Collect of the Week - 41
Dominica in Ramis Palmarum
Omnipotens sempiterne Deus, qui humano generi ad imitandum humilitatis
exemplum, Salvatorem nostrum carnem sumere et crucem subire fecisti:
concede propitius, ut et patientiae ipsius habere documenta et
resurrectionis consortia mereamur. Per eundem Dominum.
BCP
Almighty and everlasting God, who, of thy tender love towards mankind, hast
sent thy Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ, to take upon him our flesh, and to
suffer death upon the cross, that all mankind should follow the example of
his great humility; Mercifully grant, that we may both follow the example
of his patience, and also be made partakers of his resurrection; through
the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Cranmer preserved the gist of the collect, though he changed it around a
bit; he slips in 'of thy tender love towards mankind', which isn't there in
the original; and actually it's nice to see him adding a bit about God's
love for mankind, which isn't usually his strong suit.
'subire' is lengthened to 'to suffer death upon'. Literally, 'to undergo';
it can mean 'to submit to' and perhaps may bring to mind Christ literally
going under the cross, when he carried it to Calvary - cf. the lyric 'now
goth sonne under rode'.
'propitius', as all too often, is rendered 'mercifully', though as we have
seen Cranmer has already imported an expression of God's tender love.
'documentum' (from 'doceo', 'teach') is 'teaching, example'; members will
be familiar with the lines from Aquinas' hymn, 'Et antiquum documentum Novo
cedat ritui'. The Latin asks 'that we may have the lessons of his patience'
(not 'follow'). Cranmer rather clumsily and redundantly repeats 'follow the
example'.
Cranmer leaves out, as always, 'mereamur' - he won't have it that we have
any merits or desserts. Literally 'that we may merit a share in his
resurrection' ('consortium', a share, fellowship, partnership).
It is interesting that on this Sunday of all days, when the mystery of the
Passion is put before the faithful at some length, it is its exemplary value
to which the collect draws our attention. It is salutary to note that the
exemplary value of Christ's suffering has been a part of orthodox Christian
belief from the earliest times, and is not something new with Abelard.
Actually it goes back to 1 Peter 2:21, 'Christ suffered for you and left an
example for you to follow the way he took' (Christus passus est pro vobis,
vobis relinquens exemplum ut sequamini vestigia eius).
Oriens.
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