St Edward the Confessor - Anglo-Saxon and Catholic Christian

Today, were it not a Sunday, would be the Feast of St Edward the Confessor, a patron of England, of the Monarchy and of the Order of the Garter. His feast is kept on the anniversary of the translation of his relics at Westminster  in 1163 and 1269 rather than the anniversary of his death.

 

  

St Edward the Confessor from the Bayeux Tapestry

Image: Wikipedia 

St Edward the Confessor from the Wilton Diptych, circa 1397

This was from probably peak of his cult under King Richard II

Image: Wikipedia

St Edward the Confessor as depicted in an icon commissioned in 2019 for his shrine in Westminster Abbey

Image: Westminster Abbey

Wikipedia, which is very detailed in its lives of Anglo-Saxon royalty, has a lengthy account of his life and cult at Edward the Confessor

The other week I posted in More academic folly  about the blinkered nonsense of those academics who re-name courses and journals dealing with Anglo-Saxon history and literature as Early English or Early Medieval - there is, I stress, nothing wrong per se in that specific terminology - because of a “woke” perception, notably in the US, that “Anglo-Saxon” has white supremacist connotations.

Thomas Casemore has written a very good article about this phenomenon, and its wider implications, in The Catholic Herald. It can be read at Another attack on Britain’s Christian heritage: Don't say 'Anglo-Saxon' Catholic

May St Edward the Confessor pray for the King and the nation

St Wilfrid

Today is the Feast of St Wilfrid, the great Northumbrian born seventh and early eighth century Bishop of York, and then of Hexham, founder of what became the see of Chichester, tireless missionary and a determined and combative fighter for the rights of the Church and its adhesion to the Roman obedience.

I have posted about him in 2010 in St Wilfrid, in 2011 in Celebrating St Wilfrid, in 2013 in More on St Wilfrid, and in 2022 in St Wilfrid. These cover more of his life and achievements, and have links to relevant sites.

I have also written about his place in the formation of Fr Faber in my 2011 article St Wilfrid and Fr Faber. Continuing the Oratorian theme in 2013 I wrote about the foundation at the church of St Wilfrid in York of a new Oratory in the city in St Wilfrid's York

A modern depiction of St Wilfrid

Image: St. Wilfrid’s Catholic High School

A while back I happened upon an online piece which interviewed the author of an English Historical Review article about the way in which those who claimed the St Wilfrid on his deathbed in 709/10 at Oundle had nominated them to succeed him in the abbacy at Ripon or to the see of Hexham, and happened to be the only witnesses to what the saint had said…. The article can be read at Historian turns detective to uncover ancient Ripon conspiracy

Whilst looking for illustrations I found a very well illustrated account of Hexham Abbey ( strictly speaking Priory) on the website of Great English Churches. This has, in addition to splendid views of the interior of the later medieval church and of the stone episcopal seat from the Anglo-Saxon era, a good selection of pictures of the significant quantity of painted decorative woodwork from the fifteenth century in the building. It may not be the greatest art but it does indicate what medieval church interiors were like. The article can be seen at Hexham Abbey

Hexham Abbey is very well worth seeing, as is the very attractive town centre as part of an exploration of Hadrian’s Wall, looking for the Wars of the Roses battlefield or at the Jacobite associations of Dilston Castle, or simply enjoying the glorious Northumberland countryside.

St Wilfrid Pray for us

The Sacristy at Westminster Abbey

Writing about the proposed rebuilding of the north-west tower and spire of the Abbey of St Denis coincides, I find, with publicity about a not altogether dissimilar project at what is in not a few ways its English equivalent as a royal monastery and necropolis, Westminster Abbey. This is the plan to rebuild on the excavated medieval foundations the Great Sacristy which was an original part of King Henry III’s scheme. It stood to the north of the nave, an almost freestanding structure on an L plan, linked at one end to the North Transept, and on the other to the north door of the nave. It was demolished in the early eighteenth century. The new building will rise from the medieval foundations and provide storage space and serve as an entrance for visitors to the Abbey, who will then walk round to the West Door to enter the main building. As a new building in the present reign it is to be named the King Charles III Sacristy.

Westminster Abbey has produced two short videos about the project which can be seen with the Dean at Introducing: The King Charles III Sacristy. and with the architect at  Designing: The King Charles III Sacristy . The main website, which includes those two videos, can be viewed at The King Charles III Sacristy | Westminster Abbey

There is also a video of The Queen visiting the site as the recently announced Patron of the scheme, which can be seen at Camilla tours site of new King Charles III Sacristy at Westminster Abbeyand in a longer version at Queen becomes Patron of Westminster Abbey's Sacristy project

There is a report on the excavation from the archaeologists responsible for the work, Pre-Construct Archaeology, which can be seen at Westminster Abbey – Pre Construct Archaeology

There are other reports from 2020  about the excavation in The Guardian at Lost medieval sacristy uncovered at Westminster Abbey, and shorter ones in Current Archaeology at Sacristy uncovered at Westminster Abbey, and in Archaeology Magazine at Medieval Great Sacristy Uncovered at Westminster Abbey - Archaeology Magazine

Rebuilding at St Denis

In 2020 I wrote about the proposal to rebuild of missing north-west tower and spire of the Abbey of St Denis. My post can be seen at Restoring St Denis

In it I write enthusiastically in favour of the scheme, and it is one, like the rebuilding of the Frauenkirke in Dresden or watching videos of the ongoing restoration of Wentworth Woodhouse in my home area, that brings a lump to my throat and a tear to my eye. Such is the impact upon me of such restorations that so defiantly resist the destructive urges of recent times.

St Denis as it is now and as it is hoped it will be

Image:FSSPX News

I am not the only person to feel enthusiastic about the project as can be seen from the Reddit post at From the ArchitecturalRevival community on Reddit: The Basilique de Saint-Denis's Northern tower will be rebuilt, I'm so glad ! It's a really important church in French history as it was a the resting place of many kings and queens before the Revolution. They're currently running archaeological digs before starting.

There are those who are not in favour as reported by The Times in French academics at odds over €25m plans to rebuild spire of Basilica of Saint-Denis. and as set out by one critic, founder of La Tribune de l’Art quoted in The Connexion at Rebuilding church’s long lost tower is ‘historic lie’

This reminds me somewhat of the reaction in this country of that pioneering conservation group the Society for the Protection of Ancient Monuments who withdrew their intended donation towards the restoration of the west front of Wells Cathedral because the Dean and Chapter commissioned a new statue of Christ in to replace the damaged one, reduced as it was only to waist height, of the top of the west front. Leaving it as a ruin was seen by the Society as preferable to restoring the figure of Christ on the front of a functioning cathedral.

Whilst I can appreciate some of the reservations expressed by dissenters at St Denis I remain completely convinced this is the right thing to do. The foundations have been found to be secure after all, and the threat to the Merovingian era graves obviated.  There are detailed drawings from the 1840s, and some at least of the original stonework survives. The taking down of the tower and spire in 1845-6 was meant to be a temporary measure. The delay in rebuilding is an indictment of state control of church buildings, not of the idea. The fact that this planned rebuilding began in the reign of Louis Philippe speaks sufficiently for French bureaucracy, neglect and probably anti-clericalism and anti-royalism.

An article last year in Le Monde covered the excavations of the Merovingian levels and the investigation of the foundations and can be seen at Basilica of Saint-Denis: Newly discovered graves bring back the past

The scheme and debate about it is also outlined on the FSSPX News website at Work Begins on the Spire of Saint-Denis

However the nay-sayers appear to have been held at bay, and scheme does seem to be going ahead, albeit rather slowly. A report covers trading new stonemasons at Masons are restoring the church where France's kings were buried for centuries

The rebuilding is entirely privately funded and looks to attract other funding from visitors whilst they work is carried out. This has been found to be a successful fundraising method in France. The hope  is the building work will prove a means of drawing visitors to Saint Denis and thereby benefit the local economy and community. St Denis is noted as a run-down area, with a high immigrant population and a poor reputation with outsiders. One hears stories of intending visitors to the Abbey being advised against such a visit by Parisian hoteliers, or telling them to just visit the Basilica and then to come away. Some of this is covered in a 2017 article on Medieval Histories, which has links to some French websites. It can be seen at Rebuilding or Restoring the spire of Saint-Denis

Wikipedia has a good illustrated history of the fabric of the Abbey, including unrealised proposals for Bonapartist and Orleanist crypts, and of its place in the history of France and of art and architecture at Basilica of Saint-Denis

The misfortunes inflicted upon this great and noble building from the end of the medieval era until the end of the Ancien Regime is outlined in Deterioration and first renovations of the Saint-Denis Basilica. Then followed the horrific ransacking of the royal tombs and remains in 1793.

As a building the Abbey has suffered much from those with wicked intentions and from those with misguided if well intentioned ones. This rebuilding is not - it is positive, it is renewing and restoring one of the most important buildings in the history of France and of Christian Art.

St Denis Pray for this scheme and its completion, and continue to pray for his shrine church.

St Denis

Today is traditionally the day on which the Church has commemorated St Denis and his companions, three martyrs from the mid-third century. As the proto-martyrs of Paris their cult flourished in the diocese, and especially around the grave of the martyr bishop to the north of the city. This became the centre of the immensely influential abbey named in his honour, and which witnessed the birth of gothic architecture. Wikipedia has an account of his cult at Denis of Paris

I have posted about St Denis and his depiction in religious art in past years. Unfortunately not all of the images have downloaded but there is still a good selection to view. From 2011 there is St Denis and from 2015 St Denis and his companions

St Denis shown carrying his head after his execution from the Book of Hours of King Charles VIII, painted by Jean Bourdichon. His two companions can be seen at the bottom left.

Image: Wikipedia 

St Denis is probably the most famous cephalaphore saint, and artists and sculptors have depicted him carrying his head in various ways, and sometimes carrying his physical head but having on his shoulders a replacement spiritual one. 

The Last Communion and Martyrdom of St Denis

Commissioned from Henri Bellechose in 1416 by Duke John the Fearless of Burgundy for the Carthusian monastery of Champnol near Dijon. Now in the Louvre.

The spectacular use of blue and gold in the depiction of the vestments is presumably intended to evoke the imagery of the fleur-de-lys of the French monarchy.

The obvious brickwork in the tower on the left points to the Netherlandish origins of the artist. 

The figure of the executioner is interesting. In a painting of the martyrdom of St John the Baptist Rogier van der Weyden, and in a BL Royal MS, executioners are shown like this one as having rolled their hose down to their knees. Was this to avoid blood splatter on their clothing? The axe is typical of the type used for beheadings in Germany and Scandinavia until modern times, and more like a meat cleaver than the English type of executioner’s axe, which can be seen in the example on display in the Tower of London. This looks to be an artist drawing upon actual practice or experience.

Image: Wikipedia 

I will post separately about the plans to rebuild the north western tower of the abbey church - now designated a minor basilica and the cathedral of a diocese - which I wrote about in 2020.

St Denis and his companions Pray for us

St John Henry Newman

Today is the Feast of St John Henry Newman. The date was selected as it is the anniversary of his reception into the Catholic Church by Bl. Dominic Barberi in The College at Littlemore in 1845.

The Newman Canonisation Resource has an illustrated biography with a fine selection of quotations from his writings at About Newman — Saint John Henry

St John Henry Newman about the time of his reception into the Catholic Church.

The original drawing was done in 1844 by George Richmond. After Newman joined Oratory in 1848 this engraved version was produced showing him with an Oratorian collar. It is said that Richmond persuaded him to remove his spectacles so that as an artist he could capture this image, presenting a Newman slightly idealised as a spiritual man, a man with a mission.

Image: Maryvale Institute

Of the writing of books about Newman there seems to be no end, aided in part by the great volume of his writings, both for publication and as private correspondence. His wide ranging intellect and his scholarly method resulted in a treasure trove of Catholic thought and spirituality. Whilst his literary style is, naturally, that of his time it is also elegant and, in that sense, classical English prose, easy to follow in its lucidity, but enriching in its profundity. His writings, like his whole life, were a blending of a very English, Oxford education with deep personal faith that led him on this day 179 years ago, into the Catholic Church, and his embrace of its vast spiritual treasury. A man of the English nineteenth century he developed into one of universal interest and appeal.

A late photograph of St John Henry in his robes as a Cardinal. In reality he very rarely wore them.

Image:Reddit

St John Henry Newman Pray for us

The Shroud of Turin and AI

The recent publicity about the recent research into the date of the Shroud of Turin, about which I have posted several times recently, has now yielded another article. This is in the Daily Express who have produced an AI reconstruction of the Man in the Shroud. I have seen at least one artist’s impression of the face which looks very credible, but this new image has greater impact on the modern eye, accustomed as we are to photographs. Like all such facial reconstructions it carries all the strengths and limitations of a developing technology with it, but it seems to be a very impressive result. As with all things to do with the Holy Shroud it is at the interface of science and faith. 

The article, and the facial reconstruction can be seen at 'Face of Jesus' unveiled by AI using Shroud of Turin after astonishing discovery

The Numerology of the Rosary expounded

Today is the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, the anniversary of the battle of Lepanto in 1571, and this month of October is traditionally presented as being dedicated to the Rosary.

To mark today’s liturgy and the theme for the month the Priestly Fraternity of St Peter have an article on their Minute Missive website by Fr William Rock FSSP about the various and varied interpretations that have been offered for the  number of beads and Aves that comprise a complete rosary. Some of these derive from Scripture, others from mathematics, and virtually none are exclusive of others. There are not a few interesting coincidences along the way. 

The article can be read at There's Something Fishy about that there Rosary

Our Lady of the Rosary, Our Lady of Victories, Pray for us