The Elene of Cynewulf by Cynewulf
C >>
Cynewulf >> The Elene of Cynewulf
16. THE CONVERSION OF JUDAS.
Then after a little space Judas received the bath
of baptism, and, cleansed [of his sins], was true to 1035
Christ, dear to the Lord of life. His faith was
steadfast in his heart when the Spirit of comfort
had taken up his dwelling in the breast of the man,
and had urged him unto repentance. He chose the
better course, the gladness of glory, and forsook the 1040
worse, the way of the idolater, and cast aside his
heresy, the law of unrighteousness. God, the eternal
King, Creator, and Wielder of power, was
gracious unto him.
Then he was baptized who many times had
scorned the light; ...[1] his heart was inspired 1045
unto the better life; he was turned unto glory.
Verily fate decreed that he should become thus filled
with faith, thus dear unto God and beloved of Christ
in the kingdom of the world. This was made manifest 1050
when Elene bade bring unto the holy city
Eusebius, the bishop of Rome, exceeding wise amid
the councils of men, to aid in her deliberation, and
to ordain Judas into the priesthood at Jerusalem 1055
as bishop for the people in the cities, prudently
chosen through the grace of the Spirit for the temple
of God. And in later times upon a new occasion
she wisely named him Cyriacus. Henceforth 1060
the name of the man was changed for the better
throughout the cities--'The law of the Lord'.
[Footnote 1: A manuscript lacuna.]
17. THE FINDING OF THE NAILS.
Then again was the mind of Elene concerned
about that fair mystery with regard to the nails 1065
which pierced the feet and hands of the Saviour,
wherewith the King of the heavens, the mighty
Prince, was bound upon the cross. The queen of
the Christians began to ask concerning them. She
bade Cyriacus that he, through the might of the 1070
Holy Spirit, fulfil her desire still further regarding
the wondrous mystery, and that he unlock the secret
by his holy grace. And she spake this word unto
the bishop--boldly she addressed him:--'O bulwark
of heroes, thou didst rightly show forth unto me 1075
that noble tree, the cross of the heavenly King,
whereon by heathen hands was crucified God's own
Son, the Helper of souls, the Saviour of men. Now
further the longing for knowledge doth make me
mindful of the nails. I would thou shouldst find 1080
those that are hidden, buried deep in the earth and
shrouded in darkness. Ever doth my heart mourn,
sorrow in sadness, and rest not, until the Father
Almighty, the Lord of hosts and Saviour of men,
the Holy One from on high, shall fulfill unto me my 1085
desire through the finding of these nails. Now
with all reverence do thou forthwith, O best of
mediators, send up thy petition unto that glorious
Being, unto the King of majesty. Do thou pray 1090
the Glory of men that He, Almighty King, show
forth unto thee the treasure beneath the earth that
still lieth hidden, secret and concealed from men.'
Then the holy man, inspired in heart, the bishop
of the people, made steadfast his soul, and joyfully 1095
went forth with a throng of men singing praises
unto God. Zealously Cyriacus bowed his head upon
Calvary, nor made he any secret of his thoughts, but
through the might of the Holy Spirit he called upon 1100
God with all reverence, and prayed the Lord of
angels to reveal the unknown mystery in his new
trouble, where in that field he might earnestly seek
out the nails.
Then the Father, the Spirit of comfort, there as 1105
they were watching, caused a sign in the form of
fire to rise up where the precious nails were cunningly
hid in the earth by the devices of men.
Forthwith there came a leaping flame brighter than 1110
the sun. The people beheld a miracle shown forth
unto their queen, where, like unto the stars of heaven
or gems set in gold, out of the darkness glittered
the nails brightly, gleaming from their burial-place 1115
beneath the surface of the earth. The people rejoiced,
the throng were glad of heart; and they said
with one accord that the miracle was of God,
although hitherto they had been long in heresy and
turned from Christ, through the death-wielding
power of the devil. Thus they spake:--'Now do 1120
we ourselves behold the sign of victory, the true
miracle of God, whom we formerly withstood with
falsehood. Now is the course of the mystery come
into light and revealed. Wherefore may the God of
the heavenly kingdom have glory in the highest.' 1125
Then was the bishop of the people rejoiced anew,
he who had turned with repentance through the
Son of God. Awe-struck he took the nails, and
bore them unto the revered queen. Cyriacus had 1130
fulfilled all the woman's wish, even as his noble
mistress bade him. Then was there the sound of
lamentation, and hot tears welling over their faces--yet
not at all for sorrow; her tears fell over the
nails. Wondrously was the desire of the queen fulfilled. 1135
With joyous faith she laid them upon her
knees, and, rejoicing in her happiness, revered the
gift that was brought unto her as a solace for her
sadness. She gave thanks unto God, the Lord of
victories, that now she knew the truth which had oft 1140
been foretold long before from the beginning of the
world as a comfort for the nations. She was filled
with the grace of wisdom, and the Holy Spirit of 1145
heaven held the dwelling of her body, and guarded
her both heart and soul. Thus the almighty, victorious
Son of God had care for her thereafter.
18. ELENE'S DISPOSAL OF THE NAILS.
Then she began zealously through the mysteries
of the Holy Spirit to search out the truth and the
way to glory. Verily the Lord of hosts, King 1150
Almighty, gave aid that the queen might win her
wish in the world. From the beginning all the
prophecy was chanted in times before by the seers
of old, and thus it happened in every respect. 1155
Through the grace of the Holy Spirit the queen
zealously began to search out with great care wherefor
she might best and most fitly for the solace of
men use the nails, and what was the will of the 1160
Lord. Then bade she bring at once unto a secret
council an exceeding wise man, who, learned in
mind, by his wise power knew fully the rede of
sages; and she began to inquire of him what he 1165
deemed best to be done about this. And obediently
she chose his advice.
Earnestly he answered her:--'It is fitting that
thou hold in thy heart the word of the Lord,
His holy mystery, O best of queens, and zealously 1170
fulfil the bidding of the king, now that God, Redeemer
of men, hath given unto thee good speed
for thy soul, and the skill of wisdom. Do thou
bid that these nails be set upon the bridle, as a bit 1175
for the horse of the most noble among castle-ruling
kings. It shall become famed to many throughout
the world when he shall overcome each of his
enemies thereby in the contest, as with brave hearts
and brandished swords they seek the battle on either 1180
side, and strive for the mastery there, foe against
foe. He shall have good speed in war, victory in
battle, and peace everywhere, the calm following the
strife, who holds the bridle before him upon a white 1185
steed when his trusty heroes, far-famed in the fight,
bear shield and spear into the press of weapons.
For any man shall this be a guard invincible
against stress in war. Concerning it sang the
prophet, wise in thought, his mind saw deeply 1190
the understanding of wisdom. These words he
spake:--"It shall be known that the horse of a king
is to be in the midst of brave heroes, decked with
bit and bridle-rings. It shall be called a holy sign 1195
of God, and he shall be hardy and honored in war
who guides the horse."'
19. CONCLUSION.
Then straightway in the presence of the nobles
Elene accomplished all. She bade deck the bridle
of the prince, gift-giver of men, and unto her own
son she sent the glorious present over the stream 1200
of the ocean as an offering. Then she bade assemble
together in the town, in that holy city, those
whom she knew as the best among the Jews, that
race of heroes. And the queen began to teach the 1205
throng of her dear subjects that they should steadfastly
hold to the love of the Lord, and maintain
peace one with another, and that they should hearken 1210
unto the lore of the teacher, and the customs of the
Christians, which Cyriacus, wise in the knowledge
of books, should declare unto them. The bishopric
was well established. Often there came to
him from afar the lame, the halt, the weak, the 1215
maimed, the bleeding, the leprous, the blind, the
poor, the sad in heart, and ever found they health
and relief there at the hands of their bishop during
all of their life. And again Elene gave unto him
gifts of great worth when she was ready for the
journey back to her own land, and when she bade 1220
all those who glorified God in that kingdom, both
men and women, to honor in their thought with
heart and strength that great day on which the holy
rood was found, most wondrous tree of them that 1225
have grown up from the earth, laden with leaves.
And, save for six nights ere the coming of summer
on the kalends of May, the spring was gone. May
hell's portal be closed and heaven's opened, may the 1230
eternal kingdom of the angels be revealed with joy
unceasing, and may their part be assigned with
Mary, to each man who keepeth in memory the
most sacred festival of the cross beneath the heavens, 1235
which the almighty King over all protected with
his arm! Finit.
20. EPILOGUE.
Old and ready for death by reason of this failing
house, I thus have woven a web of words and
wondrously have gathered it up; time and again
have I pondered and sifted my thought in the prison
of the night. I knew not fully the truth concerning 1240
the cross[1] until wisdom revealed a broader
knowledge through its marvelous power o'er the
thought of my heart. I was stained with deeds of
evil, fettered in sins, torn by doubts, girt round with 1245
bitter needs, until the King of might wondrously
granted learning unto me as a comfort for my old
age; until he gave unto me his spotless grace, and
imbued my heart with it, revealed it as glorious, in
time broadened it, set free my body, unlocked my 1250
heart, and loosed the power of song, which joyfully
and gladly I have used in the world. Not one time
alone, but often had I thought upon the tree of
glory, before I had the miracle revealed regarding
the glorious tree, as in the course of events I found 1255
related in books and in writings concerning the sign
of victory. Ever until that time was the man buffeted
in the surge of sorrow, was he a weakly flaring
torch (C)[2], although he had received treasures
and appled gold in the mead-hall; wroth in heart 1260
(Y), he mourned; a companion to need (N), he
suffered crushing grief and anxious care, although
before him his horse (E) measured the miles and
proudly ran, decked with gold. Hope (W) is
waned, and joy through the course of years; youth 1265
is fled, and the pride of old. Once (U) was the
splendor of youth(?); now after that alloted time
are the days departed, are the pleasures of life
dwindled away, as water (L) glideth, or the rushing
floods. Wealth (F) is but a loan to each beneath 1270
the heavens; the beauties of the field vanish
away beneath the clouds, most like unto the wind
when it riseth loud before men, roameth amid the
clouds, courseth along in wrath, and then on a sudden 1275
becometh still, close shut in its narrow prison,
crushed by force.
[Footnote 1: Supplying _r[=o]de_.]
[Footnote 2: These letters are the runes which spell out Cynewulf's
name.]
Thus shall all this world pass away, and in like
manner devouring flame shall seize upon whoever
was born into it, at that time when the
Lord himself 'with a host of angels shall come 1280
unto judgment. There shall each man hear the
doom on all his deeds from the mouth of the judge,
and likewise shall pay the penalty for all the
foolish words ever spoken by him, and all his overbold 1285
thoughts. Then shall the people divide into
three parts for the embrace of the flame, every man
who hath ever lived throughout the broad earth.
Those who have clung fast to the truth shall be
highest in the flame, the throng of the blessed, the 1290
host of them that yearn for glory, the multitude of
the righteous, and thus may they endure and suffer
more lightly without distress. He tempers for
them all the glare of the flame as shall be most easy
for them and most mild. The sinful men, those 1295
stained with evil, heroes sad of heart, shall be in the
middle place, shrouded with smoke amid the hot
surge of fire. The third part, accursed sinful foes,
false haters of men, the host of the wicked, shall be
in the depth of the surge, bound fast in flame by 1300
reason of their former deeds, in the gripe of the
glowing coals. Nor shall they come thereafter
from the place of punishment to the memory of God,
King of glory, but they shall be cast forth, His
wrath-stirring foes, from that fierce flame into the 1305
depths of hell. Unlike this shall it be with the
other two parts: they may look upon the Prince of
angels, the God of victories. They shall be refined
and freed from their sins, like pure gold that is all 1310
cleansed from every alloy, refined and melted in the
surge of the furnace's fire. Thus shall each of those
men be separated and purified from all their guilt,
their deep transgressions, by the fire of the judgment.
And thereafter they may enjoy peace and 1315
eternal well-being. The Lord of angels shall be
merciful and gracious unto them, inasmuch as they
abhorred each sin, each work of guile, and called
upon the Son of the Creator in their prayers.
Wherefore now their forms shall shine like unto the
angels, and they shall enjoy the heritage of the King 1320
of glory for ever and ever. Amen.