Elene then commands the Hebrews to select those among them who best know the ancient writings. They choose their 500 wisest men. Elene addresses them, telling them that they have rejected the Scriptures by not accepting Christ. They reply that they have followed Hebrew law. Elene commands them to find the single individual who possesses the greatest wisdom. They choose a man named Judas. He notes that it is very important that they do not tell Elene where the Cross is hidden; otherwise, the children of Israel will not longer be able to rule over the earth.

 Elene, lines 364-453: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (320)

Elene calls together the 3000 most learned among the Hebrews and lectures them about their error in not accepting the Redeemer. She commands them to find men who will be able to answer he questions. The Hebrews select 1000 men who are most knowledgeable about ancient writings. Elene addresses them, reminding them of the teachings of Moses, David and Isaiah.

 Elene, lines 276-363: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (259)

Constantine converts to Christianity and is very happy about it. He then sends his mother, Elene (Helen) to the land of the Jews with a troop of soldiers to search for where the Cross is buried.

There is a nicely done set piece describing the troops marshaling and going aboard the ships and the ships then sailing across the Mediterranean Sea. The ships land at a harbor in the land of the Greeks, and the troops and Elene leave them and travel over land to Jerusalem.

 Elene, lines 194-275: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (256)

Constantine commands a banner / representation of the Cross to be made and carried into battle. The passage that follows is perhaps the single most technically proficient description of a battle in Angl0-Saxon poetry. The Huns are scattered, and Constantine and the Romans are victorious. Constantine then gathers his wise men and asks if any of them know whose symbol the Cross is. The wisest tell Constantine that it is Christ’s symbol, and they tell him a little about the Trinity, Incarnation, Crucifixion, Harrowing of Hell and Resurrection.

 Elene, lines 99-193: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (251)

It is two hundred and thirty-three years after the birth of Jesus and the sixth year of the emperor Constantine.  A great army of Huns is approaching and threatens to overrun the Romans.  Constantine dreams that he sees a man who says the God wishes Constantine to win his battle “Look to the heavens for a sign of victory.” Constantine looks to the sky and sees the Cross in glory, bejeweled.  Written on the cross are letters that proclaim “that with this symbol you will defeat the hostile armies.”

 Elene, lines 1-98: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (265)

One of the most admired poems in the Anglo-Saxon corpus, The Dream of the Rood tells the story of Christ’s crucifixion from the point of view of the Cross itself.

 Dream of the Rood, lines 1-156 [all]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1681)

The debate between the soul and the body concludes.

 Soul and Body I, lines 88-166 [end]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (315)

This is the first half of a poem in which the soul returns to the body to berate it for its behavior during life.  There is a gory depiction of worms eating the body.

A very similar poem, creatively named Soul and Body II, is found in booklet III of the Exeter Book.

 Soul and Body I, lines 1-87: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (334)

This poetic fragment of 47 lines exhorts people to be better so that, at the end of life, they are able to see heaven and the angels.

 Homiletic Fragment I [all]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (304)

This poem contains one of the famous runic “signatures” that indicates that Cynewulf was the author. A passage towards the end of the poem uses runes to spell out letters that can be re-arranged to spell “Cynwulf.” This is possible because Anglo-Saxon runes had names as well as phonetic values; for example, the rune “wyn” (which looks somewhat like a “p” with a triangle instead of a half-circle loop) means “joy” and also the sound “w.” (so using runes in writing was the Anglo-Saxon equivalent of text-message speak: Where R U, U R L8 works the same way).  Runic Cynewulf signatures are also found in Elene (also in the Vercelli Book) and Christ II and Juliana (in the Exeter Book).

The poem itself tells of the fates of the apostles after the death and resurrection of Christ and is thus a simplified martyrology. It is particularly notable for the similarity between its introductory passage and that of Beowulf (which you can listen to if you buy Beowulf Aloud). The Fates of the Apostles is most aesthetically appealing at the end of the poem, where Cynewulf implores the reader who has been pleased by the poem to pray for the poet’s soul.

 Fates of the Apostles, lines 1-122 [all]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (336)