Canzona ad divam Katarinam Bononiensem
The Triumph of the Heavenly Spouse
The poet celebrates Catherine of Bologna's victory in heaven and her enduring role as a witness of grace to the world.
Beautiful soul, who, rising to heaven, left your holy body on earth to bear witness among us to the life beyond: now that the long war is over—where you were never dismayed and never turned your steps from your Spouse—you have gone before him with a pure heart and a pure mind, to triumph in your great victory, in everlasting glory, free of this harsh, blind, hard life, there where you are already safe with Christ.12 Your sacred body clearly shows how highly God has exalted you in the high heavens; and the virtue still seen among us, gentle spirit, has made you an example to the world—a heavenly flame for cold consciences, and a holy comfort for the afflicted!3 Whoever bows to you with devout tears, blessed virgin, is set free from a thousand frail thoughts: because how much you are worth before Christ, O crowned bride—heaven sees it, and so does the world where you were born.4
The Veneration of the Holy Body
The faithful gather to honor the incorrupt body of the saint, finding in her physical presence a reflection of her spiritual beauty.
Drawn by her fame alone, people of every kind come running from a thousand places to gaze upon her limbs, which, though life has left them, still seem alive and mindful of her spirit.5 Everyone sees her there; everyone adores her, and full of wonder, pays her honor. Ah!6 What hardened heart would not weep hard with sweetness, seeing those holy works and that humble face?7 If her body is a paradise to the world and is so highly prized here, what will it be to see the beauty of her spirit?
A Life of Scorned Worldliness
The poet reflects on the saint's rejection of worldly desires in favor of the straight path, despite the fragmentary nature of the remaining text.
O happy soul, who never turned her holy foot from the straight path, always scorning what the world craves. ...8 ... ... ... ... ... ... . . . . .
Read the original Latin
Anima bella, che le membra sante, Salendo al ciel, abbandonasti in terra, Per far fede fra noi dell’altra vita; Or ch’è fornita pur la lunga guerra, Ove giammai non fusti isbigottita, Nè mai voltasti al Sposo tuo le piante, Sei gita a lui davante Col cor pudico e con la mente pura, Per trionfar della tua gran vittoria, In sempiterna gloria, Fuor di quest’aspra e cieca vita dura, Là dove ormai con Cristo sei secura.
Il sacro corpo ben dimostra quanto Esaltata t’ha Iddio nell’alto cielo; E la virtute che fra noi si vede, Spirto gentil, esempio al mondo felo, Fiamma celeste alle coscienze frede, E degli afflitti o refrigerio santo! Chi con devoto pianto A te s’inchina, Vergine beata, Sciolto riman da mille pensier frali: Perchè quanto tu vali Dinanzi a Cristo, o sposa coronata, Il ciel il vede e ’l mondo ove sei nata.
Da mille parti sol per fama core Diverse genti a rimirar le membra, Che, essendo spente, par che viva ancora, E del suo spirto par che si rimembra. Ogn’uomo il vede, quivi ogn’uom l’adora, E pien di maraviglia gli fa onore. Deh! qual selvaggio core Non lagrimasse forte di dolcezza, Vedendo l’opre sante e l’umil viso? Se adunque è un paradiso Il corpo al mondo, e tanto qui si prezza, Che fia a veder di spirto la bellezza?
O felice alma, che giammai non torse Il santo piè dal dritto suo cammino, Sempre sprezzando quel che ’l mondo brama. . . . . . . .
. . . . .
Notes
- 1 ↩Sposo is the mystical Spouse (Christ); kept as Spouse for the virgin saint’s bridal vocation.
- 2 ↩membra sante rendered as holy body (saint’s mortal remains left on earth); could also be holy limbs/members.
- 3 ↩Archaic felo = fe' lo ("made it/her"); rendered as "has made you" with Spirto gentil as vocative address to Catherine. o refrigerio could be vocative "O refreshment" or predicative "a refreshment"; sense is equivalent.
- 4 ↩Vergine beata and sposa coronata address Catherine of Bologna as consecrated virgin and bride of Christ, not the Virgin Mary.
- 5 ↩"del suo spirto par che si rimembra" can mean either that the body seems still mindful of its spirit, or that onlookers are put in mind of her spirit; rendered as the former, in parallel with "par che viva ancora."
- 6 ↩Italian "Deh!" is a soft devotional exclamation of appeal/longing; rendered as "Ah!" rather than heavier "Alas!" or archaic "Prithee."
- 7 ↩"selvaggio core" is the wild/untamed heart (hard, unfeeling), not "savage" in a modern pejorative sense.
- 8 ↩Source is a Guasti lacuna mark (…………), not recoverable Italian prose; segmenter split the ellipsis dots into empty sentence units.
Lauds companion
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Chosen Portion is a modern Book of Hours: it turns the fixed-hour structure this collection preserves into scheduled, tappable daily prayer on your phone.
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