MARY MAGDALEN, FROM SPECULUM SACERDOTALE, FOOTNOTES
1 In syche a day, On such and such a day [to be inserted by the speaker]; whiche, who.
2 servyd to, was obedient to.
3 gafe, gave; servyd, deserved.
5 aspiracion, inspiration.
6 covenable, suitable (fitting).
7 yede, went.
9 yghen, eyes.
11 seeynge Crist, when Christ saw; Pharasye, Pharisee.
12 nye, near; sethen, since.
16 myche, great.
18 for, because.
19 safe, delivered from sin, saved.
20 Joseph, Josephus (see note).
20-21 that sche loved, with which she loved.
22 yede into deserte, went into the wilderness.
23-24 ete mete of man ne dronke drynke, consumed human food or drink.
24 houre, canonical hour (see note).
26 eyre, air.
28 mayster . . . bretherhede, superior of a certain monastery or other religious community.
28-29 tyme of the Quadragesime, season of Lent (see note).
30 fro, apart from; in a tyme, on a certain occasion.
31 a thynge, something; bare, lifted.
33 coste, borderland.
34 ivisit with, visited by; excitacion, instigation.
35 denne iclosid, secluded lair or cave.
36 conjure, solemnly call upon; vertu, the power.
37 what, whatever.
47 anone after, immediately after.
49 houre, canonical hour (see note to line 24).
51 the blisse, Paradise (the place of perfect joy).
53 covetyd . . . man, desired human food or drink.
55 nye, near.
56 scilicet, namely.
57 hens, from now (hence); wyndynge clothe, shroud [to wrap her body for burial].
58 ende, die.
61 where . . . wold, that, wherever he chose, [so] that.
62 was comonyd, received the sacrament of Holy Communion.
64 passid the spirit, she died (the soul departed).
65 savoure, fragrance.
66 felyd . . . after, perceived for five days afterward; worschipfully, honorably.
67 hym, himself.
68 Lazar, Lazarus; rerede, raised (see note).
69 mynystracion, service (see explanatory note to lines 69-71).
70 sete, sat.
72 Paske, Easter.
74 Letanie, Litany (see note).
77 syche a myracle, the following miracle; flode, river.
78 Flumen Ligeris, the Loire River [in France]; chargyd, loaded.
79 perischid, was destroyed.
80 isonkyn, sunk.
81 trowbulyd, disturbed (troubled); triste, trust.
82 behotynge, promise (vow); mayny, company.
82-83 in drenchynge, being drowned.
83 sterde, came suddenly.
84 hye, loud.
85 with, by.
88 a man, a male child.
89 gentel schap, noble appearance.
89-90 put hire hande unto, reached out to.
92 alle . . . ychone, every one of the others died.
93 avised, aware.
96 slawe, slain.
98 beere, bier; wrothe to, angry toward.
99 seide why that, asked why.
100-101 in grete mervayle to, to the great amazement of.
102 confessid hym, made his confession; Goddis body, the Eucharist.
103 siche a multitude, a great multitude.
104 usid, practiced; that good was, what was good.
105 yit, even.
106 worschepid hire feste, honored her feast day; in a tyme, once.
107 devocion, act of worship; slomerynge, scilicet, a light sleep, that is.
108 as hym thought, as it seemed to him.
109 semely schape, comely appearance.
110 dost, behave.
111 merites . . . thee, spiritual benefits that I confer on you (see note).
112 grete instaunce, urgent entreaties; stere, vigorously move.
113 perischid, lost, destroyed.
115 reconselyd, reconciled.
117 religion, a religious order (see note); passynge parfite, surpassingly perfect.
119 beere, bier; dowve, dove (see note); lovyng, praise.
MARY MAGDALEN, FROM SPECULUM SACERDOTALE, NOTES
Abbreviation: Ad = British Library MS Addit. 36791, fols. 96r-98r [base text].
1 In. Initial capital never added to Ad.
ye schull. Ad: ye ye schull.
4 Symon the Leprous. Although the Pharisee's name is derived from Matthew 26:6, the ensuing lines here retell just part of the story from Luke 7:36-50, omitting both the apostles' reaction (from Matthew and John) and the parable in Luke about the money-lender and his two debtors.
20 Joseph. The ascription to the Jewish historian Josephus, who lived during the first century of the Christian era, is traditional but spurious. The story of Mary Magdalen's thirty years in the desert was actually borrowed many centuries later from the legend of Mary of Egypt.
24 houre. There were seven canonical hours of prayer, traditionally observed in monastic communities: Matins, Prime, Sext, Terce, Nones, Vespers, and Compline.
29 Quadragesime. The Latin term for Lent, the forty-day season of fasting and self-discipline before Easter, was derived from the adjective meaning "forty."
55-67 Compare this account of her death with the more complicated and wonder-filled narrative given by the early SEL account and Mirk. One noteworthy difference is that the same anonymous priest discovers her secret abode and presides over the final events that welcome her back into the human community of the church: giving her the last sacraments, taking charge of her burial, and arranging for his own eventual burial next to her tomb. Bishop Maximinus, whose role was so prominent at the end of the other accounts and so useful as publicity for Mary's shrine at the Abbey of St. Maximin in Aix, is conspicuously missing.
60 some. Ad: somee.
65 syche a smelle and a savoure. This sign of her sanctity is mentioned also in the early SEL account, lines 618-19 and 638-39; see explanatory note to lines 618-19.
68 Lazar, that Crist rerede fro his sepulcre. See explanatory note to lines 45-46 of Mirk's account.
69 did. Ad: omits.
69-71 The story of Martha, who busied herself with the practical work of hospitality when Jesus came to visit while her sister Mary just sat at his feet and listened to his words, is found in Luke 10:38-42.
72-73 Mary Magdalen's visit to Christ's tomb on Easter morning is mentioned in all four gospels, but her individual role receives the most emphasis in John 20.
74 oure Letanie. The Litany of saints, a long prayer that was chanted in procession on Rogation Days and other solemn occasions, included petitions for assistance from the Virgin Mary, the apostles, and a large number of martyrs, confessors, and virgins, all invoked by name. Although both the order and selection of names varied somewhat from place to place, the Virgin Mary always preceded all the other saints and Mary Magdalen headed the list of virgins.
87-95 It was common in the early Middle Ages for monastic communities to include child oblates - children given as an offering by their parents, to be brought up as monks or nuns. In the twelfth century, however, the laws of the church were changed to stipulate that no one could be permanently committed to the monastic life without freely taking the necessary vows for themselves after reaching the age of adulthood (usually 18). The custom of child oblation died out almost completely after this time.
93 conceyved. Presumably this is an error; since the woman is already pregnant, one would expect "given birth" or "been delivered" [of the child].
96-97 hadde used . . . Marie Magdalen. That is, the knight had made an annual pilgrimage to one of the shrines that claimed to house the relics of the saint.
99-100 to dye . . . contricion. The risk of damnation, or at least a prolonged period in Purgatory, was believed to be greatly increased if one died suddenly, without time to repent and be absolved of all one's sins. Hence the mercy of the saints was frequently illustrated with stories, like this one, in which a deceased person was restored to life just long enough to complete the recommended spiritual preparations for death.
110 Stevene. The clerk's name.
111 the merites that I make for thee. The underlying idea is that Mary and other saints could vicariously bestow on their needy followers some of the spiritual benefits that were due to the saints themselves because of their great virtues, or merits.
116-17 forsoke the world and enteryd into religion. That is, he abandoned secular life and its temptations for the more austere and disciplined life of a monk or a friar.
119 like a white dowve to heven. Like the presence of the patron saint and a company of angels, the image of the soul ascending to Heaven like a white dove, amid songs of praise and thanksgiving to God, is part of the standard iconography for a holy death.
120 et cetera. At this point a preacher using this text would insert one of the standard closing formulas and a blessing. See for example the endings of Mirk's sermons in this collection.