MY GRANDFATHER, SAINT EDGAR "THE PEACEFUL" KING OF ENGLAND, AND A HOST OF OTHERS

 

SAINT EDGAR "THE PEACEFUL"

KING OF ENGLAND

My 33rd Great Grandfather

Born 7 August 943 - Died 8 July 975

Patron Saint of Kings and Widowers

MY 33RD GREAT GRANDFATHER

When I have a rough day, and my pain is ratcheted up and I feel like complaining, I often glance at the saint of the day to find that the Catholic world is celebrating at least ONE illustrious ancestor of mine.  Often, MORE than one is involved, which can be overwhelming to meditate upon, or even to write about, but I feel oddly supported by the numbers. (More about that later.)

Typically, as in today's saint, that ancestor has some weighty responsibilities and, comparing mine to his or hers, can help put things in perspective.

As it happens, today's calendar has quite a few of my relatives, as well as some favorites like Macrina "The Elder," known as one of the Desert Mothers and an example to me. But I can't write about them all just now because it is 11 p.m. and I am going to try to do this post quickly so I can at least make an effort to get into bed.

PEACEFUL UNIFICATION AND ESTABLISHMENT OF TRADITIONS

One thing I particularly appreciate about this grandfather is that he was so successful in unifying the English realm that it never devolved back into the handful of minor kingdoms such as East Anglia, Mercia, Northumberland, Wessex, York, etc., etc. When crowned, he became king of a cohesive kingdom.

In these days of much talked-about divisiveness between the two major parties in the American political scene, I feel that we could certainly use the gifts of someone like Edgar the Peaceful.

Also, the ritual of coronation, as well as the oath taken during it, began with Edgar's coronation and continues to this day.

His division of the kingdom into "shires" also persists to present time. He had a steady hand when it came to government.

SAINTS SOMETIMES "RUN" IN A FAMILY

Edgar's mother was Saint Aelfgifu (aka "Elgiva") wife of King Edmund I "Atheling" of England, but her saintliness must have been more a matter of DNA than any nurturing she could have given him because she died the year after he was born. I can't tell you how many times I have wished that some of this wonderful DNA had been passed down to me!

(See my blog of May 18, her feast day, for more information,)

Upon the death of his mother he was sent to be raised by Athelstan, the Ealdorman of Mercia, and his wife, Aelfwynn.

Edgar's great grandfather was Alfred the Great, and it is through him that ONE of my lines of descent traces to that sainted king. I am actually descended from two of Alfred's children with his wife, Saint Ealhswith.

All these sainted ancestors could be confusing if they were not recorded in history and in my family tree. I will often write their names and relationships in my calendar on their feast day and meditate on various aspects of their lives, asking for special intercession from my "royal rellies!"

With regard to these royal families, they are often recognized as saints through their support of monastic institutions. Other families, such as Therese of Lisieux, are extremely devout, with a mystical bent, and THIS is what gets passed down through the ages.

MONASTIC REFORMS AND GROWTH

Beginning when he is about 14, he is declared the king of the Mercians and begins a period of monastic reforms, which I find remarkable for someone so young, but we have to remember that most young monarchs had people around them "advising" them to one degree or another. In Edgar's case, he had Saint Dunstan, previously exiled by the prior King. Edgar brought him out of exile and kept him close thereafter. We can see Dunstan's hand in Edgar's rehabilitation of The Church and its monastic institutions during his reign.

Saint Dunstan was very popular for quite some time. Apparently, there is some story about how he bested Satan, and I need to try and read up on that little tiff! It is bound to be educational and/or inspiring. I know little to nothing of Dunstant at the moment, but clearly I need to repair that deficit!

Under Edgar's rule, the monasteries had to be rebuilt because a great number of them had been sacked by the Vikings. As usual, some of the aristocratic classes become resentful of resources going toward this work, as well as the land that was given over for that purpose.

Even the saints get pushback when one is trying to do something holy and good! Something to remember when we try to establish some holy work or intention and even the church hierarchy objects or just stands in the way! Humans are the same, no matter WHAT institution they occupy. Some are holy. Some are not.

PROGRESS FOR FEMALE MONARCHS AND A SOAP OPERA

Another thing I really like about his is his appreciation for women in positions of power. Up until this point, women were not usually given any at all....always just an appendage of some husband or other.

He officially crowned his wife Aelfthryth "Queen of England," a real first.

The problem, though, with Edgar's - ahem - appreciation of the fairer sex is that supposedly he could not "keep it in his pants."  He was accused of having an affair with a nun named Wulfthryth (aka Saint Wulfthryth of Wilton.)  OTHER SOURCES say that she was his lawful wife but was "put aside" and banished to the nunnery. She bore him one son.

Then, at some point, Edgar had sent Ethelwold to "check out" Aelfthryth (my ancestor queen), but the messenger fell in love and married her himself. He conducted a subterfuge wherein he told King Edgar that she was terribly ugly. Later, he was murdered. We are guessing it was arranged by Edgar.

It is all very tawdry and complicated, as these royal marriages could often be in those days.

As usual, I have to leave this most interesting saint for another day when I have time to read up on him.

THE INNER LIFE

In my case, most of my work has to do with the inner life of a solitary monastic. I don't know that there is much to recommend him as far as Edgar is concerned, when it comes to inspiration, anyway. I can certainly appreciate his steadiness in government and devotion to the monastic orders, albeit probably Saint Dunstan's influence that pushed that forward. He was certainly a staunch advocate for women in power, to the degree allowed in those days.

With an ancestor like Edgar, I will often ask for intercession to be endowed with qualities of strength, courage, devotion to duty, and that sort of thing.

THE MYSTICS AMONG US

At the suggestion of a holy friend, I joined a Facebook group for "Catholic Mystics" recently. There were only a few available, and except for one they were small and most had not had a post in several YEARS. I was left with ONE, essentially, and, sure enough, today when I checked out what was going on, some woman had posted a blatantly political meme about gender identity, objecting to it and saying that God does not make mistakes. This was a reference to some things that are happening in the political realm these days.

We live in an era where politics has infected and taken over Christianity. It is terribly sad. I joined that group because I had been looking for some spiritual companionship with others of like mind, but apparently there is none to be had. I got pushback when I objected to the political nature of that post, but several people were on their high horse about this topic. The "holier-than-thou" attitude is hard to take. It is a huge turnoff, and I will most likely leave that group.

Don't get me wrong. I am far from ignorant about politics. I make it a point to read up and get acquainted with what is going on so that I can be a responsible voter. I just don't want to see this in my prayer time, when I listen to a homily, or when I am spending time in a group that is supposedly about the mystics.

I am also not in favor of stomping around the world trying to get non-religious people to conform to my ideas of religion. THIS is exactly why the separation of church and state is hugely important. Jesus said to evangelize. He didn't say that our salvation depended upon political measures.

Mother Tessa Bielecki warned me about this when I was corresponding with her from my Hindu convent 30 years ago, where I had read about the mystics and had resolved to leave and become Catholic. She told me that I would not find the mystical life in the parishes and, for the most part, she was right.

I remember the last time someone brought the Eucharist to my apartment, 2 or 3 years ago. Instead of discussing the readings of the day, she was enthused about Donald Trump, and was thanking God for HIM. It was very upsetting.

I have to pray to my ancestor, Edgar the Peaceful, for him to intercede for me to be endowed with the strength necessary to continue this solitary path without yearning for any company on it. I pray to be flexible, though, and welcome whatever God wills and allows.

The only company I need is that of The Lord and no other, so I must be satisfied with Him and just know that He is always with me and that all my lovely ancestors and other relatives, cousins, and inspiring friends, are watching after me from Heaven. I embrace them in spirit.

Of course I realize there are others like me in the world today. I know of a few "city hermits" in Arizona and in other states. Most hermits do not adopt this monastic journey permanently. In less than a year, I will have been living this way for 20 years. Can you imagine? Two decades like this. It has not ended up as I imagined it might, but it is not awful. I am aware of the company of the Divine. I just need to be better established in it.

Even hermits have to do some work to survive. I have monthly social security from more than 33 years of working, but I hope to start painting again one day soon and make some money to get caught up with bills. I have made some crocheted scarves and ponchos to sell at a local store, if possible, as well as some earrings. Of course, the novel is progressing, though slowly. I have always been more interested and inspired by ART than by writing, and that has not changed, but I just hope to become a little FASTER with it than I am at present. We will see how it goes. I sometimes wonder if other people are going to be interested in what interests me. We shall see!

In the meantime, I ask you to please donate to my wish list on Amazon in order to get nourishing food, vitamins and supplements into the house. I have some expenses coming up and could use the help.

Also, have had some deterioration of the bones in my feet, which is quite painful and which was made worse by the Birkenstocks I was wearing, so I had to get rid of those and buy another style by a different manufacturer. Whenever I have to buy shoes, it comes out of my food money, leaving me short for the month.

PRESS THIS LINK FOR WISH LIST

Thanks so much for your company along my journey. I know there is a handful of you who read my blog and I hope that SOMETHING in all of this keeps you inspired to continue down the holy road.

God bless us all

Silver Rose

ST. TERESA OF PORTUGAL - Feast Day: June 17

Today is the feast day for Saint Teresa of Portugal.  She was married to my 26th Great Grandfather, King Alfonso IX of Leon, and they were FIRST COUSINS! She is also a distant cousin of mine.

After having several children together, the church dissolved the marriage because it was too close in blood relation (consanguinity.)  It was common at one time for relatives to marry one another among nobility because, God forbid, one couldn't marry a commoner.  Their world would fall in. Consequently, since I am descended from a bunch of royal lines, I am a cousin to myself a hundred times over, maybe more!

After the marriage was dissolved, Teresa returned to her estate at Lorvao in Portugal and funded a monastery on her property.  Later, she replaced the monks with 300 nuns following the Cistercian Rule, and she lived with them, though she did not take vows until later.

In 1231, her former husband's second wife, Berengaria of Castile, asked Teresa to return to Leon to arbitrate a dispute between their children about the throne and inheritance of Alfonso IX, who had died in September of the previous year. Imagine the confidence that Berengaria would have had to have in our Saint Teresa in order to call on her for assistance with something as weighty as this. As is the case with so many of the female saints, we have to infer her virtuous qualities from the limited amount of information passed down to us over the years.

After settling this dispute, she returned to Lorvao and lived as a nun for the rest of her life, ruling over hundreds of Cistercians in her convent (pictured below) which HAD been a monastery of Benedictine MEN. She replaced them with her Cistercians, which I find incredible, because it is usually the men that are throwing out the women! She must have been remarkable.

This too tells me something about her attributes, since I cannot imagine the men obeying her edict to get lost and then hundreds of women following her in religious life without that woman having had an unusual character. She would have to inspire devotion and obedience in all those women, overcoming the pettiness and infighting that could easily occur among a community of people who have been told since childhood that they are worthless in comparison to the male sex. I pray to be imbued with some of that inspiration myself!

Many of my Sainted ancestors and cousins have started convents and monasteries. I have also long wanted to start a convent geared toward disabled and retired ladies, but that sort of thing requires a huge amount of funding.  My sainted ancient ancestors were wealthy, most of them, or at least had quite a bit of land, and they had the freedom to dedicate it to the church so as to establish convents and monasteries "for the glory of God." If you had no money, you had little or no chance of a religious vocation - unless, of course you were young, exceedingly healthy, and able to wait on and serve everyone else. 

Abbey of Lorvao

Photograph by Vitor Oliveira

from Torres Vedras, Portugal

This is a view of the old Abbey cloister and of the

lantern tower of the Abbey Church.

It was originally occupied by Benedictine monks, from

about 1070 to 1206, and then housed Saint Teresa's Cistercian

nuns from 1206 to 1887

The great importance of prayer, whether intercessory prayer, glorification, or contemplative prayer in which one simply inclines the mind to God, cannot be underestimated, but I find that, even some very devout people don't see the sense of it and are not likely to support contemplative vocations.  They expect visible production in the form of social programs on the part of the religious, but fail to calculate that Martha AND Mary are necessary.  Some are jealous of the peaceful, protected life of contemplative monastics, despite the lack of mobility and choice about almost anything in a nun's life. When I was a nun in the Vedanta convent, I overheard a few "close devotees" speak with bitterness about the supposed ease of the lives of the nuns, when they knew nothing at all about the tremendous amount of physical labor that was required of them. My body was destroyed by the physical work and I ended up in a wheelchair for a couple of weeks, at least.

Why do I care if I am related to this saint or that saint?  The thing is this:  The saints are not really dead. They have exited the physical world and moved on to another, spiritual realm and if I am related to any of them, I like to direct requests for intercessory prayer to them.  Hey...I need all the help I can get, and I am counting on them to be interested in their descendants and relations.

In addition, the lives of the saints give tremendous inspiration to process along the holy path they trod before me. Their examples prove it can be done. It is possible to conquer the lower urges and approach the Lord, if we observe, imitate and correspond with the glorified ones.

Granted, it is more difficult to be inspired by the saints like Teresa of Portugal who have been ignored by the church and for whom there is so little information, but when we meditate on the events of their life and spend some time considering the implications of their history, we can mine jewels from it.

Teresa had two sisters who were ALSO sainted - Sancha and Malfalda. I have seen this tendency of saints appearing in the same family like this, and it gives me something to think about. Is there some DNA aspect to sisters given to saintliness, or is it entirely a "nurture, rather than nature" situation? Therese of Lisieux immediately comes to mind. Her sisters, you will remember, were also nuns.

Today I commune with Teresa of Portugal and I recommend her to you, as well. 

God bless us all.

Silver "Rose" S. Parnell

Sannyasini Kaliprana

Silver Cottage Hermitage

Albuquerque, New Mexico
(c) 2015

SAINT BEGGA OF LANDEN

Saint Begga of Landen

615 - 17 December 693

Great Great Great Grandmother of Emperor Charlemagne

My 38th Great Grandmother

As with many saints from whom I descend, the family of Saint Begga is rife with other saints, both ancestrally and among their descendants.  I am fervently praying that some of this sanctity will rub off on me! Begga's mother was Saint Itta (Saint Ida) and her older sister was Saint Gertrude of Nivelle. Mother and sister established a monastery of Benedictine nuns at Nivelles, which is now in Belgium.  Saint Gertrude was Abbess.  She is the patron saint of travelers, gardeners and cats.  If you have a rat infestation, she's the saint to call upon, and she is also invoked for intercession in cases of mental illness.   Gertrude died at a young age, no doubt due to illnesses induced by exhaustion from too rigorous a program of austerities such as long vigils and short rations.  This aspect of a saint's life has no appeal for me whatsoever.  I would like to live for a long time so I have a chance to make up for all the mistakes in the early years, before I became a Christian and when I was lost in my sin.

Saint Gertrude of Nivelles, Begga's sister

Photograph of the statue at Nivelles 

by Jean-Pol Grandmont

Begga's father was Pepin of Landen, who was mayor of the palace of Austrasia, which was in the northeastern section of the Merovingian Kingdom of the Franks in the 6th, 7th and 8th centuries.  The Frankish tribes occupied this territory until Clovis I unified them.  During the Carolingian Empire, the territorial character of the region dissipated.  (For more information about the time period in question, and a rather good dissertation on the main historical events and personages of the area of Austrasia, see the Wikipedia page HERE)

Begga also married into a saintly family when she took Ansegise as husband, who was the son of Saint Arnulf (sometimes "Arnoul" or "Arnold," depending on the language of the person referring to him.)

Painting by an anonymous artist who loosely 

copied a Reubens painting of the saint and

her husband. It is in the Royal Museum of 

Fine Arts in Brussels, Belgium

Emerson Kent.com

Begga's son, Pepin of Herstal, was the founder of the Carolingian dynasty of the rulers of France, also my ancestors.

When her husband was killed by his enemy Gundewin during a feud, Begga made a pilgrimage to Rome, then took the veil, rapidly founded seven churches and built a convent at Andenne on the Meuse River.  Her sister supplied her with a small number of nuns who laid the foundation of the monastic observance in that institution.  Begga was abbess there for the rest of her life, dying in 693 at the age of 78, which was quite an advanced age at that time.  The Monastery was thereafter converted into a "collegiate church"  of thirty two canonesses from the noble families.  According to the definitions I have been able to find, a "collegiate church" is a church in which the daily office and worship is maintained by a college of canons.  It is a lay institution presided over by a dean or provost.  I will have to research it some more because it doesn't sound quite Catholic, does it?

Convent at Andenne

Collegiate Church at Andenne,

Where Saint Begga is buried.

Saint Begga has two feast days: September 6 and December 17.  Some people attribute the founding of the Beguines to Saint Begga, but this is almost certainly myth.  The Beguines are thought to have gotten their name from Father Lambert le Begue, whose protection they enjoyed.

The thing that impresses me about these saints is that they joyfully abandon prestige, money, fame and comfort to pursue what was usually an extremely hard life of monastic penance. I wonder if the certainty of judgment day and the possibility of hell was more real to them than it is to many of us. Did they have more faith, or were the austerities and penances a fad of the time?

Bust in the entrance gate of the beguinage in the Turnhout

District, Antwerp.  Stone bust is in a large round niche in

the gate of the Begijnhof (beguine house.)  Bust was donated 

by J.B. Cleeren in 1768

Image found on "Statues - Hither & Thither"

LINKS TO SOURCES

Wikipedia

Catholic Online

Bartleby.com

National Society of Saints and Sinners

Saints and Blesseds who Left Descendants

Find a Grave Memorial Page

Satues - Hither & Thither

Emerson Kent - World History for the Relaxed Historian


Silver "Rose" Parnell
(c) 2015
All rights reserved.

CONTEMPLATIVE LIFE VERSUS MONASTIC LIFE

Saint Thekla, Hermitess

There are a bunch of monastic wannabes parading around the internet claiming to be "hermits."  One of them calls herself "The Anchoress," yet she is married and lives with husband and children.  Another has done herself up in a nun's habit of sorts and has published a "rule of life," yet she also is married and living at home.  I do not pretend to know why these people are doing this, but one thing is obvious:  They aspire to some state of life for which they do not possess even the basic requirements.  It confuses the uninitiated and gives the wrong idea about monastic life in general.

If you are married, marriage is your vocation, and being the best wife and mother is your holy occupation.  You've chosen that life and it is up to you to throw yourself into it with all your heart and soul, for the sake of the Lord and the kingdom.  Your family will work together for the salvation of all, and it is beautiful.  There is no higher status elsewhere.

What is a monastic?  "Monastic" comes from the word "mono" or singular, alone.  Monastics have chosen to remain unmarried and unattached (or it has chosen them) so that their lives are given completely to the Lord in a singular way.  Monastic life is generally centered around prayer at regular intervals throughout the day.  Sometimes it is contemplative and sometimes not.

Saint Paula and her daughter Eustochium,

with Saint Jerome

Whereas today, "monastic life" is typically understood to be part of a recognized religious order, the early days of Christianity saw quite a few independent people relocating to the desert, mostly the Scetes desert of Egypt, but also in Syria and Palestine, where they lived ascetic lives of prayer and penance.  Palladius of Galatia tells us that there were almost 3,000 women living in the desert as religious hermitesses or as a part of a loosely organized community of believers by the year 419-420

Hermit caves in Syria

These were Christianity's first monastics and I guarantee you that the desert fathers and desert mothers did not haul spouses and children out to the desert to live with them en famille, with the exception of desert mothers such as Saint Paula, whose daughter Eustochium, ALSO took up the religious life.  (Saint Paula had been widowed prior to this.)  The monastic life is a vocation of single people, not married ladies living with husband and children, with a job in town, Wednesday pizza night and family vacations to the beach every year.

Sometimes a particularly holy hermit would attract followers. Very quickly, the cenobitic life, a life lived in common, became the norm.  Monastics still do not marry, but they are "together, alone."  The hermit's cave became the monastic "cell."

Saint Theresa of Avila's cell

There are many different monastic orders in the United States.  If you have leanings toward a monastic life that is contemplative in nature, rather than try to live as a monastic or hermit on your own, I highly recommend that, if you meet the criteria,you go directly to a cloistered convent, do not pass go and do not collect $200.  Nuns who have LEFT the convents, thinking they can maintain their contemplative life and schedule "on the outside" routinely complain that keeping anything close to the convent's prayer schedule is nearly impossible.  There are torments, hassles and disagreeable people in some convents, perhaps in most convents, but the trial of living with these is worth the rewards.  Go to a cloistered convent and try it out.  Some of them will take older people.

The active orders are something else.  They live for God, but their focus is outward and is more service oriented.  There are teaching orders, nursing orders, all kinds of orders. I don't recommend these for the quiet contemplative who years for mystical union with God.  In another post, I will write about some of the contemplative orders, such as my favorites, "the pink nuns" who maintain continual adoration before the Divine Eucharist 24 hours a day.

The primary obstacle is often the HEALTH of a person.  If you do not have good health, then you are in my boat, and I will go on to discuss how to manage a monastic life at home in later posts.  Convent life is a very physical life, with lots of hard work.  There is plenty of manual labor to go around.  Also, you are never "off the clock," in that you are a nun 24/7 and it can be a strain for some. If you have PTSD, as I do, or depression or some other mental problem, it can be particularly difficult.  Religious orders usually insist that prospective members be physically and mentally healthy.

A simplified type of monastic life can be lived at home, though it is very difficult to maintain a rigorous schedule for most of us who are elderly and/or physically compromised.  But we are the ones who have the time and the circumstances to live a version of monastic life at home, however, and it is a shame to waste our golden years playing computer games, when we can grow closer to God in an intentional and intense way.  I intend to help us all explore that and to provide information that will be helpful.

Saint Rose of Lima

A Third Order Dominican who lived at home

and served the poor

I will be researching avenues of emotional and spiritual support, such as third order possibilities, and I will report on that later.  I do know that individuals may be allowed to take some sort of personal vows, with the permission of the local bishop, but this may be reserved for perpetual virgins.  I will have to check my facts on that score and get back to you with that information as well.

In addition, I will be supplying lists of resources, blogs and books that are helpful to the contemplative life in general, so look for those in future blog posts.  I also plan to write some blog posts highlighting the lives of some of our saints who were mystics that gained great consolations from contemplative prayer or those who either lived at home, in hermitage, or as an independent third order monastic.  Anything that I feel will be helpful and supportive to contemplative life and to the independent monastic will be included.

Everyone can benefit from contemplative prayer.  The fact that you enjoy the mystical union that is the reward of such prayer does not mean you are a monastic, however, and I think that is where some of the pseudo-hermits have gone off the rails.  Contemplative prayer is a religious practice.  Monasticism is a religious vocation.  Often, the two will intersect, but they shouldn't be confused with one another.

The thing to remember, most of all, is that each person is born in the likeness and image of God and we are equally loved by the creator who made us, no matter what our vocation.  Remember, we are human BEINGS and not human DOINGS.  In the long run, it doesn't matter what is our vocation, only that we turn it to God as much as possible and rely upon His guidance within our circumstances.

God bless you.  Please pray for me as I pray for you.

Silver Rose Parnell