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Masterpieces 2014
by Ed Masters
St Giles
A Hero from France’s Dark Ages
By Ed Masters France has produced some of the Catholic Church’s greatest heroes as well as her fiercest, most intransigent foes. A little-known French hero is a very early gentle Saint who had an enormous influence on Europe’s history, simply by following his vocation as a monk. Regina Magazine’s Ed Masters takes us on a journey through the Dark Ages to meet St. Giles. 2
Regina Magazine | Ed Masters
St Benedict, St Christopher and St Giles pictured in this medieval painting
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Greek Prince in Ancient Gaul
St. Giles (in Latin, Aegidius) was actually not born in France, but in Athens, Greece around 640 A.D. He was a prince, the son of King Theodore and Queen Pelagia, known for their piety. Thus he was of royal lineage -- and in one of those not-so coincidences in the ways of Providence he would go on to interact with a King of the Visigoths and a King of the Franks in later years. When he was 24, St. Giles lost both his parents. He used his inheritance to assist the poor and left Greece to live in obscurity (or so he thought) in Gaul, settling first in the area near the mouth of the Rhone River, then near the river Gard, and finally in the woods in the diocese of Nimes. France in the 600s was a dangerous place. The peaceful centuries of the pax romana were a distant memory; the Roman Legions had left a power vacuum. Gaul was ruled by local Visigothic warlords and under threat of Muslim invaders. Beggars roamed the countryside and the Church stepped in to provide succor for the needy. When Giles encountered a beggar who was ill and barely clothed, he took pity on the poor man and recalling the actions of St. Martin of Tours, he gave the beggar his tunic. Immediately the man was restored to perfect health. This miracle showed St. Giles how pleased the Lord is with those who give alms to the needy. Giles in the Wilderness This was the first of many miracles the Saint is said to have performed in his lifetime. Though he lived in solitude away from the noisy, populated cities and
towns, his sanctity and fame spread far and wide. Like St. John the Baptist, St. Paul the Hermit and the prophet Elijah, Giles lived off the land; his food was roots and herbs and water from streams to drink. As Our Lord said, “Consider the birds of the air, and how your Heavenly Father feeds them...worry not about what you are to have to eat or drink, as your Heavenly Father knows all these things and provides.” In a tale reminiscent of how St. Paul and St. Anthony of the Desert came to know one another late in life, the Lord brought Giles and St. Veredemus (also a hermit of Greek lineage) together for about two years, during which time they shared a love of all things holy. After this time they went their separate ways. Giles and the Hind He was also fed milk from a hind (a doe) that was often his only companion. Once, she was fleeing from a hunting party of Visigoths pursuing her through the woods. She lay down at the Saint’s feet, and Giles prayed that the animal be spared. The hunters shot an arrow which pierced Giles, wounding him. When the Visigoth hunters found the wounded Saint with the doe at his feet, they begged his forgiveness. Hearing about this incident, the Visigothic King Wamba visited Giles. Impressed by his holiness, Wamba offered him honors and riches but the Saint would not be swayed. King Wamba did convince him, however to accept some followers; Giles then built a monastery which followed the rule of St. Benedict. The sick and the afflicted often visited him, and were miraculously healed of their ailments by St. Giles. Masterpieces 2014 | Regina Magazine
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St Giles with the hind (female deer) who fed him.
St Giles is often pictured with a deer in art, as is St. Catherine of Sweden, St. Eustace and St. Hubert among others. Deer symbolize piety, the faithful Christian longing for God, and Christ the Saviour Himself. From Psalm 41:1 we read, “As the hart panteth after thy water brooks, so panteth my soul after Thee, O God.” Also, because deer seek freedom and refuge in forests and mountains they also symbolize solitude and purity of life. Giles Steps Into History Giles is also reported to have met with Charles Martel, the grandfather of Charlemagne. Charles Martel was severely troubled by certain sins he had committed that gnawed at his conscience. St. Giles advised him to sincerely confess all of his sins. The king did so, and found a great weight lifted from his shoulders. On his return to his monastery, the Saint raised the dead son of a nobleman. When St. Giles and his monks discovered that Muslim invaders had destroyed their home, Martel offered them refuge. (It is said that it was the influence of St. Giles on Martel which enabled him to defeat the Ummayad Caliphate invaders at the Battle of Tours (Poitiers) in A.D. 732, a few years after the Saint’s death.) 4
Regina Magazine | Ed Masters
St Giles
St Giles is pierced by the hunters arrow as the deer seeks his protection
Giles traveled to Rome to meet with Pope St. Gregory II. Gregory gave the monastery privileges and bestowed an apostolic blessing on the community, along with two magnificently carved cedar doors. (Giles’s monastery was in the process of being rebuilt, having been destroyed by Islamic invaders.) Miracles After His Death His monastery restored, St. Giles died, full of years on September 1, A.D. 720 (some sources say 725). His last words were the same Nunc Dimittis of St. Simeon at the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple, “Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace.” Many miracles occurred at his tomb. After his death many churches were built and named after him as far away as Hungary, Poland, and Scotland. St. Giles
Cathedral in Edinburgh was named after him and he is the Patron of that city. His relics were hidden in Toulouse in A.D. 1565 to save them from the French Huguenots who like many Protestants throughout Europe at the time (and the French Revolutionists two centuries later) sought to eradicate Catholic devotion to the Saints. St Giles is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers and he is the Patron Saint of beggars, the disabled, the sick, blacksmiths, sterility, bad dreams, forests, and difficult confessions. His tomb was rediscovered in A.D. 1865 and afterwards pilgrimages to his Shrine began anew.
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Queen St. Margaret, Scotland’s Great Patroness By Eddie Masters
~ Her chapel still stands on Edinburgh’s fearsome castle heights, the oldest building in that ancient city. But Margaret was not a Scot. Catholic saints are often not named for their native land, but instead for the lands where they traveled and settled, were exiled to, or where they preached or planted the seeds of the Faith. One such stellar paragon was St. Margaret -Queen of Scotland and wife of King Malcolm. Margaret was born in exile in Hungary in 1045, the daughter of Edward d’Outremer (“The Exile”), who was a kinsman of King St. Edward the Confessor, the rightful heir to the Saxon throne of England. Her mother was Agatha, a German princess and the kinswoman of Gisela, wife of King St. Stephen of Hungary, and grand-daughter of King Edmund Ironside. Thus she was descended from royal blood on her father’s side and imperial blood on her mother’s side. Margaret was the sister of Edgar the Aetheling and of Christina, both born in Hungary. Growing up at the Hungarian court during the reign of the pious Andrew I of Hungary (also known as Andrew the Catholic) no doubt greatly influenced Margaret in becoming a devout Catholic herself. The Saxon royal family of England was in exile following Canute the Great’s conquest of England. She and her family went back to England in 1057, for her father was considered a successor to her great-uncle King St. Edward the Confessor. It was evident he would die without issue (which he did in the fateful year of 1066). Her father died almost immediately upon landfall, though whether from natu6
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ral causes or by murder no one is certain. Her brother Edgar was then considered to be the heir to the English throne, but when Edward the Confessor died on 5 January 1066, Harold Godwinson was selected as king instead, for Edgar may have been considered too young. When Harold was defeated and killed at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 by the soldiers of William the Conqueror, Edgar was then proclaimed King of England. However, the Witenagemot (an advisory assembly of the ecclesiastic and secular ruling class) soon turned Edgar over to William the Conqueror, who then brought his prisoner to Normandy. William only allowed Edgar to return to England two years later; once he was safely with them, the royal family fled at once. Margaret, Edgar, Christina and their mother Agatha all fled to Northumbria, by the Scottish border. After some time had passed Agatha was determined to go back to England in the hopes that Edgar would become its rightful ruler, but Our Lord had other plans. A storm blew the ship they were sailing on northward until they landed in Scotland in a place that was given the name of St. Margaret’s Hope near the village of North Queensferry. Once there, they looked to the king of Scotland, Malcolm III, for protection. Malcolm had been only a boy when Macbeth (of Shakespeare fame) killed his father, Duncan. Macbeth was then consequently driven out; Malcolm ascended to the throne of Scotland in A.D. 1054. Walking to Dumferline, the family were met on the way by King Malcolm, who was immediately enamored of Margaret. They were married in the Castle of Dumferline in 1070; Margaret was 24 years of age. From the start of their reign, Margaret immediately set to work to civilize the still-semi-bar
“Thanking God for sending her this last suffering as atonement for her sins, not long afterward Margaret proclaimed, “O Lord Jesus Christ, Who by Thy Death hast given life to the world, deliver me from all evil!” With these words, Margaret surrendered her soul to God at the age of 47.” Masterpieces 2014 | Regina Magazine
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BESIDES RISING AT MIDNIGHT FOR MASS AND GETTING VERY LITTLE SLEEP, MARGARET ALSO ATE LITTLE HERSELF, DEVOTING MANY HOURS TO PRAYER, RAISING CHILDREN, FEEDING THE POOR, AND ALL IN ALL TRANSFORMING HER NATION INTO AN EXEMPLARY MODEL OF CHRISTENDOM. barous inhabitants of her realm. She oversaw the building of churches and monasteries, and sewed liturgical vestments. One of the churches she founded was the Abbey of the Holy Trinity at Dumferline, which contained a relic of the True Cross. She also helped restore the monastery at Iona, and established ferries to bring pilgrims to St. Andrew’s in Fife. One day her book of the Gospels was dropped into a river and according to tradition, was miraculously restored. It is now in the Bodleian library at Oxford. Margaret was also instrumental in reforming some of the practices of the Faith in Scotland, which included the regulation of the Lenten fast, the observation of Easter communion, and the removal of abuses 8
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in marriage, including marrying within certain degrees of kinship. Simony and usury also were prohibited and Mass attendance on Sundays and Holy Days was mandatory. She helped procure good priests and educators for her nation and she was helped in many of her reforms due to the guidance and influence of Lanfranc, the future Archbishop of Canterbury. Margaret also aided in refining the manners of her husband, King Malcolm: Every night he would rise with her to pray, including during the penitential seasons of Lent and Advent. On going to church for Matins, he even kissed the holy books she used and had them adorned with gold and silver. (Malcolm himself did not know
how to read). Her influence over her husband helped to sanctify him and he is one of Scottish history’s most devout, holy kings. Her second biographer, Turgot, bishop of St. Andrews, credited her with civilizing Malcolm by reading stories from the Bible to him, proving that St. Jerome’s adage, “Love the Bible and wisdom will love you,” is true. In any case, Malcolm frequently sought her counsel, and they raised eight children of their own, six boys and two girls along with Malcolm’s boys from his first marriage. (He was a widower.) The royal couple ensured that their children received a thorough Catholic education, with Margaret herself supervising them. The zeal these children brought to the Faith as adults was proof they could not
Interior of St Margaret’s Chapel, showing the chancel arch with chevron motifs
have had a better instructor than their mother. Indeed, many of the customs Margaret learned while in exile in Hungary and at the court of King Edward the Confessor prepared her not only for her role as a wife and mother, but also for her role queen of a nation. Malcolm and Margaret also are responsible for moving their home and the capital of Scotland from Dumferline to Edinburgh (“the little burg of St. Edwin”) two years after their marriage. Margaret was known for her devotion to the poor. She gave them a sizeable amount of alms, and in imitation of her Divine Master washed the feet of the destitute. Each day she and her husband, the king, would feed many of the needy in the royal hall and care for orphans, feeding them with their own hands. Beggars never were
turned away, and they often fed as many as three hundred of them, especially during Advent and Lent. She also had hostels built for travelers and ransomed many captives of her native England. Her life of piety and extreme austerity took its toll on Margaret’s health. Besides rising at midnight for Mass and getting very little sleep, Margaret also ate little herself, devoting many hours to prayer, raising children, feeding the poor, and all in all transforming her nation into an exemplary model of Christendom. In the year of Our Lord 1093 Margaret was on her deathbed. Besides frequently going into battle with William the Conqueror, Malcolm also went to battle against his son William Rufus. In that same year Rufus made a surprise attack on Alnwick castle, wiping out its gar-
rison. King Malcolm and his son Edward were slain by treachery. Arriving home, their son Edgar was asked by his mother how his father and brother had fared in battle. He told her they were well, concerned how she would react if her told her the truth. However, she already knew the truth, replying, “I know how it is!” Thanking God for sending her this last suffering as atonement for her sins, not long afterward Margaret proclaimed, “O Lord Jesus Christ, Who by Thy Death hast given life to the world, deliver me from all evil!” With these words, Margaret surrendered her soul to God at the age of 47. The date was 16 November 1093. She died just three days after Malcolm and her son Edward, having reigned twenty-three years as queen of Scotland. According to her confessor and her
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first biographer Theodoric, Margaret was aptly named; her name derives from the Latin “margarita” and the Greek “Margarites,” both of which mean “pearl.” He considered her soul as unto a precious pearl. Living a life of lux-
ury at three courts never dimmed her purpose in life: loving and serving the Lord and His Church and using her power and influence to thoroughly Christianize and further civilize that country.
Pope Innocent IV canonized Margaret 1250, and more than 400 years later Pope Clement X proclaimed her Patroness of Scotland, in 1673. She and Malcolm’s children were as follows:
• Edward, killed 1093. • Edmund of Scotland (c.1070 – after 1097) • Ethelred, abbot of Dunkeld • Edgar of Scotland (c.1074 - 11 January 1107), king of Scotland from 1097 - 1107 • Alexander I of Scotland (c.1078 - 23 April 1124), king of Scotland from 1107 - 1124 • Edith of Scotland (c. 1080 – 1 May 1118), also called Matilda, married King Henry I of England • Mary of Scotland (1082–1116), married Eustace III of Boulogne • David I of Scotland (c.1083 – 24 May 1153), king of Scotland from 1124 - 1153 Two of their children, Davis I and Matilda, aka Maud, are also saints. Some of Margaret's relics were lost during the breaking away by Scotland from Rome in the 16th century. Later, during the French
Revolution, her relics were sent to France after Scotland became mostly Presbyterian. Philip II of Spain also acquired some of her relics, but when Bishop Gillies of Edinburgh petitioned Pope Pius IX
for their return to Scotland, they could not be found. St. Margaret's Feast Day is on 10 June on the traditional calendar and on 16 November on the new calendar.
(Editor’s Note: The author would like to dedicate this piece to the memory of his late grandmother, also named Margaret and of Scottish descent. He recalls with both fondness and sadness how he helped her and his grandfather move from their home on 16 November 1985, five months before her death and exactly 892 years after St. Margaret's death. )
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The
Ancient Mystery of the
Star of Bethlehem "There's a star in the east on Christmas morn Rise up shepherd and follow It'll lead to the place where the Savior's born Rise up shepherd and follow" A Star In The East By Ed Masters An enigmatic celestial event that has engaged speculation for more than 2000 years, the Star of Bethlehem was an epoch-changing heralding of the Messiah's birth. For centuries saints, scholars and astronomers have wondered about this heavenly body. Was it a comet? A supernova? A conjunction of planets, possibly in constellation? A moon or dwarf planet briefly captured by Earth's gravity? A free floating planet or star? Was it a heavenly body that defied the known laws of physics and nature, such as the solar eclipse of the full moon on the first Good Friday? Or did it have divine origin like the shekinah glory that led the children of Israel out of Egypt during the time of Moses? 12
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DRAWING FROM RECORDED HISTORY AND SURPRISINGLY WELL-KEPT ASTRONOMICAL RECORDS FROM LANDS AS DISTANT FROM JUDEA AS CHINA, THIS ARTICLE SURVEYS THE CENTURIES FROM THE VANTAGE POINT OF SCIENCE AND HISTORY FOR REGINA MAGAZINE What the Bible Says
4 B.C, which fact alone eliminates Halley’s The Star of Bethlehem is mentioned in only one Comet as a possibility. But what about other book, the Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 2, "When comets? Chinese and Korean astronomers reJesus therefore was born in Bethlehem of Juda, in corded comets in the years 5 and 4 B.C. respecthe days of king Herod, behold, there came wise tively, in the Constellation Capricorn. These were men from the east to Jerusalem. [2] Saying, Where observed for 70 days and noted that “it did not is he that is born king of the Jews? For we have move.” (The Chinese called it a ‘sui-hsing’ or a seen his star in the east, and are come to adore star with a sweeping tail. To the ancient Koreans, him..." [9] Who having heard the king, went their it was ‘po-hsing’ or a bushy star.) way; and behold the star which they had seen in the east, went before them, until it came and Giotto di Bondone in his painting Adoration of stood over where the child was. [10] And seeing the Magi depicts a comet as the Star of Bethlethe star they rejoiced with exceeding great joy." hem; Giotto had seen Halley’s Comet in A.D. 1301. Even the early Church Father Origen (who This star was foretold in the Old Testament, fell into heresy) said, “The star that was seen in "A star shall rise out of Jacob and a sceptre shall the east we consider to have been a new star, unspring up from Israel: and shall strike the chiefs like any of the other well-known planetary bodof Moab, and shall waste all the children of Seth. ies, either those in the firmament above or those And he shall possess Idumea: the inheritance of among the lower orbs, but partaking of the nature Seir shall come to their enemies, but Israel shall of those celestial bodies which appear at times, do manfully. Out of Jacob shall he come that shall such as comets…” rule, and shall destroy the remains of the city." Numbers 24:15-19. However, in the ancient world, comets were seen as bad omens. In A.D. 66, Halley’s Comet Was it a comet? was recorded by Flavius Josephus as “hanging over Jerusalem like a bloody sword”; the first Halley’s Comet appears above Earth every 76 Jewish-Roman war began that year. It is unlikeyears; it appeared in the night skies in the year 12 ly, therefore that a comet would have been seen B.C. or 11 B.C. As Jesus of Nazareth is thought to by the ancients are an omen of good news – the have been born between the years 7 and 4 B.C, birth of the Messiah. Certainly the Magi would which is considered too early for it to have been not have rejoiced ‘with exceeding great joy’ upon the Star. Herod the Great is believed by most seeing a comet, a harbinger of bad things to scholars and historians to have died in March of come. Masterpieces 2014 | Regina Magazine
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"They looked up and saw a star, Shining in the East beyond them far And to the earth it gave great light And so it continued both day and night. Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel Born is the King of Israel!" Was it a planetary conjunction?
Was it an ancient supernova?
Was the Star a planetary conjunction, possibly in a constellation of significance to the ancients? The famous astronomer Johannes Kepler proposed this theory in 1614 when he determined that three conjunctions of the planets Jupiter and Saturn occurred in the year 7 B.C. However, Kepler incorrectly thought that a planetary conjunction could create a supernova. Also in that year Saturn and Jupiter were far enough apart that such a conjunction would not have been notable.
The possibility that the Star of Bethlehem was a supernova or hypernova is an intriguing one. A supernova is an explosion of a massive super giant star that can shine with the brightness of over ten billion suns; a hypernova is even brighter. The supernova seen in the year 1054 -ironically the same year the Catholic and Orthodox Churches split -- and now called the ‘Crab Nebula’ was bright enough to be seen in the daytime. Furthermore, supernovae that can be seen with the naked eye are quite rare, so this also supports the theory that the Star was this natural, but rare, phenomenon.
Today we know that in 6 B.C there was a conjunction of Mars, Jupiter and Saturn; and in 3 B.C. Jupiter and Venus came close to one another in the constellation Leo. Jupiter also came close to the bright star Regulus in late 3 and 2 B.C. However, while there were any number of notable planetary and stellar conjunctions within the accepted time frame of Jesus' birth, this theory has to be rejected in spite of the significance it held for astronomers and astrologers in ancient times. Firstly, conjunctions were not and are not that rare. Secondly, the Bible specifically uses the singular "star" and not the plural "stars." Thirdly, both the Bible and the Church condemn astrology and the notion that the stars guide our destiny. There must have been something extraordinary and unusual about this star for St. Matthew to mention it in his Gospel.
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The problem is that other than the possible appearance of a supernova in the year 5 B.C. (though most observers have decided this was a comet) the first known definitive recorded observance of a supernova was in the year 185 A.D. by Chinese astronomers; it is now known by astronomers as the gaseous shell RCW 86. A supernova also leaves a nebula visible to astronomers over certain regions of the sky, and none can be found that would have been in the region over Bethlehem. Almost two hundred years late, with no tell-tale aurora -- these factors disqualify this supernova as being the Star of Bethlehem. Was it an orphan planet? A rogue star? Possibly the most convincing explanation from a scientific viewpoint is the theory of a free-floating planet or star. Also known as a rogue planets,
nomad planets, orphan planets or interstellar planets, these are extraterrestrial spheres which have either never been captured by the gravity of a star or have been the victims of a cosmic ejection from the solar systems they have been formed in. They continue to wander throughout the galaxy aimlessly. So far, a handful of these planets have been discovered by astronomers and there may be many more. The closest to Earth is WISE 0855–0714, around seven light years away. Rogue or intergalactic stars are thought to be the result of colliding galaxies tossing stars out into the vastness of space; they have been observed in the Constellation Virgo. The only problem with this theory is that neither a rogue planet or star could come close enough to Earth without severely disrupting the atmosphere, planetary winds and oceans – all major geophysical events which there is no record of. though if they were bright enough, naturally they could be seen from quite a distance away. But what of other non-scientific explanations? Could the Star have had a strictly divine, supernatural origin? Certainly this was the opinion of some of the Church Fathers. A star shone forth in heaven above all the other stars, the light of Which was inexpressible, while its novelty struck men with astonishment. And all the rest of the stars, with the sun and moon, formed a chorus to this star, and its light was exceedingly great above them all. And there was agitation felt as to whence this new spectacle came, so unlike to everything else in the heavens. St. Ignatius to the Ephesians St. John Chrysostom (A.D. 347-407) and St. Thomas Aquinas after him also believed it was a miraculous event. He wrote in his Commentaries on the Gospel of Matthew:
For if ye can learn what the star was, and of what kind, and whether it were one of the common stars, or new and unlike the rest, and whether it was a star by nature or a star in appearance only, we shall easily know the other things also. Whence then will these points be manifest? From the very things that are written. Thus, that this star was not of the common sort, or rather not a star at all, as it seems at least to me, but some invisible power transformed into this appearance, is in the first place evident from its very course. For there is not, there is not any star that moves by this way, but whether it be the sun you mention, or the moon, or all the other stars, we see them going from east to west; but this was wafted from north to south; for so is Palestine situated with respect to Persia. The apocryphal Protoevangelium of St. James (ca. A.D. 125) has the Magi saying to Herod: We have seen a star of great size shining among these stars, and obscuring their light, so that the stars did not appear; and we thus knew that a king has been born to Israel, and we have come to worship him. Pope St. Leo the Great (d. 461) described it in his thirty-first sermon: To three wise men, therefore, appeared a star of new splendour in the region of the East, which, being brighter and fairer than the other stars, might easily attract the eyes and minds of those that looked on it, so that at once that might be observed not to be meaningless, which had so unusual an appearance. But perhaps St. Ephraem (a.k.a. Ephraim), d. 373, describes it best in his “Hymns for Epiphany”: In the Height and the Depth the Son had two heralds. The star of light proclaimed Him from above; John likewise preached Him from beneath: two heralds, the earthly and the heavenly. The star of light, contrary to nature, shone forth of a Masterpieces 2014 | Regina Magazine
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“We three kings of orient are, Bearing gifts we traverse afar Field and fountain, Moor and mountain, Following yonder star. O, Star of Wonder, Star of night, Star of royal beauty bright Westward leading, still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect light.” We Three Kings of Orient Are - The First Noel sudden; less than the sun yet greater than the sun. Less was it than he in manifest light; and greater than he in secret might because of its mystery. In her visions of the life of Jesus and other Biblical revelations, Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich mentioned that during the daytime the Star appeared much as the moon does when it can be seen in the daytime at certain phases or times of the day. Was the Star like the pillar of fire? Given all the evidence presented I would have to side with the Church Fathers et. al. who asserted that the Star was of supernatural origin, a miraculous event not unlike the pillar of fire and smoke that led the Jews out of Egypt. It’s interesting to juxtapose such events; in the Old Testament Book of Joshua, Joshua commanded the Sun to stay still in the sky during the day (the name Jesus is the Greek version of the Hebrew Joshua); at Our Lord’s birth, a Star seemingly defied the known laws of astronomy and physics to stay motionless over the cave in Bethlehem where He was born (traditionally at midnight). The Star shone with great brightness on one of the darkest nights of the year, just after the beginning of winter. At His death upon the Cross, the light of the sun was obscured during a solar 16
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eclipse, impossible during a full moon just after the beginning of spring. One wonders whether or not a Star or some other otherworldly sign might herald His Second Coming. Other points of interest to note: The three stars that make up the belt of the constellation Orion (Alnitak, Alnilam and Mintaka -- Arabic in origin) are often called “The Three Kings” or “the Magi” in honor of the men who sojourned from afar. On a clear night in the northern hemisphere, this constellation can be seen in the winter’s southern sky. Bundle up and give yourself a treat: a view of the alluring starry symbol of the men who followed the Star of Bethlehem. If you follow the line of Orion’s belt southward, you will see the dazzling bluish-white star Sirius (the Dog Star), the brightest star in the night sky. It’s as if “the Magi” are following the “Star of Bethlehem” forever. During Christmas week, the Beehive Cluster (in Latin Praesaepe, “hive,” “Manger”, or “Crib”) in the Constellation of Cancer can be seen in the eastern sky, while the Constellation Cygnus (‘Northern Cross’) can be seen in the west. It’s the only time of the year in which the Manger and the Cross can be seen in the sky at the same time. PHOTOS BY AMY PROCTOR
The Ancient Mystery of the Star of Bethlehem
"Said the night wind to the little lamb, do you see what I see Way up in the sky, little lamb, do you see what I see A star, a star, dancing in the night With a tail as big as a kite With a tail as big as a kite" Do You Hear What I Hear? "Sages, leave your contemplations, Brighter visions beam afar; Seek the great Desire of nations, Ye have seen his natal star" Angels From The Realms Of Glory "There were three wise men from afar Directed by a glorious star And on they wandered night and day Until they came where Jesus lay And when they came unto that place Where our beloved Messiah lay They humbly cast them at his feet With gifts of gold and incense sweet" Wexford Carol "Star of the East, Oh Bethlehem's star, Guiding us on to Heaven afar! Sorrow and grief and lull'd by thy light, Thou hope of each mortal, in death's lonely night!" Star of the East Masterpieces 2014 | Regina Magazine
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The Great German King
WHO IS THAT KING? Poised on his charger, his hand raised in a warning or a salute — this is Charlemagne, one of Christendom’s great heroes. A Frank — forerunners of today’s Germans and French — Charlemagne died 1200 years ago, in 814 AD. His name in Latin was Carolus Magnus. For the Germans, he is ‘Karl Der Grosse;’ ‘Charles the Great’ in English and ‘Carlo Magno’ in Spanish.
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A GREAT, TALL MAN: The skull of Charles the Great is preserved in this reliquary in the Treasury of the great Cathedral built in his capital, today’s Aachen, Germany (Aix-La-Chapelle in French). From his remains, we know he was heavily built, sturdy, and of considerable stature. He had a round head, large and lively eyes, and a slightly larger nose than usual. His hair was prematurely white and he bore a characteristically bright and cheerful expression. He enjoyed good health. Charles the Great stood 1.84 meters (slightly more than 6 feet) making him a very tall person for his time. Masterpieces 2014 | Regina Magazine
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‘CAROLUS PRINCEPS’ — Latin for ‘Charles the Prince,’ inlaid in marble in Aachen Cathedral. His father was the Frankish leader Pepin the Short, mayor of the palace under the Merovingian dynasty of Frankish kings. His grandfather was Charles Martel, aka ‘Charles the Hammer.’ (In Germany today, people still use ‘Der Hammer’ to describe a man they admire.)
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The Great German King
CROWNED EMPEROR OF THE ROMANS BY POPE LEO III ON CHRISTMAS DAY in A.D. 800 and ruled until his death in January, 814 at the age of 71. He started the custom whereby Christmas Day became a traditional day of crowning Emperors and Kings. It took 32 years before Charlemagne completely conquered the Saxons from 772 to 804 AD. He also conquered the Bavarians, Slavs and Avars and obliged them to pay him tribute and also defeated and ruled the Lombards of Italy in 773 and northern part of Spain in 778 AD.
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THE EMPIRE THAT CHARLEMAGNE built included almost all of western and central Europe. He presided over the cultural and legal revival of the West known as the Carolingian Renaissance. Modern-day France and Germany emerged from Charlemagne’s empire, the former as West Francia and the latter as East Francia.
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CHARLEMAGNE INVITED THE MONK ALCUIN OF YORK, ENGLAND to his capital at Aix-la-Chapelle (today Aachen, Germany) to set up the first Christian Cathedral School. Though he was illiterate, Charlemagne recognized the great power of education, and ordered bishops and abbots to set up schools for the training of monks and other clerics throughout the Empire.
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CATHEDRAL WINDOW AT CHARLEMAGNE’S TOMB He made Latin the standard written and spoken language in his huge empire of several languages and dialects, thus making it possible for Europeans to communicate across cultures. Charlemagne also played a key role in preserving much of the literary heritage of ancient Rome. 24
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WORTH MORE THAN $100 MILLION, this coronation cross was made for Charlemagne and carried at every Coronation of the Holy Roman Emperor for almost a thousand years. Hi warrior-king image was the inspiration for all subsequent empire builders in Europe during the Middle Ages. The word for “king” in several modern Slavic languages such as Krol in Polish and Kral in Czech are based upon the German name of Charlemagne, Karl.
CHARLEMAGNE THE MAN For German Catholics who don’t think they can have a marriage annulled — apparently a widespread misconception in modern times — it may be interesting to note that Charles the Great was married four times. His first marriage was annulled, and he went on to have eleven legitimate and nine illegitimate children.
CAESAR AUGUSTUS WITH A SCEPTER BEARING THE ROMAN EAGLE at the center of the Coronation Cross of the Holy Roman Empire.
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GOLDEN RELIQUARY FOR A SIMPLE KING He wore a blue cloak and always carried a fancy jeweled sword to banquets or ambassadorial receptions, though in the main he despised elaborate, expensive clothes and usually dressed like the common people. His favorite food was roasted meat. He wanted to build a canal that connected the Rhine and Danube Rivers via the Main, which in fact wasn’t accomplished until the 19th century.
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The Great German King
CORONATION CLOAK for the Holy Roman Emperor is still intact and on display in the Cathedral Treasury. In a great historical irony, this may well be the very spot where Charlemagne founded his famous school.
CHARLEMAGNE’S FIRST TOMB After a funeral Mass, he was buried the same day he died, in this stone sarcophagus. According to medieval legend, Charlemagne was said to have risen from the dead to fight in the Crusades.
THE BONES OF CHARLEMAGNE now repose in this ornate, solid gold reliquary in the Lady Chapel of the Cathedral at Aachen, where they miraculously emerged unharmed, despite the devastation of Allied bombing of the city during World War II. According to Charlemagne’s legend, he sleeps until Christendom — the Empire he forged –has need of him once again. Masterpieces 2014 | Regina Magazine
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CHARLEMAGNE AND THE IDEAL OF THE CHRISTIAN KNIGHT For centuries, Germany and all of Christendom believed in a knightly ideal — the gallantry of a Christian warrior devoted to his Lord, defending his lands and deferential to women, children, the poor, the sick and the elderly. All of this arguably derive from the example that this great king, Charlemagne, set 1200 years ago.
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St. Ita of Kileedy
Foster Mother of the Saints of Ireland By Ed Masters
St. Ita of Killeedy is second only to St. Brigid among the female Saints of Ireland. Nearly everyone knows of St. Patrick, and many are familiar with St. Brigid, St. Columba, and St. Brendan the Navigator. Outside of the ‘auld Sod,’ except for those of Irish descent, few are aware of one of the more noted of Irish saints.
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St. Ita born to a chieftain and a princess St. Ita was of royal lineage. She was born around the year 470 near Fathlegg outside Waterford, to Kennfoeladd, a Deise chieftain, and Necta, a princess. By legend, her original name was Deirdre but because of her thirst (iota) for holiness or Divine Love she became known as Ita (also Ida, and Ite.)
Growing up wise, pure, and beautiful From childhood, Ita exhibited holiness. She often prayed and fasted, and was benevolent and solicitous toward everyone and considerate in her speech. She displayed the six signs of womanhood that the Irish of old looked for in educated women: wisdom, purity, beauty, music, sweet speech, and embroidery. Masterpieces 2014 | Regina Magazine
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ITA DISPLAYED THE SIX SIGNS OF WOMANHOOD THAT THE IRISH OF OLD LOOKED FOR IN EDUCATED WOMEN: WISDOM, PURITY, BEAUTY, MUSIC, SWEET SPEECH, AND EMBROIDERY. When she reached the marriageable age, her father wished her to marry a noble young chieftain. After she had fasted for three days, an angel appeared to her father and told him to let her pursue her desire to enter the religious life. He consented to her (and Heaven’s) wishes, and Bishop Declan of Ardmore bestowed her veil upon her. The story is that the Devil acknowledged defeat, saying: “Alas Ita, you will free yourself from me and you will also free many others.” St. Ita founds a convent Accompanied by her sister, Fiona, St. Ita traveled to Hy Conaill in County Limerick to a place called Cluain Creadhail, which some have interpreted to mean “Meadow of Faith,” where she founded and became the abbess of a convent that attracted many Irish women to become nuns. It is now called Killeedy or “Ita’s Cell.” A legend says she was directed to Killeedy by three heavenly lights; one at the top of the Galtee Mountains, the other on the Mullaghareirk Mountains, and the last at Cluain Creadhail. A local Irish chieftain wanted to give her a huge parcel of land, but Ita would accept only as much land as she needed for gardens large enough to grow fruits and vegetables sufficient to feed her fellow nuns and herself. St. Ita stayed there for the rest of her life, spending much of her time in prayer and fasting, and in serving those who came to her for aid and wisdom. “Foster Mother to the saints” In the old Celtic tradition, children were sent to her convent for fostering, leading St. Ita to found a school for young boys. Thus, St. Ita gained renown 32
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for being “The Foster Mother of the Saints of Ireland.” Her students were said to have included the future Saints Fachtna of Ross, Pulcherius of Liath, Cummian of Clonfert, and Brendan of Clonfert, who later became known as St. Brendan the Navigator. Brendan’s Feast Day is May 16. (According to legend, St. Brendan made landfall in America five hundred years before Leif Ericson and one thousand years before Christopher Columbus.) In the old Celtic tradition, children were sent to her convent for fostering, leading St. Ita to found a school for young boys. Thus, St. Ita gained renown for being “The Foster Mother of the Saints of Ireland.” St. Ita tells St. Brendan what God loves — and hates — most St. Brendan is said to have visited St. Ita between his voyages, seeking her advice and wisdom. Once he asked her what were the three things God loved the most and St. Ita replied, “A pure heart with true faith in God, a simple life with a religious spirit, and openhandedness inspired by charity.” When he asked her what were the three things God hated the most she answered, “A scowling face, obstinacy in wrong doing, and too great a confidence in the power of money.” When St. Brendan asked her what were the three things God hated the most she answered, “A scowling face, obstinacy in wrong doing, and too great a confidence in the power of money.”
St. Ita of Kileedy
St. Ita worked miracles, healed, and prophesied. In one instance she is said to have re-attached a head to a man who had been decapitated, and another story recounts her living off food given to her from Heaven, recalling the manna given to the ancient Hebrews in the desert. In another story, a wise man lost his speech and came to St. Ita to be cured. Before she had even finished praying for him, the wise man was cured. Once, a nun who was under her care committed the sin of fornication. When St. Ita asked her why she hadn’t guarded her virginity, the nun denied her sin, St. Ita then told her exactly where she had committed the sin and what had happened, after which the nun became contrite and did penance, knowing that Ita was a prophet. The Death of the Saint St. Ita died on January 15, circa 570. To this day, her grave in the ruins of Cill Ide, a Romanesque church in Killeedy where her monastery once stood, is always decorated with flowers. There also is a holy well nearby, the water from which is reputed to have cured everything from smallpox to warts over the centuries. Children from the local school who go down to the well during school hours who say, “Bubble up, bubble up, Blessed well!” three times are said to have been cured. A lullaby to the Infant Jesus was inspired by her: Some say she herself was the author, others say it was written by an anonymous 9th century poet inspired by her and her life. The lullaby is called “Jesukin.”
Jesukin Lives my little cell within What were wealth of cleric high Al Jesu of the skies, who are next my heart through every night. Jesu, more than angel aid, Fostering not formed to fade Nursed by me in desert wild Jesu, Child of Judah’s Maid. Unto heaven’s High King contest Sing a chorus, maidens blest! He is o’er us, though within Jesukin is on our breast. St. Ita has a strong following in Munster, especially in Waterford and Limerick, and many Irish girls are named after her. In the mid 1800s, Bishop Butler of Limerick obtained from Pope Pius IX a special office and Mass for her Feast Day, January 15. Editor’s Note: January 15 happens to be the birthday of the author of this article.
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Hildegard the Polymath: Catholic Saint By Ed Masters In the year of Our Lord 1098, Hildegard was born of noble parents in Bockelheim on the Nahe river in southwestern Germany. She grew up to become a polymath —a prophetess, writer, composer, philosopher, abbess, and visionary – famous as “the Sybil of the Rhine.” 34
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Hildegard would have been a remarkable woman in any day or age.Tradition has it that Hildegard was the youngest of ten children born to Mechtilde (Matilda) and Hildebert; she was weak and prone to illness. St. Hildegard’s parents were interested in worldly affairs, yet they entrusted their eight-year-old daughter to the monastery of Mount Saint Disibode, under the care of a relative, Jutta — a holy, devout nun and sister to Count Stephen II of Spanheim.
but she yearned for them to be approved by the Church. Beset by this dilemma, she wrote to St. Bernard of Clairvaux, who notified Pope Eugene III (1145-1153) of the situation. The Pontiff encouraged her to the task God commanded. Knowing she now had papal approval, the immediate result of her first recorded visions was her book Scivias (‘Know the Ways of the Lord’) and her fame spread throughout Europe.
Hildegard’s Famous Visions From an early age Hildegard experienced visions:
Hildegard the Abbess After Jutta’s death in 1136, Hildegard became the superior of the convent that had grown up around the anchorage where people devoted themselves to a solitary life of penance and prayer. As this convent grew in numbers Hildegard decided to go elsewhere, encouraged by a Divine command. She settled in Rupertsburg near Bingen on the left bank of the Rhine.
“Up to my fifteenth year I saw much, and related some of the things seen to others, who would inquire with astonishment, whence such things might come. I also wondered and during my sickness I asked one of my nurses whether she also saw similar things. When she answered no, a great fear befell me. Frequently, in my conversation, I would relate future things, which I saw as if present, but, noting the amazement of my listeners, I became more reticent.“ Hildegard had little formal education: She learned the Psalter in Latin but never mastered the Latin language. Nevertheless, following God’s command, she wrote down everything she was shown in her visions. Hildegard herself described it thus: And it came to pass…when I was 42 years and 7 months old, that the heavens were opened and a blinding light of exceptional brilliance flowed through my entire brain. And so it kindled my whole heart and breast like a flame, not burning but warming…and suddenly I understood of the meaning of expositions of the books… Feeling unworthy and unqualified for such a task, she was reticent about God’s command, and wrote: But although I heard and saw these things, because of doubt and low opinion of myself and because of diverse sayings of men, I refused for a long time a call to write, not out of stubbornness but out of humility, until weighed down by a scourge of God, I fell onto a bed of sickness. Hildegard knew her visions were of Divine origin,
Having been granted permission by Count Bernard of Hildesheim, she stayed in her new home with eighteen sisters from 1150, until she founded another convent in 1165 at Eibingen on the right side of the Rhine. During these years, she was privileged to meet with the Emperor Frederick and to correspond with Popes Eugene III, Anastasius IV, Adrian IV, and Alexander III, as well as the Emperors Conrad III and Fredrick I. Luminaries as well common people asked Hildegard for advice, Biblical interpretations, and explanations of the divine mysteries. She made predictions for the Holy Roman Emperor — which he confirmed came to pass — as well as predictions for the future that have yet to be fulfilled. Against Abuses of the Clergy Of interest to modern-day Germans, Hildegard strongly condemned venal priests and prelates for their luxurious lifestyles, sexual immorality, and other abuses. On one occasion a prior asked her to pray for him as he was praying for her; Hildegard chided him for having a pagan outlook on prayer. Hildegard also left many written works and a number of prophecies about the future of the Church and of Europe that have yet to come to pass.
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She wrote a variety of musical compositions for use in the liturgy; the musical morality play Ordo Virtutum; sermons, which she preached in the 1160s and 1170s; two volumes on natural medicines and cures, Physica and Causaeet Curae, (including a cure for the then-dread disease of leprosy). In addition, she invented a language called “Lingua Ignota”; wrote a Gospel commentary and two works of hagiography; in addition to Liber Vitae Meritorum (‘The Book of Life’s Rewards’) and Liber Divonorum Operum (‘Book of Divine Works’). She completed the last of these works when she was in her 70s. Hildegard also had some interesting observations about the earth and the universe regarding its elements and function.In the interior of the earth, she believed, are two vast spaces shaped like truncated cones, where punishment was endured, and from whence great evil came forth. She thought the earth itself was composed of the four elements that are represented as being curiously unequal in proportion and shape. Their arrangement, she believed, is not orderly, and this very disorder illustrates one of Hildegard’s fundamental doctrines regarding the relation of this world to the universe: Before man’s fall, the elements were united in an harmonious combination, and earth was paradise; after that catastrophe, the harmony of the universe was disturbed, with the center of all the trouble on this planet which has ever since remained in its now familiar state of cha36
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otic confusion or mistio, as Hildegard’s age called it. The Real Hildegard Hildegard had no use for schismatics and heretics such as the Cathars, who thrived in southern France and northern Italy at the time. She preached against them her entire life, rebuking them severely. Hildegard, like her friend St. Bernard of Clairvaux, also supported the Second Crusade. When Philip of Flanders arrived in the Holy Land in 1176 AD to lend support to the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the leper King Baldwin IV, he was supported by Hildegard’s mandate: “If the time shall come when the infidels seek to destroy the fountain of faith, then fight them as hard as, with God’s help, you may be able to do.” In what was to be her final year of her earthly sojourn Hildegard was forced to go through a grim test. In a cemetery next to her convent, an excommunicated young man had been buried. The Church authorities in Mainz demanded that she remove his body, which she refused to do, because the young man had received the Last Rites and had been reconciled to the Church. Her convent was placed under interdict by Christian Buch, Bishop of Mainz. After notifying Rome of her predicament, she was successful at having the unjust interdict removed. She died a peaceful, holy death in 1179 AD.
Hildgard the Polymath
INSPIRED BY VISIONS, Hildegard explains the Psalter (Collected Psalms) to a monk.
Hildegard Today There has been a renewal of interest in Hildegard’s life in recent years, especially after her fellow countryman, Pope Benedict XVI, made her a Doctor of the Church in 2012. (Editor’s Note: Unfortunately, various New Age groups within and outside of Catholicism have hijacked some of that interest. No doubt St. Hildegard would have had as much use for them as she had for the Cathars.) Hildegard was beatified by Pope John XXII on August 26, 1326 and formally canonized after almost seven centuries by Pope Benedict XVI. Masterpieces 2014 | Regina Magazine
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