The University of Michigan Library provides access to these materials for educational and research purposes. These materials are in the public domain. If you have questions about the collection, please contact mec-info@umich.edu. If you have concerns about the inclusion of an item in this collection, please contact libraryit-info@umich.edu.
DPLA Rights Statement: No Copyright - United States
About þo mayden of qwam oure lord Ihesu Crist toke flesch & blode, we may vmthynke vs of hir lyfe. Of qwilk þou sal wit þat qwen sche was thre ȝere alde, hir fadur & hir modur offerd hir in þo temple, & þar scho dwelled in þat degre vnto fourtene ȝere. & qwat scho did þare, we may wite be reuelacions þat scho schewde
to a deuout seruande of hyrs, men trow it was seint Eliȝabeth, qwas fest we syng solemply. In qwilk reuelacions emang oþer [er] contened þere þat folows. / Scho sayd: «Qwen my fadur & my modur left me in þo temple, I set in my hert to haue god to my fadur: & thoght deuoutle & oft-tymes qwat thyng I myght
do to goddys lykyng, so þat he walde vouch-saue to gyf me hys grace, and I gert teche me þo law of my god. & of alle þo commandementȝ of goddis law þre I kepyd namely in my hert, þat es: ,þou sal luf þi lord god with alle þi hert, with al þi saule, & with alle þi thoght, & with alle þi strenghes'. / Also: ,þou sal luf þi neghbur as þi-selfe'. / Also: ,þou sal hate þin enmy, þat es synne'. Þes, scho sayde, I kepud in my saule, & I set me for to gedur alle vertus þat are conteynd [in þam]; & sa I wil teche þe. Forsoth, þat saule has na parfite vertu þat lufs noght [god] with alle his herte. And of þis luf comes a[l] fulnes of grace. & aftur þat at þis fulnes is comen, it dwelles noght stil in þo saule, bot flowes as watur, [warne] it hates hys enmys, þat er vices & synnes. / Þerfor he þat wille haf grace standandly in hys possessione, hym behoues orden his hert to luf, & hatredone. Þerfor I wil þat þou do as I did. I rase alle tymes at mydnyght, & went before þo auter of þo temple, & with as mykel desire, as mykel wille, & als grete affection as I myght & couth, I asked grace of alle-myghty [god] to kepe þa thre comandementes of þo lawe: & swa standand befor þo auter I made seuen prayers til oure lorde, þo qwilk ere þere. Fyrst I asked grace þat I myght fulfille þe commandement of lufyng, þat es: to luf hym with alle my hert & forthurmore, os is sayde before. / In þo secunde prayer I askyd grace þat I myght luf my neghbur eftur þe wille & plesyng of hym, & þat he walde make me to luf alle thynges þat he lufed. / In þo thrid prayer I asked þat he wald make me to hate al thyng þat he hates. / In þo ferth prayer I askud mekenes, pacience, debonurte & myldenes, & alle vertues be þo qwilk I suld be made gracious before hys syght. / In þo fyft prayer I asked þat he wald make me [se] þat tyme in þo qwilk þat haly virgyn sulde be borne þat suld bere goddys sone; & I askyd þat he wald kepe myne eghen þat I myght see hir, myn eres þat I myght here hir, my tunge þat I myght looue hir, my hende þat I myght serf hir, my fete þat I myght gang to hir seruyce, [my] kneese þat I myght worschepe goddis sone in hir arme. / In þo sext I asked grace to be obedient to þo commandementes & ordynance [of] þo byschope of þo temple. / In þo seuent prayer I asked þat he walde kepe þo temple & alle his pepul to hys seruyce». Þan Cristes hand-mayden, qwen scho had hard þere thynges, sayde: «O swete lady, ne were ȝe not ful of grace & of vertus?» Þan þo blyssud virgyne answerd: «Wit [for soth] þat I held me gylte, & most vile, & vnworthy þo grace of god, als þou dos þi-selfe, & þerfore I asked of hym grace & vertuȝ». And ouer þat: «Þou trowes þat alle þe grace þat I had, þat I had it with-outen trauayle; bot it is not so. For I say þe þat I had na grace ne gyft ne vertu of god with-outen grete trauayle, continuele prayer, brynnyng desire, depe deuocion, many teres, & mykel tourmentyng; euermare thynkand, sayande, & wyrkande thynges þat were plesand to hym als I couth & myght—outaken þo grace of halowyng, þat I was halowed in my modur wombe». And ouer þat scho sayd: «Wit tou for soth þat na grace comes in to any saule bot be prayer & punysschyng of body; & aftur þat we haue gyffen til god alle þat we may þof it be bot litel, he wil come in to our saule, bringand with hym sa hye gyftes, þat it semes þo saule to fayl in it-selfe, & loses hys mynde & has forgeten þat he did or sayde any thyng before plesande to god; & also he semes til hys aghen sight mare foul & mare worthy dispite, þan euer he was.» Hedur lastes reuelacions.
Sent Ierome writes of hir life on þis wyse. He says, «þat blyssud virgyn ordend to hir þis rewle, þat fro mornyng to vndron scho gaf hir to prayers, & fro vndron to none scho occupyed hir with weuyng wark, & efturwarde fro none scho went noght fra prayer til þo aungel appered til hir of qwase hande scho was wont to take hir mete, & so scho profited bettur & bettur in wirkyng & in þo luf of god. And it was swa þat in haly wakynges scho suld be funden fyrst, in þo wysedome of þo lawe of god best lered, In mekenesse most meke, In þo psalmes of Dauid most likande, In charite most gracious, In clennes mast clene, & in alle vertu most perfite. Scho was stedfast & vnremuabul, qwen scho profit in bettur & bettur. Na man saw or harde hir euer wrath. Ilk worde of hir was so ful of grace, þat god was knawen in hir spech. Scho lasted euermore in prayer & leringe of þo lawe of god. & scho was bysy about hir felause, þat nane suld do wrang ne be proude agayn oþer. & scho blyssud god with-outen sesyng; and for scho suld noght be takun fro þo louyng of god in haylsyng of hir: qwat man so haylsed hir, scho gaf thankynges to god for þat haylsyng. And of hir come fyrst þat holy men qwen þei are haylsed þei gyf louyng to god. & of þo mete þat scho toke of þo aungel hand scho was fed ilk day; and angels was sene to speke til hir, & were buxome til hir als hir derlinges». Hedurto of Ierome.—& in þo fourtende ȝere þat blyssud virgyn was [spoused] to Ioseph be þe reuelacion of god, & went agayn vnto Naȝaret—in qwat maner it was done, þou may fynde in þo legende of hir natiuite.