The PurveyProject

Dominica ij Post Pascha

Par Élodie MONTEAU
Publication en ligne le 26 janvier 2013

1/4v/ Dominica ij Post Pascha

2The gospel of this day makethe menc[i]on how that owre soveren sauiowre Criste Ihesu likenethe hymselfe to a good scheparde seyng thus: Ego sum pastor bonus; “I am a good scheparde.” A good scheparde ȝevithe his lyfe for his schepe. But an hyred hyne that is not þe very scheparde, whose be not þe schepe not his owne, he sethe a wolfe commyng, and he leyvithe the schepe and fleithe. And þe wolfe ravisschethe and disparblythe þe schepe, and the hyȝred hynde flethe for he is an hyred hyne and the schepe pertey[nethe] not to hym. I am a good scheparde and I know my schepe and my schepe know me. As the fader knowithe me, I know the fader, and I put my lyfe for my schepe. I haue other schepe þat be not of this folde: it behovithe me to bryng

3/5r/ hem togeder, and they schall here my voyce, and it schall be made oo folde and oo scheparde; this is the gospell as litteraliter. But the morall vnderstondyng of this gospell may be seyde what tyme that almyȝti God, Criste Ihesu, the secu[n]de persone in trinite, when he sufferd his blissed passion in the redempcion of mankynde, he went downe into hell and fet owte Adam and Eve and there progenie, soche as plesid his good grace, þat were in the pynfolde of hell, as a very good scheparde; and they as schepe were lede in to the blissed folde a[nd] plesant place of Paradise. Where as he, before that tyme, had left for his schepe a grete plege, þat is to sey, his precius body on the crosse and payed for his schepe witheowte nomber of tresore. As the holy apostill Paule rehersythe: Ad Philipenses quinto; where he seiþe þus: Empti

4/5v/ estis precio magno, non auro non argento sed precio[so] sanguino meo; “ȝe ar bowȝte be a grete price, not withe golde ne withe sylver, but withe my precius bloode.” Wherfore, I may preve that these wordis of owre saviowre Ihesu were ryȝtwisly spoken when he seyde: Ego sum pastor bonus; “I am a good scheparde,” ffor he gafe his bodily lyfe, the whiche was in his manhed for vs. For ȝe see be experiens, that a scheparde if he be diligent in kepyng of his schepe, when he sethe hem draw into eny certen place where as they owte not to cum, then the scheparde callythe vpon his schepe withe a lowde noyse. And anon be þe noyse that the scheparde makethe, the schepe takethe there recowrse there as þei scholde of very ryȝte procede in there pasture. But then on the tother partye, if case be that the schepe go still in þat pasture, and wyll not here the voyce of þe scheparde, and so gothe still there as þei owȝte

5/6r/ not to go, then commethe the owners of þat pasture, and so takethe hem into þer pynfolde. And if case be that the owner of þe schepe come not and make amendys for there harmys, els they ar like to lye þer so long tyll they perissche for defawte of helpe and socowre. So gostly to owre purpose, be this scheparde I vnderstonde owre sauiowre Ihesu. For when he saw his schepe, that is to sey, al mankynde þat was in þe pasture of synne, then the blissed Lorde Ihesu went vp to the hyȝe mownt of Calvery, and there he cryed withe a lowde noyse, in tyme of his passion, tha[t] al pepyll scholde come owte of þe pasture of synne, and that they scholde come into that pasture there þei owȝte of very ryȝt to come to, that is to sey, þe kyngdome of heven for þis blessid Lorde spent hys hert bloode to that intent. And þerfor Criste seythe in the gospell: Bonus pastor animam suam dat pro ovibus suis; “A good schepard ȝevithe his lyfe for his schepe”, but more-

6/6v/ over, tho that wold not here the crye of Criste vpon the crosse, þat is to sey, þat wolde not come owte of synne at his callyng, what whonder were it þat they scholde peresche in everlastyng peyne. And of þese schepe, that is to sey, of þese pepill, spekythe Criste seyng thus: Et alias oues habes que non sunt ex [hoc] ovili;  “I have other schepe þat ben not of this folde.” Also every curat þat hathe cure of cristen sowlis hathe acommawndement ȝeven to hym of God; that he as a scheparde, schall call vpon his schepe, þat is to sey, vpon cristen pepill and specially tho þat every curate hathe in his cure, þat þei schal come owte of the pasture of synne at the callyng of Cristis worde, the whiche he seyde vnto his discipyls, and so forþe to every curate when he seyd thus: Ite predicate euangelium omni creature, Mathei sexto decimo; “Go,” he seyd, “and crye and call”, þat is to sey, “preche my worde to all resonabil creaturs.” And whoso ever will beleve and resceyve the sacra-

7/7r/ ment of baptym schall be saued, and tho that wyll not beleve they schall perissche. But ȝit seythe Criste in þis gospell: Et illas oportet me adducere; “And it behovithe me to bryng hem togeder.” As who seythe, þu that art in þe pasture of synne, ȝit almyȝti God wolde þat thu woldest cum [in]to his folde, among his hole nomber of seyntis. Wherfore I treste that there is none of ȝow as ȝit but that ȝe be in þe folde of good lyvyng. And tho ben þei that Criste spekythe of in þis gospell, where he seythe thus: Et cognosco meas oues et cognoscunt me mee; “I know my schepe and my schepe know me.” Et vocem meam audient; “and they schall here my voyce”, that is to sey, the worde of God. Plenius, De Mirabilibus Mundi, he seythe that there is an hyll among þe Iewys the whiche is calde Archos, and in þat hyll there is a beest þe whiche is calde Irus.

8/7v/ And the properte of this beeste is for to lyffe be the eyer. And this beest hathe a swete brethe; and becawse of his swete brethe, all other beestis that ben in that hyll, ar fede moste be þe swetnes of his brethe. And thryes on the day at morne, at none, at even, this beeste rynnethe vp to the hyȝheste place on þe hill and makethe a grete crye. Then all þe beestis that ar abowte the hill heryng hym crye, anon the[i] rynne withe a good chere for to haue þe swetnes of his brethe vp to the hyll to hym. And when þey ar al comen they draw abowte hym, and then this beeste gothe abowte hem and brethiþe vpon hem, and they, withe þe swetnes of his brethe, they ar fedde. Moraliter. So gostly vnto owre purpose, be þis hyll I vnderstonde holy chyrche. Zacharie viij° rehersithe: Quod Jerusalem vocatur ciuitas veritatis vel pacis, mons domini mons sanctificacionis, Jerusalem. Tropologice.

9/8r/ “Holy chirche schall be calde the Cite of Criste in whome is all swetnes.” And holy chirche is calde the mownte of owre Lorde, and the hyll of all sanctificacion and holynes. In this hyll of holy chirche is a floke of many smale beestis, be the whiche I vnderstonde the blissed floke of clene and truw cristen pepyll. Of þis floke Criste rehersithe hymselfe withe grete lufe and comforte: Mathei sexto capitulo. Nolite timere pusill<u>s [g]rex complacuit enim patri meo dare vobis regnum; “ȝe litil blissed floke of cristen pepill, drede ȝe not for no tribulacion ne disese ne persecucion in this worlde,” but take it paciently and þank God thereof ffor it is plesyng to hym, for to ȝefe ȝow the kyngdome of heven for ȝowre mede; þe whiche he haþe ordend for vs a litil beest in holy chirche, the whiche is calde Irus, þat is to sey, letificacion. Be the whiche I vnderstonde

10/8v/ the worde of almyȝti God, of the whiche he rehersithe hym selfe: Vbi primo Zakarie. Introducam in montem sanctum verbi meum et letificabo eos; “I schall bryng into holy chyrche,” seythe owre [Lorde], “my holy worde, and I schall make mans sowle ryȝt swete withe the swetnes of my worde.” And therfore seythe the holy apostill Seynt Jame: Iacobi primo. Estote factores verbi et non auditores tantum, fallentes vobismetipsos; “Be ȝe,” he seythe, “the worchers of þe worde of God, and not [only] the herers but do it in dede like as the worde of God techythe the.” Therfore and ȝe wyll lyfe a perfite lyfe to the plesure of God, þen muste ȝe ȝefe a dew attendaunce [to þe worde of God] withe a clene mynde and an holy devocion. For that wil bryng ȝow into þe folde of God in the last day, as owre sauioure Ihesu concludythe in þe gospel and seythe: Fiet vnum ovile et vuns pastor; “It schal be made oo folde [and oo] scheparde,” that is to sey, if we plese [God] well in owre

11/9r/ lyvyng here, then schall we be browȝte into his folde of everlastyng joye and blisse. And there the blissed Lorde schall be owre scheparde and owre governowre, in þe blisse of heven duryng worlde witheowten ende. To the wiche joye, et cetera. Amen.

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