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High Days and Holy Days for September
2 William of Roskilde 3 Gregory the Great c 540 – 604 8 The Blessed Virgin Mary 9 Peter Claver (1581 – 1654) 11 Protus and Hyacinth (early church) 11 Deiniol (d. c.584) *13 John Chrysostom 15 Adam of Caithness (bishop 1213 – 22) 18 Joseph of Copertino (1603 – 63) 20 Martyrs of Korea 21 St Matthew the Apostle 23 Autumnal Equinox 29 St Michael and All Angels
2 William of Roskilde d 1070
Here is a saint for anyone who thinks Christian leaders should stand up for justice – even at the risk of angering secular powers.
It all began when William was an English priest serving as chaplain to Canute, king of England, (1016-35), who decided to visit Scandinavia. William went along, and was so shocked by the ignorance, idolatry and superstition that he stayed on to help preach the Gospel. Eventually he became bishop of Roskilde (Zeeland), working tirelessly among the people as a beloved pastor.
But William’s main challenge came in his determination to improve the conduct of the king, Sweyn Estridsen. The king had had some criminals killed without trial and in a church, violating sanctuary. William then forbade him to enter the church next day until he was absolved from the guilt of shedding blood unjustly. Courtiers drew their swords, and William showed himself ready to die. Instead, Sweyn confessed his crime and donated land to Roskilde church as a peace-offering. Thenceforward until the king’s death Sweyn and William worked together to foster Christianity in Scandinavia.
3 Gregory the Great c 540 – 604
Pope Gregory never called himself ‘the Great’, but instead ‘the Servant of the Servants of God’. Nevertheless, Gregory was one of the most important popes and influential writers of the Middle Ages. The son of a very rich Roman senator, he left the service of the State upon his conversion as a young man. Gregory then sold off his tremendous estates to found six monasteries in Sicily and a seventh in Rome, and gave generously to the poor. He became a monk and adopted an austere lifestyle. But he was destined to be a frustrated monk, because successive popes kept appointing him to jobs with major public responsibilities.
Christians in England owe him a great deal. When Gregory came across some English slaves for sale in Rome, he asked who they were, and was told, ‘They are Angles.’ Moved with compassion for these humiliated and despised men, he replied, ‘They are not Angles, but angels!” He wanted to lead a band of missionaries to England to evangelise the Angles, but then plague broke out in Italy, and during this time he was elected Pope.
Reluctantly he accepted, and then sent to work to deal with the crises facing Christendom: plague, floods, famine, and a Lombard invasion. But busy though Gregory was, he did not forget the Angles. He sent Augustine to England, and so indirectly became the apostle of the English
8 The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
In both eastern and western churches, Mary has always been held as pre-eminent among all the saints. The unique, extraordinary privilege of being the mother of the One who was both God and Man, makes her worthy of special honour. Thomas Aquinas believed she was due hyperdulia, or a veneration that exceeds that of other saints, but is at the same time infinitely below the adoration, or latria, due to God alone.
The gospels of Matthew and Luke give Mary most mention. Luke even tells the story of Jesus’ infancy from Mary’s point of view. Her Song, or Magnificat appears in Luke 1:46-55.
The virginal conception of Christ is clearly stated in the gospels. But after Jesus’ birth, Mary fades quietly into the background. During Jesus’ public life, she is mentioned only occasionally, as at the wedding at Cana. She reappears at the foot of the Cross (John’s Gospel), and is given into John’s care. In the early chapters of Acts, Mary is with the Apostles, and received the Holy Spirit along with them on Whitsunday. But her role was not the active one of teaching and preaching.
Mary’s significance grew with the centuries. By the fifth century she was called Theotokos, The Mother of God, and from the seventh century onwards, she was given four festivals: the Presentation in the Temple (2 February), the Annunciation (25 March), the Assumption (15 August) and her Nativity (8 September).
Marian devotion has played an enormous role in the church down the years. Mary has been the object of countless prayers, accredited with performing many miracles, and the subject of thousands of artistic endeavours. She has had hundreds of chapels or parish churches named after her.
During the Reformation many images of Mary were destroyed. The Second Vatican Council 1962 made an extended statement on her, stressing her complete dependence on her Son, and regarding her as a model of the Church.
Principal Marian shrines of today include Lourdes (France), Fatima (Portugal), Walsingham (England), Loreto (Italy), Czesochowa (Poland) and Guadalupe (Mexico).
9 Peter Claver (1581 – 1654) teacher and missionary
Here is a saint for anyone with a social conscience. Claver was born near Barcelona at Verdu, and at 20 became a Jesuit. He went as a missionary to New Granada and worked to alleviate the terrible suffering of the slaves who arrived from West Africa, caged like animals. (It was said that you could smell the stench of a slave ship while it was still seven miles from shore.) Claver helped the poor wretches who survived long enough to reach dry land. He gave them food and medicine as well as spiritual comfort. He is said to have cared for and baptised 300,000 slaves. What a difference one life can make to thousands of people!
11 Protus and Hyacinth (early church)
On this, the anniversary of the Twin Towers, here are two more innocent people who met their death in the flames of mindless violence. These were Roman martyrs mentioned in the 4th century list of martyrs. Hyacinth’s tomb was discovered in the cemetery of Basilla, with his name and the date of his burial (11 September). Inside were charred bones, indicating death by fire. An inscription by Damasus says Protus Hyacinth were brothers, and another ancient source called them ‘teachers of the Christian law’.
11 Deiniol (d. c.584)
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, is not the first mighty bishop to come out of Wales. Deiniol was a monk of Wales who came to be the ‘first bishop of Bangor’. And a mighty bishop he was, too: Deiniol founded the two monasteries of Bangor Fawr (on the Menai Straits) and Bangor Iscoed (Clwyd), which, according to Bede, became the most famous monastery of British Christianity and came to number over 2,000 monks. Sadly, they were defeated at the battle of Chester by the pagan Aethelfrith, king of Northumbria. Deiniol is also remembered for his skill in getting disagreeing bishops to come and talk things over at a Synod… surely a skill which his 21st century successor will also put to great use!
*13 John Chrysostom 347 – 407
John Chrysostom is the saint for anyone who applies their Christianity to public life, and also for anyone who hates travelling in bad weather. Chrysostom did both, and had trouble both times.
Born into a wealthy home in Antioch, John Chrysostom studied both oratory and law. In 373 he became a monk, where his talents were soon spotted by the bishop, who put him in charge of the care of the many poor Christians in the city.
Chrysostom’s oratorical skills made him a popular preacher – even when he spoke out against the riots against the emperor’s taxes. The emperor, in fact, liked him so much that he had him made Archbishop of Constantinople in 397. Then the trouble began: because Chrysostom had firm moral views, and wanted to reform the corrupt morals of the court.
Nobody at court liked that at all – especially the Empress, whose make-up, clothes and behaviour were all criticized by Chrysostom. (It’s as if Rowan Williams began attacking the Queen’s clothes or Cherie Blair’s make-up as immoral.) When his enemies claimed that he had gone on to call her a ‘Jezebel’, the emperor had to exile him – until an earthquake scared everyone into recalling this strict Archbishop – just in case God was trying to tell them something. Even the Empress was shaken – for a while.
A few years later, Chrysostom was exiled again over another false charge – and forced to travel for many miles in appalling weather. If you’ve been stranded in any heat-waves or thunderstorms this summer, imagine walking up the M6 in that – for weeks on end. In the end, Chrysostom died in September, on the road to Pontus.
His body was later brought back to Constantinople, and over the ensuing centuries, the Church came to see him as having been a great church leader, in fact, one of the Four Greek Doctors (with Athanasius, Basil and Gregory of Nazianzus).
15 Adam of Caithness bishop 1213 – 22
Teaching people to ‘tithe’ can be a delicate matter. Some clergy teach ‘tithing’ well, and inspire their people to great generosity of spirit.
Other clergy teach ‘tithing’ at least well enough, and get their people’s sluggish cooperation.
But – there are clergy who teach ‘tithing’ badly – and then, watch out! St Adam is a good example of how NOT to do it.
Adam was a young Cisterian monk who became abbot of Melrose. Then in 1213 William, king of Scotland, appointed him as bishop in a remote area where his own power was weak and that of the Norse earls was strong.
Adam attempted to enforce law and order, including canon law, and particularly the payment of tithes. The people sullenly obeyed most of his teaching about the law and order, and didn’t care a fig one way or another about canon law. But tithing was a subject on which they had passionate views!
The customary offering at this time was a span of butter to the clergy for every twenty cows that a person owned. Adam said this was not enough. He wanted more butter. He increased the tithe to one span for every fifteen cows. Then one span for every twelve cows. Then one span for every ten cows that a person owned.
And so Adam managed to double his butter income. But any modern-day Diocesan Board of Finance thinking of doubling the parish share should beware what happened next.
For the people revolted. One night they forced their way into his bishop’s house at Halkirke, and burnt him and his followers to death.
The only good news was that his body, although “roasted with fire and livid with bruises, was found entire under a heap of stones, and buried honourably in the church.” Thus ended Adam, and the people kept all their butter tithe – presumably spreading it on toast?
18 Joseph of Copertino (1603 – 63)
Joseph of Copertino should be the patron saint of all awkward people who mean well, but drive those around them to distraction – especially their church leaders.
Joseph began life in a garden shed, because his father had sold the house to pay debts. He grew up wandering about open-mouthed – his mother despised him and called him ‘The Gaper’.
Young Joseph’s intense devotion to God led him to try and join the Capuchin monks – but he drove them crazy: forgetting to do what he was told, dropping piles of plates on the kitchen floor, and neglecting to tend the all-important kitchen fire. He was finally accepted by the Franciscans as a servant, and grew so religiously fervent that he was accepted as a novice in 1625, and ordained a priest in 1628.
As a priest he was devout, but apt to do anything – much to the irritation of his superiors. One problem was his repeated levitations, of which there were 70 reported instances. The most spectacular stories are of his flying to images placed high above the altars and helping workmen to erect a Calvary Cross 36 feet high by lifting it into place while he was hanging in mid-air himself. Such feats earned him the name of ‘the Flying Friar’ by admiring locals, but gave his superiors headaches. They were also disturbed by his habit of going into states of ecstasy, from which nothing could wake him.
Joseph’s reputation for flying about and for occasional ecstasy drew the crowds: they were all eager to see what would happen next. What did happen next was that his superiors kept him in virtual isolation for many years, eager to contain this intensely emotional and erratic priest. In 1767 he was canonised, not for his levitations, but for his extreme patience and humility.
20 Martyrs of Korea
Korea is known for its thriving Christian church. But it was not always so – in fact no Korean was baptised until as late as 1784. Christianity arrived in Korea through Christian books sent from China, and the Koreans responded warmly as soon as they heard the Good News. A Chinese priest who visited in 1794 found 4,000 Christians. This despite hard times: the Chinese priest was killed in 1801, and the Koreans were left without a priest for 30 years. Pius VII sent a bishop, Laurence Imbert, who arrived in disguise in 1837, who worked with two other priests of the same Paris Missionary Society. Christianity was strictly forbidden by this time, and so the missionaries worked in complete secrecy, rising at 2.30 am and ministering at unusual times in conditions of extreme poverty.
And the Korean Church grew! Soon there were 9,000 Christians, who could not remain secret for ever. Violent persecution broke out, and the three French priests allowed themselves to be taken, in order to avert massacre and apostasy. There were beheaded at Seoul on 21 September 1839. 78 Korean Christians died in the same persecution, among them Agatha Kim and John Ri. The first Korean priest to be martyred was Andrew Kim, in 1846. These shining Christians of the Korean Church were beatified in 1925 and canonized in 1984.
21 St Matthew
Matthew was one of 12 apostles. But he began as a publican i.e. a tax-collector of Jewish race who worked for the Romans, before he left all at the call of Christ. From earliest times, he was regarded as the author of the first of the four Gospels. The Gospel of Matthew is in correct, concise style, very suitable for public reading.
His usual emblem as an evangelist is a man, because his genealogy emphasised the family ties of Christ.
In art, he has been represented as either an evangelist or as an apostle. As an evangelist, he has been depicted sitting at a desk, writing his gospel with an angel holding the inkwell. In the Middle Ages he was even given a pair of spectacles.
Matthew was martyred by a sword or a spear, some think in Ethiopia.
23 When the sun goes edgewise – and daytime equals night
September 23 is the autumnal equinox (if you live in the northern hemisphere) or the vernal (Spring) equinox (if you live in the southern hemisphere) The equinoxes occur in March and September, when the Sun is ‘edgewise’ to the Earth’s axis of rotation, so that everywhere on earth has twelve hours of daylight and twelve hours of darkness.
29 St Michael and All Angels
Michael is an archangel, whose name means ‘who is like unto God?’ He makes various appearances throughout the Bible, from the book of Daniel to the Book of Revelation. In Daniel, he is ‘one of the princes’ of the heavenly host, and the special guardian of Israel. In Revelation, he is the principal fighter of the heavenly battle against the devil.
From early times, Michael’s cult was strong in the British Isles. Churches at Malmesbury (Wiltshire), Clive (Gloucestershire) and Stanmer (East Sussex) were dedicated to him. Bede mentions him. St Michael’s Mount in Cornwall was believed to commemorate a vision there in the 8th century. By the end of the Middle Ages, Michael had 686 English churches dedicated to him.
In art Michael is often depicted as slaying the dragon, as in the 14th century East Anglican Psalters, or in Epstein’s famous sculpture at Coventry cathedral. Or he is found (in medieval art) as weighing souls, as at Chaldon (Surrey), Swalcliffe (Oxon.), Eaton Bishop (Hereford and Worcester), and Martham in Suffolk. Michael’s most famous shrine in western Europe is Mont-Saint-Michel, where a Benedictine abbey was founded in the 10th century.
The ‘All Angels’ bit of this feast-day was added in 1969 when Gabriel and Raphael were included in with Michael.
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