—sighing and weeping, singing with his lips and weeping in heart—continues sweetly to praise the Mother of God. The candle descends the third time.
“Rafaict le cierge le tiers saut.”
The crowd, in its transport, cries: “Ring, ring the bells,
Plus biax miracle n’avint jamais
—greater miracle was never seen.” The minstrel, with streaming eyes, returns the candle to her who has so miraculously rewarded his devotion, and continues during the remainder of his life not only to sing the praises of Our Lady of Roc Amadour, but to offer her every year a candle still larger than the one she so graciously bestowed on him.
The moral of this old poem dwells on the obligation of honoring God, not merely with the lips, but with a sincere heart:
“Assez braient, et assez crient,
Et leurs gorges assez estendent,
Mais les cordes pas bien ne tendent.
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