Cursor mundi (The cursur o the world). A Northumbrian poem of the XIVth century in four versions. Ed. by the Rev. Richard Morris ...

[An Exposition of the Creed].

Trou in godd fadir all-mighti, þat made bath heuen and erd, and in iesu crist his anelepi sun, vr aller fadir, conseiued of þe hali gast, born of þe uirgine mari, Tholed vnder ponce pilate, done on þe rode, dede and doluen, lighted in-till hell, þe thrid day ras fra dede to lijf, stei till heuen, sittes on his right hand godd fadir all weildand, þe þin sal he cum forto deme bath quic and dede. I tru in þe hali gast, in hali kirke, in felauschip of halus, forgiuenes of sinnes, vprising of fles, and lijf wid| uten end, amen. [G]od of luue has his cleping, Line 24987 For qui þat he luues of alkin thing. þat he-self wroght wid his main; All gode thing luues him egain. He es of sight alsua sua wide, Line 24991 þat fra his sight mai nathing hide; He has alsua his nam of dute, For all dredis him his vnderlute. All bihouis of him stand au Line 24995 His handwerke all, bath hei and lau. "[F]Ader" es he, for all he fedis, Or for all thing of him bredis, Line 24998 Mighti es he cald for-þi, þat in his will he es all-mighti. For alkin thinges þat he will, He has þe might it to fulfil, Line 25002 Ne es na thing þat he wil do þat he ne has þe might has þar-to. [folio 165a:2] Thoru his word þat wroght þus all, Thoru þat he es maker of all, Line 25006

Line 25006 Bath of sene thing and vnsene Line 25007 Maker he es of all bidene. wid þis word "heuen" and vnderstand, All gastli thing and vnseand; Line 25010 wid þis word "erd," bihald þu þe Al thing þu mai here, fele, or se. þis nam "iesus" in ebru lay Line 25013 Es "lauerd" and "sauueur" for to say, And wele wid skil es he cald sua, þat has vs sauued vr sinnes fra. Line 25016 þis word "crist" at vnderstand, Es smerld, bot noght wid mans hand, Noght wid þat oil men seis in place Bot wid þe hali-gastes grace. Line 25020 "Sun" es he cald of selines, For he es his fadir ioy and blis. "Anelepi" qui es he cald and knaun Bot for he es o fald his fader aun? And es his aun sun wid kind, Line 25025 And ouerall wid his merci mind. Thoru þe hali gast allane Toke he fless of þat maidane, Line 25028 And sua he did, for wele he moght þat al þis werld made of noght. "Pilate" was of grete office, For ouer iuus he was iustice. Line 25032 . . . . . . . . . . [no gap in the MS.] And "ponce" was he cald of on yle þat he was fostrid in sum quile, Line 25036 And he bitakins feind of hell For boke him clepis muth of mell. Pined he was, sua þat his þine Suld be for vr medecine, Line 25040 "On rode," for-qui his rightwis rede wald thole him die nanoþer dede.

For croice it beris of mani thing, Of cristen mans priueleging, [folio 165b:1] For if þu plate it lais on grund, Four halues of þis werld rund Line 25046 Bitakeins crist has boght þar-wid, ȝat all wid trouth mai cum to grith. And quen it sett es on end vp euen, þat takins pes tuix erd and heuen. Dede he was þat thoru his dede, To lastand lijf he suld vs lede, Line 25052 And for a noþer skil, þat we Gastli wid him dede suld be, For adam sin to dei bidene, Line 25055 And rise wid baptim to be clene. þe pray þat he of hell vte-toke His choslinges was, sua sais þe boke, þas oþer þat his lau for-soke, Line 25059 He left þaim in þe feindes croke, For-þi ras he þe thrid dai, (Als ȝe haue forwid herd me say) þat he suld wid his vprising Line 25063 In right trouth vs fra baret bring. Til heuen he stei to make vr gate, And opin til vs heuin ȝate, Line 25066 þat first was sperd for þat sin; þat adam first had broght vs in; Sittes apon his fader right hand, þat es þus-gat at vnderstand, Line 25070 þat he es bath euening and pere In worschip til his fadir dere. þe quilk and gode men er chosen, þe dede þe quick þat er for-losen. In "hali-gast" we au alsua Line 25075 To tru, als in þir oþer tua, He es cald hali for alkin thing Takis of him þair haluing, Line 25078

Line 25078 Gast for he mai gastli blau Line 25079 Ouerall his grace, quar he wil schau. "Hali kirke" es, als we rede, A gedring cald of cristen lede, [folio 165b:2] þat es þis point al forto say,— Line 25083 we þat liues in cristen lay, In al þat trouth we heild a[n]d bu, þat hali kirc es wont at nu Line 25086 To haue wid santes comuning; þis es a point of vr truyng. we hope namli [[MS. nanli]] to haue pardun Thoru baptime and contriciun, Line 25090 And þar es alsua oþer thinges þat sinful man to pardun bringes, Als almus, fast, and oþer ma, Bot nan sua riueli als þir tua. Line 25094 we au tru als þat all sal rise And cum bifor þat grete iustice, þar to take vr rightwis mede Line 25097 Efter þat we haue wroght in lede, And be broght efter domes-day vnto þat lijf þat lastes ay; In þiskin truth au þu be tift, Line 25101 þu þat will cum to rightwis schrift.