The Ballad of the White Horse

For many years in our home school I read G.K. Chesterton's poem "The Ballad of the White Horse" to my kids during the month of October. This is the story of Alfred the Great's struggle against the pagan invaders in the late 800s. I chose this month for our annual reading because Alfred's feast day is the 26th of October.

After all my kids graduated, I missed the annual read-aloud, so a couple of years ago I hosted a series of Zoom calls and read the poem aloud to whoever showed up. Before each reading I gave a little bit of historical or literary context to aid the understanding of my listeners.

Each book takes around fifteen minutes to read aloud, so it's perfect for Morning Time. I usually started reading early in the month and read two or three books a week so we'd finish ahead of the feast day, but some years we didn't manage to start till later in the month. It's all good -- just DO read (or listen to) this wonderful tale!

Here's the whole playlist.

Check out my "Alfred the Great" tag for more posts on the history of Alfred, excerpts from the poem, suggestions for keeping the Church's liturgical calendar, and ideas for related things to add to your Morning Time.

Ascension Day and a happy providence

 During our Morning Prayers today one of the Psalms we happened to read as part of our regular rotation was Psalm 41, which has this passage:

9 Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me.
10 But thou, O Lord, be merciful unto me, and raise me up, that I may requite them.
11 By this I know that thou favourest me, because mine enemy doth not triumph over me.

In John 13:18, Jesus quotes Psalm 41:9 referring to Judas, who will betray him. But the heel image comes from Genesis 3:

14 And the Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:
15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

So Judas’s betrayal of Jesus is a demonic parody of Christ’s victory over Satan, but in spite of what looks like a victory for the few days Christ is in the tomb, the enemy cannot triumph over him.

Today is Ascension Day. For forty days after his resurrection Christ appeared in the flesh to his disciples, and then, as the Apostles’ Creed says, “He ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father almighty. From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.”

O Almighty God, whose blessed Son our Savior Jesus Christ
ascended far above all heavens that he might fill all things:
Mercifully give us faith to perceive that, according to his
promise, he abideth with his Church on earth, even unto the
end of the ages; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord, who
liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, in
glory everlasting. Amen.

Rogationtide: Traditional prayers

 

Planting tip: Blackberries don't bloom till after your last frost

Last week I wrote about the season; today I want to share some traditional prayers for the Rogation days, which are today, tomorrow, and Wednesday—that is, the Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday between the Sixth Sunday of Easter and Ascension Day (40 days after Easter).

The following collects are from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer, but they can also be found in the 2017 ACNA prayer book. [When used as a noun, “collect” is pronounced /COL-lect/.]

In our daily morning prayers, after the Lord’s Prayer we pray the collect for the previous Sunday followed by other prayers according to the season or specific prayer needs of our loved ones. During the Rogation days, after the collect of the day, we pray a different Rogation collect each day.


Sixth Sunday of Easter

O God, who hast prepared for those who love thee such
good things as pass man’s understanding:  Pour into our
hearts such love toward thee, that we, loving thee in all
things and above all things, may obtain thy promises, which
exceed all that we can desire; through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one
God, for ever and ever.  Amen.



For Rogation Days
For use on the traditional days or at other times

I. For fruitful seasons

Almighty God, Lord of heaven and earth:  We humbly pray
that thy gracious providence may give and preserve to our
use the harvests of the land and of the seas, and may prosper
all who labor to gather them, that we, who constantly receive
good things from thy hand, may always give thee thanks;
through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with
thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

II. For commerce and industry

Almighty God, whose Son Jesus Christ in his earthly life
shared our toil and hallowed our labor: Be present with
thy people where they work; make those who carry on
the industries and commerce of this land responsive to thy
will; and give to us all a pride in what we do, and a just
return for our labor; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who
liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.  Amen.

III. For stewardship of creation

O merciful Creator, whose hand is open wide to satisfy the
needs of every living creature: Make us, we beseech thee,
ever thankful for thy loving providence; and grant that we,
remembering the account that we must one day give, may be
faithful stewards of thy bounty; through Jesus Christ our
Lord, who with thee and the Holy Spirit liveth and reigneth,
one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.

Rogationtide: Praying for mercy and for fruitful seasons

 

Everything is burgeoning! The dogwoods, irises, and peonies have finished blooming, but the clematis and pinks are going wild and the lavender shooting out bloom stalks. I love this time of year.

My youngest daughter has started two bed in a sunny spot in our back yard that are modelled after the traditional “three sisters” way of planting. First she planted corn and sunflowers. Now that they’re coming up nicely she’s going to plant beans, which will twine up the stalks of the taller plants, then in a few weeks she’ll plant squashes, which will flourish on the ground below the other plants.

This coming Sunday will be the sixth Sunday of the Easter season. Up until fairly recently the Gospel reading for this Sunday was John 16:23-33, which begins, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you.” The Latin word for ask is rogare, and so this Sunday is known in liturgical churches as “Rogation Sunday.”

One of the traditional prayers for this brief season is the prayer for fruitful seasons:

Almighty God, Lord of heaven and earth: We humbly pray that thy gracious providence may give and preserve to our use the harvests of the land and of the seas, and may prosper all who labor to gather them that we, who constantly receive good things from thy had, may always give thee thanks; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

I have written before about some of the festive ways Christians have kept the days between Rogation Sunday and Ascension Thursday, but this week something new struck me and I wanted to mention it here.

Over the last year I’ve been dipping into Eleanor Parker’s delightful book, Winters in the World: A Journey Through the Anglo-Saxon Year, and last night I read her section called “Holy and Healthy Days,” which is on the origins of Rogationtide and the ways the early medieval English Christians kept this season. She mentions one of Aelfric’s sermons for Rogationtide and describes how the season was a penitential season as well as a festive one. Aelfric says that during this season, “we should pray for abundance of our earthly fruits, and for health and peace for ourselves, and, what is still greater, for the forgiveness of our sins” (pp. 157-158).

So, on the Rogation Days (the three days between Rogation Sunday and Ascension Day), the priests and parishioners would walk around the parish boundaries not only praying for fruitful seasons, but also praying for the forgiveness of their own sins and for the Lord’s mercy on their city. In his History, Bede quotes a chant from the Gallican Rogation Litany:

We pray Thee, O Lord, in all Thy mercy, that Thy wrath and anger may be turned away from this city and from Thy holy house, for we are sinners. Amen.

As Parker puts it so beautifully, “The Rogation Days seek physical and spiritual health for the individual, the community and the natural world; all are connected, one harmonious whole” (p. 162).

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

For more on Aelfric’s sermon and the medieval traditions, see Eleanor Parker’s blog post at The Clerk of Oxford.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Rogationtide, part two: Traditional prayers

To Anthea

by Robert Herrick (1591-1674)

Now is the time when all the lights wax dim;
And thou, Anthea, must withdraw from him
Who was thy servant: Dearest, bury me
Under that holy-oak, or gospel-tree;
Where, though thou see’st not, thou may’st think upon
Me, when thou yearly go’st procession;
Or, for mine honour, lay me in that tomb
In which thy sacred reliques shall have room;
For my embalming, Sweetest, there will be
No spices wanting, when I’m laid by thee.

The “yearly procession” in the poem is the tradition called “beating the bounds” when all the members of the parish walked around the parish boundary and prayed for good weather, for a good harvest, and for the Lord to protect the people. It was held on the Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday before the Ascension.

The Gospel reading on the previous Sunday is John 16:23-33, which begins, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you.” The Latin word for ask is rogare, and so this Sunday is known in liturgical churches as “Rogation Sunday,” and the next three days are called “Rogation Days.”

It’s been unseasonably dry here, so we’ve been praying for rain, and, thanks be to God, it rained most of the day today! I took this photo this evening between showers.

The 1979 Book of Common Prayer has three prayers for use during the Rogation Days. We prayed the first, For Fruitful Seasons, during Morning Prayers today, and will pray the next two on Tuesday and Wednesday. 

I. For fruitful seasons

Almighty God, Lord of heaven and earth: We humbly pray that thy gracious providence may give and preserve to our use the harvests of the land and of the seas, and may prosper all who labor to gather them, that we, who constantly receive good things from thy hand, may always give thee thanks; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

II. For commerce and industry

Almighty God, whose Son Jesus Christ in his earthly life shared our toil and hallowed our labor: Be present with thy people where they work; make those who carry on the industries and commerce of this land responsive to thy will; and give to us all a pride in what we do, and a just return for our labor; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

III. For stewardship of creation

O merciful Creator, whose hand is open wide to satisfy the needs of every living creature: Make us, we beseech thee, ever thankful for thy loving providence; and grant that we, remembering the account that we must one day give, may be faithful stewards of thy bounty; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with thee and the Holy Spirit liveth and reigneth, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

 

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

 

I’ve blogged before about Rogation Day – here’s a post explaining Beating theBounds, and here’s one with a hymn for Rogation Sunday.

Alfred the Great

Photo credit: Odejea
Wikimedia Commons

 "O God, who didst call thy servant Alfred to an earthly throne that he might advance thy heavenly kingdom, and didst give him zeal for thy church and love for thy people: Grant that we, inspired by his example and prayers, may remain steadfast in the work thou hast given us to do for the building up of thy reign of love; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen."

 On this day in the year of our Lord 899, Alfred King of the Anglo-Saxons passed into glory. He was a good man -- a poet, a scholar, a warrior, a lawgiver, and above all a devout Christian.

This month I've been reading aloud on Zoom G.K. Chesterton's magnificent Ballad of the White Horse, which is about Alfred's fight against the pagan invaders. Here's the link to the read-aloud on YouTube, if you'd like to listen. I've read it aloud to my kids nearly every October for over a decade and they've all graduated and I'm having my Morning Time alone these days, so that's why I decided to read the Ballad on Zoom. I'm glad I did -- it was a lot of fun. You know, I didn't even think about mentioning it here ahead of time!

You can read more about Alfred at this Lectionary page. It includes the Collect I've quoted above, plus Scripture readings for the day, and brief history of Alfred. 

This article from the University of Oxford has more information, including excerpts from some of his writings.

And here's an interesting article from a few years ago about the coin known as the Alfred coin

Enjoy!

 

Lent

~ George Herbert (1593-1633)

Welcome deare feast of Lent: who loves not thee,
He loves not Temperance, or Authoritie,
                But is compos’d of passion.
The Scriptures bid us fast; the Church sayes, now:
Give to thy Mother, what thou wouldst allow
                To ev’ry Corporation.

The humble soul compos’d of love and fear
Begins at home, and layes the burden there,
                When doctrines disagree.
He sayes, in things which use hath justly got,
I am a scandall to the Church, and not
                The Church is so to me.

True Christians should be glad of an occasion
To use their temperance, seeking no evasion,
                When good is seasonable;
Unlesse Authoritie, which should increase
The obligation in us, make it lesse,
                And Power it self disable.

Besides the cleannesse of sweet abstinence,
Quick thoughts and motions at a small expense,
                A face not fearing light:
Whereas in fulnesse there are sluttish fumes,
Sowre exhalations, and dishonest rheumes,
                Revenging the delight.

Then those same pendant profits, which the spring
And Easter intimate, enlarge the thing,
                And goodnesse of the deed.
Neither ought other mens abuse of Lent
Spoil the good use; lest by that argument
                We forfeit all our Creed.

It ’s true, we cannot reach Christ’s fortieth day;
Yet to go part of that religious way,
                Is better than to rest:
We cannot reach our Savior’s purity;
Yet are bid, Be holy ev’n as he.
                In both let ’s do our best.

Who goeth in the way which Christ hath gone,
Is much more sure to meet with him, than one
                That travelleth by-ways:
Perhaps my God, though he be far before,
May turn, and take me by the hand, and more
                May strengthen my decays.

Yet Lord instruct us to improve our fast
By starving sin and taking such repast
                As may our faults control:
That ev’ry man may revel at his door,
Not in his parlor; banqueting the poor,
                And among those his soul.

Saint Crispin's Day festivities

Last night we had our annual bash -- a bonfire/cookout/St Crispin's Day feast/Henry V/Medieval everything party. Some guests come in costumes and we give a prize to the crowd's favorite. We set up an archery range and take turns shooting. We play Medieval music, several of the menfolk put on the first part of Act IV, Scene II of Shakespeare's Henry V, the part with The Famous Speech, and this year we sang Non nobis Domine at the suggestion of one of our guests.

But the highlight of the festivities is always the dragon tail we serve.

We neglected to take a prettied-up picture of it

Creepy, isn't it?

Work in progress

Eldest Daughter has made it for us every year and I usually decorate it, but this year my youngest son asked to be in charge of decorating, so we bought him some fondant and told him to go to YouTube and figure out how to work with it, since we've never used it before.

I think it turned out really well.