17. Mais qui virō et requiert Que Dame-Deu a prise 18. La foi qu'avoir devons, 19. Parfais Deu, parfais hom, Et de char d'onme esta; Est de sa personance. 22. Par itele raison Qu'arme et chars est uns hons Tous ensi faitement Deu et hom ensement Est i sols Cris només ; 23. Qui por nous mort souffri, En enfer descendi, Au tiers jor suscita; A la destre del Pere, Le glorions sauvere, En ses sains cieus montait. 24. Dusqu'al jour de Juis Puis nous venrait jugier, S'aura riche louier. 25. A son avenement Venront communement 26. Cil qui bien fait auront, 27. Veiz ci toute la fois, Veis ci toute la lois ; Et qui ne le croira, S'il n'a ceste creance, Sachiés-vous sans doutance Que jai sans ne sera. Amen. The same manuscript contains a French metrical version of the Apostles' Creed; see Michel, op. cit., p. 361. NOTE H ON THE ENGLISH VERSION OF THE ATHANASIAN CREED IT has been mentioned in the text that, although a few early English translations of the Athanasian Creed exist in MSS., it never found a place in the Primer before the sixteenth century. It was then included in the contents of several editions of that known as Hilsey's Primer (1539), where it was entitled 'The Symbole or Crede of the great Doctour Athanasius, dayley red in the Church'; but the translation there given differs widely from that with which we are familiar. That made for the English Prayer Book of 1549—which has remained in the Prayer Book ever since, with the slightest verbal alterations—was practically new; and interesting questions arise as to the sources from which it was drawn. It is clear that it was not made directly and simply from the Latin text of the Breviary, for it departs from this in various particulars of more or less importance. Waterland was the first to point out that these variations may be accounted for by the supposition that Cranmer, or whoever was responsible for the translation, had a Greek text before him ; and it is now practically certain that this is the true explanation of some at least of the variations and peculiarities of translation. Four instances may be mentioned here. (1) In verse 9, ‘Immensus Pater, immensus Filius: immensus Spiritus Sanctus.' Hilsey's Primer rendered immensus by 'without measure,' as had an older Wicliffite version; whereas the rendering 'incomprehensible,' which has stood in our Prayer Book here and in verse 12 since 1549, was obviously suggested by a Greek version, which, as Waterland and Ommanney have shown, must have been accessible to the Reformers,1 and which has the rendering ἀκατάληπτος. 1 This Greek version was published, as Waterland shows, by Nicholas Bryling about the year 1540; but Ommanney has traced it back earlier, and finds it in several editions of a small book of Hours first edited by Aldus at Venice in 1497, as well as in a Greek Psalter printed at Strasburg in 1524, and Antwerp in 1533. See Critical Dissertation, p. 310. (2) In verse 12 the Latin is 'Sicut non tres increati nec tres immensi: sed unus increatus et unus immensus.' In the English the order of the terms is reversed: ́As also there are not three incomprehensibles, nor three uncreated: but one uncreated and one incomprehensible.' Here, again, the Greek text has the same order as the English ; οὐδὲ τρεῖς ἀκατάληπτοι οὐδὲ τρεῖς ἄκτιστοι. (3) In verse 29 the Latin 'fideliter credat,' where Hilsey had 'believe faithfully' the Prayer Book version has 'believe rightly,' which obviously comes from the Greek pows πιστεύσῃ. (4) In verse 42 the Latin is 'fideliter, firmiterque' (Hilsey, 'faithfully and stedfastlye'), where the Prayer Book has but the one word 'faithfully.' This also is accounted for by the Greek πιστῶς. Other minor coincidences between the Greek and the English, where there is a departure from the Latin, might be mentioned, but these four are sufficient to make certain that the Greek has influenced our translation. It does not appear, however, that it was followed throughout, as there are several instances in which the English agrees with the Latin as against the Greek. Probably, then, the Latin text of the Breviary was taken as the basis of the translation, and this was corrected in various places by reference to what Cranmer may well have supposed to be the original, if, as is probable, he held the then wellnigh universal belief that the Creed was the work of Athanasius. Why, however, he did not allow the name of Athanasius to stand in the title it is impossible to say. It was called Symbolum Athanasii in the Breviary. Hilsey's Primer attributed it to 'the great Doctour Athanasius.' Cranmer himself in the Forty-two Articles of 1553 calls it 'Athanasius' Creed,' and no satisfactory explanation has ever been offered of the fact that in the Prayer Book he spoke of it simply as this confession of our Christian Faith.'1 1 See Bishop Dowden, The Workmanship of the Prayer Book, p. 113. |