The Summoner's Tale
Folio 83r
5 of 13 folios
Saue / that to crist I seyde an orisou
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Thankynge hym / of his reuelaciou
For sir and dame / trusteth me rigħt weel
Oure orisons / been wel moore effectueel
And moore we seen / of cristes secree thynges
Than burel folk / al thougħ they weren kynges
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We lyue in pouerte / and in abstinence
And bureƚƚ folk / in richesse and despence
Of mete and drynke / and in hir foul delit
We han this worldes lust al in despit /
Lazar and diues / lyueden diuersly
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And diuerse gerdou / hadden they ther by
Who so wol preye / he moot faste and be clene
And fatte his soule / and make his body lene
We fare as seith thapostle / clooth and foode
Suffisen vs / though they be nat ful goode
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The clennesse and the fastynge of vs freres
Maketh / þt crist accepteth oure preyeres
¶ Lo Moyses / fourty dayes / and fourty nygħt
Fasted / er þt the heighe god of mygħt
Spak with hym / in the mount of Synay
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With empty wombe / fastynge many a day
Receyued he the lawe / that was writen
With goddes fynger / and Elye wel ye witen
In mount Oreb / er he hadde any speche
With hye god / that is oure lyues leche
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He fasted longe / and was in contemplaūce
¶ Aaron / that hadde the temple in gouernaūce
And eek / that othere preestes euerichon
In to the temple / whan they sholde gon
To preye for the peple / and do seruyse
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They nolden drynken / in no maner wyse
No drynke / which þt myghte hem dronke make
But there / in abstinence preye and wake
Lest that they deyden / taak heede what I seye
But they be sobre / that for the peple preye
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War that / . I seye namoore / for it suffiseth
¶ Oure lord Ihū / as hooly writ deuyseth
Yaf vs ensample / of fastynge and preyeres
Therfore / we mendynantz / we sely freres
Been wedded / to pouerte and continence
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To charite / humblesse / and abstinence
To persecuciou / for rigħtwisnesse
To wepynge / Misericorde and clennesse
And therfore may ye se / þt oure preyeres
I speke of vs / we mendynantz we freres
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Been to the hye god / moore acceptable
Than youres / wt youre feestes at the table