Here endith a compendiouse treetise dyalogue. of Diues [and] paup[er]. that is to say. the riche [and] the pore fructuously tretyng vpon the x. co[m]man̄mentes ...

The xxi. chapter

DIues.

It semeth by thy wordes / that they y^e synge the golden trentalle. go fulnigh symonye For they make woun¦derful couenaunte. of their syng¦yng.

Pauper

Leue frende thou shalt vnderstond that couenaūt makynge maketh ofte symonye that shulde elles make no symo∣nye / As if the yeuer axe what it is worthe to synge many messys and the preest answereth twenty shillynges. or ten shillynges / or a noble. Or if the yeuer seye. syr what wylt thou take to syn∣ge it. and the preest answere and sey no lesse than twenty shillyn∣ges. or ten shyllynges. and thus bargeyne and broke. aboute the syngynge of the messe. that may

nat be folde ne boughte / as men do in biynge and sellynge / of an horse / thanne they falle bothe in cursed symony. Also if the yeuer say to the preest in his bar∣gaynynge / that he shal synge for certeyne soules and for no moo and he bihotith him soo / thanne ben they bothe accursed for that foule symonye And also for it is ayenst charite / for the preeste is bounden to synge for alle cristen And for the mo he prayeth in spe¦cial by weye of charite / the more he plesith god. and the more ben tho soules holpen / for whiche he takith his sellarie. And in that he byndeth him to say speci / alle messes in certeyne tyme / He muste in cas leue the messe of the daye that he is bounden to. if he be a curate & so dothe symonye. as saith Raymounde / and other clerkes. ¶Also he dothe in that ayenst the ordenaūce of ho∣ly churche. Extra libro tercio de celebratione missarum. c. secūdo where it is boden that ther shuld noman leue masse of the day for other specialle messes / As of the Trinitie / oure lady. or other nat for it is euyl to here or to say su∣che specialle messes. but for it is euyl to leue messes of the day for suche special messes. as saith the glose. Neuirthelesse if a man wole here suche special messes in reuerēce of the Trinite or of our lady / it is wele done / so that he le¦ue nat messe of the daye for such messes.

Diues.

Thanne me thynkethe that curates. that been bounden to say messe of the day / to the parissh / or ī cas messe of Requiem / may nat wele syng suche golden trentalles.

Pau{per}.

That is sothe / ne no preest that hathe sufficiēt lyuynge by other salarie. And therfore it is forbo∣dē the synodales of englonde / y^t any persone or wyker shuld ma∣ke couenaunt with his parisshe preest / that he shulde besides his salarie. take annuel or trentalle or any such other / that they clepe vantages. Inhibemus districti¦us. But they shal yeue to their parisshe preest sufficient salarie. Wherby they may lyue withoutē suche false couetise. And in the constitucion of Lambeth the secounde chapter / it is bodē that no preest shalle bynde him to su∣che special messes / by the which they myghte be lettyd. that they mighte natt serue the churche / of laufulle seruyce. of the daye / as they be boūde.

Diues.

Sithen than it is so that messe of the day is as gode as suche speciall mes∣ses / and that it is as gode or bet∣ter to here and to say messe of the

daye as suche special messes / me thynketh that by suche maner sī¦gynge of golden trentales / sou∣les been moche disceyued.

Pauper.

That is sothe For tho thritty messes that they axe / as they say muste be in doynge al a yere nerehande / there they might haue thritty messes as helply / to the soule oute of peyne / withyn thritty daies. For in suche syng∣yng is done moche symony. mo∣che ypocrisie and moche folie. For sūme prestes faitoures telle the people that but the messes be saide in thre daies principally of tho feestes / that is to saye in the festis and in two daies next fo∣lowynge / elles the soules be nat holpen by tho messes And so if the preest felle seke tho thre day∣es so that he might nat synge / al¦though he had sung alle thother messes / that trental mighte nat be done that yere by their oppini¦on. And soo in cas he shulde hap¦pen to be in syngyng of one tren∣tal x. yere / or twenty yere / there as he might euery yere synge his annuel. Also if oure ladies day in lente falle on gode friday he may nat thanne synge tho iii. messes. Also sūme pre¦stys bihighte to faste brede. and water / and to were the here eue∣ry day whanne they shal synge. any of tho masses for tho soules And so them must fast brede and water / and were the heire on Cri∣stmasse day Ester day / and nigh alle the high ••••estis of the yere /

Also they say that they muste haue a specialle Orison / that is nat of the missalle / ne approued of holy churche / butt ofte repre∣uyd. or elles as they say the mes / ses ben litel or nought to profyt of the soules. And thus by faitrie and ypocrisie many foole prestys bihight more and bynde theym to more for x. shillinges. thanne a gode preest wolde doo. for x. marke.

Diues.

And they say that Seynt Gregorye. ordeyned that maner of singyng to haue his modre oute of purga¦torie. And therfore they clepe it. seynt Gregories trental

Pau{per}.

They lye on seynt Grigory For his modre was a ful holy womā as we fynde in his lyf. And we fynde nat that seint gregory dyd any preeste synge in that maner. for any soule But we fynd libro iiii. dialogo{rum} That whan seint gregory knewe by reuelacion y^t one of his monkes was in harde peyn of purgatorie for he hadde been a proprietarie vnto the ty∣me of his diynge / seint Gregory

badde one of his monkes which he leet a gode man syng for him thritty messes day by day And in the thritty daye the dede monke. apperyd to the same monke and thankyd him / for vnto this tym saide he I haue be in harde peyn but nowe I am deliueryd. And seynt Gregory tellith alsoo libro quarto dialogorum. that a soule apperyd to a preest and p̄y¦ed him that he wold haue mynde of him in his messe And he songe for him seuene daies by and by. and so the soule was deliuered For better it is to deliuer a soule oute of peyne within vii. daies. or xxx. thanne so to let him lan∣gore in peyne al ye yere whanne he might be holpen within thrit∣ty daies And so wolde euery mā. and woman that is in bodily dis¦ease and in prison. And he were no gode frende that lete his frēde lyue in prison al a yere / whanne he might haue hym oute within vii. daies or within xxx. daies.