CHD Obsecro te

A Text Model for Analysis

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This version of the popular prayer of indulgence OBSECRO TE was compiled on the basis of a large number of french and flemish books of hours from the 15th century, with the purpose to serve me as a reference tool, and to reduce the number of variants when I look for special features in a manuscript. Its special composition has reduced the average number of variants in comparison with a normal text to less than 30. And further improvement to make it even more representative is still possible.

No similar composition is of course found in any source, but some come surprisingly close, like the text in GKS 1612 from around 1500, see the complete transcript in the Guide to GkS 1612 (other full-text transcripts are found in the various CHD Guides). The division in 117 paragraphs is purely practical. In some lines even unlogical, because the presence or absence of one line will exclude another. It has saved me the long quotations otherwise necessary to indicate a variant, but ignores in many lines the intended subdivision of the text. Medieval punctuation and the use of capital letters to indicate a new section was so free and irregular, often spontaneous, that I doubt it is worth while paying attention to, unless it seems to be very unusual, and at the same time also convincingly appears as having been written on purpose.
You are free to print this document for your private research, and to use a copy as a notepad when you look for special variants in a manuscript. It will ease your work and save you a lot of time. A selection of variants is also available, to demonstrate how it works in practise. Click Variants. With the text as model is it also possible to make a complete transcript of the prayer in less than half an hour with a little practise in proofreading from a manuscript source.


1Obsecro te domina sancta maria mater dei
2pietate plenissima
3summi regis filia
4mater gloriosissima
5mater orphanorum
6consolatio desolatorum.
7Via errantium salus
8in te sperantium.
9Virgo ante partum
10virgo in partu
11et virgo post partum.
12Fons misericordie
13Fons salutis et gratie
14Fons pietatis et letitie
15Fons consolationis et indulgentie.
16Per illam sanctam ineffabilem letitiam
17qua exultavit spiritus tuus
18in illa hora quando tibi
19per gabrielem archangelum
20annuntiatus et conceptus
21filius dei fuit.
22Et per illud divinum misterium
23quod tunc operatus est (in te) spiritus sanctus.
24Et per illam sanctam
25ineffabilem
26pietatem
27gratiam
28misericordiam
29amorem et humilitatem
30per quas filius tuus descendit
31accipere humanam carnem
32in venerabilissimo utero tuo.
33Et in quibus te respexit
34quando te commendavit
35sancto iohanni apostolo et evangeliste.
36Et quando te exaltavit
37super choros angelorum.
38Et per illam sanctam
39inestimabilem humilitatem
40in qua tu respondisti
41archangelo gabrieli.
42Ecce ancilla domini: fiat michi secundum verbum tuum.
43Et per illa sanctissima
44quindecim gaudia
45que habuisti de filio tuo
46domino nostro ihesu xpristo.
47Et per illam sanctam
48maximam compassionem
49et accerbissimum cordis dolorem
50quem habuisti quando
51(vidisti) filium tuum
52dominum nostrum iesum xpristum
53ante crucem nudatum
54et in ipsa(m) levatum
55vidisti pendentem
56crucifixum vulneratum
57sicientem fel apponi
58(hely) clamantem audisti
59et morientem vidisti.
60Et per quinque vulnera filij tui.
61Et per contractionem viscerum suorum
62pre nimio dolore vulnerum.
63Et per dolorem quem habuisti
64quando vidisti eum vulnerari.
65Et per fontes sanguinis sui
66et per omnem passionem eius
67et per omnem dolorem cordis tui
68et per fontes lacrimarum tuarum.
69Vt cum omnibus sanctis et electis dei
70veni et festina / venias et festines
71in auxilium et consilium meum
72(et) in omnibus orationibus et requestis meis
73et in omnibus angustijs et necessitatibus meis
74et in omnibus illis rebus
75in quibus ego sum facturus
76locuturus aut cogitaturus
77omnibus diebus ac noctibus
78horis atque momentis vite mee.
79Et michi famulo/e tuo/e (N.) impetres
80a dilecto filio tuo complementum
81omni misericordia et consolatione
82omni consilio omni auxilio et adiutorio
83omni benedictione et sanctificatione
84omni salvatione pace et prosperitate
85omni gaudio et alacritate.
86Etiam (h)abundantiam omnium bonorum
87spiritualium et corporalium.
88Et gratiam sancti spiritus
89qui me bene per omnia disponat
90animam meam custodiat
91corpus meum regat
92mentes erigat
93(cursum dirigat) (sensum erigat)
94mores componat actus probet
95vota et desideria mea perficiat
96cogitationes sanctas instituat
97preterita mala indulgeat
98presentia emendet
99futura moderetur.
100Vitam honestam et honorabilem michi tribuat
101et victoriam contra omnes adversitates huius mundi
102veram pacem spiritualem et corporalem michi tribuat
103Bonam spem caritatem fidem
104castitatem humilitatem et patientiam
105(michi tribuat).
106Quinque sensus corporis mei regat et protegat.
107Septem opera misericordie complere me faciat.
108Duodecim articulos fidei
109et decem precepta legis firmiter tenere et credere me faciat.
110Et a septem peccatis criminalibus me liberet et defendat
111usque in finem.
112Et in novissimis diebus meis ostende michi faciem tuam
113et annunties michi diem et horam obitus mei.
114Et hanc orationem supplicem suscipias et exaudias
115et vitam eternam michi tribuas.
116Audi et exaudi me dulcissima virgo maria
117mater dei et misericordie. Amen.

© Erik Drigsdahl 1993