JOHN MIRK, SERMON ON ST. KATHERINE, FOOTNOTES
1 suche a day, on such and such a day [to be inserted by the speaker]; the whyche, who.
2 kyngus dowthur, king's daughter.
3-4 sette noghte be, cared nothing for.
5 lerud at the fulle, completely educated.
6 spyton, debate/dispute.
8 bollus, bulls; calveron, calves; dynote of, resounded with.
10 baldely, boldly; dude foule, did evil.
12 send, sent; hele, health.
13 skylle, discernment; bouthe, redeemed (bought).
14 bandam, power; warde, custody.
15 mythe ben a lesur to heron, could have time (be at leisure) to hear.
17 fathe, fetch.
18 spyton, debate.
19 hure, their.
20 hokur, scorn.
21-22 wyl the leste scoler . . . wyse inowh, when the humblest local scholar would have been wise enough.
27 cloth, piece of clothing; no none here, nor any hair; tamyd, injured.
28 os, as [if].
29 tene, anger; made to done Katerine nakyd, had Katherine stripped naked.
30 schoureges, whips (scourges).
32-33 fro thennus, from that place (thence).
35 yodon, [they] went.
38 bene stedefaste in the beleve, to be steadfast in the faith.
40-41 wende scheo hadde ben, thought she would be.
42 colvor, dove; poynte, condition.
44 tweyon whelus, twofold wheels; wondurly makuth, cunningly made.
45 kene, sharp.
46 torasud, sliced.
47 weles, wheels.
48 welys, wheels; pesus, pieces.
49 slow, killed (slew).
51 oponly, clearly (openly).
53 rason, tear; pappes, breasts.
54 so dudon, [they] did so.
55 knythes of hys felowes, fellow knights of his.
56 beheduth uchon, all beheaded.
57 byhatte, promised.
59 sette noghte be, cared nothing for.
63 wrowte, worked (wrought).
66 barrid, protected.
67 rial, royal.
68 fett theder, brought (fetched) there.
74 a knowelege, forewarning.
75 drawith to deethwarde, approaches death; derke, grow dim (darken).
78 aultere, altar.
82 the remanent, the rest; sille, sell.
83 her sustynaunce, their livelihood.
84-85 fast here evyn, fasted [on the] eve of her feast day.
87 Bothe, But; hudde, hid.
88 note, not; the hyndemaste, those coming behind.
90 knowon, recognize/acknowledge.
90-91 for encheson that, because.
91 knalache, recognition/honor; repentut, repented.
JOHN MIRK, SERMON ON ST. KATHERINE, EXPLANATORY NOTES
Abbreviations: B = Bodleian Library MS Gough Eccl. Top. 4 (SC 17680), fols. 156v-158r; C = British Library MS Cotton Claudius A.ii, fols. 116r-117r [base text]; D = Durham University Library MS Cosin V.III.5, fols. 152r-154r; E = Theodor Erbe [EETS edition]; H 2371 = British Library MS Harley 2371, fols. 139v-141v; H 2391 = British Library MS Harley 2391, fols. 131r-133r; H 2403 = British Library MS Harley 2403, fols. 173v-175v; U = University College, Oxford MS 102, pp. 251-57 (on deposit in the Bodleian Library, Oxford).
2 kyngus dowthur. Katherine was the daughter of King Costus; see stanzaic Life, lines 49-50.
6 Maxencius. See explanatory note to the stanzaic Life, lines 10-12.
10 to worcheppon fendys. Katherine is speaking of the idols, which were commonly believed to harbor actual demons.
17 scole-maysteres. This term could conceivably mean university-trained experts in rhetoric or philosophy, but it could also mean just teachers in a grammar school. H 2403, which seems to belong to the same branch of the textual tradition as C, refers to them less ambiguously as grete doctours.
25-28 For Biblical parallels to this miracle, see explanatory note to the stanzaic Life, lines 225-28.
31-32 thritti dayes. In most retellings the length of this sentence is twelve days.
36-39 This vision of an angel with two golden crowns, betokening the impending martyrdom of the queen and Porphyrius, is not found in most versions of the Katherine legend. Readers of Chaucer will recall a similar vision in the Second Nun's retelling of the Cecilia legend, although there the crowns are made of roses and lilies, symbolizing both the saints' coming martyrdom and their virginity.
60 Notice that Katherine's final prayer is completely omitted in this version of the legend. See note on the Speculum Sacerdotale version, lines 28-36.
60-61 instede of blode ran oute whyte mylke. See explanatory note to the stanzaic Life, line 754.
62 twenti dayes jurney. This is a long time for the short journey from Alexandria to Mt. Sinai. On Mt. Sinai, see explanatory note to the stanzaic Life, lines 760-62.
69 the busshe whiche that oure Lord aperid inne. That is, the burning bush encountered by Moses (Exodus 3:1-6). The Burning Bush Chapel behind the altar of the monastery's church was a holy site as early as the fourth century. The burning bush is commonly associated with the Virgin Mary, who contained the fire of God without being consumed.
69-71 what tyme . . . the commandmentis. Although this text conflates God's first call to Moses from the burning bush and God's delivery to him of the Ten Commandments on Mt. Sinai (Exodus 19-20), they are separated of course by many momentous years in the history of Moses and the Israelites.
72-83 Miracles at the monastery. The great interest in oil from St. Katherine's Monastery ultimately stems from the belief that oil was miraculously exuded from Katherine's tomb which had healing properties. But that tradition, which is briefly described at the end of the stanzaic Life (lines 769-80), is conspicuously missing here, replaced by two miracle stories that would be much less likely to encourage pilgrimages to the monastery; the second one, in fact, can be read as debunking the usual claims for the monastery's oil by providing an alternative explanation of where it came from.
84-92 This exemplum, which underlines the importance of maintaining proper devotion to a patron saint, was told in connection with many saints, including the Virgin Mary, and with many variations in detail. A few MSS of Mirk's collection (including the base text for E's EETS edition) identify the inconstant devotee in this very story as a woman, and others give a fuller version of the story, as follows:
I rede of a man whiche lovid Saint Katerine passing wele, and for the grete devocioun that he hadde to hir, he fastid every yere on hir evyn brede and watir. And so it happid him at the last that he felle into the company of rechlesse peple, and left his fasting by comforte of hem and did as thaie didde. And than, on the night folowing, as he laie in his bed him thought he sawe a grete company of maidens comyng by him, and oon of hem was passing faire above al other. And so eche of hem had a crowne, and the feire maiden had a passing crowne above all other, whiche was Saint Kateryne. And as she come by this man, she hid hir face fro him and wolde not loke upon him. And than he askid oon of the maideny[s] what thaie were. And she answerid and saide, "We be virgins whiche sufferid martirdome for oure Lorde Jhesu Crist. And the chif of us that thoue seest look awaiward fro thee is Saint Kateryne. And bicause that thou leftist thie devocion and fastinge, that is the cause that she wil not loke on thee." And than this man was sorie and repentid him that he hadde so done amisse, and turned ayene to his devocion, and was aftirwarde a ful holy man. [text transcribed from D again; this version also in U and H 2371and H 2391].
JOHN MIRK, SERMON ON ST. KATHERINE, TEXTUAL NOTES
Abbreviations: see explanatory notes.
1 Gode men. Some MSS add and women; others omit this whole salutation.
15 goddys. C: goddy.
28 wyth. C: omits.
37-38 the quenes heved and that other on. Words omitted from C, obviously because of an eyeskip, and supplied from other MSS.
41 scheo1.C: omits.
47 helpon. C: helpn.
51 rebukyng. Emendation from H 2403 and E's EETS edition; C has the less grammatical rebukyd.
59 goddys. C has god, but Maxentius worships multiple gods and the other MSS have plural forms.
61 angellys. C: an angellys.
65-83 These paragraphs are omitted from C, H 2403, and E's EETS edition, but found in a number of other MSS, including D (from which the text here has been transcribed), U, H 2371, and H 2391.
68 For here bonys were fett theder for. Words omitted from D; supplied from U.
89 scheo. C has he, but H 2403 and E have forms of she, which the context seems to demand.
92 Conclusion added in H 2371: . . . and went to blisse as God graunte that wee may, Amen.