Thursday, May 30, 2013 - Litany Lane Blog:
Fellowship, Psalm 33:2-9, Sirach 42:15-25, Mark 10:46-52 , Pope Francis Daily Homily - Discipleship Fellowship and Sharing, St. Joan of Arc, Rouen France, Catholic Catechism Part Two: THE SEVEN SACRAMENTS OF THE CHURCH - Chapter 3 Sacraments of Service at Communion Article 7:3 The Sacrament of Matrimony - Matrimonial Consent
Year of Faith - October 11, 2012 - November 24, 2013
P.U.S.H. (Pray Until Serenity Happens). It has a remarkable way of producing solace, peace, patience and tranquility and of course resolution...God's always available 24/7.
The world begins and ends everyday for someone. We are all human. We all experience birth, life and death. We all have
flaws but we also all have the gift of knowledge and free will,
make the most of these gifts. Life on earth is a stepping stone to our eternal home in
Heaven. The Seven Gifts of
the Holy Spirit: wisdom, understanding, wonder and awe (fear of the
Lord) , counsel, knowledge, fortitude, and piety (reverence) and shun
the seven Deadly sins: wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and
gluttony...Its your choice whether to embrace the Gifts of the Holy Spirit rising towards eternal light or succumb to the Seven deadly sins and lost to
eternal darkness. Material items, though needed for sustenance and
survival on earth are of earthly value only. The only thing that passes
from this earth to the Darkness, Purgatory or Heaven is our Soul...it's God's perpetual
gift to us...Embrace it, treasure it, nurture it, protect it...~ Zarya Parx 2013
"Raise not a hand to another unless it is to offer in peace and goodwill." ~ Zarya Parx 2012
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Prayers for Today: Thursday in Easter
Rosary - Luminious Mysteries
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Papam Franciscus
(Pope Francis)
Pope Francis May 30 Daily Address/Homily :
Discipleship, Fellowship and Sharing.
(2013-05-30 Vatican Radio)
Dear brothers and sisters,
In the Gospel we have just heard, there is an expression of Jesus that always strikes me: “Give you them to eat. (Lk 9:13)” Starting from this sentence, I let myself be guided by three words: discipleship, fellowship and sharing.
1. First of all: who are those to whom we are to give to eat? The answer is found at the beginning of the Gospel: it is the crowd, the multitude. Jesus is in the midst of the people: He welcomes them, talks to them, He cures them, He shows them the mercy of God. In their midst, he chooses the twelve Apostles to be with Him, and like Him, to immerse themselves in the concrete situations of the world. People follow Him, listen to Him, because Jesus speaks and acts in a new way, with the authority of someone who is authentic and consistent, who speaks and acts with truth, who gives the hope that comes from God, who is revelation of the face of a God who is love - and the people with joy, bless God.
This evening we are the crowd of [which] the Gospel [tells]: let us also strive to follow Jesus to listen to him, to enter into communion with Him in the Eucharist, to accompany Him and in order that He accompany us. Let us ask ourselves: how do I follow Jesus? Jesus speaks in silence in the Mystery of the Eucharist and every time reminds us that to follow Him means to come out of ourselves and make of our own lives, not a possession, but a gift to Him and to others.
2. Let us take a step forward: whence is born the invitation that Jesus makes to his disciples to feed the multitude themselves? It is born from two elements: first, the crowd, having followed Jesus, now finds itself in the open, away from inhabited areas, as evening falls, and then, because of the concern of the disciples, who asked Jesus to dismiss the crowd, that they might seek food and lodging in the nearby towns (cf. Lk 9:12). Faced with the neediness of the crowd, the solution of the disciples is that every man should take care of himself: “Dismiss the crowd!” [the disciples say]. How many times do we Christians have this temptation! We do not care for the needs of others, dismissing them with a pitiful, “God help you.” Jesus’ solution, on the other hand, goes in another direction, a direction that surprises the disciples: [He says], “You give them something to eat.”
But how is it that we are to feed a multitude? “We have only five loaves and two fish, unless we go and buy food for all these people.” But Jesus is not discouraged. He asks the disciples to seat people in communities of fifty people, He raises his eyes to heaven, recites the blessing, breaks the loaves, and gives them to the disciples for distribution.
It is a moment of profound communion: the crowd, whose thirst has been quenched by the word of the Lord, is now nourished by His bread of life – and they all ate their fill, the Evangelist tells us.
This evening, we too are gathered around the Lord’s table, the table of the Eucharistic Sacrifice, in which He gives us once again His body, makes present the one sacrifice of the Cross. It is in listening to his Word, in nourishing ourselves with his Body and his Blood, that He makes us go from being a multitude to being a community, from [being strangers] to being [in] communion. The Eucharist is the sacrament of communion, which brings us out from individualism to live together our journey in His footsteps, our faith in Him. We ought, therefore, to ask ourselves before the Lord: How do I live the Eucharist? Do I live it anonymously or as a moment of true communion with the Lord, [and] also with many brothers and sisters who share this same table? How are our Eucharistic celebrations?
3. A final element: whence is born the multiplication of the loaves? The answer lies in the invitation of Jesus to his disciples: “You yourselves give [to them]...,” “give,” share. What do the disciples share? What little they have: five loaves and two fishes. But it is precisely those loaves and fishes that in God’s hands feed the whole crowd.
And it is the disciples, bewildered by the inability of their means, by the poverty of what they have at their disposal, who invite the people to sit down, and - trusting the Word of Jesus – distribute the loaves and fishes that feed the crowd. This tells us that in the Church, but also in society, a keyword that we need not fear is “solidarity,” that is, knowing how to place what we have at God’s disposal: our humble abilities, because [it is] only in the sharing, in the giving of them, that our lives will be fecund, will bear fruit. Solidarity: a word upon which the spirit of the world looks unkindly!
Tonight, once again, the Lord distributes for us the bread which is His body, He makes a gift of Himself. We, too, are experiencing the “solidarity of God” with man, a solidarity that never runs out, a solidarity that never ceases to amaze us: God draws near to us; in the sacrifice of the Cross He lowers Himself, entering into the darkness of death in order to give us His life, which overcomes evil, selfishness, death.
Jesus this evening gives Himself to us in the Eucharist, shares our same journey – indeed, He becomes food, real food that sustains our life even at times when the going is rough, when obstacles slow down our steps. The Lord in the Eucharist makes us follow His path, that of service, of sharing, of giving – and what little we have, what little we are, if shared, becomes wealth, because the power of God, which is that of love, descends into our poverty to transform it.
Let us ask ourselves this evening, adoring the Christ truly present in the Eucharist: do I let myself be transformed by Him? Do I let the Lord who gives Himself to me, guide me to come out more and more from my little fence to get out and be not afraid to give, to share, to love Him and others?
Discipleship, communion and sharing. Let us pray that participation in the Eucharist move us always to follow the Lord every day, to be instruments of communion, to share with Him and with our neighbor who we are. Then our lives will be truly fruitful. Amen
In the Gospel we have just heard, there is an expression of Jesus that always strikes me: “Give you them to eat. (Lk 9:13)” Starting from this sentence, I let myself be guided by three words: discipleship, fellowship and sharing.
1. First of all: who are those to whom we are to give to eat? The answer is found at the beginning of the Gospel: it is the crowd, the multitude. Jesus is in the midst of the people: He welcomes them, talks to them, He cures them, He shows them the mercy of God. In their midst, he chooses the twelve Apostles to be with Him, and like Him, to immerse themselves in the concrete situations of the world. People follow Him, listen to Him, because Jesus speaks and acts in a new way, with the authority of someone who is authentic and consistent, who speaks and acts with truth, who gives the hope that comes from God, who is revelation of the face of a God who is love - and the people with joy, bless God.
This evening we are the crowd of [which] the Gospel [tells]: let us also strive to follow Jesus to listen to him, to enter into communion with Him in the Eucharist, to accompany Him and in order that He accompany us. Let us ask ourselves: how do I follow Jesus? Jesus speaks in silence in the Mystery of the Eucharist and every time reminds us that to follow Him means to come out of ourselves and make of our own lives, not a possession, but a gift to Him and to others.
2. Let us take a step forward: whence is born the invitation that Jesus makes to his disciples to feed the multitude themselves? It is born from two elements: first, the crowd, having followed Jesus, now finds itself in the open, away from inhabited areas, as evening falls, and then, because of the concern of the disciples, who asked Jesus to dismiss the crowd, that they might seek food and lodging in the nearby towns (cf. Lk 9:12). Faced with the neediness of the crowd, the solution of the disciples is that every man should take care of himself: “Dismiss the crowd!” [the disciples say]. How many times do we Christians have this temptation! We do not care for the needs of others, dismissing them with a pitiful, “God help you.” Jesus’ solution, on the other hand, goes in another direction, a direction that surprises the disciples: [He says], “You give them something to eat.”
But how is it that we are to feed a multitude? “We have only five loaves and two fish, unless we go and buy food for all these people.” But Jesus is not discouraged. He asks the disciples to seat people in communities of fifty people, He raises his eyes to heaven, recites the blessing, breaks the loaves, and gives them to the disciples for distribution.
It is a moment of profound communion: the crowd, whose thirst has been quenched by the word of the Lord, is now nourished by His bread of life – and they all ate their fill, the Evangelist tells us.
This evening, we too are gathered around the Lord’s table, the table of the Eucharistic Sacrifice, in which He gives us once again His body, makes present the one sacrifice of the Cross. It is in listening to his Word, in nourishing ourselves with his Body and his Blood, that He makes us go from being a multitude to being a community, from [being strangers] to being [in] communion. The Eucharist is the sacrament of communion, which brings us out from individualism to live together our journey in His footsteps, our faith in Him. We ought, therefore, to ask ourselves before the Lord: How do I live the Eucharist? Do I live it anonymously or as a moment of true communion with the Lord, [and] also with many brothers and sisters who share this same table? How are our Eucharistic celebrations?
3. A final element: whence is born the multiplication of the loaves? The answer lies in the invitation of Jesus to his disciples: “You yourselves give [to them]...,” “give,” share. What do the disciples share? What little they have: five loaves and two fishes. But it is precisely those loaves and fishes that in God’s hands feed the whole crowd.
And it is the disciples, bewildered by the inability of their means, by the poverty of what they have at their disposal, who invite the people to sit down, and - trusting the Word of Jesus – distribute the loaves and fishes that feed the crowd. This tells us that in the Church, but also in society, a keyword that we need not fear is “solidarity,” that is, knowing how to place what we have at God’s disposal: our humble abilities, because [it is] only in the sharing, in the giving of them, that our lives will be fecund, will bear fruit. Solidarity: a word upon which the spirit of the world looks unkindly!
Tonight, once again, the Lord distributes for us the bread which is His body, He makes a gift of Himself. We, too, are experiencing the “solidarity of God” with man, a solidarity that never runs out, a solidarity that never ceases to amaze us: God draws near to us; in the sacrifice of the Cross He lowers Himself, entering into the darkness of death in order to give us His life, which overcomes evil, selfishness, death.
Jesus this evening gives Himself to us in the Eucharist, shares our same journey – indeed, He becomes food, real food that sustains our life even at times when the going is rough, when obstacles slow down our steps. The Lord in the Eucharist makes us follow His path, that of service, of sharing, of giving – and what little we have, what little we are, if shared, becomes wealth, because the power of God, which is that of love, descends into our poverty to transform it.
Let us ask ourselves this evening, adoring the Christ truly present in the Eucharist: do I let myself be transformed by Him? Do I let the Lord who gives Himself to me, guide me to come out more and more from my little fence to get out and be not afraid to give, to share, to love Him and others?
Discipleship, communion and sharing. Let us pray that participation in the Eucharist move us always to follow the Lord every day, to be instruments of communion, to share with Him and with our neighbor who we are. Then our lives will be truly fruitful. Amen
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Liturgical Celebrations to be presided over by Pope: Summer
Vatican City, May 2013 (VIS)
Following is the calendar of celebrations scheduled to be presided over by the Holy Father for the Summer of 2013:
JUNE
2 June, 9th Sunday in Ordinary Time: 6:00pm, Worldwide Eucharistic adoration from Vatican Basilica.
16 June, 11th Sunday in Ordinary Time: 10:30am, Mass for “Evangelium Vitae” Day in St. Peter's Square.
29 Saturday, Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul: 9:30am, Mass and imposition of the pallium upon new metropolitans in the papal chapel.
Following is the calendar of celebrations scheduled to be presided over by the Holy Father for the Summer of 2013:
JUNE
2 June, 9th Sunday in Ordinary Time: 6:00pm, Worldwide Eucharistic adoration from Vatican Basilica.
16 June, 11th Sunday in Ordinary Time: 10:30am, Mass for “Evangelium Vitae” Day in St. Peter's Square.
29 Saturday, Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul: 9:30am, Mass and imposition of the pallium upon new metropolitans in the papal chapel.
JULY
The Prefecture of the Papal Household has released Pope Francis' agenda
for the summer period, from July through to the end of August. Briefing
journalists, Holy See Press Office director, Fr. Federico Lombardi
confirmed that the Pope will remain 'based ' at the Casa Santa Marta
residence in Vatican City State for the duration of the summer.
As per tradition, all private and special audiences are suspended for the duration of the summer. The Holy Father's private Masses with employees will end July 7 and resume in September. The Wednesday general audiences are suspended for the month of July to resume August 7 at the Vatican.
7 July, 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time: 9:30am, Mass with seminarians and novices in the Vatican Basilica.
14 July Sunday , Pope Francis will lead the Angelus prayer from the Apostolic Palace of Castel Gandolfo.
Pope Francis will travel to Brazil for the 28th World Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro from Monday July 22 to Monday July 29.
As per tradition, all private and special audiences are suspended for the duration of the summer. The Holy Father's private Masses with employees will end July 7 and resume in September. The Wednesday general audiences are suspended for the month of July to resume August 7 at the Vatican.
7 July, 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time: 9:30am, Mass with seminarians and novices in the Vatican Basilica.
14 July Sunday , Pope Francis will lead the Angelus prayer from the Apostolic Palace of Castel Gandolfo.
Pope Francis will travel to Brazil for the 28th World Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro from Monday July 22 to Monday July 29.
Reference:
- Vatican News. From the Pope. © Copyright 2013 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Accessed 05/30/2013.
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May 25, 2013 Our Lady of Medjugorje Message to the World:“Dear children! Today I call you to be strong and resolute in faith and prayer, until your prayers are so strong so as to open the Heart of my beloved Son Jesus. Pray little children, pray without ceasing until your heart opens to God’s love. I am with you and I intercede for all of you and I pray for your conversion. Thank you for having responded to my call.”
May 2, 2013 Our Lady of Medjugorje Message to the World: "Dear children; Anew, I am calling you to love and not to judge. My Son, according to the will of the Heavenly Father, was among you to show you the way of salvation, to save you and not to judge you. If you desire to follow my Son, you will not judge but love like your Heavenly Father loves you. And when it is the most difficult for you, when you are falling under the weight of the cross do not despair, do not judge, instead remember that you are loved and praise the Heavenly Father because of His love. My children, do not deviate from the way on which I am leading you. Do not recklessly walk into perdition. May prayer and fasting strengthen you so that you can live as the Heavenly Father would desire; that you may be my apostles of faith and love; that your life may bless those whom you meet; that you may be one with the Heavenly Father and my Son. My children, that is the only truth, the truth that leads to your conversion, and then to the conversion of all those whom you meet - those who have not come to know my Son - all those who do not know what it means to love. My children, my Son gave you a gift of the shepherds. Take good care of them. Pray for them. Thank you."
April 25, 2013 Our Lady of Medjugorje Message to the World:: "Dear children! Pray, pray, keep praying until your heart opens in faith as a flower opens to the warm rays of the sun. This is a time of grace which God gives you through my presence but you are far from my heart, therefore, I call you to personal conversion and to family prayer. May Sacred Scripture always be an incentive for you. I bless you all with my motherly blessing. Thank you for having responded to my call."
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Today's Word: fellowship fell·ow·ship [fel-oh-ship]
Origin: 1150–1200; Middle English felaweshipe. See fellow, -ship
noun
1. the condition or relation of being a fellow: the fellowship of humankind.
2. friendly relationship; companionship: the fellowship of father and son.
3. community of interest, feeling, etc.
4. communion, as between members of the same church.
5. friendliness.
6. an association of persons having similar tastes, interests, etc.
7. a company, guild, or corporation.
8. Education .
a. the body of fellows in a college or university.
b. the position or emoluments of a fellow of a college or university, or the sum of money he or she receives.
c. a foundation for the maintenance of a fellow in a college or university.
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Today's Old Testament Reading - Psalms 33:2-9
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Today's Epistle - Sirach 42:15-25
17
The Lord has not granted the Holy Ones the power to tell of all his marvels which the Almighty Lord has solidly constructed for the universe to stand firm in his glory.
18
He has fathomed both the abyss
and the human heart and seen into their devious ways; for the Most High
knows all there is to know and sees the signs of the times.
21
He has embellished the magnificent works of his wisdom, he is from
everlasting to everlasting, nothing can be added to him, nothing taken
away, he needs no one's advice.
25
one thing complements the excellence of another. Who could ever grow tired of gazing at his glory?
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Today's Gospel Reading - Mark 10:46-52
As Jesus left Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus -- that is, the son of Timaeus -- a blind beggar, was sitting at the side of the road. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout and cry out, 'Son of David, Jesus, have pity on me.' And many of them scolded him and told him to keep quiet, but he only shouted all the louder, 'Son of David, have pity on me.' Jesus stopped and said, 'Call him here.' So they called the blind man over. 'Courage,' they said, 'get up; he is calling you.' So throwing off his cloak, he jumped up and went to Jesus. Then Jesus spoke, 'What do you want me to do for you?' The blind man said to him, 'Rabbuni, let me see again.' Jesus said to him, 'Go; your faith has saved you.' And at once his sight returned and he followed him along the road.
Reflection
• The Gospel today
describes the cure of the blind man Bartimaeus (Mk 10, 46-52)
which closes the long teaching of Jesus about the Cross. At
the beginning of this teaching, there was the cure of an
anonymous blind man (Mk 8, 22-26). Both cures of blind persons are the
symbol of what happened between Jesus and the disciples.
• Mark 10, 46-47: The shouting of the blind man Bartimaeus. Finally, after travelling a long distance, Jesus and the disciples reached Jericho, the last stop before going up toward Jerusalem. Bartimaeus, the blind man was sitting at the side of the road. He could not take part in the procession which accompanies Jesus. But he calls out, asking for the help of Jesus: “Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me!” Throughout the centuries, through the practice of the monks of the desert, this invocation of the poor Bartimaeus became what is usually called: “The prayer of Jesus”. The monks repeated it orally, all the time, and from the mouth it went to the heart. The person, after a short time, no longer prays, in the sense that the person becomes prayer.
• Mark 10, 48-51: Jesus listens to the cry of the blind man. The cry of the poor man bothers people. Those who are in the procession try to stop the poor man from shouting, but “he shouted even louder!” And what does Jesus do? He listens to the call of the poor man, he stops and said: Call him here! Those who wanted to keep him from shouting, to stop the disturbing shout of the poor man, now, at the request of Jesus, are obliged to bring the poor man to Jesus. “Courage, get up because Jesus is calling you”. Bartimaeus leaves everything and directs himself to Jesus. He does not have too much. Only a mantle; what he had to cover his body (cfr. Ex 22, 25-26). This was his security, the only thing he possessed. Jesus asks: “What do you want me to do for you?” It is not enough to shout. It is necessary to know why we shout! “Rabbuni, My Lord, let me see again!” Bartimaeus had called Jesus not with thoughts completely just, because the title “Son of David” was not particularly appropriate. Jesus himself had criticized this (Mk 12, 35-37). But Bartimaeus had greater faith in Jesus than what he could express with his ideas about Jesus. He does not express any demands as Peter did. He knows how to give his life without imposing any conditions, and the miracle takes place.
• Mark 10, 52: “Your faith has saved you”. Jesus tells him: “Go, your faith has saved you.” In that same instant Bartimaeus began to see again and he followed Jesus along the road. His cure is the result of his faith in Jesus. Once cured, he abandons everything, follows Jesus along the road and goes up with him toward Calvary to Jerusalem. Bartimaeus becomes a model disciple for all of us who want to “follow Jesus along the road” in the direction of Jerusalem. In this decision of walking with Jesus is found the source of courage and the seed of the victory on the Cross. Because the cross is not fatal, nor an exigency from God. It is the consequence of the commitment assumed with God, to serve the brothers and sisters and to reject privileges.
• Faith is a force which transforms persons. The cure of the blind man Bartimaeus clarifies a very important aspect of how faith in Jesus should be. Peter had said to Jesus: “You are the Christ!” (Mk 8, 29). His doctrine was right, exact, because Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah. But when Jesus says that the Messiah has to suffer, Peter reacts and does not accept. Peter had a right doctrine, but his faith in Jesus was not so just. Bartimaeus, on the contrary, had called Jesus with the title of “Son of David!” (Mk 10, 47. Jesus was not too pleased with this title (Mk 12, 35-37). And this is why, even invoking Jesus with a doctrine which is not correct, Bartimaeus had faith and was cured! It was different from that of Peter (Mk 8, 32-33), he believed more in Jesus than in the ideas that he had of Jesus. He was converted and followed Jesus along the road toward Calvary (Mk 10, 52). The total understanding of the following of Jesus is not obtained through a theoretical teaching, but with practical commitment, walking with him along the road of service and of gratuity, from Galilee to Jerusalem. Anyone who insists in maintaining the idea of Peter, that is, a glorious Messiah without the Cross, will understand nothing of Jesus and will never be able to attain the attitude of a true disciple. Anyone who believes in Jesus and “gives” himself (Mk 8, 35), accepts “to be the last one” (Mk 9, 35), to “drink the cup and to carry the cross” Mc 10, 38), this person, like Bartimaeus, even having a not too correct idea, will succeed to perceive and “to follow Jesus along the road” (Mk 10, 52). In this certainty of walking with Jesus is found the source of courage and the seed of the victory on the cross.
• Mark 10, 46-47: The shouting of the blind man Bartimaeus. Finally, after travelling a long distance, Jesus and the disciples reached Jericho, the last stop before going up toward Jerusalem. Bartimaeus, the blind man was sitting at the side of the road. He could not take part in the procession which accompanies Jesus. But he calls out, asking for the help of Jesus: “Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me!” Throughout the centuries, through the practice of the monks of the desert, this invocation of the poor Bartimaeus became what is usually called: “The prayer of Jesus”. The monks repeated it orally, all the time, and from the mouth it went to the heart. The person, after a short time, no longer prays, in the sense that the person becomes prayer.
• Mark 10, 48-51: Jesus listens to the cry of the blind man. The cry of the poor man bothers people. Those who are in the procession try to stop the poor man from shouting, but “he shouted even louder!” And what does Jesus do? He listens to the call of the poor man, he stops and said: Call him here! Those who wanted to keep him from shouting, to stop the disturbing shout of the poor man, now, at the request of Jesus, are obliged to bring the poor man to Jesus. “Courage, get up because Jesus is calling you”. Bartimaeus leaves everything and directs himself to Jesus. He does not have too much. Only a mantle; what he had to cover his body (cfr. Ex 22, 25-26). This was his security, the only thing he possessed. Jesus asks: “What do you want me to do for you?” It is not enough to shout. It is necessary to know why we shout! “Rabbuni, My Lord, let me see again!” Bartimaeus had called Jesus not with thoughts completely just, because the title “Son of David” was not particularly appropriate. Jesus himself had criticized this (Mk 12, 35-37). But Bartimaeus had greater faith in Jesus than what he could express with his ideas about Jesus. He does not express any demands as Peter did. He knows how to give his life without imposing any conditions, and the miracle takes place.
• Mark 10, 52: “Your faith has saved you”. Jesus tells him: “Go, your faith has saved you.” In that same instant Bartimaeus began to see again and he followed Jesus along the road. His cure is the result of his faith in Jesus. Once cured, he abandons everything, follows Jesus along the road and goes up with him toward Calvary to Jerusalem. Bartimaeus becomes a model disciple for all of us who want to “follow Jesus along the road” in the direction of Jerusalem. In this decision of walking with Jesus is found the source of courage and the seed of the victory on the Cross. Because the cross is not fatal, nor an exigency from God. It is the consequence of the commitment assumed with God, to serve the brothers and sisters and to reject privileges.
• Faith is a force which transforms persons. The cure of the blind man Bartimaeus clarifies a very important aspect of how faith in Jesus should be. Peter had said to Jesus: “You are the Christ!” (Mk 8, 29). His doctrine was right, exact, because Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah. But when Jesus says that the Messiah has to suffer, Peter reacts and does not accept. Peter had a right doctrine, but his faith in Jesus was not so just. Bartimaeus, on the contrary, had called Jesus with the title of “Son of David!” (Mk 10, 47. Jesus was not too pleased with this title (Mk 12, 35-37). And this is why, even invoking Jesus with a doctrine which is not correct, Bartimaeus had faith and was cured! It was different from that of Peter (Mk 8, 32-33), he believed more in Jesus than in the ideas that he had of Jesus. He was converted and followed Jesus along the road toward Calvary (Mk 10, 52). The total understanding of the following of Jesus is not obtained through a theoretical teaching, but with practical commitment, walking with him along the road of service and of gratuity, from Galilee to Jerusalem. Anyone who insists in maintaining the idea of Peter, that is, a glorious Messiah without the Cross, will understand nothing of Jesus and will never be able to attain the attitude of a true disciple. Anyone who believes in Jesus and “gives” himself (Mk 8, 35), accepts “to be the last one” (Mk 9, 35), to “drink the cup and to carry the cross” Mc 10, 38), this person, like Bartimaeus, even having a not too correct idea, will succeed to perceive and “to follow Jesus along the road” (Mk 10, 52). In this certainty of walking with Jesus is found the source of courage and the seed of the victory on the cross.
Personal questions
• An indiscreet question: “In my way of living faith, am I like Peter or like Bartimaeus?
• Today, in the Church, is the majority of the people like Peter or like Bartimaeus?
• Today, in the Church, is the majority of the people like Peter or like Bartimaeus?
Reference: Courtesy of Order of Carmelites, www.ocarm.org.
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Featured Item of the Day from Litany Lane
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Saint of the Day: St Joan of Arc
Feast Day: May 30
Patron Saint: France, martyrs; captives; military personnel; people ridiculed for their piety; prisoners; soldiers, women who have served in the WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service); and Women's Army Corps
Attributes: armor, lamb, flag of Orleans
Joan of Arc (French: Jeanne d'Arc,[4] IPA: [ʒan daʁk]; ca. 1412[5] – 30 May 1431), nicknamed "The Maid of Orléans" (French: La Pucelle d'Orléans), is a folk heroine of France and a Roman Catholic saint. She was born a peasant
girl in what is now eastern France. Claiming divine guidance, she led
the French army to several important victories during the Hundred Years' War, which paved the way for the coronation of Charles VII of France. She was captured by the Burgundians, transferred to the English in exchange for money, put on trial by the pro-English Bishop of Beauvais Pierre Cauchon for charges of "insubordination and heterodoxy",[6] and was burned at the stake for heresy when she was 19 years old.[7]
Twenty-five years after her execution, an inquisitorial court authorized by Pope Callixtus III examined the trial, pronounced her innocent, and declared her a martyr.[7] Joan of Arc was beatified in 1909 and canonized in 1920. She is – along with St. Denis, St. Martin of Tours, St. Louis IX, and St. Theresa of Lisieux – one of the patron saints of France. Joan said she had received visions from God instructing her to support Charles VII and recover France from English domination late in the Hundred Years' War. The uncrowned King Charles VII sent her to the siege of Orléans as part of a relief mission. She gained prominence when she overcame the dismissive attitude of veteran commanders and lifted the siege in only nine days. Several additional swift victories led to Charles VII's coronation at Reims.
To the present day, Joan of Arc has remained a significant figure in Western civilization. From Napoleon I onward, French politicians of all leanings have invoked her memory. Famous writers, filmmakers and composers who have created works about her include: William Shakespeare (Henry VI, Part 1), Voltaire (The Maid of Orleans), Friedrich Schiller (The Maid of Orleans), Giuseppe Verdi (Giovanna d'Arco), Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (The Maid of Orleans), Mark Twain (Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc), Jean Anouilh (L'Alouette), Bertolt Brecht (Saint Joan of the Stockyards), George Bernard Shaw (Saint Joan), Maxwell Anderson (Joan of Lorraine), Carl Theodor Dreyer (The Passion of Joan of Arc), Robert Bresson (The Trial of Joan of Arc), Arthur Honegger (Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher), Leonard Cohen (Joan of Arc), and Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (Joan of Arc). Cultural depictions of Joan of Arc have continued in film, theatre, television, video games, music, and performances.
Twenty-five years after her execution, an inquisitorial court authorized by Pope Callixtus III examined the trial, pronounced her innocent, and declared her a martyr.[7] Joan of Arc was beatified in 1909 and canonized in 1920. She is – along with St. Denis, St. Martin of Tours, St. Louis IX, and St. Theresa of Lisieux – one of the patron saints of France. Joan said she had received visions from God instructing her to support Charles VII and recover France from English domination late in the Hundred Years' War. The uncrowned King Charles VII sent her to the siege of Orléans as part of a relief mission. She gained prominence when she overcame the dismissive attitude of veteran commanders and lifted the siege in only nine days. Several additional swift victories led to Charles VII's coronation at Reims.
To the present day, Joan of Arc has remained a significant figure in Western civilization. From Napoleon I onward, French politicians of all leanings have invoked her memory. Famous writers, filmmakers and composers who have created works about her include: William Shakespeare (Henry VI, Part 1), Voltaire (The Maid of Orleans), Friedrich Schiller (The Maid of Orleans), Giuseppe Verdi (Giovanna d'Arco), Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (The Maid of Orleans), Mark Twain (Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc), Jean Anouilh (L'Alouette), Bertolt Brecht (Saint Joan of the Stockyards), George Bernard Shaw (Saint Joan), Maxwell Anderson (Joan of Lorraine), Carl Theodor Dreyer (The Passion of Joan of Arc), Robert Bresson (The Trial of Joan of Arc), Arthur Honegger (Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher), Leonard Cohen (Joan of Arc), and Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (Joan of Arc). Cultural depictions of Joan of Arc have continued in film, theatre, television, video games, music, and performances.
Background
The historian Kelly DeVries describes the period preceding her
appearance in the following terms: "If anything could have discouraged
her, the state of France in 1429 should have." The Hundred Years' War had begun in 1337 as a succession dispute over the French throne with intermittent periods of relative peace. Nearly all the fighting had taken place in France, and the English army's use of chevauchée tactics (similar to scorched earth strategies) had devastated the economy.[8] The French population had not recovered from the Black Death
of the previous century and its merchants were isolated from foreign
markets. At the outset of Jeanne d'Arc's appearance, the English had
nearly achieved their goal of a dual monarchy under English control and
the French army had not achieved any major victories for a generation.
In DeVries's words, "The kingdom of France was not even a shadow of its
thirteenth-century prototype."[9]
The French king at the time of Joan's birth, Charles VI, suffered bouts of insanity[10] and was often unable to rule. The king's brother Duke Louis of Orléans, Duke of Orléans, and the king's cousin John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy,
quarreled over the regency of France and the guardianship of the royal
children. This dispute escalated to accusations of an extramarital
affair with Queen Isabeau of Bavaria and the kidnappings of the royal children.[]. The matter climaxed with the assassination of the Duke of Orléans in 1407 on the orders of the Duke of Burgundy.[11]
The factions loyal to these two men became known as the Armagnacs and the Burgundians. Henry V of England took advantage of this turmoil to invade France, winning a dramatic victory at Agincourt in 1415 and capturing many northern French towns.[12] The future French king, Charles VII, assumed the title of Dauphin – the heir to the throne – at the age of fourteen, after all four of his older brothers died in succession.[13]
His first significant official act was to conclude a peace treaty with
Burgundy in 1419. This ended in disaster when Armagnac partisans
assassinated John the Fearless during a meeting under Charles's guarantee of protection. The new duke of Burgundy, Philip the Good,
blamed Charles for the murder and entered into an alliance with the
English. The allied forces conquered large sections of France.[14]
In 1420, Queen Isabeau of Bavaria signed the Treaty of Troyes, which
granted the succession of the French throne to Henry V and his heirs
instead of her son Charles. This agreement revived rumors about her
alleged affair with the late duke of Orléans and raised fresh suspicions
that the Dauphin was illegitimate rather than the son of the king.[15] Henry V and Charles VI died within two months of each other in 1422, leaving an infant, Henry VI of England, the nominal monarch of both kingdoms. Henry V's brother, John of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Bedford, acted as regent.[16]
By the beginning of 1429, nearly all of northern France and some
parts of the southwest were under foreign control. The English
controlled Paris and Rouen while the Burgundians controlled Reims, the
latter city being the traditional site of French coronations. This was
an important consideration since neither claimant to the throne of
France had yet been officially crowned. The English had laid siege to
Orléans, one of the few remaining loyal French cities and a strategic
position along the Loire River, which made it the last obstacle to an
assault on the remainder of the French heartland. In the words of one
modern historian, "On the fate of Orléans hung that of the entire
kingdom."[17] No one was optimistic that the city could long withstand the siege.[18]
Life
 |
| Joan's birthplace is now a museum. |
Joan was born the daughter of Jacques d'Arc and Isabelle Romée[19] in Domrémy, a village which was then in the French part of the duchy of Bar, or Barrois mouvant, situated West of the Meuse River, while the rest of the duchy (East of the Meuse) was a part of the Holy Roman Empire. The duchy of Bar was later incorporated to the province of Lorraine and the village of Domrémy renamed Domrémy-la-Pucelle, in honor of Joan of Arc.[20]
Joan's parents owned about 50 acres (20 hectares) of land and her
father supplemented his farming work with a minor position as a village
official, collecting taxes and heading the local watch.[21]
They lived in an isolated patch of eastern France that remained loyal
to the French crown despite being surrounded by Burgundian lands.
Several local raids occurred during her childhood and on one occasion
her village was burned.
Joan said she was about 19 at her trial, so she must have been born
around the year 1412. She later testified that she experienced her first
vision around 1424 at the age of 12 years, when she was out alone in a
field and saw visions of figures she identified as Saint Michael, Saint Catherine, and Saint Margaret,
who told her to drive out the English and bring the Dauphin to Reims
for his coronation. She said she cried when they left, as they were so
beautiful.[22]
At the age of 16, she asked a kinsman, Durand Lassois, to take her to nearby Vaucouleurs, where she petitioned the garrison commander, Count Robert de Baudricourt, for permission to visit the royal French court at Chinon. Baudricourt's sarcastic response did not deter her.[23] She returned the following January and gained support from two men of standing: Jean de Metz and Bertrand de Poulengy.[24] Under their auspices, she gained a second meeting, where she made a remarkable prediction about a military reversal near Orléans.[25]
Rise
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| English raid of 1415 Joan's journey from Domrémy to Chinon Raid of Jeanne d'Arc to Reims in 1429 |
Robert de Baudricourt granted her an escort to visit Chinon after
news from the front confirmed her prediction. She made the journey
through hostile Burgundian territory in male disguise.[26]
Upon arriving at the Royal Court she impressed Charles VII during a
private conference. During this time Charles's mother-in-law Yolande of Aragon was financing a relief expedition to Orléans.
Joan asked for permission to travel with the army and wear the
equipment of a knight. She depended on donated items for her armor,
horse, sword, banner, and other items utilized by her entourage.
Historian Stephen W. Richey explains her attraction to the Royal Court
by pointing out that they may have viewed her as the only source of hope
for a regime that was near collapse:
Upon her arrival, Joan effectively turned the longstanding Anglo-French conflict into a religious war.[27]
But this course of action was not without its risks. Charles' advisers
were worried that unless Joan's orthodoxy could be established beyond
doubt – that she was not a heretic or a sorceress – Charles' enemies
could easily make the claim that his kingdom was a gift from the Devil.
To circumvent this possibility, the Dauphin ordered background inquiries
and a theological examination at Poitiers to verify her morality. In
April 1429, the commission of inquiry "declared her to be of
irreproachable life, a good Christian, possessed of the virtues of
humility, honesty and simplicity."[27]
The theologians at Poitiers did not pass judgment on her divine
inspiration; rather, they informed the Dauphin that there was a
'favorable presumption' to be made on the divine nature of her mission.
This was enough for Charles, but they put the ball back in his court by
stating that he had an obligation to put Joan to the test. 'To doubt or
abandon her without suspicion of evil would be to repudiate the Holy Spirit and to become unworthy of God's aid', they declared.[28] The test for the truth of her claims would be the raising of the siege of Orléans.
She arrived at the siege of Orléans on 29 April 1429, but Jean d'Orléans, the acting head of the Orléans ducal family, initially excluded her from war councils and failed to inform her when the army engaged the enemy.[29] However, his exclusions did not prevent her presence at most councils and battles.
The extent of her actual military leadership is a subject of
historical debate. Traditional historians, such as Édouard Perroy,
conclude that she was a standard bearer whose primary effect was on
morale.[30]
This type of analysis usually relies on the condemnation trial
testimony, where she stated that she preferred her standard to her
sword. Recent scholarship that focuses on the nullification trial
testimony asserts that the army's commanders esteemed her as a skilled
tactician and a successful strategist. Stephen W. Richey's opinion is
one example: "She proceeded to lead the army in an astounding series of
victories that reversed the tide of the war."[26] In either case, historians agree that the army enjoyed remarkable success during her brief career.[31]
Leadership
Joan of Arc rejected the cautious strategy that characterized French
leadership during previous campaigns. During the five months of siege
before her arrival, the defenders of Orléans attempted only one
aggressive move and that ended in disaster. On 4 May the French attacked
and captured the outlying fortress of Saint Loup, which she followed on
5 May with a march to a second fortress called Saint Jean le Blanc,
which was found deserted. The next day she opposed Jean d'Orleans at a
war council where she demanded another assault on the enemy. D'Orleans
ordered the city gates locked to prevent another battle, but she
summoned the townsmen and common soldiers and forced the mayor to unlock
a gate. With the aid of only one captain she rode out and captured the
fortress of Saint Augustins. That evening she learned she had been
excluded from a war council where the leaders had decided to wait for
reinforcements before acting again. Disregarding this decision, she
insisted on attacking the main English stronghold called "les Tourelles" on 7 May.[32]
Contemporaries acknowledged her as the heroine of the engagement after
she was wounded in the neck by an arrow but returned to lead the final
charge.[33]
The sudden victory at Orléans led to many proposals for further
offensive action. The English expected an attempt to recapture Paris or
an attack on Normandy. In the aftermath of the unexpected victory, Joan
persuaded Charles VII to grant her co-command of the army with Duke John II of Alençon
and gained royal permission for her plan to recapture nearby bridges
along the Loire as a prelude to an advance on Reims and the coronation
of Charles VII. This was a bold proposal because Reims was roughly twice
as far away as Paris and deep within enemy territory.[34]
The army recovered Jargeau on 12 June, Meung-sur-Loire on 15 June, and Beaugency
on 17 June. The Duke of Alençon agreed to all of Joan's decisions.
Other commanders including Jean d'Orléans had been impressed with her
performance at Orléans and became her supporters. Alençon credited her
with saving his life at Jargeau, where she warned him of an imminent
artillery attack.[35]
During the same battle she withstood a blow from a stone cannonball to
her helmet as she climbed a scaling ladder. An expected English relief
force arrived in the area on 18 June under the command of Sir John Fastolf. The battle at Patay might be compared to Agincourt in reverse. The French vanguard attacked before the English archers
could finish defensive preparations. A rout ensued that decimated the
main body of the English army and killed or captured most of its
commanders. Fastolf escaped with a small band of soldiers and became the
scapegoat for the humiliating English defeat. The French suffered
minimal losses.[36]
The French army set out for Reims from Gien-sur-Loire on 29 June and
accepted the conditional surrender of the Burgundian-held city of Auxerre on 3 July. The other towns in their path returned to French allegiance without resistance. Troyes, the site of the treaty that tried to disinherit Charles VII, capitulated after a bloodless four-day siege.[37]
The army was in short supply of food by the time it reached Troyes. But
the army was in luck: a wandering friar named Brother Richard had been
preaching about the end of the world at Troyes and convinced local
residents to plant beans, a crop with an early harvest. The hungry army
arrived as the beans ripened.[38]
Reims opened its gates to the army on 16 July. The coronation took
place the following morning. Although Joan and the duke of Alençon urged
a prompt march on Paris, the royal court preferred a negotiated truce
with the duke of Burgundy. Duke Philip the Good broke the agreement,
using it as a stalling tactic to reinforce the defense of Paris.[39]
The French army marched through towns near Paris during the interim and
accepted more peaceful surrenders. The Duke of Bedford headed an
English force and confronted the French army in a standoff on 15 August.
The French assault at Paris ensued on 8 September. Despite a wound to
the leg from a crossbow bolt, Joan continued directing the troops until
the day's fighting ended. The following morning she received a royal
order to withdraw. Most historians blame French Grand Chamberlain Georges de la Trémoille for the political blunders that followed the coronation.[40] In October, Joan was with the Royal army when it took Saint-Pierre-le-Moûtier, followed by an unsuccessful attempt to take La-Charité-sur-Loire in November and December. On 29 December, Joan and her family were granted nobility.
Capture
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| Joan captured by the Burgundians at Compiègne. Mural in the Panthéon, Paris |
It was customary for a captive's family to ransom a prisoner of war. Joan was in an unusual circumstance. Many historians condemn King Charles VII for failing to intervene. She attempted several escapes, on one occasion jumping from her 70 foot (21 m) tower in Vermandois to the soft earth of a dry moat, after which she was moved to the Burgundian town of Arras.[44] The English government eventually purchased her from Duke Philip of Burgundy. Bishop Pierre Cauchon of Beauvais, an English partisan, assumed a prominent role in these negotiations and her later trial.[45]
Trial
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| The keep of the castle of Rouen, surviving remnant of the fortress where Joan was imprisoned during her trial. It has since become known as the Joan of Arc tower. |
The trial record demonstrates her remarkable intellect. The transcript's most famous exchange is an exercise in subtlety. "Asked if she knew she was in God's grace, she answered: 'If I am not, may God put me there; and if I am, may God so keep me.'"[50] The question is a scholarly trap. Church doctrine held that no one could be certain of being in God's grace. If she had answered yes, then she would have convicted herself of heresy. If she had answered no, then she would have confessed her own guilt. Notary Boisguillaume later testified that at the moment the court heard this reply, "Those who were interrogating her were stupefied."[51] In the twentieth century George Bernard Shaw found this dialogue so compelling that sections of his play Saint Joan are literal translations of the trial record.[52]
Several court functionaries later testified that significant portions of the transcript were altered in her disfavor. Many clerics served under compulsion, including the inquisitor, Jean LeMaitre, and a few even received death threats from the English. Under Inquisitorial guidelines, Joan should have been confined to an ecclesiastical prison under the supervision of female guards (i.e., nuns). Instead, the English kept her in a secular prison guarded by their own soldiers. Bishop Cauchon denied Joan's appeals to the Council of Basel and the pope, which should have stopped his proceeding.[53]
The twelve articles of accusation that summarize the court's finding contradict the already doctored court record.[54] The illiterate defendant signed an abjuration document she did not understand under threat of immediate execution. The court substituted a different abjuration in the official record.[55]
Execution
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Joan of Arc's Death at the Stake, by Hermann Stilke (1843)[56]
|
She referred the court to the Poitiers inquiry when questioned on the matter. The Poitiers record no longer survives but circumstances indicate the Poitiers clerics had approved her practice. In other words, she had a mission to do a man's work so it was fitting that she dress the part.[62] She also kept her hair cut short through her military campaigns and while in prison. Her supporters, such as the theologian Jean Gerson, defended her hairstyle, as did Inquisitor Brehal later during the Rehabilitation trial.[63] Nonetheless, at the trial in 1431 she was condemned and sentenced to die.
Eyewitnesses described the scene of the execution by burning on 30 May 1431. Tied to a tall pillar at the Vieux-Marché in Rouen, she asked two of the clergy, Fr Martin Ladvenu and Fr Isambart de la Pierre, to hold a crucifix before her. An English soldier also constructed a small cross which she put in the front of her dress. After she died, the English raked back the coals to expose her charred body so that no one could claim she had escaped alive, then burned the body twice more to reduce it to ashes and prevent any collection of relics. They cast her remains into the Seine from the only bridge called Mathilda.[64] The executioner, Geoffroy Therage, later stated that he "...greatly feared to be damned."[65]
Posthumous events
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| Modern statue of Joan of Arc in Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral interior, Paris |
In 1452, during the posthumous investigation into her execution, the Church declared that a religious play in her honor at Orléans would allow attendees to gain an indulgence (remission of temporal punishment for sin) by making a pilgrimage to the event.
Retrial
A posthumous retrial opened after the war ended. Pope Callixtus III authorized this proceeding, also known as the "nullification trial", at the request of Inquisitor-General Jean Brehal and Joan's mother Isabelle Romée. The aim of the trial was to investigate whether the trial of condemnation and its verdict had been handled justly and according to canon law. Investigations started with an inquest by a priest, Guillaume Bouille. Brehal conducted an investigation in 1452. A formal appeal followed in November 1455. The appellate process involved clergy from throughout Europe and observed standard court procedure. A panel of theologians analyzed testimony from 115 witnesses. Brehal drew up his final summary in June 1456, which describes Joan as a martyr and implicated the late Pierre Cauchon with heresy for having convicted an innocent woman in pursuit of a secular vendetta. The technical reason for her execution had been a Biblical clothing law.[67] The nullification trial reversed the conviction in part because the condemnation proceeding had failed to consider the doctrinal exceptions to that stricture. The appellate court declared her innocent on 7 July 1456.[68]Canonization
When Félix Dupanloup was made bishop of Orléans in 1849, he pronounced a fervid panegyric on Joan of Arc, which attracted attention in England as well as France and he led the efforts which culminated in Joan of Arc's beatification in 1909.
Pope Benedict XV canonized Joan on 16 May 1920. As Saint Joan of Arc, she has become one of the most popular saints of the Roman Catholic Church.[69]
Death and 15th century
As with other saints who were excommunicated or investigated by ecclesiastic courts, such as St. Athanasius, St. Theresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross, Joan of Arc was put on trial by an Inquisitorial court. In Joan's case, the court was controlled by the English government in occupied northern France, leading to her burning at the stake at Rouen. When the French regained Rouen in 1449, a series of investigations were launched which led to a formal appeal run by the Inquisitor-General in 1455. She was declared innocent on July 7, 1456. The Inquisitor's summary of evidence for the case describes her as a martyr who had been executed by a court which was itself in violation of the Church's rules.She had always been considered innocent by those of her own faction. The city of Orléans commemorated her death each year beginning in 1432, and from 1435 onward performed a religious play centered around her victories. The play represented her as a divinely sent saviour guided by angels.
In 1452, during one of the postwar investigations into her execution, Cardinal d'Estouteville declared that this religious play would merit qualification as a pilgrimage site by which attendees could gain an indulgence. Not long after the appeal, Pope Pius II wrote an approving piece about her in his memoirs.
16th century
During the 16th century, Joan of Arc was utilized as a symbol of the Catholic League, a group organized to fight against Protestantism during the Wars of Religion of that era.19th century to present
Paradoxically, it was the publication of works by secular historians in the mid-19th century which seems to have sparked widespread public efforts to ask the Church to officially canonize her. Félix Dupanloup, Bishop of Orléans from 1849 to 1878, led the efforts which culminated in Joan of Arc's beatification in 1909, held in Notre Dame de Paris. During the subsequent fighting in France during World War I, Allied troops carried her image into battle with them. During one battle, French troops interpreted a German searchlight image projected onto low-lying clouds as an appearance by Joan, which greatly bolstered their morale.Her canonization came on 16 May 1920. Over 30,000 people attended the ceremony in Rome, including 140 descendants of Joan of Arc's family. Pope Benedict XV presided over the rite, for which the interior of St. Peter's Basilica was richly decorated (Associated Press, 16 May 1920).
Her beatification approximately coincided with the French invention of the Janvier transfer engraving machine (also called a die engraving pantograph) which facilitates the creation of minted coins and commemorative medallions. This invention, together with the already well-established French sculptural tradition, added another element to Saint Joan's beatification: a series of well-made religious art medals featuring Saint Jeanne d'Arc with scenes from her life.
Popularity
She has become especially popular among Traditional Catholics, particularly in France - both because of her obvious connection to this country as well as the fact that the Traditional Catholic movement is strongest in France. This branch of Catholicism, which has refused to accept the changes made by the Second Vatican Council, has compared the 1988 excommunication of Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre (one of the founders of the Traditional Catholic movement) to Joan of Arc's excommunication by a corrupt pro-English Bishop in 1431. Traditional Catholic parishes sometimes perform plays in Joan of Arc's honor.
Legacy
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| Joan of Arc dictated her letters. Three of the surviving ones are signed Jehanne. |
Joan of Arc came from an obscure village and rose to prominence when she was a teenager, and she did so as an uneducated peasant. The French and English kings had justified the ongoing war through competing interpretations of the thousand-year-old Salic law. The conflict had been an inheritance feud between monarchs. She gave meaning to appeals such as that of squire Jean de Metz when he asked, "Must the king be driven from the kingdom; and are we to be English?"[24] In the words of Stephen Richey, "She turned what had been a dry dynastic squabble that left the common people unmoved except for their own suffering into a passionately popular war of national liberation."[26] Richey also expresses the breadth of her subsequent appeal:
Joan of Arc was not a feminist. She operated within a religious tradition that believed an exceptional person from any level of society might receive a divine calling. She expelled women from the French army and may have struck one stubborn camp follower with the flat of a sword.[72][73] Nonetheless, some of her most significant aid came from women. King Charles VII's mother-in-law, Yolande of Aragon, confirmed Joan's virginity and financed her departure to Orléans. Joan of Luxembourg, aunt to the count of Luxembourg who held custody of her after Compiègne, alleviated her conditions of captivity and may have delayed her sale to the English. Finally, Anne of Burgundy, the duchess of Bedford and wife to the regent of England, declared Joan a virgin during pretrial inquiries.[74] For technical reasons this prevented the court from charging her with witchcraft. Ultimately this provided part of the basis for her vindication and sainthood. From Christine de Pizan to the present, women have looked to her as a positive example of a brave and active female.[75]The people who came after her in the five centuries since her death tried to make everything of her: demonic fanatic, spiritual mystic, naive and tragically ill-used tool of the powerful, creator and icon of modern popular nationalism, adored heroine, saint. She insisted, even when threatened with torture and faced with death by fire, that she was guided by voices from God. Voices or no voices, her achievements leave anyone who knows her story shaking his head in amazed wonder.—Stephen Richey[26]
Joan of Arc has been a political symbol in France since the time of Napoleon. Liberals emphasized her humble origins. Early conservatives stressed her support of the monarchy. Later conservatives recalled her nationalism. During World War II, both the Vichy Regime and the French Resistance used her image: Vichy propaganda remembered her campaign against the English with posters that showed British warplanes bombing Rouen and the ominous caption: "They Always Return to the Scene of Their Crimes." The resistance emphasized her fight against foreign occupation and her origins in the province of Lorraine, which had fallen under Nazi control.
Three separate vessels of the French Navy have been named after her, including a helicopter carrier which was retired from active service on 7 June 2010. At present the controversial French far-right political party Front National holds rallies at her statues, reproduces her likeness in party publications, and uses a tricolor flame partly symbolic of her martyrdom as its emblem. This party's opponents sometimes satirize its appropriation of her image.[76] The French civic holiday in her honour is the second Sunday of May.
Traditionalist Catholics, in France and elsewhere, also use her as a symbol of inspiration, often comparing the 1988 excommunication of Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre (founder of the Society of St. Pius X and a dissident against the Vatican II reforms), to her excommunication.
Philippe-Alexandre Le Brun de Charmettes is the first historian who wrote Joan of Arc's complete history[77] in 1817, in an attempt to restore her family's reputation from Joan's status as a relapsed heretic. His interest in Joan came at a time when France was still struggling to define its new identity after the Revolution and the Napoleonic wars. The national ethos was in search of non-controversial heroes. As a staunch supporter of King and country, Joan of Arc was an acceptable symbol to the monarchists. As a patriot and the daughter of commoners, she was seen as one prototype of the low-born volunteers (the soldats de l'an II) who had victoriously fought for revolutionary France in 1802 and as such could be claimed by the Republicans. As a religious martyr, she was also popular in the powerful Catholic community. De Charmette's Orléanide, today largely forgotten, was another attempt to magnify the national ethos as writers like Virgil (the Aeneid), or Camoens (Os Lusíadas) had done for Rome and Portugal.
Visions
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| Jeanne d' Arc, by Eugene Thirion (1876). Late 19th century images such as this often had political undertones because of French territorial cessions to Germany in 1871. (Chautou, Church of Notre Dame) |
Analysis of her visions is problematic since the main source of information on this topic is the condemnation trial transcript in which she defied customary courtroom procedure about a witness' oath and specifically refused to answer every question about her visions. She complained that a standard witness oath would conflict with an oath she had previously sworn to maintain confidentiality about meetings with her king. It remains unknown to what extent the surviving record may represent the fabrications of corrupt court officials or her own possible fabrications to protect state secrets.[78] Some historians sidestep speculation about the visions by asserting that her belief in her calling is more relevant than questions about the visions' ultimate origin.[79]
Documents from her own era and historians prior to the 20th century generally assume that she was both healthy and sane.
A number of more recent scholars attempted to explain her visions in psychiatric or neurological terms. Potential diagnoses have included epilepsy, migraine, tuberculosis, and schizophrenia.[80] None of the putative diagnoses have gained consensus support, possibly due to the limited amount of information available about Joan's life. Two experts who analyse a temporal lobe tuberculoma hypothesis in the medical journal Neuropsychobiology express their misgivings this way:
It is difficult to draw final conclusions, but it would seem unlikely that widespread tuberculosis, a serious disease, was present in this "patient" whose life-style and activities would surely have been impossible had such a serious disease been present.[81]In response to another such theory alleging that she suffered from bovine tuberculosis as a result of drinking unpasteurized milk, historian Régine Pernoud wrote that if drinking unpasteurized milk could produce such potential benefits for the nation, then the French government should stop mandating the pasteurization of milk.[82]
The fact that Joan of Arc gained favor in the court of King Charles VII has been suggested as evidence against mental illness hypotheses. The argument suggests that Charles VII would have been able to recognize "madness" because his own father, Charles VI, suffered from it. Charles VI was popularly known as "Charles the Mad", and much of the political and military decline that France had suffered during his reign could be attributed to the power vacuum that his episodes of insanity had produced. The previous king had believed he was made of glass, a delusion no courtier had mistaken for a religious awakening. Fears that King Charles VII would manifest the same insanity may have factored into the attempt to disinherit him at Troyes. This stigma was so persistent that contemporaries of the next generation would attribute to inherited madness the breakdown that England's King Henry VI was to suffer in 1453: Henry VI was nephew to Charles VII and grandson to Charles VI. Upon Joan's arrival at Chinon the royal counselor Jacques Gélu cautioned,
One should not lightly alter any policy because of conversation with a girl, a peasant ... so susceptible to illusions; one should not make oneself ridiculous in the sight of foreign nations.
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| Miniature from Vigiles du roi Charles VII. The citizens of Troyes hand over city keys to the Dauphin and Joan. |
Also potentially relevant is the fact that she displayed none of the objective symptoms that can accompany the mental illnesses which have been suggested, such as schizophrenia. She remained astute to the end of her life and the rehabilitation trial testimony frequently marvels at her astuteness:
Often they [the judges] turned from one question to another, changing about, but, notwithstanding this, she answered prudently, and evinced a wonderful memory.[85]Her subtle replies under interrogation even forced the court to stop holding public sessions.[51]
Although mental illness does not necessarily include severe cognitive impairment, nonetheless the various psychiatric conditions which have been specifically suggested to explain Joan's experiences would include certain detrimental symptoms which are among the diagnostic criteria. For example, in the case of schizophrenia the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders lists detrimental and noticeable side effects such as disorganized speech, disorganized or catatonic behavior, affective flattening, alogia, and avolition, among other effects.[86] As noted farther above, these symptoms do not appear to have been present in Joan's case.
Some psychiatrists have also urged that a distinction should be made between different types of experiences. Ralph Hoffman, professor of psychology at Yale University, argues that visionary and creative states, including "hearing voices", are not necessarily signs of mental illness. He lists Joan of Arc's case as a possible example of what Hoffman describes as an "inspired voice", without elaborating on the term.[87]
References
- ^ (See Pernoud's Joan of Arc By Herself and Her Witnesses, p. 98: "Boulainvilliers tells of her birth in Domrémy, and it is he who gives us an exact date, which may be the true one, saying that she was born on the night of Epiphany, 6 January").
- ^ "Chemainus Theatre Festival > The 2008 Season > Saint Joan > Joan of Arc Historical Timeline". Chemainustheatrefestival.ca. Retrieved 2012-11-30.
- ^ Church of England Holy Days
- ^ Her name was written in a variety of ways, particularly prior to the mid-19th century. See Pernoud and Clin, pp. 220–221. She reportedly signed her name as "Jehanne" (see www.stjoan-center.com/Album/, parts 47 and 49; it is also noted in Pernoud and Clin).
- ^ Modern biographical summaries often assert a birthdate of 6 January for Joan. In fact, however, she could only estimate her own age. All of the rehabilitation-trial witnesses likewise estimated her age even though several of these people were her godparents. The 6 January claim is based on a single source: a letter from Lord Perceval de Boullainvilliers on 21 July 1429 (see Pernoud's Joan of Arc By Herself and Her Witnesses, p. 98: "Boulainvilliers tells of her birth in Domrémy, and it is he who gives us an exact date, which may be the true one, saying that she was born on the night of Epiphany, 6 January"). Boulainvilliers, however, was not from Domrémy. The event was probably not recorded. The practice of parish registers for non-noble births did not begin until several generations later.[citation needed]
- ^ Marina Warner, Joan of Arc, Image of Female heroism, p.5
- ^ a b Andrew Ward (2005) Joan of Arc at the Internet Movie Database
- ^ John Aberth. From the Brink of the Apocalypse,Routledge, 2000 ISBN 0-415-92715-3, ISBN 978-0-415-92715-4 p. 85
- ^ DeVries, pp. 27–28.
- ^ "Charles VI". Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved 9 March 2010.
- ^ "The Glorious Age of the Dukes of Burgundy". Burgundy Today. Retrieved 9 March 2010.
- ^ DeVries, pp. 15–19.
- ^ Pernoud and Clin, p. 167.
- ^ DeVries, p. 24.
- ^ Pernoud and Clin, pp. 188–189.
- ^ DeVries, pp. 24, 26.
- ^ Pernoud and Clin, p. 10.
- ^ DeVries, p. 28.
- ^ Jacques d'Arc (1380–1440) was a farmer in Domremy who held the post of doyen – a local tax-collector and organizer of village defenses. He married Isabelle de Vouthon (1387–1468), called Romée, in 1405. Their other children were Jacquemin, Jean, Pierre and Catherine. Charles VII ennobled Jacques and Isabelle's family on 29 December 1429; the Chamber of Accounts registered the family's designation to nobility on 20 January 1430. The grant permitted the family to change their surname to du Lys.
- ^ Condemnation trial, p. 37.[1]. Retrieved 23 March 2006.
- ^ Pernoud and Clin, p. 221.
- ^ Condemnation trial, pp. 58–59.[2]. Retrieved 23 March 2006.
- ^ DeVries, pp. 37–40.
- ^ a b Nullification trial testimony of Jean de Metz.[3]. Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ Oliphant, ch. 2.[4]. Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ a b c d Richey, p. 4.
- ^ a b Vale, M.G.A., 'Charles VII', 1974, p. 55.
- ^ Vale, M.G.A., 'Charles VII', 1974, p. 56.
- ^ Histories and fictional works often refer to this man by other names. Some call him count of Dunois in reference to a title he received years after Joan's death. During her lifetime he preferred Bastard of Orléans, which his contemporaries understood as an honor because it described him as a first cousin of King Charles VII. That name often confuses modern readers because "bastard" has become a popular insult. "Jean d'Orleans" is less precise but not anachronistic. For a short biography see Pernoud and Clin, pp. 180–181.
- ^ Perroy, p. 283.
- ^ Pernoud and Clin, p. 230.
- ^ DeVries, pp. 74–83
- ^ Devout Catholics regard this as proof of her divine mission. At Chinon and Poitiers she had declared that she would give a sign at Orléans. The lifting of the siege gained her the support of prominent clergy such as the Archbishop of Embrun and theologian Jean Gerson, who both wrote supportive treatises immediately following this event.
- ^ DeVries, pp. 96–97.
- ^ Nullification trial testimony of Jean, Duke of Alençon.[5] . Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ DeVries, pp. 114–115.
- ^ DeVries, pp. 122–126.
- ^ Lucie-Smith, pp. 156–160.
- ^ DeVries, p. 134.
- ^ These range from mild associations of intrigue to scholarly invective. For an impassioned statement see Gower, ch. 4.[6] (Retrieved 12 February 2006) Milder examples are Pernoud and Clin, pp. 78–80; DeVries, p. 135; and Oliphant, ch. 6.[7] . Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ Pernoud and Clin, pp. 258-259.
- ^ a b Geiger,Barbara (April 2008). "A Friend to Compiegne". Calliope Magazine 18 (8): 32–34.
- ^ DeVries, pp. 161–170.
- ^ Pernoud, Regine. Joan of Arc: Her Story, page 96.
- ^ "Joan of Arc, Saint". Encyclopædia Britannica. 2007. Encyclopædia Britannica Online Library Edition. 12 September 2007 <http://www.library.eb.com.ezproxy.ae.talonline.ca/eb/article-27055>.
- ^ Judges' investigations 9 January – 26 March, ordinary trial 26 March – 24 May, recantation 24 May, relapse trial 28–29 May.
- ^ The retrial verdict later affirmed that Cauchon had no authority to try the case. See also Joan of Arc: Her Story, by Regine Pernoud and Marie-Veronique Clin, p. 108. The vice-inquisitor of France objected to the trial on jurisdictional grounds at its outset.
- ^ Nullification trial testimony of Father Nicholas Bailly.[8] . Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ Taylor, Craig, Joan of Arc: La Pucelle, p. 137.
- ^ Condemnation trial, p. 52.[9] . Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ a b Pernoud and Clin, p. 112.
- ^ Shaw, "Saint Joan". Penguin Classics; Reissue edition (2001). ISBN 0-14-043791-6
- ^ Pernoud and Clin, p. 130.
- ^ Condemnation trial, pp. 314–316.[10] . Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ Condemnation trial, pp. 342–343.[11] (Retrieved 12 February 2006) Also nullification trial testimony of Brother Pierre Migier, "As to the act of recantation, I know it was performed by her; it was in writing, and was about the length of a Pater Noster."[12] (Retrieved 12 February 2006) In modern English this is better known as the Lord's Prayer, Latin and English text available here:[13] . Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ This painting is made in a romantic way. That is to say not realistic. The painter did not try to sketch reality but to express his feelings. For example, the Rouen Cathedral had a different tower and it could not be seen this way from the stake. From this standpoint, the Saint-Saviour church, that is represented on the left of the picture, was actually located on the right and partly hidden by a wooden market hall. On the left side there were half-timbered houses with jettying stuck to each other. Concerning Joan of Arc's appearance : she wore a long white skirt and a mitre of infamy covered her head. There was probably no public to lament.
- ^ The statue is the subject of a registration as a historic monument since 30 October 2002
- ^ See Pernoud, p. 220, which quotes appellate testimony by Friar Martin Ladvenu and Friar Isambart de la Pierre.
- ^ Nullification trial testimony of Jean Massieu.[14] . Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ Nullification trial testimony of Guillaume de Manchon.[15] . Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ According to medieval clothing expert Adrien Harmand, she wore two layers of pants (trousers in British-English) attached to the doublet with 20 fastenings. The outer pants were made of a boot-like leather. "Jeanne d'Arc, son costume, son armure."[16](French) . Retrieved 23 March 2006.
- ^ Condemnation trial, p. 78.[17] (Retrieved 12 February 2006) Retrial testimony of Brother Seguin de Seguin, Professor of Theology at Poitiers, does not mention clothing directly, but constitutes a wholehearted endorsement of her piety.[18] . Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ Fraioli, "Joan of Arc: The Early Debate", p. 131.
- ^ In February 2006 a team of forensic scientists announced the beginning of a six-month study to assess bone and skin remains from a museum at Chinon and reputed to be those of the heroine. The study cannot provide a positive identification but could rule out some types of hoax through carbon dating and gender determination.[19] (Retrieved 1 March 2006) An interim report released 17 December 2006 states that this is unlikely to have belonged to her.[20] . Retrieved 17 December 2006.
- ^ Pernoud, p. 233.
- ^ DeVries, pp. 179–180.
- ^ Deuteronomy 22:5
- ^ Nullification trial sentence rehabilitation.[21] . Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ She is the most requested saint profile at Catholic.org.[22] . Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ Pernoud and Clin, pp. 247–264.
- ^ DeVries in "Fresh Verdicts on Joan of Arc", edited by Bonnie Wheeler, p. 3.
- ^ Contrary to popular myth, the primary role of camp followers was not prostitution. They performed support functions such as laundry, cooking, and hauling. Female camp followers were often the wives of soldiers. Some prostitution also took place. Byron C. Hacker and Margaret Vining, "The World of Camp and Train: Women's Changing Roles in Early Modern Armies".[23] . Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ The Duke of Alençon reported seeing her break a sword against a camp follower at Saint Denis. Her page Louis de Contes described the event as happening near Chauteau-Thierry and insisted that it was only a verbal warning. Nullification trial testimony.[24] . Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ These tests, which her confessor describes as hymen investigations, are not reliable measures of virginity. However, they signified approval from matrons of the highest social rank at key moments of her life. Rehabilitation trial testimony of Jean Pasquerel.[25] Retrieved 12 March 2006.
- ^ English translation of Christine de Pizan's poem "La Ditie de Jeanne d'Arc" by L. Shopkow.[26] (Retrieved 12 February 2006) Analysis of the poem by Professors Kennedy and Varty of Magdalen College, Oxford.[27] Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ Front National publicity logos include the tricolor flame and reproductions of statues depicting her. The graphics forums at Étapes magazine include a variety of political posters from the 2002 presidential election.[28][dead link] (French) Retrieved 7 February 2006.
- ^ Histoire de Jeanne d`Arc by P.A Le Brun de Charmettes-Tome1 Tome2 Tome3 Tome4
- ^ Condemnation trial, pp. 36–37, 41–42, 48–49. . Retrieved 1 September 2006.
- ^ In a parenthetical note to a military biography, DeVries asserts:
"The visions, or their veracity, are not in themselves important for this study. What is important, in fact what is key to Joan's history as a military leader, is that she (author's emphasis) believed that they came from God," p. 35.
- ^ Many
of these hypotheses were devised by people whose expertise is in
history rather than medicine. For a sampling of papers that passed peer
review in medical journals, see
d'Orsi G, Tinuper P (August 2006). ""I heard voices...": from semiology, an historical review, and a new hypothesis on the presumed epilepsy of Joan of Arc". Epilepsy Behav 9 (1): 152–7. doi:10.1016/j.yebeh.2006.04.020. PMID 16750938. (idiopathic partial epilepsy with auditory features)
Foote-Smith E, Bayne L (1991). "Joan of Arc". Epilepsia 32 (6): 810–5. doi:10.1111/j.1528-1157.1991.tb05537.x. PMID 1743152. (epilepsy)
Henker FO (December 1984). "Joan of Arc and DSM III". South. Med. J. 77 (12): 1488–90. doi:10.1097/00007611-198412000-00003. PMID 6390693. (various psychiatric definitions)
Allen C (Autumn–Winter 1975). "The schizophrenia of Joan of Arc". Hist Med 6 (3–4): 4–9. PMID 11630627. (schizophrenia) - ^ Nores JM, Yakovleff Y (1995). "A historical case of disseminated chronic tuberculosis". Neuropsychobiology 32 (2): 79–80. doi:10.1159/000119218. PMID 7477805.
- ^ Pernoud, p. 275.
- ^ Pernoud and Clin, pp. 3, 169, 183.
- ^ Nullification trial testimony of Dame Marguerite de Touroulde, widow of a king's counselor: "I heard from those that brought her to the king that at first they thought she was mad, and intended to put her away in some ditch, but while on the way they felt moved to do everything according to her good pleasure."[29] Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ Nullification trial testimony of Guillaume de Manchon.[30] Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ APA's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition, pp. 273–275. Online copy of the print manual available at: [31]. Retrieved 19 November 2010.
- ^ Hoffman, "Auditory Hallucinations: What's It Like Hearing Voices?" in HealthyPlace.com, 27 September 2003.[32]. Retrieved 12 February 2006.
- ^ Declan Butler. (4 April 2007). "Joan of Arc's relics exposed as forgery". Nature 446 (7136): 593. doi:10.1038/446593a.
Additional References
- DeVries, Kelly (1999). Joan of Arc: A Military Leader. Stroud, Gloucestershire: Sutton Publishing. ISBN 0-7509-1805-5. OCLC 42957383.
- Famiglietti, Richard C. (1987). Royal Intrigue: Crisis at the Court of Charles VI 1392–1420. AMS studies in the Middle Ages, 9. New York: AMS Press. ISBN 0-404-61439-6.
- Lucie-Smith, Edward (1976). Joan of Arc. Bristol: Allen Lane. ISBN 0-7139-0857-2.
- Oliphant, Mrs. (Margaret) (June 2002 (Web page: November 2003)) [1896]. Jeanne d'Arc: Her Life and Death. Heroes of the Nations. IndyPublish.com. ISBN 978-1404310865.
- Pernoud, Régine; Marie-Véronique Clin (1999). Joan of Arc: Her Story. translated and revised by Jeremy duQuesnay Adams; edited by Bonnie Wheeler. New York: St. Martin's Press. ISBN 9780312214425. OCLC 39890535.
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Today's Snippet I: Rouen, France
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| Rouen Cathedral |
Unknown to Julius Caesar, Rouen was founded by the Gaulish tribe of the Veliocasses, who controlled a large area in the lower Seine valley, which retains a trace of their name as the Vexin. They called it Ratumacos; the Romans called it Rotomagus. Roman Rotomagus was the second city of Gallia Lugdunensis after Lugdunum (Lyon) itself. Under the reorganization of the empire by Diocletian, Rouen became the chief city of the divided province of Gallia Lugdunensis II and reached the apogee of its Roman development, with an amphitheatre and thermae of which the foundations remain. In the 5th century, it became the seat of a bishopric (though the names of early bishops are purely legendary) and later a capital of Merovingian Neustria.
The Middle Ages
From their first incursion into the lower valley of the Seine in 841, the Vikings overran Rouen until some of them finally settled and founded a colony led by Rollo (Hrolfr), who was nominated count of Rouen by the king of the Franks in 911. In the 10th century Rouen became the capital of the Duchy of Normandy and residence of the dukes, until William the Conqueror established his castle at Caen.In 1150, Rouen received its founding charter, which permitted self-government. During the 12th century, Rouen was probably the site of a yeshiva. At that time, about 6,000 Jews lived in the town, comprising about 20% of the total population. In addition, there were a large number of Jews scattered about another 100 communities in Normandy. The well-preserved remains of a medieval Jewish building, that could be a yeshiva, were discovered in the 1970s under the Rouen Law Courts.
In 1200, a fire destroyed part of the old Romanesque cathedral, leaving St Romain's tower, the side porches of the front, and part of the nave. New work on the present Gothic cathedral of Rouen was begun, in the nave, transept, choir, and the lowest section of the lantern tower. On 24 June 1204, Philip II Augustus of France entered Rouen and annexed Normandy to the French Kingdom. The fall of Rouen meant the end of an independent Normandy. He demolished the Norman castle and replaced it with his own, the Château Bouvreuil, built on the site of the Gallo-Roman amphitheatre.
A textile industry developed based on wool imported from England, for which the northern County of Flanders and Duchy of Brabant were constantly fierce but worthy competitors, and finding its market in the Champagne fairs. Rouen also depended for its prosperity on the river traffic of the Seine, on which it enjoyed a monopoly that reached as far upstream as Paris. Wine and wheat were exported to England, with tin and wool received in return.
In the 14th century urban strife threatened the city: in 1291, the mayor was assassinated and noble residences in the city were pillaged. Philip IV reimposed order and suppressed the city's charter and the lucrative monopoly on river traffic, but he was quite willing to allow the Rouennais to repurchase their old liberties in 1294. In 1306, he decided to expel the Jewish community of Rouen, which then numbered some five or six thousand citizens.
In 1389, another urban revolt of the underclass broke out, theHarelle. It was part of a widespread rebellion in France that year and was suppressed with the withdrawal of Rouen's charter and river-traffic privileges once more.
During the Hundred Years' War, on 19 January 1419, Rouen surrendered to Henry V of England, who annexed Normandy once again to the Plantagenet domains. But Rouen did not go quietly: Alain Blanchard hung English prisoners from the walls, for which he was summarily executed; Canon and Vicar General of Rouen Robert de Livet became a hero for excommunicating the English king, resulting in de Livet's imprisonment for five years in England.
Rouen became the capital city of English power in occupied France and when the Duke of Bedford, John of Lancaster bought Joan of Arc from his ally, the Duke of Burgundy who had been keeping her in jail since May 1430, she was logically sent to this city for Christmas 1430 and after a long trial by a church court, sentenced to be burned at the stake. The sentence was carried out on 30 May 1431 in this city, where most inhabitants supported the Duke of Burgundy, Joan of Arc's royal enemy.
The king of France Charles VII recaptured the town in 1449, 18 years after the death of Joan of Arc and after 30 years of English occupation. In that same year the young Henry VI was crowned king of England and France in Paris before coming to Rouen where he was acclaimed by the crowds.
The Renaissance Period
Rouen soft-paste porcelain was the first porcelain of France, end of the 17th century.
At that time Rouen was the most populous city in the realm after Paris, Marseille and Lyon. Rouen was also one of the Norman cradles of the artistic Renaissance, in particular the one under the patronage of the archbishops and financiers of the town.
The economic upturn of the town at the end of the 15th century was mainly due to the cloth industry, but also to the development of the silk industry and metallurgy. The fishermen of Rouen went as far afield as the Baltic to fish for herrings. Salt was imported from Portugal and Guérande. Cloth was sold in Spain which also provided wool, and the Medici family made Rouen into the main port for the resale of Roman alum.
At the beginning of the 16th century Rouen became the main French port through which trade was conducted with Brasil, principally for the import of cloth dyes. By 1500 ten printing presses had been installed in the town following the installation of the first one sixteen years earlier.
The Wars of Religion
In the years following 1530, part of the population of Rouen embraced Calvinism. The members of the Reformed Church who represented a quarter to a third of the total population, a significant part but still a minority.In 1550, King Henri II staged a triumphant entry into Rouen, modeled on the ancient Roman triumph and specifically compared to Pompey's third triumph of 61 BCE at Rome: "No less pleasing and delectable than the third triumph of Pompey... magnificent in riches and abounding in the spoils of foreign nations".[8] It was not enough, however, to long sustain royal authority in the city.
From 1560 onwards tensions rose between the Protestant and Catholic communities, when the Massacre of Vassy set off the first of the French Wars of Religion. On 15 April 1562 the Protestants entered the town hall and ejected the King's personal representative. In May there was an outbreak of Iconoclasm (statue smashing). On 10 May the Catholic members of the town council fled Rouen. The Catholics captured, however, the Fort of Saint Catherine which overlooked the town. Both sides resorted to terror tactics.
At this juncture the Protestant town authorities requested help from Queen Elizabeth I of England. In accordance with the Hampton Court Treaty which they had signed with Condé on 20 September 1562, the English sent troops to support the Protestants, and these occupied Le Havre.
On 26 October 1562 French Royalist troops captured Rouen and pillaged it for three days.
The news of the Massacre of St. Bartholomew's Day reached Rouen at the end of August 1572. Hennequier tried to avoid a massacre of the Protestants by shutting them up in various prisons. But between 17 and 20 September the crowds forced the gates of the prisons and murdered the Protestants that they found inside.
The town was attacked on several occasions by Henry IV, but it resisted, notably during the siege of December 1591 to May 1592, with the help of a Spanish army led by the Duke of Parma (see Siege of Rouen (1591)).
The Classical Age
The permanent exchequer of Normandy, which had been installed in Rouen in 1499 by George of Amboise, was transformed into a regional administrative assembly by Francis I in 1515 and up to the time of the Revolution was the administrative centre of the region. It had judicial, legislative and executive powers in Norman affairs and was only subordinate to the Privy Council. It also had power to govern French Canada. The 16th and the 18th centuries brought prosperity to the town through the textile trade and the increased use of the port facilities. In 1703 the Norman Chamber of Commerce was created. Although it did not have a university, Rouen became an important intellectual centre by reason of its reputed schools of higher learning. In 1734, a school of surgery (second only to that of Paris founded in 1724) was founded. In 1758 a new hospital was opened to the West of the town which replaced the old medieval one which had grown too small, and which had been situated on the south side of the cathedral.The Modern Period
Main sights
The Gros Horloge is an astronomical clock dating back to the 16th century, though the movement is considerably older (1389). It is located in the Gros Horloge street.
Other famous structures include Rouen Castle, the Gothic Church of St Maclou (15th century); the Tour Jeanne d'Arc, where Joan of Arc was brought in 1431 to be threatened with torture (contrary to popular belief, she was not imprisoned there); the Church of Saint Ouen (12th–15th century); the Palais de Justice, which was once the seat of the Parlement (French court of law) of Normandy and the Museum of Fine Arts and Ceramics which contains a splendid collection of faïence and porcelain for which Rouen was renowned during the 16th to 18th centuries.
Rouen is noted for its surviving half-timbered buildings.
There are many museums in Rouen: Musée des Beaux-Arts de Rouen, an art museum with pictures of well-known painters such as Claude Monet and Géricault; Musée maritime fluvial et portuaire, a museum on the history of the port of Rouen and navigation; Musée des antiquités, an art and history museum with local works from the Bronze Age through the Renaissance; Musée de la céramique, Musée Le Secq des Tournelles...
The Jardin des Plantes de Rouen is a notable botanical garden dating to 1840 in its present form. It was previously owned by Scottish banker John Law and was the site of several historic balloon ascents.
In the centre of the Place du Vieux Marché (the site of Joan of Arc's pyre) is the modern church of Saint Joan of Arc. This is a large, modern structure which dominates the square. The form of the building represents an upturned viking boat and fish shape.
Rouen was also home to the French Grand Prix, hosting the race at the nearby Rouen-Les-Essarts track sporadically between 1952 and 1968. There was a campaign in 1999 by Rouen authorities to obliterate remainders of Rouen's racing past. Today, little remains beyond the public roads that formed the circuit.
Rouen Cathedral
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| Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Rouen |
All the buildings perished during a Viking raid in the 9th century, Rollo was baptized here in 915 and buried in 931, Richard I further enlarged it in 950, St. Romain's tower was built in 1035. The buildings of Archbishop Robert II were consecrated in 1065. The cathedral was struck by lightning in 1110.
Construction on the current building began in the 12th century in the Early gothic style :) for Saint Romain's tower, front side porches and part of the nave. The cathedral was burnt in 1200. Others were built in the High gothic style for the mainworks: nave, transept, choir and first floor of the lantern tower in the 13th century; side chapels, lady's chapel and side doorways in the 14th century. Some windows are still decorated with stained glass of the 13th century, famous because of a special cobalt blue colour, known as "the blue from Chartres". The north transept end commenced in 1280.
Construction
Some more were built in the Late gothic style, these include the last storey of Saint Romain's tower (15th century), butter tower, main porch of the front and the two storeys of the lantern tower (16th century). Construction of the south-west tower began in 1485 and was built in 1507. The Butter Tower was erected in the early 16th century. Butter was banned during Lent and those who did not wish to forgo this indulgence would donate monies of six deniers Tournois from each diocesan for this permission
The realization of the Butter Tower caused disturbances in the façade, which caused the reconstruction of the central portal and the west front, which begun in 1509 and finished in 1530. The original gothic spire suffered a fire in 1514, nevertheless the project of a stone spire was denied and a wooden construction covered with gold-plated plumb was begun in 1515, a parapet was added in 1580.
In the late 16th century the cathedral was badly damaged during the French Wars of Religion: the Calvinists damaged much of the furniture, tombs, stained-glass windows and statuary. The cathedral was again struck by lightning in 1625 and 1642, then damaged by a hurricane in 1683, the wood-work of the choir burnt in 1727 and the bell broke in 1786. In the 18th century, the state (government) nationalized the building and sold some of its furniture and statues to make money and the chapel fences were melted down to make guns to support the wars of the French Republic.
The Renaissance spire was destroyed by lightning in 1822. The cathedral was named the tallest building (the lantern tower with the cast iron spire of the 19th century) in the world (151 m) from 1876 to 1880. In the 20th century, during World War II, the cathedral was bombed in April 1944. Seven bombs fell on the building, narrowly missing destroying a key pillar of the lantern tower, but damaging much of the south aisle and destroying two rose windows. One of the bombs did not explode. A second bombing (before the Normandy Landings in June 1944) burned the oldest tower, called the North Tower. During the fire the bells melted, leaving molten remains on the floor. In 1999, during a violent wind storm, a copper-clad wooden turret, which weighed 26 tons, fell into the church and damaged the choir.
Musical tradition
The cathedral had a strong musical tradition since the Middle Ages. Its choir was famous up to the French Revolution for singing from memory. The first major organist to work here was Jean Titelouze, the so-called father of the French organ school, who occupied the post of the titular organist in 1588–1633. Around 1600 in collaboration with the famous Franco-Flemish organ builder Crespin Carlier, Titelouze transformed the organ of the cathedral to one of the best instruments in France. Some 80 years later the legendary organ builder Robert Clicquot restored and enhanced the instrument; organists who played the new organ included distinguished composers such as Jacques Boyvin (in 1674–1706), and François d'Agincourt (1706–1758). New organs were built by Merklin & Schütze (1858–60) and, after World War II, by Jacquot-Lavergne.In art
In literature, Gustave Flaubert was inspired by the stained glass windows of St. Julian and the bas-relief of Salome, and based two of his Three Tales on them. Joris-Karl Huysmans wrote La Cathédrale
about the cathedral, a novel based on an intensive examination of the
building. Willa Cather sets a key scene in the development of the
protagonist Claude Wheeler of One of Ours in the cathedral.
Reference
- Allmand, C. (1988). The Hundred Years War: England and France at War c. 1300 – 1450. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-31923-4.
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Catechism of the Catholic Church
Part Two: The Celebration of the Christian Mystery,
Section Two: The Seven Sacraments of the Church
CHAPTER THREE : THE SACRAMENTS AT SERVICE OF COMMUNION
Article 7:3 THE SACRAMENT OF MATRIMONY
SECTION TWO
THE SEVEN SACRAMENTS OF THE CHURCH
CHAPTER THREE
THE SACRAMENTS AT THE SERVICE OF
COMMUNION
1533
Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist are sacraments of Christian initiation.
They ground the common vocation of all Christ's disciples, a vocation to
holiness and to the mission of evangelizing the world. They confer the graces
needed for the life according to the Spirit during this life as pilgrims on the
march towards the homeland.
1534
Two other sacraments, Holy Orders and Matrimony, are directed towards the salvation
of others; if they contribute as well to personal salvation, it is through
service to others that they do so. They confer a particular mission in the
Church and serve to build up the People of God.
1535
Through these sacraments those already consecrated by Baptism and
Confirmation LG 10 for the common priesthood of all the faithful can receive
particular consecrations. Those who receive the sacrament of Holy Orders are
consecrated in Christ's name "to feed the Church by the word and grace of
God."LG 11 # 2 On their part, "Christian spouses are fortified and,
as it were, consecrated for the duties and dignity of their state by a special
sacrament."GS 48 # 2
Article 7
THE SACRAMENT OF MATRIMONY
1601
"The matrimonial covenant, by which a man and a woman establish between
themselves a partnership of the whole of life, is by its nature ordered toward
the good of the spouses and the procreation and education of offspring; this
covenant between baptized persons has been raised by Christ the Lord to the
dignity of a sacrament."CIC, can. 1055 # 1; cf. GS 48 # 1
III. Matrimonial Consent
1625
The parties to a marriage covenant are a baptized man and woman, free to
contract marriage, who freely express their consent; "to be free"
means:
- not being under constraint;
- not impeded by any natural or ecclesiastical law.
- not being under constraint;
- not impeded by any natural or ecclesiastical law.
1626
The Church holds the exchange of consent between the spouses to be the
indispensable element that "makes the marriage."CIC, can. 1057 # 1 If
consent is lacking there is no marriage.
1627
The consent consists in a "human act by which the partners mutually give
themselves to each other": "I take you to be my wife" - "I
take you to be my husband."GS 48 # 1; OCM 45; cf. ⇒ CIC, can. 1057 # 2 This consent that binds the spouses
to each other finds its fulfillment in the two "becoming one
flesh."Gen 2:24; cf. ⇒ Mt
10:8; ⇒ Eph 5:31
1628
The consent must be an act of the will of each of the contracting parties, free
of coercion or grave external fear.CIC, can. 1103 No human power can substitute
for this consent.CIC,
can. 1057 # 1 If this freedom is lacking the marriage is
invalid.
1629
For this reason (or for other reasons that render the marriage null and void)
the Church, after an examination of the situation by the competent ecclesiastical
tribunal, can declare the nullity of a marriage, i.e., that the marriage never
existed.CIC, cann. 1095-1107 In this case the contracting parties are free to marry,
provided the natural obligations of a previous union are discharged.CIC, can. 1071
1630
The priest (or deacon) who assists at the celebration of a marriage receives
the consent of the spouses in the name of the Church and gives the blessing of
the Church. the presence of the Church's minister (and also of the witnesses)
visibly expresses the fact that marriage is an ecclesial reality.
1631
This is the reason why the Church normally requires that the faithful contract
marriage according to the ecclesiastical form. Several reasons converge to
explain this requirement:Council of Trent: DS 1813-1816; ⇒ CIC,
can. 1108
- Sacramental marriage is a liturgical act. It is therefore appropriate that it should be celebrated in the public liturgy of the Church;
- Marriage introduces one into an ecclesial order, and creates rights and duties in the Church between the spouses and towards their children; - Since marriage is a state of life in the Church, certainty about it is necessary (hence the obligation to have witnesses);
- the public character of the consent protects the "I do" once given and helps the spouses remain faithful to it.
- Sacramental marriage is a liturgical act. It is therefore appropriate that it should be celebrated in the public liturgy of the Church;
- Marriage introduces one into an ecclesial order, and creates rights and duties in the Church between the spouses and towards their children; - Since marriage is a state of life in the Church, certainty about it is necessary (hence the obligation to have witnesses);
- the public character of the consent protects the "I do" once given and helps the spouses remain faithful to it.
1632
So that the "I do" of the spouses may be a free and responsible act
and so that the marriage covenant may have solid and lasting human and
Christian foundations, preparation for marriage is of prime importance.
The example and teaching given by parents and families remain the
special form of this preparation. The role of pastors and of the Christian community as the "family of
God" is indispensable for the transmission of the human and Christian
values of marriage and family,CIC, can. 1063 and much more so in our era when many
young people experience broken homes which no longer sufficiently assure this
initiation:
It is imperative to give suitable and timely instruction to young people, above all in the heart of their own families, about the dignity of married love, its role and its exercise, so that, having learned the value of chastity, they will be able at a suitable age to engage in honorable courtship and enter upon a marriage of their own.GS 49 # 3
Mixed
marriages and disparity of cult
1633
In
many countries the situation of a mixed marriage (marriage between a Catholic
and a baptized non-Catholic) often arises. It requires particular attention on
the part of couples and their pastors. A case of marriage with disparity of
cult (between a Catholic and a nonbaptized person) requires even greater
circumspection.
1634
Difference
of confession between the spouses does not constitute an insurmountable
obstacle for marriage, when they succeed in placing in common what they have
received from their respective communities, and learn from each other the way
in which each lives in fidelity to Christ. But the difficulties of mixed
marriages must not be underestimated. They arise from the fact that the
separation of Christians has not yet been overcome. the spouses risk
experiencing the tragedy of Christian disunity even in the heart of their own
home. Disparity of cult can further aggravate these difficulties. Differences
about faith and the very notion of marriage, but also different religious
mentalities, can become sources of tension in marriage, especially as regards
the education of children. the temptation to religious indifference can then
arise.
1635
According
to the law in force in the Latin Church, a mixed marriage needs for liceity the
express permission of ecclesiastical authority.CIC, can. 1124 In case of disparity
of cult an express dispensation from this impediment is required for the
validity of the marriage.CIC, can. 1086 This permission or dispensation
presupposes that both parties know and do not exclude the essential ends and
properties of marriage and the obligations assumed by the Catholic party
concerning the baptism and education of the children in the Catholic
Church.CIC, can. 1125
1636
Through
ecumenical dialogue Christian communities in many regions have been able to put
into effect a common pastoral practice for mixed marriages. Its task is to help
such couples live out their particular situation in the light of faith,
overcome the tensions between the couple's obligations to each other and
towards their ecclesial communities, and encourage the flowering of what is
common to them in faith and respect for what separates them.
1637
In
marriages with disparity of cult the Catholic spouse has a particular task:
"For the unbelieving husband is consecrated through his wife, and the
unbelieving wife is consecrated through her husband."1 Cor 7:14 It is a
great joy for the Christian spouse and for the Church if this
"consecration" should lead to the free conversion of the other spouse
to the Christian faith.1 Cor 7:16 Sincere married love, the humble and patient
practice of the family virtues, and perseverance in prayer can prepare the
non-believing spouse to accept the grace of conversion.
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