VII. Viene 'l messaggio – e lo spirito saggio!
The Descent of the Spirit
The Holy Spirit descends upon the world like fire and light to enlighten souls and liberate them from the enemy.
Here comes the message—and the wise spirit! It comes from the heavenly realms—new and sweet sounds, joyful and not harsh, descending from the high choirs—in the form of vapor and a luminous ray. He comes like a fire kindled and like divided tongues: the apostles have understood, and their souls are clothed in garments of many colors and with every language. And he comes to light the darkened world, to save our souls; each one will be freed from that ungrateful enemy who took the evil path.
A Prayer for Transformation
A direct invocation of the Spirit to enter the heart, purify the soul, and guide the believer along the path of virtue.
Come, true Spirit, enter our hearts: make our spirit whole, purify our faults, and keep us firm and held close to doing what is for our good. Show us your way; show us your power. The soul still longs to see its salvation, and through virtue, it seeks to escape its ruin.1 O gift of God Most High, O true Majesty, most ardent Spirit—how great your goodness is!2 With your great love, we'll make the good passage.3
The Gifts and the Call to Holiness
The poet reflects on the seven gifts of the Spirit and prays for the strength to overcome sin and the enemy.
Seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are named.✦ Even seven million wouldn't be enough to say it: whoever walks your path turns sorrow into song.4 Kindle our senses, strengthen our hearts—for virtue is fitting to loves like these. Make us feel great sweetness, and leave every offense behind. Drive our great enemy far from us; blot out the ancient sin, and shut hell to his detriment.5
The Mystery of the Incarnation and Doxology
The chapter concludes by linking the Spirit's work to the Incarnation of the Son and offering a final prayer of grace to the Trinity and the Mother.
For your sake, our Father sent His Son from heaven into that holy mother to make Himself like us; it was by divine counsel, as I've shown you. Grace be to you, Father, entirely to the Son, and to the holy Mother, and to the burning Spirit—of whom may all humankind thirst.
Read the original Latin
Viene ’l messaggio - e lo spirito saggio!
Vien da’ regni celesti, (Nuovi e dolci romori, Giocondi e non molesti, Scendon dagli alti cori) In forma di vapori E luminoso raggio.
Vien come foco acceso E lingue dispartite: Gli apostoli àn compreso E l’ alme lor vestite Di veste colorite E di ciascun linguaggio.
E’ viene a ’lluminare Il mondo intenebrato, Le nostre alme a salvare; Ciascun fie liberato Da quel nimico ingrato Che prese il mal viaggio.
Vieni, spirito vero, Entra ne’ nostri petti: Facci l’ animo intero, Purga e’ nostri difetti, E tienci saldi e stretti A far nostro vantaggio.
Mostraci la tuo via, Mostraci tuo virtute: L’ anima pur disia Veder la suo salute E cerca con virtute Fuggire il suo dannaggio.
O don di Dio altissimo, O vera maestade, Spirito vementissimo, Quant’ é la tuo bontade! Con tuo gran caritade Fareno el buon passaggio.
Sette si dicon doni Dello Spirito Santo. Di sette milïoni Non si potre’ dir tanto: Verte el dolore in canto Chi va pel tuo viaggio.
Accendi e’ nostri sensi, Conferma e’ nostri cuori, Chè la virtù conviensi A così fatti amori; Fa’ sentir gran dolzori E lasciar ogni oltraggio.
El nostro gran nimico Da noi fa’ dilungare: E el peccato antico A’ fatto cancellare E l’ inferno serrare A suo disavvantaggio.
Per te el nostro padre Mandò di cielo el figlio In quella santa madre A farsi a noi simiglio: Fu per divin consiglio, Come mostrato i’ v’ aggio.
Grazia sia a te, padre, Al figlio interamente Ed alla santa madre E allo spirito ardente; Del qual sie sizïente Tutto l’ uman lignaggio.
Scripture echoes
- ↩Isa.11.2-Isa.11.3 — And the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him—the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD. Isa.11.3 — And his delight shall be in the fear of the LORD. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, nor decide by what his ears hear.
Notes
- 1 ↩virtute appears twice: first as the Spirit’s virtute (rendered power); second as the soul’s means (con virtute → with virtue). Tuscan lauda diction allows both force and moral strength.
- 2 ↩vementissimo is treated as veementissimo (most vehement/ardent); source orthography is nonstandard but sense is clear in Holy Spirit address.
- 3 ↩caritade rendered as love per default charity/love policy; divine theological virtue is in view. passaggio kept as 'passage' for the spiritual crossing/journey (cf. next section's viaggio).
- 4 ↩«Di sette milïoni / Non si potre’ dir tanto» is hyperbolic understatement: even with seven million (words/praises), one still could not say so much of the Spirit's gift.
- 5 ↩A' fatto is read as causative/petitionary force with fa' (drive… blot… shut), not as a separate past-tense claim (hai fatto). peccato antico is rendered “ancient sin” (original/primeval sin); nimico is the Devil.
Storie Sacre and Laude of Lucrezia Tornabuoni de' Medici companion
A prayer for every moment, already on your phone
Chosen Portion puts a curated historic prayer in front of you each day — so the words are there before the moment arrives.
Chosen Portion is the digital descendant of the carried prayer book: the short daily prayers this collection preserves, delivered one a day to your pocket.
- One short, memorable prayer delivered daily — build your repertoire a card at a time
- Prayers matched to real situations: fear, gratitude, decisions, grief, sleep
- Save favourites into your personal pocket collection you can open anywhere