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All Saints’ Day

by Gabrielle de Coignard (c.1550–1586),
translated by Margaret Coats

O Saints, you have your heritage in hand
Because you battled Satan’s sanctimony!
Though burned or tortured, you gave testimony;
A thousand torments tore your valiant band.
Arrived in port, you see the whirlwinds fanned
Around our boat embarked through chasms stony.
Assist it soon! Employ your patrimony
To row us as we steer toward promised land.
Be each the patron of the realm you love,
Wherein you spread the Gospel from above.
Swing forth your censer’s balmy swirl of prayers;
Invoke our Lord that we make proselytes
And celebrate His customary rites,
While braving dreadful tempests as your heirs.

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All Souls’ Day

by Gabrielle de Coignard,
translated by Margaret Coats

You holy souls now being purged in flames
(A bitter price for debts here left unpaid),
Receive today the satisfactions made
On your behalf to yield what justice claims.
The Church on earth three fervent Masses frames
And Requiem aeternam has relayed
To saints above in litanies for aid;
Apostles, martyrs, angels, all she names.
It seems, at prayer, I see their chief, Saint Michael,
As you escape the purifying cycle,
Lift multitudes to merited release.
Glad spirits who become inhabitants
Of heaven through this day’s deliverance,
Pray for the much-afflicted Church’s peace!

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For the Magdalen’s Day

by Gabrielle de Coignard,
translated by Margaret Coats

O happy friend of God, Saint Magdalen,
Who so well served your Master and your Lord,
And not a shadow of His grief ignored
That on the Cross He bore to gladden men,
You made of tears a fountain crystalline
To bathe the feet of Him whom you adored,
And on them rich ambrosial liquor poured,
Which greedy Judas thought a wasteful sin.
Then thirty years upon high cliffs you passed,
Sustained by mercies that forever last,
Because your friendship proved its perfect zeal.
True penitence to us you demonstrate;
Pray, if you will, that we assimilate
The love and sacrifice of your ideal.

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Poet’s Note: The “thirty years upon high cliffs” refers to contemplative time spent by the Magdalen in Provence, where she arrived after being set adrift from Palestine on a rudderless raft by malicious enemies.

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French original

Le jour de la Toussaincts

O Saints qui possedez le celeste heritage
Ayant contre Sathan hardiment bataillé,
L’un a esté bruslé et l’autre tenaillé,
Souffrant mille tourments d’un genereux courage.
Vous regardez du port nostre mondain orage,
Et ce pauvre bateau des vagues travaillé,
Secourez le bien tost puis qu’il vous est baillé,
L’aviron en la main pour surgir au rivage.
Chacun soit le patron de son pais aymé,
Ou vous avez si bien l’Evangile semé,
Ouvrez cest encensoir embasmé de prieres,
Impetrez du Seigneur qu’en sa saincte maison
Nous puissions en tout temps faire nostre oraison,
Gardant sa saincte foy parmy tant de miseres.

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Pour le jour des Trespassez

Ames qui vous purgez dans la flame bruslante,
Et paiez aigrement vos debtes emportez,
Recevez aujourd’huy les bonnes volontez
Que va faisant pour vous l’Eglise militante.
Elle presente à Dieu son oraison fervente,
Mandiant humblement les hautes sainctetez
Des Apostres, Martyrs, Anges, principautez,
Et tout l’ordre sacré et bande triomphante.
Helas! Il m’est advis que je voy sainct Michel
Par le comandement du grand Dieu eternel
Eslever dans le ciel mainte ame repurgée.
O vous heureux esprits qui ce celebre jour
Estes faicts habitants du celeste sejour,
Priez pour le repos de l’Eglise affligée.

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Pour le jour de la Magdaleine

Saincte amye de Dieu, heureuse Magdaleine,
Qui as si bien servi ton doux maistre et Seigneur,
Et tousjours assisté à l’amere douleur
Qu’il souffrit à la Croix pour nous oster de peine.
Tu as faict de tes pleurs une large fontaine,
Arrosant les saincts pieds de nostre Redempteur,
Sur luy as espandu la tresriche liqueur,
Que l’avaritieux estimoit chose vaine.
Tu as vescu trente ans parmy les Roches hautes,
Nourrie du Seigneur qui pardonna tes fautes,
Parce que tu l’aymois de parfaicte amitié.
Tu montres le chemin de vraie penitence;
Prie le s’il te plaist qu’il nous doint repentence,
Et que de nos pechez il veuille avoir pitié.

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Margaret Coats lives in California.  She holds a Ph.D. in English and American Literature and Language from Harvard University.  She has retired from a career of teaching literature, languages, and writing that included considerable work in homeschooling for her own family and others. 

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19 Responses

  1. James Sale

    Thanks for these lovely sonnets, Margaret: they come across as profound meditations and prayers, which of course is right and proper. It’s good to be reminded of these things.

    Reply
    • Margaret Coats

      Thank you, James. These three of the French poets 129 sonnets are indeed prayers for “us,” in the second one explicitly for the afflicted Church. They seemed appropriate for the present time.

      Reply
  2. Jeremiah Johnson

    Margaret, I really like the “prayers” uttered for the Church in the closing lines of the 2nd and 3rd sonnets – for her peace and for the realization in her of Christ’s “love and sacrifice.” As a Protestant, my beliefs are a bit at odds with those assumed in the 1st and 2nd stanzas, so I enjoyed and found the Magdalene one the most inspiring. That said, I see the practical rationale behind praying to the Saints – after all, they are “alive,” and I have no problem asking other living individuals for prayer – and behind Purgatory – it does make sense that we wouldn’t go from our impure state at death to heavenly perfection in the blink of an eye – along with Lewis, I’m tempted to believe in Purgatory and can say that, if I wake from death and find myself there, I hope I won’t be too shocked. That said, the miracle of instant change is just as possible for our Lord – and, in either, case, I pray with Paul, “Come quickly, Lord!” Again, thank you for your poems, which I’ve forwarded to some friends.

    Reply
    • Margaret Coats

      Thank you, Jeremiah, for appreciating these enough to send them on to others. And thanks for thinking “out loud” about the doctrinal issues. It is certain that many of us will need further purification before we are ready for the full vision of God. You’ll be amused to hear that my choirmaster uses purgatory as a symbol of where we go in music when the note or the timing is just a little off. He tells us that we need to aim for heaven with skill and strength enough to get there, because if we aim for purgatory and miss, we are likely to fall into hell. And we must help each other by not misleading those who are relying on us, otherwise the entire choir drops into hell. We did well for All Saints’ Day–onward and upward!

      Reply
  3. Roy Eugene Peterson

    How one can translate sonnets and yet retain the essence, as well as the form of the original, portrays a marvelous talent and diligence conjoined with discipline and verbal dexterity. These are wonderful translations of sonnets with which I am not familiar, but which buttress the soul and lead to contemplation of the divine.

    Reply
    • Margaret Coats

      Thanks for your appreciation, Roy. Gabrielle de Coignard is not at all well known, but when I first encountered her work and translated a selection of sonnets, I used them for months as an impetus to contemplation. Glad that you too find them worthwhile.

      Reply
  4. Cynthia Erlandson

    Thank you for beautifully observing these holy days in poetry, Margaret. I found the third one to be the most moving.

    Reply
    • Margaret Coats

      It adds much to our holy days to observe them in poetry, as you say, Cynthia. Thank you for reading and commenting.

      Reply
  5. Brian A. Yapko

    These are all three superb translations, Margaret, for days which are holy in intent but which has become overshadowed by the secularization of Halloween and the cultural phenomenon that is the Day of the Dead, which has also become largely secularized. You provide a much needed reminder of the importance of going back to the Christian purpose that infuses these holy days.

    All three poems are quite beautiful and well-crafted. The one which most struck me, however, was “For the Magdalen’s Day” — it offers such a personal view of Mary Magdalen and her attentive relationship to Jesus — a relationship which is so relatable and down-to-earth. And it is especially helpful to compare and contrast Mary M’s treatment of Jesus and her concerns for His welfare versus the values that Judas cared about: the “wastefulness” of ointments for Jesus, for example. The final four lines of this poem, though short, present a surprisingly comprehensive summary of Christian values:

    Because your friendship proved its perfect zeal.
    True penitence to us you demonstrate;
    Pray, if you will, that we assimilate
    The love and sacrifice of your ideal.

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    Reply
    • Margaret Coats

      Yes, Brian, the saints have been Our Lord’s best friends because they have been attentive to Him, and done their best to imitate Him, each in the unique way for which each one was given grace. Our part is to become worthy members of the family! Madeleine is one with whom I feel closest, having twice climbed those rocky cliffs where she spent so much time in contemplation. Her relics are preserved not far away in the town named after Saint Maximin, one of the 72 disciples sent out in addition to the Twelve. A wayside cross on the road between the two places marks the spot where Madeleine met Maximin for her Last Communion when she knew she was dying. And as I could hardly believe, much about the presence of them and other earliest Christians in France has been meticulously documented during the last century and a half. The preservation of the evidence itself is miraculous, and wonderful to discover. Gabrielle de Coignard was from the region, too!

      Reply
  6. Bruce Phenix

    Margaret, thank you for these lovely versions. While I appreciate that you’ve needed to translate quite freely in some places in order to reproduce the strict sonnet form which is so important, I feel you’ve done so in a beautiful and respectful way that captures the spirit of the original poems. I love “Swing forth your censer’s balmy swirl of prayers”!

    Reply
    • Margaret Coats

      Bruce, thanks very much for your attention and appreciation. Your long experience as a translator makes your good opinion of my work all the more valuable to me.

      There is always a balance between artistry and accuracy, which the translator needs to achieve in a way that is, as you say, both beautiful and respectful of the original. My line you love, if translated with strict literalism, would read, “Open this censer embalmed of prayers.” The literal English has questionable meaning, both because English and French usage vary, and because of the word whose English connotations naturally distract English readers, in making them imagine something preserved by embalming.

      I apologize for the effrontery of referencing other work of mine, but I think you might be interested by my essay on translation published here in 2022. I believe I showed, by citing several translations of a very short poem, that acceptable translations ALL respect certain limits to unusual rendering of foreign words, and to importing English words without justification from the original. That makes it possible for readers to relax and enjoy the translation, rather than worry about translator fidelity.

      But the unexpected result appearing through the Comments was that readers preferred a smooth version with contemporary feel, even though it was the one that did most to introduce English idiom. Take a look whenever convenient for you, and see what you think.

      https://classicalpoets.org/2022/03/09/comparing-translations-of-charles-dorleans-by-margaret-coats/

      Reply
      • Bruce Phenix

        Margaret, Thank you so much for your reply, which I really appreciated. Your essay on translation looks fascinating – I’ll read it carefully and write again as soon as I can!

      • Bruce Phenix

        Margaret, Just to let you know that I’ve now read your essay on translation – together with the many comments you received and your conscientious replies to them! – and have thoroughly enjoyed it all. Thank you for referring me to your essay, which greatly interested me in itself and also stimulated such a lively and fascinating discussion. I felt it was highly illuminating that you focused on a short poem which had attracted the attention of so many translators, and I find myself strongly in agreement with your outlook on translation and your thoughts on the need to balance accuracy with artistry and creativity. Thank you again!

      • Margaret Coats

        Thank you, Bruce, for letting me know so much of what you thought about the essay and the discussion flowing from it. It was a unique opportunity to look at translation from a new perspective.

  7. Gregory Ross

    Margaret I love your translation of All Saints Day! I have never heard of that sonnet before, but I love his use of nautical metaphors to articulate our life on earth! Thank you for this!

    Reply
    • Margaret Coats

      Thank you, Gregory! The Church as a boat is a natural symbol from the Apostle Peter having been a fisherman, but here the French poet takes it into violent storms at sea, suggested by troubles in her times. She did not have a long life, writing just one group of sonnets. An English translation came out in 2004, but translator Melanie Gregg made it a crib sheet of ragged prose lines to help readers understand the French. It has not attracted readers interested in English poetry–which is a shame, as the poems are beautifully crafted sonnets. Glad you liked the one for All Saints!

      Reply
  8. Laura Deagon

    Margaret, this trio of poems is a lovely read. I think your translation maintains the sense of the original version even though I don’t read French. There is a nice flow to them.

    Reply
    • Margaret Coats

      Laura, thank you for attention to these poems that deal with the month as well as its first days. The French poet is an expect at beautiful sonnet flow.

      Reply

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