From Stage to Page - Medieval and Renaissance Drama
The York Cycle, Play 23 - The Transfiguration
Coriours
001 Jesus. Petir myne awne discipill dere,
002 And James and John my cosyns two,
003 Takis hartely hede, for yoe schall here
004 þat I wille telle vnto no moo.
005 And als yoe schall see sightis seere
006 Whilke none schall see bot yoe alsoo,
007 Therfore comes forth with me in fere,
008 For to yoone mountayne will I goo.
009 Ther schall yoe see a sight
010 Whilk yoe haue yoerned lange.
011 Peter. My lorde, we are full light
012 And glad with the to gange.
013 Jesus. Longe haue yoe coveyte for to kenne
014 My fadir, for I sette hym before,
015 And wele yoe wote whilke tyme and when
016 In Galylégangand we were.
017 'Shewe vs thy fadir'-thus saide yoe then-
018 'þat suffice us withouten moré
019 I saide to yoou and to all men
020 'Who seis me seis my fadyr thoré
021 Such wordis to yoou I spakke
022 In trewthe to make yoou bolde;
023 3e cowde noght vndyrtake
024 The talez that I yoou tolde.
025 Anodir tyme, for to encresse
026 3oure trouthe and worldly yoou to wys,
027 I saide 'Quem dicunt homines
028 Esse filium hominis?'
029 I askid yoow wham the pepill chase
030 To be mannys sone, withouten mys.
031 3e aunswered and saide 'Sum Moyses,'
032 And sum, saide than 'Hely it is',
033 And sum saide 'John Baptist'.
034 þan more I enquered you yoitt,
035 I askid yoiff yoe ought wiste
036 Who I was, by youre witte.
037 þou aunswered, Petir, for thy prowe,
038 And saide that I was Crist, God sonne,
039 Bot of thyselffe that had noght thowe,
040 My fadir hadde that grace begonne.
041 þerfore bese bolde and biddis now
042 To tyme yoe haue my fadir fonne.
043 Jacobus. Lord, to thy byddyng will we bowe
044 Full buxumly, as we are bonne.
045 John. Lorde, we will wirke thy will
046 Allway with trewe entent,
047 We love God lowde and stille
048 þat vs this layne has lente.
049 Peter. Full glad and blithe awe vs to be,
050 And thanke oure maistir mekill of mayne
051 þat sais we schall the sightis see,
052 The whiche non othir schall see certayne.
053 Jacobus. He talde vs of his fadir free,
054 Of that fare wolde we be full fayne.
055 John. All that he hyghte vs holde will hee,
056 Therfore we will no forther frayne,
057 But as he fouchesaffe
058 So sall we vndirstande.
059 Peter. Beholde, her we nowe haue
060 In hast som new tythande.
061 Helyas. Lord God, I loue the lastandly
062 And highly, botht with harte and hande,
063 þat me, thy poure prophett Hely,
064 Has steuened in this stede to stande.
065 In Paradise wonnand am I
066 Ay sen I lefte this erthely lande;
067 I come Cristis name to clarifie
068 As God his fadir me has ordand,
069 And for to bere witnesse
070 In worde to man and wyffe,
071 þat this his owne sone is
072 And lord of lastand liff.
073 Moyses. Lord God that of all welth is wele,
074 With wille and witte we wirschippe the,
075 þat vnto me, Moyses, wolde tell
076 þis grete poynte of thy pryuyté
077 And hendly hente me oute of hell
078 þis solempne syght for I schuld see,
079 Whan thy dere darlynges that thore dwell
080 Hase noght thy grace in swilk degree.
081 Oure forme-fadyrs full fayne
082 Wolde se this solempne sight,
083 þat in this place thus pleyne
084 Is mustered thurgh thi myght.
085 Peter. Brethir, whateuere yoone brightnes be?
086 Swilk burdis beforne was neuere sene.
087 It marres my myght, I may not see,
088 So selcouth thyng was neuere sene.
089 Jacobus. What it will worthe that wote noyot wee;
090 How wayke I waxe yoe will not wene.
091 Are was ther one, now is ther thre,
092 Methynke oure maistir is betwene.
093 John. That oure maistir is thare
094 þat may we trewly trowe,
095 He was full fayre before
096 But neuere als he is nowe.
097 Peter. His clothyng is as white as snowe,
098 His face schynes as the sonne;
099 To speke with hym I haue grete awe,
100 Swilk faire before was neuere fune.
101 Jacobus. þe tothir two fayne wolde I knawe
102 And witte what werke tham hedir has wonne.
103 John. I rede we aske tham all on rowe
104 And grope tham how this game is begonne.
105 Peter. My bredir, if that yoe come be
106 To make clere Cristis name,
107 Telles here till vs thre,
108 For we seke to the same.
109 Elias. Itt is Goddis will that we yoou wys
110 Of his werkis, as is worthy.
111 I haue my place in Paradise,
112 Ennok my brodyr me by.
113 Als messenger withouten mys
114 Am I called to this company,
115 To witnesse that Goddis sone is this,
116 Euyn with hym mette and allmyghty.
117 To dede we wer noght dight,
118 But quyk schall we come
119 With Antecrist for to fyght,
120 Beffore the day of dome.
121 Moyses. Frendis, if that yoe frayne my name,
122 Moyses than may yoe rede by rawe.
123 Two thousand yoere aftir Adam
124 þan gaffe God vnto me his lawe,
125 And sythen in helle has bene oure hame,
126 Allas, Adams kynne, this schall yoe knawe.
127 Vnto Crist come, this is the same
128 þat vs schall fro that dongeoun drawe.
129 He schall brynge tham to blys
130 þat nowe in bale are bonne.
131 This myrthe we may not mys,
132 For this same is Goddis sonne.
133 Jesus. My dere discipils, drede yoou noyot,
134 I am yooure souerayne certenly.
135 This wondir-werke that here is wrought
136 Is of my fadir almyghty.
137 þire both are hydir brought-
138 þe tone Moyses, the todir Ely-
139 And for youre sake thus are thei sought
140 To saie yoou, his sone am I.
141 So schall bothe heuen and helle
142 Be demers of this dede,
143 And yoe in erth schall tell
144 My name wher itt is nede.
145 Peter. A, loued be thou euere my lord Jesus
146 þat all this solempne sight has sent,
147 þat fouchest saffe to schew the thus
148 So that thi myghtis may be kende.
149 Here is full faire dwellyng for vs,
150 A lykand place in for to lende.
151 A, lord, late vs no forther trus,
152 For we will make with herte and hende
153 A taburnakill vnto the
154 Belyue, and thou will bide;
155 One schall to Moyses be
156 And to Ely the thirde.
157 Jacobus. 3a, wittirly, that were wele done,
158 But vs awe noght swilk case to craue.
159 þam thare but saie and haue it sone,
160 Such seruice and he fouchesaffe.
161 He hetis his men both morne and none
162 þare herber high in heuen to haue,
163 Therfore is beste we bide hys bone;
164 Who othir reedis, rudely thei raue.
165 John. Such sonde as he will sende
166 May mende all oure mischeue,
167 And where hym lykis to lende,
168 We will lende, with his leue.
169 Pater. 3e febill of faithe, folke affraied,
170 Beis noyot aferde for vs in feere.
171 I am yooure God that gudly grayde
172 Both erthe and eyre with clowdes clere.
173 þis is my sone, as yoe haue saide,
174 As he has schewed by sygnes sere.
175 Of all his werkis I am wele paied,
176 Therfore till hym takis hede and here.
177 Where he is, thare am I,
178 He is myne and I am his,
179 Who trowis this stedfastly
180 Shall byde in endles blisse.
181 Jesus. Petir, pees be vnto the,
182 And to yoou also James and John.
183 Rise vppe and tellis me what yoe see,
184 And beis no more so wille of wone.
185 Peter. A, lorde, what may this meruayle be,
186 Whedir is this glorious gleme al gone?
187 We saugh here pleynly persones thre
188 And nowe is oure lorde lefte allone.
189 þis meruayle movis my mynde
190 And makis my flessh affrayed.
191 Jacobus. þis brightnes made me blynde,
192 I bode neuere swilke a brayde.
193 John. Lorde God oure maker almyghty,
194 þis mater euermore be ment,
195 We saw two bodis stande hym by
196 And saide his fadir had thame sent.
197 Peter. There come a clowde of the skye
198 Lyght als the lemys on thame lent,
199 And now fares all as fantasye
200 For wote noyot we how thai are wente.
201 Jacobus. þat clowde cloumsed vs clene
202 þat come schynand so clere,
203 Such syght was never sene,
204 To seke all sydis seere.
205 John. Nay, nay, that noys noyed vs more
206 þat here was herde so hydously.
207 Jesus. Frendis, be noght afferde therfore,
208 I schall yoou saye encheson why:
209 My fadir wiste how that yoe were
210 In yooure faith fayland, and forthy
211 He come to witnesse ay-where,
212 And saide that his sone am I.
213 And also in this stede
214 To witnesse the same,
215 A quyk man and a dede
216 Come to make clere my name.
217 Peter. A, lord, why latest thou vs noyot see
218 Thy fadirs face in his fayrenes?
219 Jesus. Petir, thou askis over-grete degree,
220 That grace may noyot be graunted the, I gesse.
221 In his Godhed so high is he
222 As all yooure prophetis names expresse,
223 þat langar of lyffe schall he noght be
224 þat seys his Godhede as it is.
225 Here haue yoe sene in sight
226 Poyntes of his priuité
227 Als mekill als erthely wighte
228 May suffre in erthe to see.
229 And therfore wende we nowe agayne
230 To oure meyné and mende ther chere.
231 Jacobus. Oure felaws ful faste wil vs frayne
232 How we haue faren, al in feere.
233 Jesus. þis visioun lely loke yoe layne,
234 Vnto no leffand lede itt lere
235 Tille tyme mannys sone haue suffered payne
236 And resen fro dede; kens it than clere.
237 For all that trowis that thyng
238 Of my fadir and me,
239 Thay schall haue his blessing
240 And myne, so motte it be.
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Proper Citation: NeCastro, Gerard. The York Cycle, Play 23 - The Transfiguration. From Stage to Page - Medieval and Renaissance Drama. http:www.umm.maine.edu/faculty/necastro/drama. Date Visited.