#st thomas beckett

[my-sacred-art]

Monica Belleucci (Italian, born 1964)

Illustration on a holy card for the novena of Saint Thomas Beckett, Martyr, mimicking the style of medieval manuscript illustration, 20th or 21st century. Artist unknown.

[stjohncapistrano67]

[tweedfrog]

If i had a nickel for every time a priest named Thomas was killed on the orders of an english king named Henry I’d have 2 nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice.

[lgbridgertonqa]

The Great Queer Bridgerton Ship Poll: THE RESULTS!!!

First off, we’d just like to thank everyone for taking part in this silliness. We clocked in at 204,232 votes when we closed the poll with votes still coming in. Deeply unserious, we’re very touched.

That being said this is also VERY serious. Lives are at stake.

Onto the numbers for places (under the cut - cos it's LONG!)

Or read the results thread here on our twitter.

31. Daphne Bridgerton/Alice Mondrich - 0 votes (0.00%)

Sorry girls!

29 =. Colin Bridgerton/Harry Dankworth - 1 vote (0.0005%)

The Danklin nation were not assembled for this fight. One noble voter stood proud!

29 =. Harry Dankworth/Lord Fife - 1 vote (0.0005%)

The vote is entirely anonymous so we will never know who this one brave soul was that swung for the only Fife ship in the poll. It will ever remain a mystery…

23 = . Siena Rosso/Mme Delacroix - 2 votes (0.0010%)

Maybe next time, ladies.

23 = . Violet Bridgerton/Portia Featherington - 2 votes (0.0010%)

The Mama’s did not do it for the voters.

23 = . Mary Sharma/Queen Charlotte - 2 votes (0.0010%)

Not enough follow through on this tension to capture more votes.

23 = . Mme Delacroix/Lucy Granville - 2 votes (0.0010%)

The girls are taking a hit in the polls.

23 = . Gregory Bridgerton/Richard Abernathy - 2 votes (0.0010%)

Our first book character on the list! He fought valiantly.

23 = . Lord Haselby/Neville Berbrooke - 2 votes (0.0010%)

This niche book only fanon couple did this against all odds. Respect!

20 =. Kate Sharma/Sophie Beckett - 4 votes (0.0020%)

A previous fan favourite has slipped down the rankings in this poll!

20 = . Eloise Bridgerton/Edwina Sharma - 4 votes (0.0020%)

A similarly previously popular ship has fallen on hard times this year!

20 =. Will Mondrich/Simon Basset - 4 votes (0.0020%)

MIA since season 1, but sorely missed.

19. Hyacinth Bridgerton/Felicity Featherington - 5 votes (0.0024%)

The show may have forgotten you Felicity, but voters haven’t

18 =. Queen Charlotte/Lady Danbury - 6 votes (0.0029%)

Too many people afraid of the power of these two women kissing.

18 =. Anthony Bridgerton/Thomas Dorset - 6 votes (0.0029%)

Apparently two men holding each other and falling into a lake isn’t homoerotic enough for some.

16. Lucy Abernathy/Hermione Watson - 9 votes (0.0044%)

Another book ship taking on show giants.

15. Eloise Bridgerton/Marina Thompson - 11 votes (0.0054%)

Some people hate to see lesbians winning!

14. Brimsley/Reynolds - 38 votes (0.0186%)

Our first canon queer ship taking a hit! Only scraping top 15!

13. Francesca Bridgerton/Edwina Sharma - 96 votes (0.047%)

The votes are starting to pick up now with this outside contender!

12. Daphne Bridgerton/Cressida Cowper - 211 votes (0.1033%)

A very respectable 12th place for Daphida!

11. Eloise Bridgerton/Penelope Featherington - 236 votes (0.1156%)

A perhaps shock result to not crack the top ten!

10. Gregory Bridgerton/Gareth St. Clair - 403 votes (0.1973%)

Huge result for a book character not yet in the show! Top ten!

9. Colin Bridgerton/Michael Stirling - 636 votes (0.3114%)

A now book based pair on the shortlist from last year, coming into the top ten as an underdog!

8. Francesca Bridgerton/Michaela Stirling - 677 votes (0.3315%)

Michaela Stirling didn’t throw the first brick at Stonewall for 8th place.

7. Simon Basset/Anthony Bridgerton - 737 votes (0.3609%)

Homoerotic tension legendary enough that it brought this show into infamy. You’ve served proudly, kings

6. Francesca Bridgerton/Penelope Featherington - 970 votes (0.475%)

Another outsider in the top 10! The Fran/Pen shooters were not messing around!

5. Colin Bridgerton/Phillip Crane - 1,052 votes (0.5151%)

One olive oil joke and discussions about Ancient Greece, next thing you know -

4. Benedict Bridgerton/Paul Suarez - 1,713 votes (0.8388%)

Congrats on all the sex you had boys! It translated into votes!

3. Kate Sharma/Daphne Bridgerton - 15,911 votes (7.7906%)

Kaphne were leading the way for 5 days this week, only to be pipped to the post in the last few days. Well done on bronze!

2. Benedict Bridgerton/Henry Granville - 84,285 votes (41.2692%)

Voters gave it their all in the last 24 hours, but ultimately couldn’t take the win. A very worthy silver!

1. Eloise Bridgerton/Cressida Cowper - 97,204 votes (47.5949%)

Unreal rush at the end, nearly breaking the poll. The sapphics take the crown of Best Queer Bridgerton Ship!

[memories-of-ancients]

Reliquary casket of St. Thomas Beckett, England, circa 1200 AD

from The Ashmolean Museum

[etdraconis]

Updated Muse List

Bold denotes primary/main muses, underlined denotes secondary muses, Italics denotes tertiary/low muse, * denotes request only

Dragon Age Canons:

Cremisius Aclassi

Anders

Zevran Arainai

Blackwall

Eleanor Cousland

Fergus Cousland

Fenris

Bethany Hawke

Carver Hawke

Nathaniel Howe

Thomas Howe

The Iron Bull

Anora Mac Tir

Loghain Mac Tir

Josephine Montilyet

Dorian Pavus

Cassandra Pentaghast

Cullen Rutherford

Varric Tethras

Alistair Theirin

Cailan Theirin

Maric Theirin

Dragon Age OCs:

Arden Aclassi

August Amell

Elizabeth Amell

Julian Amell

Oliver Amell

Rosalie Amell

Pyke Brosca

Elysia Caius

Amara Cousland

Brennon Cousland

Lauryl Cousland

Victoire Ducet

Callum Hawke

Kenton Hawke

Leanore Hawke

Hava Lavellan

Theron Mahariel

Kalva Sabrae

Alim Surana

Aurelia Tabris

Claire Trevelyan

Declan Trevelyan

Evelyn Trevelyan

Everett Trevelyan

Maxwell Trevelyan

Persephone Trevelyan

A Court of Thorns and Roses

Elain Archeron

Feyre Archeron

Nesta Archeron

Azriel

Cassian

Jurian

Kallias

Rhysand

Tarquin

Eris Vanserra

Lucien Vanserra

Bridgerton

Sophie Beckett

Benedict Bridgerton

Colin Bridgerton

Eloise Bridgerton

Francesca Bridgerton

Gregory Bridgerton

Hyacinth Bridgerton

Felicity Featherington

Penelope Featherington

Gareth St. Claire

Gwendolyn Sinclaire

Kendall Sinclaire

Alexander Thorne

Charlotte Thorne

Lillian Thorne

Sebastian Thorne

William Thorne

Crescent City

Aidas

Juniper Andromeda

Fury Axtar

Baxian Argos

Ariadne

Hunt Athalar

Lidia Cervos

Ruhn Danaan

Declan Emmet

Hypaxia Enador

Danika Fendyr

Tristan Flynn

Connor Holstrom

Ithan Holstrom

Tharion Ketos

Bryce Quinlan

Rigelus

The Empyrean Saga

Andarna

Jack Barlowe

Imogen Cardulo

Ridoc Gamlyn

Aaric Greycastle

Liam Mairi

Sloane Mairi

Rhiannon Matthias

Brennan Sorrengail

Lilith Sorrengail

Mira Sorrengail

Violet Sorrengail

Grishaverse

Kaz Brekker

The Darkling

Jesper Fahey

Inej Ghafa

Matthias Helvar

Fedyor Kaminsky

Tamar Kir-Bataar

David Kostyk

Nikolai Lantzov

Zoya Nazyalensky

Genya Safin

Alina Starkov

Wylan Van Eck

Tolya Yul-Bataar

Nina Zenik

Percy Jackson

Annabeth Chase

Nico Di Angelo

Jason Grace

Percy Jackson

Piper McLean

Will Solace

Leo Valdez

Throne of Glass

Aedion Ashryver*

Sam Cortland

Lysandra Ennar

Aelin Galathynius

Evalin Galathynius

Dorian Havilliard

Fenrys Moonbeam

Chaol Westfall

Rowan Whitethorn*

The Witcher

Jaskier

Geralt of Rivia

Yennifer of Vengerberg

Other Book Muses

Daniel Arlington V (Ninth House)

Aziraphale (Good Omens)

Crowley (Good Omens)

Alexander Clairemont-Diaz (Red, White, and Royal Blue)

Arthur Delacey (Gwen and Art Are Not in Love)

Galaxy Stern (Ninth House)

Greek Mythology

Aphrodite

Apollo

Ares

Aristeus

Artemis

Asclepius

Hades

Hera

Hermes

Patroclus

Persephone

Poseidon

Zeus

DnD/Fantasy OCs

Jalana Astorio (human warlock)

Tarquin Auglathia (sea-elf rogue)

Nedri Autumnblaze (half-orc ranger)

Azure (water genasi monk)

Anders Brightwood (human bard)

Caerlin (tiefling arcane trickster rogue)

Drake (Wild Hunt shifter ranger)

Elianis Galonodel (half-elf druid)

Naivara Galonodel (half-elf mastermind rogue)

Taron Galonodel (wood elf bard)

Rhys Le'Quella (eladrin wizard)

Makaria (tiefling paladin)

Reya (tiefling storm sorcerer)

Alwyn Sulian (sun elf paladin)

Auryn Sulian (sun elf fighter)

Cerys Sulian (sun elf celestial warlock)

Emrys Sulian (sun elf shadow magic sorcerer)

Cloak Timbers (gnome cleric)

Hollis Tremaine (human fighter)

Other/modern OCs

Destin Michaels (merman)

Novah Michaels (mermaid)

Cassian Sage (werewolf)

Sophie Sage (werewolf)

Reina Solace (werewolf)

Hazel Thatcher (werewolf)

Nicolai Voss (vampire)

[justforbooks]

The career of the actor Andre Braugher, who has died of lung cancer aged 61, was benchmarked by two performances in police dramas a generation apart. In the groundbreaking drama Homicide: Life on the Street, from 1993 until 1999, he played Detective Frank Pembleton, whose drive immediately made him the anchor of an impressive ensemble cast led by Yaphet Kotto and Ned Beatty. He drew a younger audience with the comedy Brooklyn Nine-Nine (2013-21) as Captain Ray Holt, who takes over a chaotic homicide squad and whose intensity again makes him the heart of the show.

Braugher’s deep, resonant voice and seemingly effortless control drew the respect of all he worked with. David Simon, creator of Homicide and The Wire, said: “I’ve worked with a lot of wonderful actors. I’ll never work with one better.” His classical training, at the Juilliard School in New York, made him a regular at the Public Theater’s Shakespeare in the Park, and indeed his portrayal of Henry V in 1996 won him an Obie (the off-Broadway equivalent of the Tony awards).

He brought the projection of the stage to the small screen. Pembleton was the master of “the Box”, or the interrogation room. He explained to his rookie partner in Homicide (played by Kyle Secor), it was “salesmanship … as silver tongued and thieving as ever moved used cars, Florida swamp land or Bibles. But what I am selling is a long prison sentence.” He dominated those small scenes, but the episode Subway, with Vincent D’Onofrio as a character pushed between subway trains, who will die once the trains are separated, was a two-hander whose intensity might have come from the stage of Beckett, Pinter or Mamet.

In Brooklyn Nine-Nine, as Holt, he played it straight in two senses. The adage of comedy being funniest when played straight gained resonance from Braugher’s ability to show the audience with a gesture or line-reading that he, like you, got the joke. But Holt is also gay. His gayness is never an issue, except as motivation for his progress within the police. It was as if Pembleton were stepping into Kotto’s “Gee” Giardello, a black man with an Italian father who was determined to rise in a white-dominated department.

This drive reflected Braugher’s own background. In the tough neighbourhood of Austin, on Chicago’s West Side, both his parents worked for the government; his father, Floyd, was a heavy equipment operator for the state of Illinois, and his mother, Sally, worked for the US Postal Service. He recalled he might have “pretended I was hard and tough and not square”, but he won scholarships to the Jesuit St Ignatius College prep and then to study mathematics at Stanford University, California. After walking into a student production of Hamlet, and playing Claudius, he decided he wanted to act.

Another scholarship took him to Juilliard. He graduated in 1988 and almost immediately was cast in a TV revival of Kojak, as his assistant. His first film role came in Glory (1989); he was so impressive as the educated Thomas Searles, forced to serve as a private soldier in the all-black regiment commanded by his white friend, that Hollywood came calling, but the parts were standard stereotyical roles. His father had questioned how a black actor would make a living, and Braugher later explained: “I’d rather not work than do a part I’m ashamed of.”

He played the lead in a TV movie, The Court-Martial of Jackie Robinson (1990), playing Robinson, the first African-American player in major league baseball, who earlier in the 1940s, as a US army lieutenant, had refused to ride in the back of a segregated bus; and appeared in another TV film, The Tuskegee Airmen (1995). He was an egotistical actor in Spike Lee’s Get On the Bus (1996), about the Million Man March on Washington DC the year before. In 1998 he won his first Emmy award for playing Pembleton; he was nominated 11 times, and won his second in 2006 for his role in the miniseries Thief.

After Homicide, he starred as a doctor in Gideon’s Crossing (2000-01), as a cop in Hack (2002-04), as a car dealer in the comedy-drama Men of a Certain Age (2009-11) and as the captain of a submarine which goes on the run after he refuses to obey orders to fire nuclear missiles in Last Resort (2012-13). He had another series of remarkable two-handers in a recurring role as Hugh Laurie’s psychiatrist in House, was a defense attorney in episodes of Law and Order: Special Victims Unit, and voiced Governor Woodchuck Coodchuck-Berkowitz in the animated comedy BoJack Horseman.

He made the most of supporting roles in films such as Primal Fear (as Richard Gere’s investigator), Poseidon (captain of the sinking liner), Salt (as the US secretary of defense) and most notably as a New York Times editor in She Said (2022), covering the Harvey Weinstein scandal. He also starred in 10,000 Black Men Named George (2002), the story of the unionisation of Pullman railway porters, who were always called “George” by passengers.

Braugher admitted that his career “could have been larger, but it would have been at the expense of my own life”. He lived in suburban New Jersey with his wife, the actor Ami Brabson (who played Pembleton’s wife in Homicide). He said he wanted his three sons, Michael, Isaiah and John Wesley, raised in a “true context”, away from being a movie star’s offspring in Hollywood.

He is survived by his wife and sons, his brother, Charles, and his mother.

🔔 Andre Keith Braugher, actor, born 1 July 1962; died 11 December 2023

Daily inspiration. Discover more photos at Just for Books…?

[ao3feed-kathony]

You Clever Clever Boy!

read it on AO3 at https://archiveofourown.org/works/56091430 by summer_of_1985 The annual Bridgerton Pall Mall has been somewhat interrupted by the first words of one young Bridgerton. or: How I imagine the final ever scene of Bridgerton taking place. Words: 1193, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English Fandoms: Bridgerton (TV), Bridgerton Series - Julia Quinn Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Categories: F/M Characters: Anthony Bridgerton, Benedict Bridgerton, Colin Bridgerton, Daphne Bridgerton, Eloise Bridgerton, Francesca Bridgerton, Gregory Bridgerton, Hyacinth Bridgerton, Kate Sheffield | Kate Sharma, Sophie Beckett, Penelope Featherington, Simon Basset, Phillip Crane, John Stirling I, Lucy Abernathy (Bridgerton), Violet Bridgerton, Edmund Bridgerton II, Miles Bridgerton, Thomas Bridgerton, Violet Bridgerton II, Agatha Bridgerton, Belinda Basset, George Bridgerton, Amanda Crane, Georgiana Crane Relationships: Anthony Bridgerton/Kate Sheffield | Kate Sharma, Sophie Beckett/Benedict Bridgerton, Colin Bridgerton/Penelope Featherington, Simon Basset/Daphne Bridgerton, Eloise Bridgerton/Phillip Crane, Francesca Bridgerton/John Stirling I, Lucy Abernathy/Gregory Bridgerton, Hyacinth Bridgerton/Gareth St. Clair, Anthony & Benedict & Colin & Daphne & Eloise & Francesca & Gregory & Hyacinth Bridgerton, Bridgerton Family - Relationship Additional Tags: Post-Series: Bridgerton (TV), Future Fic, This has been going around in my head for a few days, How I imagine them closing off the show, This won't be for YEARS, Including some of the children from the books, Pall Mall (Bridgerton), Parenthood, Grandparents & Grandchildren, Parents & Children, Competetive Bridgertons, Chaotic Bridgerton Family (Bridgerton), Cross-Posted on Tumblr read it on AO3 at https://archiveofourown.org/works/56091430

[johnlinneyphotography]

Heptonstall. Taken from below the ruins of the old church of St Thomas a’ Beckett. I love how the buildings crowd in on each other. #fujixs10 #fujifilmxs10 #fujifilmxf1655mm #heptonstall #calderdale #yorkshire #yorkshirephotographer #streetphotography #igstreet https://www.instagram.com/p/Cp-ULGXInIu/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[catholic-saint-tournament]

Vote for St. Thomas a Beckett! Anyone who could still piss off Oliver Cromwell 350 years after his death at least deserves a chance!

YASS YESS YISSSS THOMAS BECKET!!!!! send more propaganda for him!!!

another vote recorded :)

[randomestfandoms-ocs]

🔁 gimme the list hand it over

putting it below the cut bc it's a lot! (this also isn't an exclusive list just the ideas that I've had so far!)

Malcolm

Descendants

Gabriel

Ace Hearts

Addie

Beatrice

Gloria Gothel

Hannah Westergaard

Princess Isabelle

Lovetta Garou

Lucette LeFou

Rosabelle Legume

Doctor Who

Malcolm McAllister

Abbey

Carys

Cassiopeia

Celeste

Ceridwen

Estella

Mina

Rusalia

Theia

Charles Pond

Celeste

Theia

Lottie Tyler

Estella

Theia

Gilmore Girls

Lydia

Annabel Gilmore

Antoinette Kensington

Dani Gilmore (Danes)

Lili Gilmore

Thomas Mayfair

Allie St James

Brady Mariano

Charlotte Howard-Danes

Eleanor Doose

Evan Mariano

Gabi Mariano

Jane Forester

Willow Dell (& the squad)

Glee

Ashton Daniels

Abbie Hudson

Betty Fabray

Cece & Colton Cartwright

Demi July

Dolly & Barbie Corcoran

Hillary Holliday

Jeremy St James

Jo Berry

Joy Schuester

Roxie Flores

Zeke Beiste

Claude Emerson just bc JATP

Lili Anderson

(tbh I feel like there’s more he’d vibe with but the majority of mine are s3 grads or s4 seniors so I’m not sure what the vibes would be)

Gossip Girl

Andrea Fitzpatrick

Carmela De Leon

Colette Garrel-Waldorf

Kyla Keller

Victoire DeHaan

Catalina Cabrera

Alessandra Vanderbilt

Alia Kelly

Erin Humphrey

Gavin Cohen

Autumn Ambrosia

Colette Garrel-Waldorf

Coco Bates

Haz Torres

Kyla Keller

Valentina Wolfe

Lorenzo Waters

Autumn Ambrosia

Carmela De Leon

Colette Garrel-Waldorf

Coco Bates

Haz Torres

Kyla Keller

McKenzie Menzies

Mercedes Delgado

Paris Rothschild

Valentina Wolfe

Matthew Porter

Autumn Ambrosia

Cecily Vanderbilt 

Colette Garrel-Waldorf

Coco Bates

Haz Torres

Kyla Keller (kyla keller kyla keller)

Mercedes Delgado

Valentina Wolfe

Victoire DeHaan

JATP

Anastasia Donahue

Jemma Danforth-Evans

Leo Beckett

Nevaeh Wilson

Conrad Brooks

Cullen Strode

Leo Beckett

Megara Monroe

Nevaeh Wilson

Luka Barbero

Cullen Strode

Leo Beckett

Megara Monroe

Nevaeh Wilson

PJO

Chloe Brown

Liz Castellan

Summer Sol

Blake Castellan

Elaine & Felicity Castellan

Jem Skeates

Cressida Brantley

Esmerelda Wilde

Elyana Chase

Riverdale

Atticus Bardot

Doria Mary Wallis

Maisie Maiden

Derek Wallis

Ariel Blossom

Doria Mary Wallis

Presley Palmer

Rose Blossom

Rosebud Reynolds

Schmigadoon

Audrey

Ricky Skinner

Greyson

Birdie McDonough

Dottie McDonough

Robin

Dottie McDonough

Ricky Skinner

[child-of-hurin]

Original tweet by Hand Missal History Project on twitter @HandMissals, Dec 29, 2022:

Here's one of my favorite manuscript images showing Henry's attempts to obliterate the memory of Thomas Beckett (Missal with the Mass for St Thomas blotted out with red ink. Cambridge University Library, MS Add. 6688, ff. 28v–29.) (source tweet)

Original tweet by Lisa Fagin Davis on twitter @lisafdavis Dec 29, 2022

Let's take a minute to remember that Thomas Becket was not only murdered by agents of King Henry II but was later cancelled by royal decree. In this @HoughtonLi Book of Hours (MS Richardson 34), his name on Dec. 29 was scraped away but later restored. https://digitalcollections.library.harvard.edu/catalog/990098874310203941 (source tweet)

[edwardian-girl-next-door]

Feast Day: Michaelmas, or St. Michael and All the Angels

"The Three Archangels and Tobias" by Francesco Botticini (1470). Michael is on the far left, wearing some snazzy armour (via wikimedia commons)

Happy Michaelmas!

Michaelmas celebrates the Archangels Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael; and in Anglican and Episcopalian tradition includes two other angels from apocryphal (not in Biblical canon) texts named Uriel and Jerahmeel. However, as the name suggests, most of the day is about Michael. Regarded as the warrior who drove Satan out of heaven, Michael is associated strongly with protection and military might. He is the patron saint of police officers, warriors, the sick, mariners, against lightning and windstorms, and of many places including France, Germany, Vatican City, and Ukraine and its capital Kyiv.

Michaelmas was one of the major observed saint's days in mediaeval and early modern England, Scotland, and Ireland. Keep reading to find learn about how the Devil was yeeted from heaven, if you're going to get married soon, and why you shouldn't eat blackberries after October 10th.

History

As an angel, Michael doesn't have a 'life', per se, but he is well-known and venerated in a variety of Abrahamic religions. The earliest recorded mention of his is from the Book of Enoch, a Hebrew apocalyptic text from the 3rd century BCE. The Book of Enoch contains other bits of juicy information on the origin of demons, moral justification for the great flood in Genesis, why some angels fell from heaven, and a prophecy for the thousand-year reign of the Messiah. Though it is not accepted as canon in Christian and Jewish traditions, it provides extra scholarship on canon occurrences and apocryphal traditions. Michael is not given an introduction by the Book of Enoch, implying that readers would already be familiar with him, and his legend may date back much farther. He is mentioned in the Book of Daniel, which is included in the Christian Old Testament and is one of the Jewish Talmudic writings. The Quran and Hadīth also acknowledge Michael as an archangel (often spelled Mika'il).

In the Christian Bible, Michael is explicitly mentioned in Jude 9, Daniel 7, and Revelation 12:7-12. This last passage is the most famous, and depicts Michael doing battle with the Devil and driving him out of heaven. As a result, he has very militaristic associations, often portrayed as the leader of the armies of God in the warfare between Heaven and Hell, good and evil. In the mediaeval and early modern world, people lived with these images and concepts in their everyday lives. Vivid depictions of the Last Judgement, or the end of the world, adorned church walls -- they make up a whole genre, called "doom paintings", and were often on the west wall of the church, which was most visible to the congregation. They sent powerful, unmistakable messages to those who could not read or understand the Latin service. In addition, many people lived with firsthand experiences with brutal, real world conflict; and the power of the church in law and society created overwhelming preoccupation with the afterlife. We have only to look to paintings like Bosch's The Garden of Earthly Delights of Hans Memling's The Last Judgement to see what nightmare fuel people truly believed in and feared. Michael was therefore an important protector figure in a serious battle against the forces of evil -- the OG Satanic Panic, 24/7.

"The Last Judgement" by Hans Memling (c.1466-1473). The right panel depicts heaven, the left panel depicts hell, and the middle panel depicts the judgement process, with Michael weighing souls in the foreground while Jesus looks on. (via wikimedia commons)

Doom painting in Salisbury's Church of St. Thomas a Beckett. Again, Heaven is depicted on the right, and hell is swallowing people on the left. I don't know about you, but seeing this every Sunday as a kid would have given me religious trauma they haven't even discovered yet. (via seeingthepast.com)

A little bit about the other angels commemorated: Gabriel is responsible for announcing God's will to humanity, and communicates the birth of Jesus to Mary and of John the Baptist to her sister Elizabeth, respectively. Raphael is not mentioned in the Bible, but tradition identifies him as a healing angel who stirred the waters at the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:2-4). Uriel is also not mentioned in the Bible, but is in texts recognised as apocryphal by the Roman Catholic Church, and is also a figure in folk Catholicism. He is usually depicted as a cherub, representing repentance and holding the keys to Hell. Jerahmeel is mentioned in texts recognised as apocryphal by the Anglican Communion, and serves as a gatekeeper to Heaven with St. Peter and guides souls on their journey to the afterlife. All around pretty metal stuff.

Michaelmas and its Traditions

As Michael served as a benevolent force against darkness and evil, his commemoration asked for protection in the cold, long winter nights, where Satan's powers were supposedly more powerful.

Harvest activities, from the glorious Luttrell Psalter (c.1320-1340) (via johnclare.net)

In mediaeval England, Michaelmas marked the start of a new agricultural year, when the harvest ended and people could start preparing for the coming winter. In England, Ireland, and Wales, it was one of the quarter days, or four days during which major legal business was settled. Contracts for would begin or expire, rents and taxes were collected, school terms would start, &c. Hiring fairs were held around Michaelmas for labourers and servants looking for work. On manors, a "reeve" or estate manager would be chosen from among the peasants. Following this custom, the Lord Mayor of London is still elected on Michaelmas; and some British and Irish law courts and universities use a "Michaelmas term" to denote an autumn session or semester.

Michaelmas earned the name "Goose Day" from the tradition of eating a roast goose on this holiday. The end of September and beginning of October are naturally when geese were ready for eating, and they were also common fare for celebrations in general. Geese prepared for this time of year were referred to as a stubble-goose or an embling or rucklety goose. Goose fairs proliferated up and down the country, selling geese and other food, as well as providing entertainment. (The Nottingham Goose Fair continues in this tradition, happening around October 3rd every year.) A likely apocryphal legend provides a fun reason behind this tradition: Queen Elizabeth I was eating a goose when she heard of the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588, and vowed to eat it for Michaelmas. Others followed suit, and thus goose-eating helped ensure financial security for the year to come. Geese were also a great way to bribe your landlord, as including one with your rent might gain you a little more favour. Another fun goose tidbit: if the breast bones of the goose are brown after roasting, the winter will be mild, but if they were white or of a slightly blue hue, the winter will be harsh.

Gathering blackberries after Michaelmas (old style October 10th) was deemed unlucky. Supposedly, when Michael cast Satan out of heaven, Satan landed in a blackberry bush and got tangled in its brambles. Cursing the bush, Satan either spit, stamped, scorched, or peed on it, or a combination of all of those things, making the fruit unfit to eat after that date. Blackberry pies, called Michaelmas pies, were often made to use up the last of the blackberry harvest. In Ireland, bad blackberries are also attributed to púca, a shape-shifting spirit that can bring both good and evil.

Michaelmas bannock with blackberries (via allthehousehold.com)

Scotland and Ireland also have unique celebrations from those in England and Wales. In parts of Scotland, particularly the Hebrides, the eldest daughter of the family baked Sruthan Mhìcheil, or St. Michael's bannock, on the eve of Michaelmas. Sruthan Mhìcheil is a scone-like bread or cake, consisting of equal parts barley, rye, and oats, and without using any metal implements. Some recipes are cooked in lamb skin. As the person making the Sruthan turns it on the fire, they utter a variant of this blessing over it: "Progeny and prosperity of family, Mystery of An Dagda, protection of Bride". There is also a Hebridean blessing which runs: "Là Fhéill Mìcheil nì sinn struthan, Gabhaidh sinn dheth gu cridheil cairdeil, Mar bu choir a bhith" or, in English, "On St Michael’s Day we will make a cake, we will partake of it in a joyful friendly manner, as is proper". Special Sruthans, made in memory of absent loved ones or those who have died, are blessed at Michaelmas mass and given to the poor.

Another Scottish tradition involves carrots, the last of which are supposed to be pulled up on Michaelmas day. Finding a two-pronged carrot is considered extra lucky! There's a Gaelic rhyme for this task, too, which accompanies the carrot pulling: "Torcan torrach, torrach, torrach, Sonas curran còrr orm, Michael mil a bhi dha m’chonuil, Bride gheal dha m’chonradh" or in English, "Cleft fruitful, fruitful, fruitful, Joy of carrots surpassing upon me, Michael the brave endowing me, Bride the fair be aiding me."

I found a good deal of Irish traditions relating to Michaelmas, varying region by region. One legend tells of a king who choked to death on a goose bone and was brought back to life by St. Patrick. In honour of the saint, he ordered goose to be eaten on Michaelmas. In parts of Ireland, geese were given to the poor, and in some regions slaughtered sheep were also thrown in with the donation. Many people took pilgrimages to holy wells associated with Michael to take a drink from the blessed waters. A ring would sometimes me placed in a Michaelmas pie, and the person to find it would be married soon.

Towns often implemented winter curfew on Michaelmas. The church bell would ring at 9pm, once for every day of the month that had passed, to remind everyone to get inside. Curfews usually lasted from Michaelmas (September 29th) to Shrove Tuesday or Lady Day (March 25th), another quarter day. Chertsey in Runnymeade, Surrey, still rings a curfew bell between these dates; their oldest church bell dates from 1380.

Michaelmas dasies (via butterfly-conservation.org)

Michaelmas daisies, or asters, bloom around this time of year, one of the last flowers to bloom before the onset of winter. Some say they represent a final, hearty burst of light before the darkness and barrenness of winter, just like the celebration of Michaelmas. A rhyme says: "The Michaelmas Daisies, among dede weeds, / Bloom for St Michael’s valorous deeds. / And seems the last of flowers that stood, / Till the feast of St. Simon and St. Jude." (Sts. Simon and Jude is October 28th).

And of course, no feast day would be complete without a plethora of weather wisdom! Here are a few:

"If Michaelmas bring many acorns, Christmas will cover the fields with snow."

"If the ice is strong enough to bear a man before Michaelmas, it will not bear a goose afterwards." (see Martinmas, November 11th)

"So many days old the moon is on Michaelmas Day, so many floods after."

"If St. Michael bring thunder, rough weather will follow."

Thomas Tusser also advises to pick fruit after Michaelmas if you want it to last the winter.

If You're Still Interested...

Here is a Michaelmas bannock recipe, from the picture above!

Sources

Wikipedia (Michaelmas)

Wikipedia [Michael (archangel)]

agecrofthall.org

projectbritain.com

historic-uk.com

britannica.com

nts.org

A Countryman's Daybook, ed. C. N. French

[stjohncapistrano67]

A middle ages Catholic religious image of the martyrdom of St. Thomas Beckett, Archbishop of Canterbury. Murdered by lords of King Henry II of England.

[arwainian]

Reading This Week 2023 #40

Started and Finished:

62 fatt fics for the marathon

various zines from the massachusetts independent comics expo:

A*R*T CRITIC by Giles Crawford May 3rd, 1996 by Giles Crawford New York City, words by They Might Be Giants, art by Giles Crawford Basilisk by Erin Roseberry

The City of God, Book XXII by Augustine, translated by Marcus Dods

"Those Who Cannot See the Whole Are Offended by the Apparent Deformity of a Part": Disability in Augustine's City of God by Alexander Massmann

Chapter 4 of Black on Both Sides: A Racial History of Trans Identity: "A Nightmare Silhouette: Racialization and the Long Exposure of Transition" by C. Riley Snorton

The Rediscovered Life of St. Francis of Assisi by Thomas of Celano, translated by Timothy J. Johnson

"Biocultures: An Emerging Paradigm" by Jay Clayton, Lennard J. Davis, Jonathan M Metsl, Priscilla Ward, and Bernice L. Hausman

"Kinesthetic Empathy, Physical Recoil: The Conflicting Embodied Affects of Samuel Beckett's Quad" by Hannah Simpson

"Border Crossing by Hearing Children of Deaf Parents: The Lost History of Codas" by Robert Hoffmeister in Open Your Eyes: Deaf Studies Talking

"An Intimate History of Slavery and Freedom" from Wayward Lives, Beautiful Experiment by Saidiya Hartman

"Two Erotic Lessons I Learned from My Mother (and Other Women Who Nourished Me)" by Shoniqua Roach

"The Black Living Room" by Shoniqua Roach

Select poem from Ibn Arabi, Giacomo De Lentini, & Guittone d'Arezzo, as well as "Song of Creatures" by San Francesco

"Metaphor as Experimental Medicine" from Blindness and Therapy in Late Medieval French and Italian Poetry by Julie Singer

Ongoing:

Vanishing Rooms by Melvin Dixon

[lovest0rie-archive]

muse list.

dc comics

brooke larson. mid-twenties. high end escort, childhood friend of jason todd. bisexual. fc: sophie cookson.

gabriela ribeiro. early-thirties. heiress & horse trainer. heterosexual. fc: isis valverde

gia tedesco. twenty-eight. real estate agent, daughter of a mob attorney. bisexual. fc: danielle campbell. larken forrest. thirty-three. assistant to bruce wayne at wayne enterprises, single mom. bisexual. fc: dakota johnson.

fandomless

amelia thomas. twenty-two. royal princess & college student. heterosexual. fc: elle fanning.

anika singh. thirty-eight. boutique owner & fashion designer. heterosexual. fc: freida pinto.

arden waverly. thirty-three. hacker. lesbian. fc: kristen stewart.

aurora gray. thirty-three. professional organizer. bisexual. fc: laura harrier.

bianca reyes. twenty-four. jewelry designer & daughter of a mob boss. panromantic. fc: lucy alves.

calista st. james. twenty-three. tik tok famous dog trainer. heterosexual. fc: halle bailey.

charlotte stewart. thirty-five. high school guidance counselor. bisexual. fc: amanda seyfried.

chloe chapman. twenty-seven. waitress. heterosexual. fc: katherine mcnamara.

eliana hirsch. fifty-two. children's book author. bisexual. fc: jennifer connelly.

erin clarke. twenty-nine. con artist & wanted criminal. pansexual. fc: crystal reed.

evangeline 'evie' lasko. forty-one. runs a bed & breakfast. bisexual. fc: alexa davalos.

gillian west. forty. couples therapist. heterosexual. fc: anne hathaway.

hannah parker. thirty-five. dog day care employee & serial killer. bisexual. fc: aubrey plaza.

hazel wells. twenty-eight. private chef. bisexual. fc: florence pugh.

ireland cardoza. twenty-five. actress. lesbian. fc: camila mendes.

jenna wilder. twenty-three. hotel heiress & trust fund baby. bisexual. fc: sabrina carpenter.

joelle hart. thirty-four. personal trainer. bisexual. fc: megan fox.

june soto. twenty-nine. drug dealer. pansexual. fc: mia goth.

kitty moran. twenty-five. exotic dancer. roommate & co-worker of quinn. bisexual. fc: taylor russell.

leah corbin. twenty-five. thief. heterosexual. fc: mia goth. ( private muse with @anunkindncss )

liliana gregory. twenty-four. model. heterosexual. fc: barbara palvin.

lucy zhao. twenty-five. journalist & blogger. lesbian. fc: havana rose liu.

mackenzie abrams. twenty-six. photographer & political activist. heterosexual. fc: emmy rossum.

maia madden. twenty-eight. hollywood publicist. bisexual. fc: simone ashley.

miranda westbrooke. fifty-one. advertising ceo. bisexual. fc: rachel weisz.

naomi taylor. twenty-two. nanny. heterosexual. fc: kaia gerber.

natalia marquez. forty-eight. funeral home director. heterosexual. fc: penelope cruz.

quinn strauss. twenty-three. exotic dancer. roommate & co-worker of kitty. pansexual. fc: bella thorne.

reese edwards. thirty-four. physical therapist. bisexual. fc: nathalie emmanuel.

simone diamond. twenty-six. pop singer. bisexual. fc: taylor swift.

sloane meyer. thirty-eight. er surgeon. pansexual. fc: sophia bush.

sutton bradley. forty. pediatrician. lesbian. fc: piper perabo.

teresa mancini. twenty-nine. mob wife. heterosexual. fc: simona tabasco.

tinsley palmer. twenty-five. thief. bisexual. fc: ella purnell.

valentina alvarez. twenty-six. kindergarten teacher. heterosexual. fc: camila morrone.

vienna patrick. forty-one. trophy wife & socialite. heterosexual. fc: rachel mcadams.

willow donovan. twenty-two. college student & barista. bisexual. fc: madelyn cline.

zya fox. twenty-five. makeup artist. bisexual. fc: coco jones.

house of the dragon

eloise belfron. eighteen. lady in waiting to helaena targaryen. heterosexual. fc: rose williams.

marvel comics

yasmin ayala. thirty-two. bartender at josie's & dance instructor. heterosexual. fc: ana de armas.

the musketeers

mary turner. twenty-six. doctor's assistant. heterosexual. fc: gugu mbatha-raw.

outer banks

daisy pierce. seventeen. pogue. high school student & waitress. heterosexual. fc: kristine froseth.

shelby beckett. nineteen to twenty-one ( season dependent ). lifeguard. heterosexual. fc: danielle campbell.

scream

brooklynn foster. eighteen. final girl. bisexual. fc: khadijha red thunder.

sons of anarchy

thea montgomery. twenty-seven. mechanic. heterosexual. fc: riley keough.

succession

clementine roy. twenty-four. interior designer & illegitimate child of logan roy. heterosexual. fc: alexandra daddario.

titanic

florence 'flo' reynolds. twenty-five. stage actress. heterosexual. fc: hannah dodd.

twilight

abagail barrett. one hundred & fifty ; appears early-twenties. vampire. bisexual. fc: madelaine petsch.

misty frasier. forty-six ; appears mid-twenties. vampire. heterosexual. fc: julia garner.

the x-files

marissa lucas. thirty-one. cashier & alien abductee. bisexual. fc: shannyn sossaman.

zelda mulder. twenty-two. paranormal private detective. pansexual. fc: margaret qualley.