Lollard Sermons

The nature of the Lollards and their beliefs are evident in these sermons, composed for popular transmission and as a manual for the preacher. They range in subject from gospel sermons, an optional expansion, the Sermon of Dead Men, and a funeral sermon.

These Lollard sermons are edited from British Library MS Additional 41321; Oxford, Bodleian Library MS Rawlinson c.751; Manchester, John Rylands Library MS 412; with introductory sections: I. The Manuscripts, by Jeremy Griffiths, and II. The Language, by Jeremy Smith; and three other introductions written by Gloria Cigman which contain extensive information about the texts and the manuscripts. They are distinctive in their intense preoccupation with the role of the preacher and the exposition of the scriptures, and in the total absence of narrative exempla. They were evidently composed for both popular transmission and as a manual for the preacher, who is sometimes urged to elaborate, or directed to other material relevant to his theme, or offered multiple exegesis for his own instruction and from which to select when preaching. There is a consistent flavour of popular Lollardy in the vocabulary and attitudes expressed. Marked differences between the sermons, however, suggest more than one sermon-writer and an overall intention to demonstrate different preaching methods.This edition includes an introductory discussion, glossary, and notes to the text, together with a two-part index of scriptural texts, one sermon by sermon, the other alphabetical.