The Great Sentence of Excommunication (Middle English) (from John Mirk's Instructions for Parish Priests, c. 1400; the sentence from Bodleian MS Douce 103, 15th century)

When and How the Great Sentence is Pronounced

Magna sententia pronuncienda [The great sentence, to be pronounced].

The great sentence I write here,

That twice or thrice in the year

Thou shalt pronounce, without let,

When thy parish is together met.

Thou shalt pronounce this hideous thing

With cross and candle and bell knelling;

Speak out readily, for nought thou wond [hold back],

That all may thee understand.

Et tunc dicat isto modo [And then let him say in this manner]:

The Articles of the Curse

By authority of God Almighty, Father and Son and Holy Ghost, and of all the saints of heaven: first we accursen all those that break the peace of holy church or disturb it; also all those that withhold any freedoms of holy church or bear away, that is to understand lands, houses, rents or freedoms, or procure whereby holy church is impaired.

Also all those that for wrath or for hate of any parson or vicar withhold proper tithings, or destroy them with themselves or with their beasts, or bear them away, and all that consent thereto in harming of the parson or of the vicar or their proctors.

Also all that unrightfully defame any person or procure him to be defamed; also all that burn holy church or any other place, and all that consent thereto; also all common and open thieves, robbers, that against the peace of the king rob and reave and slay and take away any man's goods, and all their receivers and consenters.

Also all heretics that do willingly against the law of holy church and the faith of Christendom, in word or deed or counsel or in example; and all those okerers and usurers that because of winning lend their chattel to their even-Christian till a certain day for a more price than it might have been sold in time of loan.

Also all that defame man or woman, wherefore their state and their los [good name] is impaired, for envy or for hate; also all that falsen the pope's letters or bills or seals; also all that falsen the king's money or clip it; also all that falsen or use false measures, bushels, gallons, and pottles, quarts [cups] or false weights, pounds or poundrels, or false ell-yards, wittingly otherwise than the law of the land will.

Also all that ordain or bear false witness against matrimony lawfully made, or against testament that is true, by custom wittingly; also all that distrouble the peace of England, and traitors that be false or assenting to falseness against the king or the realm.

Also all those that bear away holy thing out of holy place, or unholy thing from an holy place; also all that destroy corn or any other fruits that fall to God or holy church, in town or in field, with beasts or with hands wittingly; also all that help with strength or with victuals or succour Jews or Saracens against Christendom.

Also all that slay children, or destroy them born or unborn, with drinks or with witchcraft, and all their consenters; also all that stand or hearken by nights under walls, doors or windows, for to spy touching evil; and all house-breakers and man-quellers; also all that commune with a cursed man or woman wittingly; also all that maintain them in their sin; also all that make false charters or false heirs wittingly.

[Also all that make experiments or witchcraft or charms with ointments of holy church, and all that believe on them; also all that draw away or withhold any tithings for wrath of any man, or falsely tithe.] Also all that lay hand on priest or clerk in violence or harm, but it be in self-defence [or any man in church or churchyard]; also all those that withdraw or withhold any holy things.

Also all that defile sanctuary, wherefore the [holy] office is withdrawn, or church or churchyard must be new hallowed, but they come to amendment; also all false executors that make false testaments and dispose the goods of him that is dead otherwise than his will was at his departing [or let his bequest to church or to any other place; also all that lay their children at any way-lets or at any church doors or at any other common ways, and leave them].

The Sentence

Isto modo pronunciari debet sentencia [In this manner the sentence ought to be pronounced]. The sentence.

By the authority of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, and of our Lady Saint Mary, God's mother of heaven, and all other virgins, and Saint Michael, and all other apostles, and Saint Stephen and all other martyrs, and Saint Nicholas and all other confessors, and of all the holy hallows of heaven: We accursen and warren and depart from all good deeds and prayers of holy church, and of all these hallows, and damn into the pain of hell, all those that have done these articles that we have said before, till they come to amendment.

We accursen them by the authority of the court of Rome, within and without, sleeping or waking, going and sitting, standing and riding, lying above earth and under earth, speaking and crying and drinking; in wood, in water, in field, in town. Accursen them Father and Son and Holy Ghost; accursen them angels and archangels and all the nine orders of heaven; accursen them patriarchs, prophets and apostles, and all God's disciples, and all holy Innocents, martyrs, confessors and virgins, monks, canons, hermits, priests and clerks: that they have no part of mass nor matins nor of none other good prayers that be done in holy church nor in none other places, but that the pains of hell be their meed, with Judas that betrayed our Lord Jesu Christ; and the life of them be put out of the book of life, till they come to amendment and satisfaction made. Fiat, fiat. Amen.

The Candle, the Spitting and the Bells

Then thou thy candle shalt cast to ground,

And spit thereto the same stound [moment],

And let also the bells knell,

To make their hearts the more grill [afraid].

Other points be many and fell [fierce],

That be not well for to hele [conceal],

That thou might know thyself best

In the charter of the Forest;

In the great charter also

Thou might see many mo [more].