Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, SAINT CECILIA, by ANONYMOUS


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

SAINT CECILIA, by                    
First Line: "christ jesus, pitiful is he / and to mankind of mercy free"
Last Line: "to whom be honour ever due. Amen, amen"
Subject(s): "cecilia, Saint (3d Century);saints;


CHRIST JESUS, pitiful is He,
And to mankind of mercy free,
And showeth forth His power and might
Oft-times, as men may see with sight,
So that we may his marvels ken
Alike in women as in men.
But most in maidens we behold
Who to His bidding faithful hold,
As an ensample we may see
In Saint Cecilia, maiden free.
That maid was born of gentle blood,
Holy was she, and mild of mood,
And in her heart full well she knew
The lore of her dear Lord, Jesu,
And unto Him did ever pray
And ceased not, by night or day.
Urban, the Pope, hath her baptized
In the true Faith of Jesus Christ.
Unto her friends right dear was she,
And all who should her comrades be
Because she was both fair and good,
And to all folk of gracious mood.
Her friends would wed her with a man
Who hight by name, Valerian,
A young man he, and fair of face,
And sprung from a right noble race,
Heathen he was, and unbaptized,
And knew naught of the law of Christ,
Nor other durst Cecilia do
Save what her friends, they told her to.
The day was set, they should be wed,
In cloth of gold fair robed that stead,
Therein Cecilia took no pride,
A cere-cloth 'neath it did she hide;
To outward show, rich raiment ware
Such as her friends for her prepare.
Thus on this wise, when they were wed,
Full many folk, their friends, they fed.
Whenas the bridal came to end,
And each man on his way would wend,
Cecilia to her chamber went,
Calling on God with good intent,
A sound they heard, that was full near,
Of Angels' song, and organs clear,
Music she made, their song among,
And in this wise Cecilia sung:
"Fiat cor meum, et corpus meum immaculatum, ut non confundar."
And this, I trow, the words shall mean:
"My heart, O Lord! do thou make clean,
My body keep unstained within,
So that I be not lost thro' sin."
When in this wise she'd made her prayer
To God, with good intent, and fair,
She with her husband went to bed
As the law would, since she was wed,
But in her heart she purposed right
To keep her clean, if so she might.
So by her lord when she was laid
In this wise unto him she said:
"Sir, if it so thy will might be
A counsel would I give to thee,
That must be said now, with thy leave,
And, good my lord, in no wise grieve.
An Angel, Sir, of heaven bright,
My guardian is, by day and night,
A servant unto God is he --
I love him well, so doth he me,
And if he should be 'ware, this while,
That thou my body should'st defile,
Or carnal love should'st offer me,
For this will he be wroth with thee,
And vengeance will upon thee take
That thou all solace shalt forsake,
And lose of this, thy youth, the flower,
'T were well my lord, to dread his power!"
Valerian, he waxed wroth that stead,
Nor durst her touch, for very dread,
Her words he deemed but sorry pay,
And in this wise he spake alway:
"Woman, if thou wilt that I trow
The words that thou did'st speak but now,
Betwixt us twain here let me see
Him, who thou say'st so loveth thee,
So that I of myself may see
Whether in truth he angel be,
And servant unto Heaven's will.
If so, I'll do thy bidding still;
But if thou dost another love
Thy bane that bargain sure shall prove,
Nor he, nor thou, shall 'scape my wrath,
But I myself will slay ye both,
With mickle shame thy deed repay --"
An answer soft she gave alway,
"Good Sir," she said, "ne'er grieved be
If thou may'st not God's angel see,
For ne'er to man such vision fell
Save he believe, as I shall tell,
In God Who made all things below --
Himself did ne'er beginning know,
But is, and evermore shall be,
The most of might, of mercy free --
And in His dear Son, Jesus Christ --
Wilt thou believe, and be baptized,
Then say I, Sir, that thou shalt see
The angel, that I promise thee!
Now Sir, if thou wilt this essay
To Bishop Urban take thy way,
To tell him all these words be bold,
Recite the tale as I have told;
Tell him thy life from end to end,
What is amiss shall he amend.
Then when thy troth is plighted true
He'll clothe thee all in clothing new,
Robes white and clean he'll give to thee --
Then shalt thou in my chamber see
That angel bright from heaven, I trow,
Who loves me, as I said but now,
And from him shalt thou surely have
Whatever thing thy heart doth crave."
Then thro' the Spirit's Grace, he rose,
And in all haste he swiftly goes
To the good Bishop Urban there,
And doth his tale straightway declare,
How with him, and his wife it stood --
When Urban this had understood,
He raised his hands to heaven's height,
And called on God, the most in might:
"Lord Jesu Christ, loved may'st Thou be
Who sowest seeds of chastity,
And counsel chaste to men dost give
Whereby their souls may ever live.
Take Thou the fruit now, as Thine own,
Of seed once in Cecilia sown,
It waxeth now, and multiplies,
As man may see in this same wise;
A spouse she took, with her to dwell,
Who, as a lion, was fierce and fell,
A rebel both by day and night
Who aye against Thy law did fight.
Thy servant now, she maketh him
Meek as a lamb, in soul and limb,
For were he not thus waxen meek
Salving of me he would not seek,
And since he hath salvation sought
Lord, save him, and deny him naught!"
Then, when his prayer had come to end,
Before them both they saw descend
An old man, clad in linen clean
And white, who stood the twain between,
Who in his hand a book did hold
All written o'er with letters gold.
Valerian when he saw that sight
Was vanquished by excess of light;
For dread he fell adown that stead
And lay as still as he were dead.
The old man then his right hand took
And raised him up, and bade him look
What writing this same book should bear
Which he had brought unto him there.
Valerian did the letters trace,
And thus 't was written in that place:
"Unus Dominus, Una Fides, Unum Baptisma."
And this is what the letters mean,
"One God is over all, I ween;
All folk shall to one Faith belong;
One Baptism cleanse all souls from wrong."
Whenas Valerian this had read
The old man asked him, in that stead,
"What now thou readest, trow'st thou well,
Or doubt within thy soul doth dwell?"
Then answered him Valerian:
"What more befitteth mortal man
Thro' book, or word of mouth indeed,
Then to believe a Heavenly rede?
And with my mind I now believe,
All that is written here receive."
Whenas Valerian this did say
The old man, he hath gone his way,
But how, they might no way devise --
Urban, Valerian doth baptize,
Bade him believe, with conscience clean,
All things that he had heard and seen.
Valerian promised with good will
That he his bidding would fulfil;
Then was he bade go, at that same,
Unto his wife, from whom he came,
And comfort her, as best he might --
Thus, to his wife he went forthright,
Into Cecilia's chamber went
To thank her that she had him sent
To get salvation from his sin
That he a new life might begin.
Kneeling in prayer his wife he found,
And soon before her, at that stound,
He saw God's angel, shining bright,
That all the house it beamed with light,
And in his hand two crowns he brought
So fair, as ne'er on earth were wrought,
Gave one unto Cecilia, then
The other to Valerian,
And swift he set them on their head,
And spake unto them in that stead:
"Keep these, your crowns, ye twain between,
With body chaste, heart pure and clean,
From Paradise I have them brought,
For in that same place were they wrought,
My Lord for you did them prepare."
Then to Valerian spake he there:
"Since that thou here consent dost give
By laws of Chastity to live,
Jesus, my Lord, of mercy free,
A message hath He sent by me,
Whate'er from Him dost crave as boon,
Ask, and the same shalt have right soon,
What thing thou wilt -- yet understood
That it shall be for thy soul's good."
Valerian then this boon besought:
"Of other thing now reck I naught,
This, above all, were sweet to me,
My brother dear from bale to free,
That He should help, my Lord Jesus,
My brother, that Tyburcius,
Shall this, His law, henceforth obey,
And be baptized, as I to-day,
That we may both uprightly live,
Our spirits wholly to Him give."
Whenas the angel this had heard
He to Valerian spake this word,
And said: "Thy will, it shall be done,
For that thou askest as thy boon
That which thy Lord likes better now
To give, than thou to ask, I trow!
For as my Lord, He hath won thee
Thro' this, thy wife, His servant free,
So, through thy prayer, He now shall win
Thy brother from the bands of sin,
And thou and he together come
Unto the meed of Martyrdom."
When this was said, he went, I wis,
In glowing light, to heaven's bliss.
And then Valerian and his wife,
In holy wise they led their life;
And after this, as God deemed well,
Tyburcius, of whom I tell,
Valerian's brother, as I say,
He came to him upon a day,
To know how fared his brother dear,
He of his holiness did hear.
And as he entered this, their house,
He kissed his brother, and his spouse,
He kissed Cecilia, and spake thus:
"A perfume sweet there is 'midst us,
As rose and lily 't were, I trow,
I ne'er have smelt the like ere now,
Nor scent so sweet was known of man."
Then answered him Valerian:
"Brother, since God doth think it meet
To send to thee this perfume sweet,
Herewith I boldly promise thee
If thou in Faith wilt steadfast be,
And Our Lord Jesus Christ adore,
As we who turn us to His lore,
Then shall be granted unto thee
God's angel both to hear and see,
And save thy soul, as now I say."
Tyburcius answered him straightway:
"If so I might God's angel see
No truer token might there be,
And this, His law, as guide I'ld take."
Cecilia heard that thus he spake,
And fell adown, and kissed his feet,
Answering him with words so sweet:
"Now will I thee, where'er I wend,
Own as my cousin, and my friend,
For as the love of Jesu free
Did make thy brother yield to me,
So shall He turn thee, that thou take
His might, idolatry forsake.
And Sir, since thou be ready now
To plight thy troth, His truth to trow,
Now shalt thou with thy brother go
Unto the Bishop whom we know,
And all his bidding shalt obey."
As she deemed right they did straightway;
The Bishop he baptized him then,
And he became a holy man,
So that God granted him such grace
That he might see, in every place,
At will, God's angels come and go,
And all his pleasure to them show,
And aye from them might ask, and have,
What thing soe'er his soul might crave.
These brothers then, of whom ye hear,
Cecilia, whom they both held dear,
The three, in love they lived aright,
And honoured God with all their might.
Tyburcius and Valerian there,
Since now the twain baptized were,
To serve their God they held them bound,
In field and town they preached that stound,
Against the idols, less and more,
In which they put their trust of yore.
It were too long their life to tell,
The marvels all that to them fell,
This treatise, it shall show withal
What things did at their death befall,
What wonders God, for them, He wrought,
When they to martyrdom were brought.
There lived a prince in that same land
Wherein they preached, I understand,
Whose faith was in idolatry,
And bare to them great enmity;
He said, with dole the twain he'ld slay
Save they should change their rede straightway.
He sent to fetch them at that same;
And when they to his presence came,
The law of Christ they preached that day
So that the prince had naught to say,
Nor had he power to do them ill,
But gave them leave to work their will.
A Christian he himself became,
And all his mesnie at that same,
And all those men were turned also
Who to the brethren harm would do.
Soon as Cecilia heard them tell
Of this same chance, how it befell,
Then unto them she soon hath sought,
And thither priests with her she brought,
Who there baptized them every one,
That they should keep Christ's law alone.
When this same prince, Maximius,
And all his men baptized were thus,
Cecilia words of comfort spake,
And bade them every way forsake
The idols they believed ere now,
And unto Jesu humbly bow;
She bade them leave the works of night,
In heavenly armour clothe them bright,
She said: "Your course ye have fulfilled
Full worthily, as Christ hath willed,
Victors in a great fight are ye,
And therefore shall ye crowned be
With crowns which Christ Himself shall give,
In bliss eternal aye shall live;
Therefore be not dismayed to take
Your martyrdom, for Christ's dear sake."
They promised they would do Christ's Will,
And all His bidding would fulfil.
Almachius then, this cursed king,
Whenas he heard of this same thing
Bade them to sacrifice each one,
Or else they should to death be done.
And since they would not work his will
With bitter pains he plagued them still,
And at the last, without delay,
Bade them smite off their heads that day.
Thus he their bodies did torment,
But swift their souls to heaven they went,
And many a man must see, I wis,
How angels led them into bliss,
And many folk, for that same sight
Turned Christian, and believed aright.
Maximius, that convert good,
He spake, as 'midst them all he stood,
He said: "I see their souls take flight
With angels, into Heaven's height,
Borne up with wings, lest that they fall,
And like clean virgins are they all!"
Almachius, the king, heard tell,
Of all this marvel, how it fell,
And what Maximius had said,
And how his folk were sore afraid,
So with the morn he bade, the king,
Maximius, 'fore him to bring,
And torments sore on him he wrought
Until he too, to death was brought,
His soul, it went to heaven straightway
With solace more than I may say.
Almachius, that wicked king,
Whenas that he had done this thing,
And saw thus that Valerian,
And other saints were slain, each man,
Straightway bethought him, in his mood,
To take unto him all their good;
Sent to Valerian's house withal,
Since he was richest of them all,
And of Cecilia his wife,
They, with loud voice, and mickle strife,
Command she bring forth all the store
That was her husband's less and more;
"As traitor done to death is he,
And all his goods the king's shall be."
Cecilia did great mourning make,
And in such wise to them she spake
That all those men were turned to Christ,
And in His Name they were baptized,
Their idols all they there did leave,
And did on Jesus Christ believe,
As wise men worshipped Him that tide,
And in His service lived and died.
Whenas Almachius heard of this
For wrath nigh mad was he, I wis,
He bade Cecilia should be sought,
And in all haste before him brought,
And all her house commanded he
That burned with fire it straight should be.
But first he asked in eager mood,
Where now was all Valerian's good?
She said, his riches did she take
To feed the poor, for Jesu's sake.
Then at her words so wroth waxed he
He bade that burned they all should be,
Her house and chattells, more and less,
And she herself, in that same stress.
And soon, at this, the king's desire,
Her dwelling did they set on fire.
And she herself in midst did stand,
And all about was nery brand,
But all who looked on her, I ween,
Had deemed she in a bower had been,
A garden fair, with blossoms bright, --
So stood she thro' a day and night,
And ne'er her heart-felt prayers did fail --
Whenas Almachius heard that tale,
He bade the messengers straightway
Smite off her head, nor make delay.
His doomsman to Cecilia went,
There as she stood, with good intent,
Then unto God her prayer she made,
And bowed her neck before the blade.
The custom was, in that countrie,
That but three strokes should smitten be,
But when three strokes he smote that day
Her neck was not cut thro' alway,
Untouched somesinewswere, and veins --
He left her thus, in bitter pains,
The law was, as I said afore,
He might give three strokes, and no more.
And thus upon her knees she sat,
And lived for three days after that,
And maidens who with her had been
Straightway they came to her, I ween,
And all those days to them she spake
Bidding them all to comfort take.
Unto Pope Urban then she sent,
And told unto him her intent,
She quoth: "Sir, God hath granted me
Here, in this world, to live days three,
As I have prayed Him, this befell
That I my will to thee might tell.
My maidens all to thee I give
To guard them well, the while they live,
And teach them that they wisely work --
Now in my name build thou a kirk
Where these, my maidens, aye may dwell,
With will and voice, to serve God well."
When this was said, with no delay
To God her spirit passed away;
And Urban, when she thus was dead,
He buried her in that same stead,
And made a kirk at great expense,
For worship great, and reverence
Of Jesus Christ, Our Saviour true,
To whom be honour ever due.





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