The PurveyProject

Festum Sancti Michaelis Archangeli

Par Élodie MONTEAU
Publication en ligne le 01 mars 2013

1/194v/ Such a day shall be solempnyȝed þe fest of þe apparicion of þat glorious archaungell Seynt Michael privest of paradise and of þe joyes of heven. Michael is as

2/195r/ moch to sey as: quis ut Deus ; “who is as God”. That day, al holy chirch maketh mencion of all aungellis, ffor þe grete seruice and comforth þat þei do to man. But in especiall holy chirch makith mencion <and> mynde of Seint Michaell, for iij prerogatifes and priuilegis     specialli graunted to hym. Oon is for he is wondirfull and marvelous in appering, secunde, he is marvelous in myraclis working, and <þe> third, he is victorius in fightyng. First I seid he <is> wondirfull and right marvelous in apperyng. Seynt Gregory, þat famous doctour, seith whan God woll do eny wonderfull werkis, he send.. for his seruaunte Michaell. As for his banerer for he bereth in his schilde in gowles a white crosse, þis is þe signe of his armes. Wherefore he was send with Moyses and Aron into Egipt to wirke and do <þer> marvelis and wondres, ffor all be it þat þe token and þe shewyng were in Moyses at þe rede see. Whan king Pharao folowed þe childre of Israel in departyng of þe water aftir Goddis precept, yett þe dede was done bi holy Michaell. For whan Moises had smyt with rodde vpon þe water of þe rede see, than Micha<e>ll departid þe see and helde vp þe water in bothe sydes, standing vp right as a wall, vnto Moyses and Aron with þe peple of Israel were passid and gone þorugh, and led þem in safe garde forth into deserte ouer flour Iordane. And ruled þere þe water so þat it rebownyd not ageyn but stode still as a wall whiles all þe peple went ouere drye fote, and brought þem to þe londe of Bihest. He is also callid perpositus paradisi, privest of paradise. As witnessith wele in the seruice of þe same day, archangele Michael constitui te

3/195v/ principem super omnes aimas suscipiendas ; “O þu holy archaungell Mychaell”, seith our Lorde, “I ordeyn and conferme þe and make þe prince and souereyn keper ouer all soules stonding in þe state of grace, ffor he is patron of heven”. Quia princeps est ecclesie triumphantis. As Danyell þe holy prophete witnessith that Michaell shall take vpon hym a bataile in þe ende of þe worlde whan Antecriste, by fals symylacion, shall shewe hymself to do myracles bi þe devillis werk to be worshipt as a god, and so deceyve þe peple. Than Michaell shall goo vpon hym and slee hym in þe mount of Olyvet. He shall also call all þe worlde to þe last jugement in þe dredefull day of dome, whan all dede shall rise and fynall sente shall be yeve, he shall appere in þe voice of a trumpe : Quia in voce archangeli Michael, omnes mortui resurgent ; “And þiddir he shall bringe with hym all oþir aungellis in þe presence of þe sight of God and all þe worlde”. The holy crosse þat Criste dyed vpon, þe sharp spere, the crovn of thik thornes, þe nayles, þe scourges, he shall bringe forth in þe vale of Iosaphath, to þe comfort of þem þat shall be savid, and to þe confusyon of þem þat shall be dampned. Thus is Michaell wondirfull and marvelous in appering. Also I seide he is wonderfull and marvelous in miracles working. For we fynde wrytten <þat> in Apuleo is an high hyll called Garganus, nye to a citee. And þerein dwellid a riche man þat had grete multitude of bestis. And on a tyme, whan his bestis shuld cum home, oon bull þat was þe riche mannis left byhynde. The seruaunte yede vpon þe hill to seke þe bull, he bare with a bowe and arrowes,

4/196r/ and founde þe bull stonding beforn an hole of a denum. fie man shett at þe bull, and þe arrow retorned ageyn and smote hym þat shett at þe bull, and wounded hym sore and grevously. But þe bull wolde not remeve from þat place. They went to þe bisshop and enformed hym þereof. And he made his prayer to God to knowe what þat shuld signyfie or mene. Seint Michaell apperid to hym and seid in a vision “how it was þe will of God þat þe man was hurt with an arrowe, þat men shuld knowe þat I, Michaell, am keper of þat place. And þat place in tyme shall be worshippid of many a gode cristen man and receyue þeir helth bothe bodily and gostely. Wherefore goo þu and make a chirch ouere þat denum”. And so he dyd. Also Seint Michaell apperyd to anoþir bisshop anoþir tyme in Cornwayle, at a place called Michaelis in monte tumba. And he bad þe bisshop goo to an hyll toppe, þere as he founde a bull tyed and bad hym make a chirch in honour and worship of God and hym. And whan þe chirch was begunne from þe fundacion, þe werk myght not be performyd for ij grete roches of an hard cragge þat lettyd þe werk on bothe sydis of þe chirch new begyn. Than Seint Mighell apperid to a man on a nyght and bad hym go thiddir and putte away tho ij roches þat lettid þe werk and to drede hym nothing, ffor he wolde helpe hym. So on þe morowe went thyddir and sette his shuldre to þe grete roches <and> in þe name of God and Seint Michaell, bad þem remeve vtter. And so þei remevid at his bydding as moch as nedid to be. Then þe werk men performed vp þe chirch, to lawde, honour and

5/196v/ worship of God and þis holy archaungell Seint Michaell. We fynde wrytten in þe life of Seint Gregory pope of Rome how in Rome was regnyng a perilous plage of pestilence with grete bocches in þe flanke called pestis inguinaria, þat slough moche peple. And as longe as þe grete plage endured, þei sawe arrowes of ffyre commyng oute of þe eyre and slough grete multitude of men, women and childre in þe citee of Rome. Than Seint Gregory went on procession with all þe clergye, praying devoutely to God to cesse þat grete plage of pestelence. Than Seint Gregory with oþir sawe an aungell stonding on a castell called castell aungell, wyping a blody swerde and putte it vp into þe stabert. And þat aungell it was Seint Michael, sent from God to ponnyssh þe peple for syn. And thus Michaell was marvelous and wondirfull in his workyng. Also third I seyde þat he was victorius in his fighting. For as we rede in Legenda Sanctorum, whan þe citeȝins of Sepontyne were oppressid with paynemis and must yefe þem batayll, þey prayed to Seint Michaell for helpe and socour. Than þe nyght beforn þe batell, Seynt Michaell appered to the bisshop of þe citee and bad hym haue <no> drede, but boldely goo to þe batell and <fy...> myghtely vpon þe paynemys, ffor he wolde helpe them. And in þe morowe, whan the batteyll shuld assemble, þe hyll of Gargamis was shadowed with a grete myste and a derk. And oute of þat myst, þere come arrowis fflying with ffyre so thyk vpon þe paynemes þat many of them were slayne, wounded and myschefyd. And all þat were in wyll or purposed to be conuerted they sawe þis grete vengeaunce and þey were cristenyd fforthwith. Seynt Iohanne Euaungelist, in his Apocalipser, seyth how Michaell celestis exercitus signifer ; “As

6/197r/ God is knyght myghtely toke vpon hym þat grete batteyll and faught with Lucifer in heven, þat is called þe dragon and his aungellis”. Of þis notabill batayll and virtuous victory, it ys wrytten : Apocalipser 13. Ffactum est perl.. celo, Michael perhabatur cum dracone. Et draco pugnabat et angeli eius et non prevaluerunt et Michaell fecit victoriam, et cetera ; “And whan Seint Michaell had þus þe victory of Lucifer and drofe hym oute of heven for his apostasy, fforthwith was herd a melodius songe in heven of a mille mille aungellis, gyving praysyng to allmyghti God, saying : Salus Deo urom, et cetera ; Helth, reuerence and worship be to allmyghti God, fynally for þis bountevous batayll and vertuous victory”. Apocalipser 12. And so, with þe power and myght of [God] Mychaell had victory of Lucifer and his aungellis, þat fell with hym from heven to hell. Also oþir spiritis were in hevyn þat stode not stedfast to God ward, but vnstable and varying and wavering. And all thoo, Seint Michaell drofe them oute of heven, to an yle of þe see which Seint Brendane sawe on a tyme whan he was in a ship sayling, where he perceyved a tree þat was passing brode high and grete and wondirfull to tell of. On which grete tree were birdis as white as snowe, more habundaunte in multitude þan þe levis on þe tree. Than prayed Seint Brendane vnto God to knowe what þei were. So then, one of þem sett hym on þe vale of þe ship, fleteryng with his wyngis, and it gafe a sounde as an orgeyn. Seint Brendane spake to þe birde saying þus : “If þu be a messynger of God, tell me of whens þei be syttyng on yondir tree”. “We were sum tyme aungellis,” seyde he, “whan Michaell voyded us oute of heven with Lucyfer and his aungellis. And for we stode not stedfast to God ward as Michaell did, we were voyded and drofe oute of heven. But yet haue we a remedye, euery Sonday in þe yere. And þan we

7/197v/ worschip God here in þis place vij tymes in þe day and vij tymes in the nyght. And our moste payne is þat we be putte by Michaell from þe blessid presence of God”. Thus was Seint Michaell marvelous and wondirfull in appering, marvelous in myracles werkyng, and victorius in fighting. Wherefore with holy chirch we shall devoutly pray to þis holy archaungell. Quia princeps ecclesie triumphantis, et cetera, saying in þis wise : Archangele Cristi per gram.. mernisti te depercamour ut eripias nos a laqueo mortis honor prestat beneficia perplorum et o.. perducit et regna celorum. O þu Michaell, myghty and holy archaungell of Criste and prince of knyghthode of all aungellis, by þat grace þat þu haste deserued of our souereyn Lorde God, delyuere vs from þe stronge snake and bitter bonde of dethe of damnacion. For thyne honour and worship gyvith benefytis of þe peple by grace, and bryngeth þem to þe kingdam of blysse and perpetuall saluacion, which graunte vs þat mercifull Lorde þat bought vs by his redempcion. Amen.

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