TEXTS ON MUSIC IN ENGLISH
School of Music
University of Nebraska--Lincoln
Lincoln, NE 68588-0100
(phone: [402] 472-2507; Internet: plefferts1@unl.edu)

Data entry: Peter M. Lefferts
Checked by: Peter Slemon
Approved by: Peter M. Lefferts

Fn and Ft: LEAVPHAR_TEXT
Author: Wycliffe, John
Title: Of the Leaven of Pharisees (excerpt)
Source: Frederic D. Matthews, ed., The English Works of Wyclif Hitherto Unprinted, Early English Text Society, orig. ser. 74 (London: Trübner, 1880), 1-27 at 8-9.

[-8-] Zif thei maken hem besi on the holy day to preche fablis and lesyngis to the peple and not the gospel, and gon fro place to place and fro man to man to begge of pore men for here false lesyngis, and letten men fro here deuocioun; thei kepen not wel here holiday.

Zif thei drawen the peple in the holiday by coryouste of gaye wyndownes and colours and peyntyngis and babwynrie fro conpunccion of here synnes and fro mynde of heuenely thinges, and fede riche men with pore mennus goodis, with costly metis and wynes and wast spicerie to glotonye, dronkenesse, lecherie, and weiward takis, and suffren pore men hungry and thristi and in gret mischef; thei kepen euyl here holyday and letten othere men to kepen it.

Zif thei studien on the holy day aboute experymentis or [-9-] wiche craft or veyn songis and knackynge and harpynge, gyternynge and daunsynge and othere veyn triflis to geten the stynkyng loue of damyselis, and stere hem to worldely vanyte and synnes; thei breken foule ther holyday and ben procuratours of the fend.