I am not dead, though I am not at all well at the moment. I decided against going on pilgrimage to the Shrine of St Edward the Confessor as I didn't feel up to being so far from home by myself, though I have made intercession unto him for counsel and help in my travail. St Edward was a paragon of kingship and piety; no wonder no Roman Catholic 'blog (to my knowledge) has made mention of him! I cannot say that I have been reading any 'blogs of late, though, or indeed any literature of any description. So, what have I been up to recently, you ask? Nothing; just work and sleep.
The image at the top of this post is a 15th century rendering of St Edward from the rood screen in the church of Sts Peter and Paul in Eye, Suffolk. It was restored by Sir Ninian Comper, I believe.
This scene from the Bayeux Tapestry depicts not St Edward but Harold Godwinson at his coronation. Note that the Archbishop Stigand wears something strikingly akin to the Russian Orthodox felon; something else which supports the much-maligned fact that the Saxon Church was Orthodox, not Roman. It was under William the Bastard, marching under the papal banner, that Roman Catholicism was brought to these shores.
St Edward the Confessor, pray for us; fortify Her Majesty and all the Royal Family in righteousness and fear of the Lord, and keep the illustrious church of St Peter at Westminster in the faith of our fathers. You may like to read posts I wrote in 2010 and 2011. I cannot presently add to them.
The hermeneutic of continuity is the only blog in my RSS-reader that mentions him.
ReplyDeleteI think the archbishop is wearing a form of the conical chasuble, which would've been also worn elsewhere. The earlier we look in the history of vestments of East and West, the closer they resemble each other.
Since Archbishop Stigand's quarrel with Rome began before the schism, it can indeed be said that his Church remained orthodox.
And don't forget King St. Edmund!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.orthodox.net/western-saints/edmund-martyr-king-of-east-anglia.html
http://offerimustibidomine.blogspot.com/2012/10/today-is-feast-of-st-edward-confessor.html
ReplyDeleteNot only mentioned him, but had a High Mass for him.