. It then lay in the church, where the recitation of psalmody continued until the time of burial. At the grave the body was censed by a priest, sprinkled with holy water, and buried with earth cast upon it. The procession of monks then returned to the abbey to the tolling of bells (Daniell, Death and Burial, p. 31).

379 warlawe. From OE waerloga, a “traitor” or “oath-breaker,” but the special appli­cation to the devil was, according to OED, already its principal sense in OE.

HOMILY 15, SEXAGESIMA SUNDAY: TEXTUAL NOTES

Abbreviations: MED: Middle English Dictionary; Nevanlinna: Nevanlinna, The Northern Homily Cycle; NHC: Northern Homily Cycle; Small: English Metrical Homiles, ed. Small. for manuscript abbreviations (ED, A, D, G, L, V), see the Introduction.

Before 1 Cum turba . . . Et cetera. The scribe seems to have skipped over this line, only to insert it in the right margin.

37 mannes. MS: mann, followed by erasure, then es.

40 foules. MS: foules &, with ampersand canceled.

42 That oute. MS: A crease hides part of this line, partially obscuring the first and second words. The first is almost certainly Þat, identifiable by the blurred but just visible Þ followed by a small t written above the line. The ou and the e of the second word can be made out, and by analogy with G and D, which both have oute, the third letter, which is hidden by the crease must be a t.

46 schakes. MS: tak schakes. The scribe evidently began to write takes, the rhyme word from the previous line, and then realized his mistake, though the letters have not been canceled.

50 ryche. So G. MS: wricchid.

113 hill. The MED lists this as an alternate spelling for ill. G, D have ill/ille respec­tively.

117 God. MS: gon god,with gon canceled.

200 oft. So G. MS omits.

203–04 And askid wha had bi hir lyne / And scho talde tham that monk Mawryne. These lines, the last two on fol. 56v have been recopied at the top of fol. 57r.

290 wesshe. MS: wehsse.
 
Dominica in sexagesima. Evangelium secundum Lucam. In illo tempore:1; (see note)

Cum turba plurima convenirent. Et cetera.
2 ; (t-note)
 




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385   
 
   In oure gospell Saynte Luke saise us,
That mani folk come to Jesus
Of citees and of other townes;
To here his sawes and his resounes.
Thai stode aboute him thik falde
And a parabile he thaim talde:
He sayse, “A man on felde yede
To sawe apon his land his sede;
And som fell besyde the strete,
And foules sone it uppe ete.
And som fell apon the stane,
And forworthid sone onane;
For it had nowther erde ne wete
It dryed and witid awaie full skete.
And some sede fell ymange the thornes
Als oft sithes on felde duse cornes,
And forworthid, for thorne and wede
Grewe it aboute and it ovreyede.
And som fell in gude erde and yalde
Gode fruyte and croppe a hondrethe falde.”
This saide Criste and sithen he badde
That all suld here that eres hadde.
Than his dissiples sayde him to
That he suld this ensawmpil undo;
And Criste saide, “Grace es given to yow
To witte on what manere and how
Man aght to ga the right waie
Unto the joye that lastis aie.
Bot other men behoves be kende
With ensawmpils to hevene at wende
That seand men be noght seande,
And undirstand and noght undirstand.”
This ensawmpil that I sayde here
Sall be undone on this manere:
The sede betaknes Goddis worde
That prechurs bringes of his horde.
This sede fallis in mannes hertes,
For synnefull manne to gode it ertes.
Bot it falles oft besyde the waie
And foules beres it awaie.
Foules betaknes Sathanas
That oute of thaire hertes Goddes worde tase.
For bathe gode men and ylle
Heres sermounes with gode will;
Bot ylle men therof na hede takes
For fendes out of thaire hertes it schakes,
And fruyte therfore forthe bringe thai nane
For fell fendes it oute hase tane.
This sede fallis als in thornes and breres
When ryche men with will it heres
Bot thaire hertis ovregrowen es
With covetyse and besynes
Of werldes catell, so that thaie
Na gude fruyte forthe bringe maye.
The sede yitte falles apon the stane,
Bot rote tharein may it gete nane,
When hard men of hert it heres
That trowes that the prechoure leres;
Bot if fandinge fall in thair thoght
Of Goddes worde gife thai right noght.
In thaire hert es na wete of grace,
Forthi tharein na rote it tase.
Bot Criste betaknes in oure Gospell
Be that sede that in gode erde fell
Goddes worde that gode men heres
And kythis it with gode maneres.
Thai bringe forthe fruite of gode sede
In tholemodenes in worde and dede
This es the strenghe of oure Gospell
Als man in Ynglihsse tonge may tell.

   This spell has Criste himself undone,
Forthi thare me noght speke thareone.
Bot of a worde that tharein es,
That es to saye of tholemodenes
Will I speke, for it is a thinge
That geres men gasteli fruyte forthe bringe —
Als Criste schewid in oure Gospell,
Thare he saide sede in gode erde fell
And in hervestes gode fruyte yalde
Of ilk a corne hondrethe falde.
For right gude erde that gode fruyte gives
Menes Cristen menne that wele lyves
And bringes forthe fruyte in tholemudnes
That es moder of all godenes.
For nanekyn man may be right gude
Bot he in angere be tholemode.
Tholemode es he that can have methe
In werldes wa and in wandrethe,
And forgives thaim that duse thaim scathe,
And prayes that God schelde thaim fra lathe,
Als Criste did when he hange on rode
And kende us thare to be tholemode.
Bot now es many foles iwisse,
That sone when any hase done thaim misse,
Gode rest ne roo may thai have nane,
Bot thai be vengid of that mane.
In thaim es na tholemodenes
Bot felonye and bittirnes.
Thai may wele bere gode fruyte in dede,
Bot thaire fruyte getes thaim na mede;
For right als fruyte that suld springe,
Es slane with thondir and levenynge,
Swa geres wrethe and wickid will
Gode fruyte of the werkes wysen and spill,
For fruyte wisynes of worthi dede,
When he that duse it tynes his mede,
And ilk a man may sikir be,
That mede of gode dede tynis he,
If he in wrethe and yre lyve
And nanegates will misdede forgive.
Bot he that haldes him fra wreth
When his faas steres him to brethe
And duse thaim gode agaynes the hill
May noght the fruyte of his dede spill.
For suffraunce yemes it fra wynde
Of wrethe, forthi sall he it fynde
Rype before God on the Daye of Dome
That geres oure fruyte here sproute and blome.
Than sall that fruyte that he here wroght
In tholemodenes gere him be broght
To take with myrthe his mede in blisse
That to tholemode men graunted is.
Forthi I rede we be tholemode
And think on him that dyed on rode,
And askid of his faas na wrake
Bot tholid it mekeli for mannes sake.
He grucchid noght when men him sloghe,
Ne when thai him to hethinge droghe;
Bot askid to thaim forgivenes
To give ensawmpile of tholemodenes.
Forthi I rede we ensawmpile take
Of Criste for to forgive all wrake
Till oure enemyes for than live we
In bowsomnes and charité.
Of tholemudenes will I yow tell
A tale, if ye will here my spell.

   A ryche man be alde daies
Thoght for to leeve this werldes plaies
And torne into religyoune,
And tharto he made him redy boune.
A doghtir he had that he betaght
To his frendis with all his aght,
And bad thaim take on hir gode tent.
And sithen to ane abbaye he went,
And tharein was schaven monk full yare,
And swa bowsome lyved he thare,
That his abote lufid him mare
Than any other for all thaire fare.
He lived thus lange in that abbaie,
And servid God bathe night and daie
Bot radde was he that God suld tyne
His doghtir that hight Mawryne,
And oft for hir his herte was sare,
For in some ordire he wald scho ware.
His abote sawe him be sarye,
And askid him wharefore and whi.
He made ylle chere, and he him talde
That he a sohne had that was callde
Mawryne, and saide full fayne he walde
That he ware broght to Goddis falde.
This abote saide, “I will him have
If that he be a gude knave.”
And bad him ga eftir him swithe —
Bot here ye maye grete ferly lithe:
This monk eftir his doghtir yede
And cledde hir all in careman wede,
And techid hir how scho sul live
And all hir hert to Jhesu give;
And bad that scho suld nevermore
Late man witte that scho wommane wore.
When he had kend hir hir lessoune,
He broght hir to religyoune,
And sone monk was scho schaven thare,
And monk abyte thare scho bare.
And Frere Mawrine was scho callde,
And did full wele in Goddes falde;
For scho was gode and serviseabile
And in hir ordire full devotabile.
Hir wommanhede so wele scho hidde
That mannes maners wele scho kidde.
Scho wonid in hir fadir cell,
And he hir kend that to hir fell:
How scho suld bathe night and daie
Hir Sawter and hir Servyse saie.
And when dede had hir fadir tane,
Scho wonid in his celle be hir ane
In harde penaunce and gude prayere
That made hir to Criste full dere.
Fell awntir that hir brether yede
In labore for to do thaire dede,
That was on barowes stane beringe
To the werk of thair bigginge.
And for Mawryne was wyse and warre
Scho was sette to lede a carre.
Fer fra thaire abbaie was thaire quarrere,
And thare was wonand a brewstere,
And thare laye Mawryne oute all night,
For scho might noght come hame be light.
And fell awntir that a yonge swayne
Had the brewster doghtir oft forlayne;
And sone when childe in wambe was sene
Hir frendes att hir ware ful tene,
And askid wha had bi hir lyne.
And scho talde tham that monke Mawryne
Had forsid hir, and thai ware wrathe,
And till hir abote it talde rathe,
That Mawryne had that mayden forlayne.
Bot the abote saide thare agayne,
For wende he noght it sothe might be,
Swa wele monk Mawryne trowid he.
He callid the whether Mawryne sone
And spirid if scho that synne had done;
And Mawryne stude and hir bethoght
How sakles Criste on rode hir boght,
And tharefore to hir walde scho take
Sakles schame for Goddes sake.
And saide, “Leve fadir, praye for me
That my synne may forgiven be.
I may noght saye agayne this chaunce
For I am worthi to do penaunce.”
And when the abote herd this,
He was full wrathe with hir iwisse,
And sayde, “Mawryne, allas, allase,
That thou in this house schaven wase.
Thi fadir was a haly mane
And thorghe him was thou hyder tane.
Allas that ever thou come herein
For thou has schent this house with syn;
And for thou hase this abbaie schent
I do thee here oute of the covent.
For thou hase wretthid swete Jhesus,
Thou sall noght dwell ymange us.”
Than was scho done to the gate
And sare began scho for to grate,
And prayed eftir tholemodenes,
For scho wist wele scho was sakles.
And hard penaunce scho toke hir one
Right als scho had that ylk synne done.
On werk dayes when the covente
Forthe atte gate to laboure wente,
Thai sawe Mawryne than sitte thare schent.
And som of thaim full sare hir ment,
And som spittid on hir thare
Als scho Jewe or Sarzyne ware.
Brede and watir hir broght thai,
And tharewith lived scho many a daie.
This brewstare doghtir of whaim I ment,
That had Mawryne thusgate schent,
Had a knave chylde in hir tyme;
And sone when scho had spanid hyme,
Scho it betaght to monke Mawryne.
And saide, “Monk, loo, this es thine,
I have wele fedde it hidir till:
Fede thow it now, if that thou will.”
And tharewith Mawryne the childe left scho,
And Mawryne toke the chylde hir to
And gladli gave scho it atte ete
Of swilk almos als scho might gete.
And thus twa wyntir scho fedd it thare,
Right als it hir awne childe ware.
When Mawryne had ledde thus hir lyve
In strange penaunce yeres fyve,
The covent had of hir pité,
And prayede thaire abote par charité,
He suld late Mawryne come thaim ymange;
And saide, “His penaunce es to strange,
For att the gate es he to lange;
And us think that men duse him wrange.
Before us all his synne he talde,
And hase lyen atte gate full calde,
And theine wald he never ga,
Bot dwellis still in all his wa.
We praye yowe that he moght come in,
For God forgiven hase all his synne.”
And atte last with grete barete
Att the abote leve gone thai gete
That Mawryne moght come fra the gate,
And thus thai gert hir have inlate;
For thai praied for hir swa fast,
That scho was focchid in atte last.
When scho before the abote come,
The abote talde hir hir dome,
And saide, “To penaunce give I thee
That thou to us a drivel be,
The covente schone for to smere
And watir to thair forayne bere.
For thou a mayden hase forlayne,
Thou sall clens oure forayne;
And oure kicchine sall tow make clene
And wesshe oure vessel all bedene;
And eftir I se thi tholemudenes
Thi travaile sall be lesse and lesse.”
Monk Mawryne into kicchin went
And fullfillid his commaundment.
Withouten grucchinge wele did scho
All that hir abote bad hir do.
Bot sone eftir did God his will
Of hir, and toke hir saule him till.
And hir abote when scho was dede
Toke with all his covente rede
Oute of the kirkgarthe hir to delve
In a stede all be hirselve.
Till his monkes he saide, “In hye
Gase and wehssis yone bodie,
And sithen delve it on the felde
That Sathanas the sawle ne welde.
The mare schame the bodie dryes
The tittir fra payne the sawle flyes.”
To the fermerye the monkes went
To do the abotes comaundment,
Bot when thai sawe scho was wommane
Thai fell cryand to the erde ylkane,
And saide, “Ladye, allas, oghane!
Agaynes thee we have missetane
In dede and wordes many ane,
And now to thee we make oure mane.
Praie for us that God us mende
For we se othir than we wende:
We wend that thou had careman bene
Bot now forsothe es othir sene.
Forthi to thee now may we mene
That ever we did thee traye or tene,
For openlye may all men se
That Goddis werkis er here privé
For will he nouthir cry ne yelpe
Thare he with his grace will helpe.”
Thir monkes to thaire abote ran
And saide, “Frere Mawryne was wommane!”
Ferli him thoght of this tithand
And to the corse he come rynnand;
And sone when he the sothe sawe with eye
He fell and sayde, cryand full hye:
“Leve Mawryne, for Jesus sake,
Late God na vengeaunce on me take;
For unwittand did I thee misse
Als man that oft dissaivid is.
Forthi I praye thee forgive me
The mikil schame that I did thee.”
When he had saide this and mare,
With gretinge and with hert sare
He gert schroude that corse right thare
With bawdekynes and with riche fare;
And sithen bare it worthilie
With joyefull sange in the kirk to lye;
Thare the cors was layde in toumbe
And gives hele bathe to deeve and doumbe.
The brewstare doghtir wexe wode,
And come cryand with gryseli mode;
And talde the folk als wodewise wylde
Wha gatte on hir this forsaide chylde.
Hir frendes sawe that for hir synne
The fende was commen hir within,
And harde with rapes thai hir band
And ledde hir sithen sare greteand
To Mawryne toumbe, and woke hir thare,
And God hir sente helpe full yare.
This lange tale I have yow talde
To ger you in youre hertes halde
That ilka man full blissid es
That lyves here aie in tholemodenes,
And grucchis noght agayne missawe.
For thof men do him wrange a thrawe,
He may be siker of gode mede,
If he thole mekeli thaire missdede.
For aye the mare wrangewisnes
That godemen here tholes sakles,
Aye the mare sall thair mede be
Before Criste that dyed on tre;
For he taght us tholemodenes
When he swelt for oure wickidnes.
Forthy Jesus lene us grace
To folowe in tholemudenes thi trace,
And come tharewith into thi blisse,
That to tholemude men grauntid is.
Thare we may fynd Saynte Mawryne,
That here tholid bathe schame and pyne.
Scho folowide Criste in tholemudenes
That best of all vertues es,
For it ovrecomes the warlawe
And geres man himselven knawe,
And gives his hert all to mekenes
That wones aye with tholemodenes;
For wha swa haldes wele this twa;
To hevene maye he lightly ga.
Oure Lorde Jhesus Criste us spede
To be tholemode and thidir us lede. Amen.



sayings
a great number
parable
went
sow
way
birds

perished at once
Because; water
withered away quickly

times; grain

overcame
yielded


ears




ought
forever
must be taught; (see note)
to come to heaven through examples
So that seeing, men may nonetheless not perceive

(see note)

signifies
store
(t-note)
urges

birds; (t-note)

takes; (t-note)
wicked

sinful
(t-note)

evil

(t-note)

preoccupation
with worldly goods


root

believe; teaches
temptation
They care nothing for God’s word
particle
root; takes



make it known

patience



narrative; explicated
I have no need to
one; (see note)
patience

makes; spiritual


yielded
grain hundredfold

Means


no

restraint
misery; wretchedness
cause them injury
harm

taught
fools
wrong
peace




reward

lightning
causes anger
wither and spoil

loses his reward
certain
reward; loses
anger
in no way
But he who holds back from anger
enemies stir; anger
in return for ill; (t-note)
work destroy
patient endurance protects it from the force

Ripe (ready); (t-note)

produced



advise

enemies no vengeance

complained; slew
held him up to scorn



hostility

humility

words

old; (see note)
pleasures

prepared
entrusted
possessions
pay good attention to her
then
tonsured; readily
obediently
abbot
behavior


afraid; damn
was called
sore



showed an unhappy countenance
son
gladly
keeping

lad
quickly
hear a great marvel
went; (see note)
dressed; man’s clothing



know; was
taught
into the religious life
tonsured as a monk
habit; wore
Brother


devout; (see note)
(see note)
showed
dwelled
And he taught her everything she needed to know
both
Psalter; Divine Office
death; taken
by herself


It happened that her brother monks went
As laborers
carrying stones in barrows
building
careful
appointed; wagon
quarry
brewer

before night
man
lain by; (t-note)
womb
with her; angry
(t-note)

forced
quickly

denied [the charge]
thought; true
trusted
nevertheless
asked
reflected; (see note)
guiltless

Sinless
Dear

deny this happening








brought ruin on
Because; shamed
expel
angered


weep



as if; very


ruined
pitied

Saracen


to whom I referred
harmed

weaned

behold
up until now



she fed it
With such alms
(see note)
own



for the love of God

too severe




thence



after much argument
They obtained permission from the abbot

entrance
so earnestly
fetched
abbot
judgment

drudge
shoes; polish
privy
Because; seduced


indeed; (t-note)
patience
labor


grumbling
ordered

soul

decision
Outside; churchyard; bury; (see note)
place
Quickly
wash
bury
So that; would not have power over
suffers
quicker
infirmary


every one
alas, woe [is me]; (see note)
transgressed

plea
amend
thought
man

make moan
attack; harm

hidden
speak aloud
Those whom


A marvel; news
body
at once

Dear

unwittingly; mistake
deceived

great

weeping
had shrouded; (see note)
oriental silk cloth woven with gold/silver



gives healing both to deaf and dumb
brewer’s; went mad

wild creature
begat


ropes; bound

watched over her
soon

cause you

always; patience
grumbles; misrepresentations
although; for a time
certain; reward
Suffers meekly
wrong
suffer guiltless
Always
the cross

died
Therefore; grant
path






devil (warlock); (see note)


dwells
whoever holds well to these two

help

 


Go To Homily 16, Quinquagesima Sunday