Category Archives: Feasts

Candlemas: the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple & a Festival of Lights

04 Saturday Feb 2017

Posted by in Feasts, Hymnology, Liturgy

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Presentation of Jesus at the Temple, by Rembrandt van Rijn

Presentation of Jesus at the Temple by Rembrandt van Rijn (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Rembrandt van Rijn (15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669)

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Simeon’s Song of Praise by Aert de Gelder (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Aert de Gelder (26 October 1645 – 27 August 1727)

Simeon the Righteous

Linked to the presentation of Jesus at the Temple is the touching story of Simeon the Elder, or Simeon Senex. “According to the Biblical account, Simeon had been visited by the Holy Spirit and told that he would not die until he had seen the Lord’s Christ. On taking Jesus into his arms he uttered the prayer Nunc dimittis” (Wikipedia), also called the Canticle of Simeon, found in St. Luke’s Gospel (2:29-32). The Nunc dimittis is still used liturgically in many Christian churches.  Simeon also prophesied the crucifixion. He said to Mary:

Behold, this child is set for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and for a sign which is spoken against. Yes, a sword will pierce through your own soul, that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed (Luke 2:34-35).

East and West

In the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Presentation is called Hypapante (Meeting), “in reference to Jesus’ meeting in the Temple with the aged Simeon” (Wikipedia). Moreover, in the Eastern Church, the Presentation is a celebration of Christ and it is one of The Twelve Feasts, four of which honour Mary. But in the Western Church, Candlemas is the fourth of the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary (from rose, the flower) that commemorate Mary.

The Festival of Lights

Candlemas is also joyful because it is a festival of lights and has been so since the fifth century. Candlemas is the day that “all the Church’s candles for the year were blessed” (BBC). As a festival of lights, Candlemas is among the celebrations which, from time immemorial, have been associated with the degree of daylight.

Christianity shaped its liturgical calendar according to what could be called a pagan calendar but is in fact nature’s calendar: the two solstices (Christmas and St John’s Day) and the two equinoctial points (Easter and Michaelmas: end of September). Candlemas is celebrated between the winter solstice, Christmas, and the spring equinox, Easter.

Rome: Candles

According to Brewers’ Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, “the ancient Romans had a custom of burning candles to scare away evil spirits.”[1]  Well, that practice was also long perpetuated, particularly in England, and might be revived.

Groudhog day

We then come to the matter of Groundhog day. Foretelling what the remainder of winter would bring is not new, but the manner differs:

If Candlemas day be dry and fair,
The half o’winter’s come and mair`
If Candlemas Day be wet and foul,
The half o’winter was gone at Youl.

Scottish Proverb[2]

Love to everyone ♥
_________________________
[1] “Candle.Candlemas Day,” Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, revised by Adrian Room, Sixteenth Edition (London: Cassell 2001[1959]).
[2] Ibid.

composer: Palestrina (3 February 1525 or 2 February 1526 – 2 February 1594)
title: Nunc dimittis
performers: The Tallis Scholars

© Micheline Walker
2 February 2012
Reposted 4 February 2017
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The Blessed Virgin: Mariology

03 Friday Feb 2017

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Annunciation by Paolo de Matteis, 1712. The white lily in the angel's hand is symbolic of Mary's purity in Marian art.

Annunciation by Paolo de’ Matteis, 1712. The white lily in the angel’s hand is symbolic of Mary’s purity in Marian art. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Hymns to the Virgin Mary, or Marian hymnology, as I will call it, constitute a substantial part of sacred music. Moreover, Marian art is abundant. Mary’s main feasts are the Annunciation, the Nativity, the Assumption and the Immaculate Conception, three of which are related to the Nativity Cycle. The exception would be the Assumption. Mary did not die. She ascended into heaven.

1. The Annunciation

The Feast of the Annunciation commemorates the day on which the Archangel Gabriel visited Mary to announce that she would bear and give birth to the son of God. The Feast of the Annunciation (see Rubens, below) is celebrated on 25th March, exactly nine months before Christmas Day, when Christians celebrate the birth of Christ. The above image is by Paolo de’ Matteis (9 February 1662 – 26 January 1728). 

2. The Nativity

The central Marian feast is the Nativity. The Nativity is in fact a celebration of the birth of Christ, but Marian feasts are rooted in the Nativity cycle. Where Marian art is concerned, the Nativity includes portrayals of the Shepherds in adoration, of the visit by the Kings of Orient, as well as portrayals of the Presentation of Jesus as the firstborn son, and the Purification of Mary. Just below, I have inserted a visit by the Shepherds, by Gerard van Honthorst (4 November 1592 – 27 April 1656), a Dutch Golden Age artist who is also called Gerrit van Honthorst.

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The Adoration of the Shepherds by Gerard van Honthorst, 1622

3. The Assumption

Mary did not die. She ascended into heaven and her Assumption is celebrated on 15th August. In the Eastern Church, Byzantine Emperor Maurice selected the15th August as the date of the feast of Dormition and Assumption. The 15th of August is also the Feast Day of Acadians. Acadians are the French-speaking inhabitants of Canada’s Atlantic provinces. Their national anthem is the Ave Maris Stella. 

The Assumption of the Virgin Mary by  Rubens 1626

4. The Immaculate Conception

According to Roman Catholicism, Jesus was conceived without stain or macula. This dogma is disputed as it is linked with the notion of an inherent fault, the original sin, the sin committed by Adam and Eve. Newborns or infants who die before Baptism do not go to heaven. They are sent to Limbo.

—ooo—

THE FOUR ANTIPHONS (Antiennes)

Marian hymnology

As for Marian hymnology, it originally consisted of four antiphons (antiennes, in French) sung in Gregorian Chant. Two, the Alma Redemptoris Mater and the Salve Regina were composed by Hermann of Reichenau, and would have been Gregorian chants. The four Marian antiphons are in fact linked to the Liturgy of the Hours, the Canonical Hours, and commemorate the four seasons.

Antiphons are “responsories” or the response by the choir or the congregation to a psalm or hymn. But they may involve responsorial singing by alternating choirs. More simply expressed, antiphons resemble a refrain. “The refrain was called an antiphon (A). The resulting musical form was A V1 A V2…”[1] As a form, antiphons are not restricted to Marian hymnology. We should also note that Marian feasts are associated with the seasons, as are other Christian feasts.

The Marian liturgical calendar is divided as follows:

Magnificatio, by Sandro Botticelli

Madonna of the Magnificat by Sandro Botticelli, 1481


DETAILS ON THE ANTIPHONS

The Alma Redemptoris Mater

Traditionally, the Alma Redemptoris Mater is sung at the end of Compline, one of the Canonical Hours. It is said to have been composed by Hermannus Contractus (Herman the Cripple) (1013–1054).

The Ave Regina Cœlorum

Traditionally, the Ave Regina Cœlorum has been sung at the end of each Canonical Hours, but mainly Compline, between 2 February (Candlemas or Chandeleur in French) until the Holy Week. Candlemas is the day commemorating the Presentation of the Jesus at the Temple and the Purification of the Virgin Mary.

The Regina Cœli 

The Regina Cœli or Cæli (Queen of Heaven), is a night prayer (Compline or Vespers).  Its authorship has not been determined but it was sung by Franciscans in the 12th century.  It was sung in place of the Angelus from Holy Saturday through Pentecost.  It is therefore associated with the celebration of Easter.

The Salve Regina

The Salve Regina (Hail Holy Queen) is sung at Compline from the Saturday before Trinity Sunday until the Friday before the first Sunday of Advent (Wikipedia).  It was composed by German monk Hermann of Reichenau, the above-mentioned Hermannus Contractus (Herman the Cripple) (1013–1054), the composer of the Alma Redemptoris Mater.

—ooo—

However, to the four antiphons, we may add the above-mentioned Ave Maris Stella, Mozart’s breathtaking , various Ave Maria‘s, the most famous of which are Schubert’s Ave Maria, and the Ave Maria Charles Gounod composed on the first prelude of Johann Sebastian Bach’s Wohltemperierte Klavier (BWV 846-893).

—ooo—

(Please click on the title to hear the music.)

[1]“antiphon.” Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2011. Web. 23 Dec. 2011. <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/28480/antiphon>

Giovanni Legrenzi‘s Ave Maria Cælorum (motet)
Marie-Nicole Lemieux & Philippe Jaroussky

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Madonna by Raphaël

© Micheline Walker
24 December 2011
Reposted 3 February 2017
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Laudate Dominum

01 Sunday Jan 2017

Posted by in Feasts, Illuminated Manuscripts

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Happy New Year to all of you.
I wish you good health and glorious days.

The year 2016 was somewhat bumpy. It brought Brexit and Donald Trump. Mr Trump may not be a duly-elected President of the United States because Russian President Vladimir Putin meddled in an American election.

Let us hope Mr Trump does not change what has been put into place radically. He does not have a clear mandate and countries need stability and continuity. Moreover, what happens in the United States affects the entire world.

A New Year is a beginning and I hope 2017 will bring us joy and peace.

I am inserting Mozart’s Laudate Dominum. It is one of the finest compositions ever.
(See Vesperæ sollenes de confessore, K. 339, Wikipedia)

Elīna Garanča – Wikipedia

lindisfarne-chi

© Micheline Walker
1 January 2017
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Feasts and Liturgy

29 Thursday Dec 2016

Posted by in Feasts, Liturgy, Middle Ages

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Madonna della Sedia by Raphaël

Feasts and Liturgy

I just posted a page listing most of my posts on “Feasts & Liturgy.” It is not a complete list and some posts should be edited. At times, music is removed from YouTube, which makes an update necessary. However, unless posts are listed, they are difficult to access. One needs a list, and it is under construction.

Polyphony

This list reflects knowledge and interest I acquired as a student of the history of music, or musicology. The Greeks developed polyphony or music in “parts,” but polyphony developed during the Middle Ages. At the moment, the main ‘parts’ are Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Bass (SATB). But, as polyphony developed certain composers divided music into a larger number of parts.

If the development of polyphonic music were to be given a location, one of its best lieux would  be the Franco-Flemish lands, the cultural hub of Europe before the Renaissance, which began as of the Fall of Constantinople and the Byzantine Empire, on 29 May 1453. Although the Franco-Flemish lands produced fine composers of polyphonic music, it also developed in various European countries such as France, Italian city-states, Spain…

Liturgical and Secular Music

Polyphony developed in medieval Europe, but, as we have seen, it is an invention of the Greek and is called Western Music. Music composed elsewhere had one part and it is called monophonic. The birthplace of polyphony is, for the most part, the Church. Such music is called liturgical (or sacred music) and it encompasses Motets, Masses, Hymns and many other form. The Church needed music, hence the preeminence of liturgical music in the very Christian Middle Ages and its association with the history of music.

Yet, polyphony also has secular roots, the Madrigal, in particular, songs in the mother (madre) tongue.

Monophony

Monophonic music features one part: the melody. Gregorian chant is monophonic and it has its own notation. Troubadours (southern France, trouvères (northern France) and the Minnesang (Germany) composed monophonic secular songs.

Conclusion

I look forward to completing this list and writing more on Feasts, providing some details.

The seasonal antiphon is the Alma Mater Redemptoris. There are four Marian antiphons. The Alma Mater Redemptoris will be sung until 2 February or Candlemas. The best known Alma Mater Redemptoris was composed by Palestrina (c. 1525 – February 1594).

Love to everyone ♥


Palestrina: Alma Redemptoris Mater (Julian Podger, Monteverdi Choir) – YouTube (Julian Podger, Monteverdi Choir)

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Madonna Sistine Chapel by Raphaël (detail)

© Micheline Walker
29 December 2016
WordPress

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pietro Bembo: Titian or Bassano?

26 Saturday Mar 2016

Posted by in Art, Easter, Renaissance

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07cardin

Portrait of a Cardinal by Jacopo Bassano, c. 1545

Portrait of a Cardinal
 c. 1545
Oil on canvas, 58 x 46 cm
Szépmûvészeti Múzeum, Budapest
Web Gallery of Art

Jacopo Bassano

It appears the portrait of Cardinal Pietro Bembo (20 May 1470 – 18 January 1547) published in a post dated 27 January 2016 is not by Titian (1488/1490  – 27 August 1576). It is by Jacopo Bassano (1510 – 14 February 1592) and it was painted in c. 1545, a few years after Titian painted his portrait of Cardinal Pietro Bembo. Bassano’s cardinal is not given a name by the Szépmûvészeti Museum, but I suspect it is a portrait Cardinal Pietro Bembo.

Wikipedia’s entry on Pietro Bembo shows the above painting but it is attributed to Titian, However, the same painting is featured in Wikipedia’s entry on Jacopo Bassano. It is one of the paintings that forms part of a gallery located at the foot of the entry on Jacopo Bassano. The cardinal shown in Wikipedia’s entry on Bassano is not named, nor is the cardinal whose portrait, by Jacopo Bassano, is housed in Budapest’s Szépmûvészeti. It is the “Portrait of a Cardinal.”

Budapest’s Szépmûvészeti Múzeum is closed at the moment, but one may browse its collections online. Budapest’s “Portrait of a Cardinal” is attributed to Jacopo Bassano.

There is a third portrait of Cardinal Bembo. It was painted by Giovanni Bellini. I believe it is a portrait of a young man, but…

Titian (Titiano Vecelli)

As noted above, Titian did make a portrait of Pietro Bembo, which I presume explains the kerfuffle. Titian’s portrait is a more formal of Cardinal Bembo and it is dated c. 1540. It did occur to me that the portrait held at the Szépmûvészeti was wrongly attributed to Jacopo Bassano, but I doubt it very much.

Jacopo Bassano was a great artist.

Pietro Bembo by Titian, 1540 (WikiArt)
Pietro Bembo by Jacopo Bassano, 1545 (Wikipedia)

About Pietro Bembo

The use of the vernacular as a literary language was the subject matter of the post I published on 27 January 2016. In Italy, the vernacular started to replace Latin relatively early and it was called the Petrarchan Movement. Bembo’s “way of making direct imitations of Petrarch was widely influential and became known as bembismo.”[1] According to Pietro Bembo, Petrarch’s use of Italian was a model for the modern Italian language. Petrarch lived in the 14th century (20 July 1304 – 19 July 1374).

Other models were Giovanni Boccaccio (1313 – 21 December 1375) and, to a lesser extent, Dante Alighieri (c. 1265 – 1321). (See Pietro Bembo, Wikipedia.)  In the Italian states, the vernacular, Italian, started to be used as a literary language at the beginning of the 14th century, which is an early date. It precedes the Renaissance which began when the Byzantine Empire fell to the Ottoman Turks, in 1453. However, the scholars who fled to Italy were Greek scholars.

Yes, I am writing my book, despite limitations.

Wishing all of you a very Happy Easter ♥

RELATED ARTICLES

_______________

[1] “Pietro Bembo”. Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online.
Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2016. Web. 26 mars. 2016
<http://www.britannica.com/biography/Pietro-Bembo>.

Philippe Jaroussky sings Vivaldi

portrait-of-a-young-man-1_jpg!HalfHD

Portrait of a Young Man by Giovanni Bellini

© Micheline Walker
26 March 2016
WordPress

Holy Week

24 Thursday Mar 2016

Posted by in Feasts, Liturgy

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The Last Supper by Jacopo Bassano (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 

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Entry into Jerusalem by Pietro Lorenzetti, 1320, Assisi Frescoes (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

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Compianto (lament) by Pietro Lorenzetti, Basilica inferiore di Assisi, 1310-1329 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In the Quebec of my childhood, Holy Week was very precious. It justified a rather long holiday that brought grief and joy. Jesus of Nazareth is a tragic figure. “He was a Man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief.” (See Man of Sorrows, Isaiah 53.)

But there was a holiday and Easter brought Eastertide; it brought spring. I do not remember on which day classes ended, but we were not in class on Holy Thursday (Maundy [washing of the feet] Thursday) and Good Friday. To the best of my recollection, it was a four-day holiday which started on Holy Thursday and ended on the day Easter was celebrated. I do not think it included Easter Monday. At the moment, in Quebec, Holy Thursday and Good Friday are not holidays or fériés (feasts), and Easter Monday is a holiday, a legal holiday.

The week started on Palm Sunday. Branches were woven into fine decorations. We could purchase these at church and take them home. We used them from Easter to Easter. In Quebec, these were not made of palm leaves, but they were boughs, des rameaux. Holy Thursday and Good Friday were devoted to devotional practices. We attended mass and, on Good Friday, we walked from one station of the Cross to another. There were six stations on each side of the church, a total of twelve. (See Stations of the Cross, Wikipedia).

The Narrative

Jesus had been betrayed by one of his twelve apostles, Judas Iscariot. After the Last Supper, a Passover observance and the institution of the Eucharist (Mass), Christ and his disciples went to Gethsemane at the foot of the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. His apostles could not remain awake and stand vigil with him.

Mass and the Divine Hours

Mass, the Eucharist, commemorates the Last Supper. But the Divine Hours, kept by Cenobite monks, monks living together, commemorate Jesus’ vigil at the Mount of Olives. Books of Hours find their origin in the eight (originally seven) Canonical Hours, or Divine Hours.

Jesus was arrested and condemned. He was flogged (la flagellation), crowned mockingly, a crown of thorns, and carried the Cross on which he was crucified. Crucifixions are a form of torture leading to death. They are still carried out. Isil crucifies some of its victims. 

On Good Friday, at three in the afternoon we had to be quiet. We were told that Christ had died at that hour of the day.

Easter

  • the Easter Vigil
  • the secular celebration

The Easter Vigil was a particularly significant and beautiful celebration. A Paschal candle was lit at the back of the church and carried to the front. Everyone was given a candle. The priest stopped at each row to light one candle and the flame was passed on to everyone occupying that row.

Easter was a lovely celebration. We had many visitors. We ate chocolate, but we did not look for eggs. Then came Easter Dinner, called Supper in Quebec, my mother usually made ham, which was also the case in other households. We did not drink wine.

The Vernal Equinox

  • The Passover (Pesach)
  • The Eastern Church (the Julian Calendar)
  • The Western Church (the Gregorian Calendar)

As you know, Easter is a moveable feast, celebrated near the spring equinox. You may remember that the Gregorian Calendar (Pope Gregory XIII) was adopted because Christmas was celebrated later and later every year and, by the same token, so was Easter. The Eastern Church retained the Julian Calendar (old style: O. S.). This year the vernal equinox, for the northern hemisphere, equal day and night, occurred on 20 March and, in the Western Church, Easter will be celebrated on the 27th of March. In the Eastern Church, Easter will be celebrated on the 1st of May. Easter is rooted in the Hebrew Passover, which will be observed on the 23rd of April.

It appears “Jewish Christians, the first to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus, timed the observance in relation to Passover.” (See Easter, Wikipedia.) Passover commemorates the Jewish Exodus from slavery into Egypt. The date on which Easter is celebrated and the links between Passover and Easter, in both the Western Church and the Eastern Church, have been a subject of controversy, beginning with the Council of Nicaea (325 CE). Such matters are best discussed by theologians.

For Christians, Easter is the most important religious feasts of the year. However, Jesus did not found a Church and he was not recognized as their Christ by the Jews. Moreover, he did not leave a sacred text. He was a prophet in Islam: al-Masih (the Messiah, le Messie). (See Jesus in Islam, Wikipedia.)

Mater Dolorosa

One of the most compelling depictions of grief in art is the mater dolorosa. A mother had seen her son suffer and die. As of Good Friday, the Marian Antiphon, of which there are four will be the Regina Cæli  Both Michel-Richard de Lalande‘s Regina Cæli and Pergolesi‘s exquisite Quando corpus morietur are featured in a post entitled Music for Easter (see  RELATED ARTICLES, below).

 

With kind regards to everyone. ♥

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The Way to Calvary by Jacopo Bassano (Google Art Project)

RELATED ARTICLES

Artists
Jacopo Bassano  also known as Jacopo dal Ponte (1510 – 14 February 1592)
Pietro Lorenzetti (c. 1280 – 1348)

Vivaldi‘s Stabat Mater (part one)
Philippe Jaroussky (countertenor)

Pietro_lorenzetti,_compianto_(dettaglio)_basilica_inferiore_di_assisi_(1310-1329)© Micheline Walker
24 March 2016
WordPress

 

Happy Valentine’s Day

14 Sunday Feb 2016

Posted by in Feasts

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Février, Les Très Riches Heures de Jean de France, duc de Berry (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Happy Valentine’s Day to you!

Today is Valentine’s Day: la Saint-Valentin. My best wishes to all of you. ♥

I have written several posts on Valentine’s Day and did some research again yesterday. This time, I read Wikipedia’s entry on Valentine’s day in which it is stated that there is no link between Lupercalia and Valentine’s Day. Lupercalia was replaced by Candlemas. As for Valentine’s Day, a celebration of Romantic love, it was all but invented by Chaucer who called the day “seynt” Valentine’s Day.

When Chaucer was released from captivity, during the Hundred Years’ War, he took to England the French Roman de la Rose, a work of literature that epitomizes courtly love. However, it was an exchange. Charles d’Orléans, who was detained in England for 25 years during the Hundred Years’ War, took to France the lore of Valentine’s Day as it existed in England and a large number of his poems refer to Valentine. According to the legend, as expressed by Chaucer, birds mate on 14 February.

In The Parlement of Foules (1382), Chaucer wrote:

For this was on seynt Volantynys day
Whan euery bryd comyth there to chese his make.

[“For this was on Saint Valentine’s Day, when every bird cometh there to choose his mate.”]

Candlemas

So let us make matters clear. It is reported that Pope Saint Gelasius I (494–96 CE) wanted to replace a raucous pagan feast, Lupercalia (from lupus, wolf), with a Christian feast. Lupercalia became the feast of the Purification of the Virgin, but it also commemorated the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple and the Meeting of the Lord, when Simeon’s wish came true, Simeon was an old man who wanted to see Jesus before he died and, having seen Jesus, said that he could now leave. His words are the words of a canticle (un cantique), a song of praise and joy, entitled the “Nunc Dimittis.” The new feast was Candlemas, which  was celebrated on 2 February. Here is a list of feasts associated with Candlemas:

  • the Feast of the Purification of the Virgin
  • the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple
  • the Meeting of the Lord (see Simeon, Gospel of Luke, Wikipedia)

Note, however, that the above-mentioned feasts are called Candlemas, la Chandeleur, which suggests a possible festival of lights. From the most remote and pagan antiquity, humans have always celebrated the degree of light and darkness from season to season. Carnival season is now over. It ended on Ash Wednesday, the 10th of February, the day after Mardi Gras, a day of revelry and merriment.

Easter: the moveable feast

  • near the vernal equinox

Our next feast is Easter, which is celebrated near the vernal equinox (equal night), a day when night and day are approximately the same length. This year, the vernal equinox is 20 March and Easter, a moveable feast, will be celebrated on 27 March. But there is more light today than on Christmas day, the day of the longest night. On 14 February, we therefore celebrate Valentine’s Day because the days are getting longer.

St Valentine’s Day

  • Valentine’s Day and the Ides of February
  • Lupercalia and Valentine’s Day

So Valentine’s Day, a feast honouring a St Valentine (la Saint-Valentin), did not replace Lupercalia, but Lupercalia was a fertility ritual and Valentine’s day, the day on which birds mate. There is a link. Moreover, the Ides of February, which fell on 13 February, were Lupercalia. (See Lupercalia, Wikipedia.) The better-known Ides are the Ides of March, “the 15th day of the Roman month of Martius[,]” a day associated with the assassination of Julius Caesar who developed the Julian Calendar. (See The Ides of March, Wikipedia.)

The Gregorian Calendar: the Ides of February

The Julian Calendar was replaced by the Gregorian calendar, because feasts, Easter in particular, no longer matched the seasons. Gregorian refers to Pope Gregory XIII and the Gregorian Calendar was introduced in 1582. Candlemas, which replaced Lupercalia, would be celebrated on 2 February, but the Ides of February remained the middle of the month of February which is when Valentine’s Day is celebrated.àhere’s another link.

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Pope Gregory XIII by Lavinia Fontana (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

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The Lupercalian Festival in Rome (ca. 1578–1610), drawing by the circle of Adam Elsheimer, showing the Luperci dressed as dogs and goats, with Cupid and personifications of fertility. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Saint Valentine’s Day is listed on a page entitled: Posts on Love Celebrated. I have made one small change to make sure Lupercalia is linked to Candlemas, la Chandeleur and Valentine’s Day to its proper sources: a martyr, a legend, the festivities associated with Februarius and, perhaps, the Ides of February, that could not be moved to 2 February or Candlemas but could be the day when St Valentine’s Day was celebrated.

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The Soussa Mosaic (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Februarius panel from the 3rd-century mosaic of the months at El Djem, Tunisia (Roman Africa)

Seasons, months (see Roman calendar, Wikipedia), darkness, and light have long been celebrated in every culture. An eloquent example is the Soussa Mosaic. (See Februarius, Wikipedia.)

My very best wishes! ♥

Thomas Tallis: “If ye love me”

valentinesday-hanging-hearts

© Micheline Walker
14 February 2016
WordPress

From Lupercalia to Valentine’s Day, cont’d

02 Tuesday Feb 2016

Posted by in Feasts

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Presentation_of_Christ_in_the_TemplePresentation of Christ in the Temple, from the Sherbrooke Missal c. 1310 – c. 1320
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Candlemas

Today is Candlemas, now better known as “grounhog day” or “pancake day.” When I was a child, Candlemas, la Chandeleur, was a religious holiday that was also a festival of lights: la fête des lumières. We didn’t know it was groundhog day, nor did we know it was pancake day. We lived in the very Catholic province of Quebec, which was then a priest-ridden province and is now, otherwise ridden.

However, times have changed. In Quebec, today is le jour de la marmotte and la fête des crêpes. Quebec has therefore caught up to the rest of the world. Apparently, Groundhog Day is a German tradition. (See Groundhog Day, Wikipedia.) Ironically , it could be that many Quebecers do not remember la Chandeleur, or Candlemas.

Candlemas commemorated and still commemorates:

  • the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple
  • the Feast of the Purification of the Virgin
  • the Meeting of the Lord (see Simeon, Gospel of Luke, Wikipedia)

Saint Gelasius I

  • St Gelasius
  • a commemoration
  • the seasons

We owe Candlemas to Pope Gelasius I who died in Rome on the 19 November c. 496 CE and is now a saint. Saint Gelasius wanted to replace Lupercalia, a disorderly pagan feast with a Christian feast, celebrated about 12 days later than 2 February. It was Candlemas, which eventually would take place on 2 February, according to the Gregorian calendar. Most Christian feasts are celebrated on the same day as a pagan feast and they inaugurate or close a season, the four seasons and liturgical seasons.

Humans have also celebrated the day of the longest night, the winter Solstice, and the day of the longest day, the summer Solstice. They have also celebrated the days when day and night are the same length: equinoctial points, or an Equinox.  This is the logic according to which Christian feasts are celebrated. It is a matter of season and one of continuity.

In 2016, solstices and equinoctial points are on:

Christmas is celebrated on 25 December, near the winter Solstice.
Easter is a movable feast, near the spring Equinox, 27 April 2016.
St John’s Day is celebrated on 24 June, near the summer Solstice.
Michaelmas is celebrated on 29 September, near the fall Equinox.

Easter is the only movable feast, but it occurs near the vernal equinox. As for Candlemas, it is celebrated on 2 February and is a festival of lights or la Fête des lumières. It closes Epiphany Season and introduces a new Marian antiphon: Ave, Regina Cælorum, of which there are four. Moreover, it is the day when the canticle entitled Nunc Dimittis (Now let me leave) is sung. Antiphons are call and respond songs: a responsory, but canticles are songs of praise, such as the Magnificat.

Beginning today the Marian antiphon is the Ave Regina Cælorum. It will last until Good Friday.

800px-Aert_de_Gelder_-_Het_loflied_van_Simeon
Simeon’s Song of Praise by Aert de Gelder,
around 1700–1710 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Canticle of Simeon or the Nunc Dimittis

According to the book of Luke (Luke 2:29-32), Simeon, a devout Jew, had been promised by the Holy Ghost that he would see the Saviour before his death. He recognized Jesus when he was brought to the Temple for the ceremony of the Presentation of the first-born son. Having seen Jesus, a Jew, with his own eyes, he sang a canticle in which he says that now (nunc) he could leave: “Now let me leave…”

Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace according to thy word.
For mine eyes have seen thy salvation,
Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people;
To be a light to lighten the Gentiles and to be the glory of thy people Israel.
Book of Common Prayer, 1662

Houghton_MS_Richardson_5_-_92
The Houghton ms Richardson, Harvard (c. 1400)

The Ave, Regina Cælorum is as follows:

Hail, O Queen of Heaven enthroned.
Hail, by angels mistress owned.
Root of Jesse, Gate of Morn
Whence the world’s true light was born:

Glorious Virgin, Joy to thee,
Loveliest whom in heaven they see;
Fairest thou, where all are fair,
Plead with Christ our souls to spare.

V. Vouchsafe that I may praise thee, O sacred Virgin.
R. Give me strength against thine enemies.

(See Raphael & Marian Liturgy at Notre-Dame de Paris)

Tides

There are equinoctial tides that occur near the time of an equinox. In France, they are called marées d’équinoxe. They were spectacular where I lived in Normandy. One could not see the water from the shore. When the water returned, it did rapidly. Sheep grazed on the prés salés (salted meadows), called présalés, at Mont-Saint-Michel. It could be that the tides brought the salt. Before or after walking to the Abbey, we would eat crêpes. There was a lovely restaurant at the foot of the hill. Sometimes we drove to Saint-Malô to eat crêpes. Tides occurring on solstices are less dramatic than equinoctial tides.

The Christian seasons are also called “tides:” Christmastide, Epiphanytide, Eastertide, etc. Christianity has more seasons than nature’s four seasons. We are not entering a tide, but an Ordinary Time that will end on Ash Wednesday (10 February, this year) or Pentecost. (See Eastertide, Wikipedia.)

The RELATED ARTICLES, listed below, will lead you to all relevant posts and songs.

RELATED ARTICLES

Kindest regards to everyone. ♥

 


Presentation_of_Christ_in_the_Temple

© Micheline Walker
2 February 2016
WordPress

 

 

 

From Lupercalia to Valentine’s Day

02 Tuesday Feb 2016

Posted by in Feasts, Love, Myths

≈ 1 Comment

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Capitoline Wolf. Traditional scholarship says the wolf-figure is Etruscan, 5th century BC, with figures of Romulus and Remus added in the 15th century AD by Antonio Pollaiuolo. Recent studies suggest that the wolf may be a medieval sculpture dating from the 13th century AD.

Romulus and Remus suckling Lupa (Photo credit: Google Images)

This post was published in 2013.  My new post on Candlemas is a continuation of this older article.

The above image shows Romulus and Remus, born to Vestal Virgin Rhea Silvia and the god Mars or the demi-God Hercules.  Amulius had seized power from his brother Numitor and had forced Rhea Silvia, Numitor’s daughter, to become a Vestal Virgin so she would not bear children.

After the birth of Romulus and Remus, Amulius threw the babies into the river Tiber and sent their mother to jail.  However, Romulus and Remus were saved by shepherds and fed by a she-wolf, Lupa, in a cave called Lupercal, perhaps located at the foot of Palatine Hill.  They were then discovered by Faustulus, a shepherd.

The feral twins killed Amulius when they learned about their mother, but Romulus killed Remus who wanted Rome founded on Aventile Hill rather than Palatine Hill.  Whence, the existence of Lupercus (from lupus: wolf), the Roman god of shepherds, and that of the Lupercalia, a yearly Roman festival honoring Lupa.

Romulus and Remus being given shelter by Faustulus, oil by Pietro da Cortona.

Romulus and Remus being given shelter by Faustulus, oil by Pietro da Cortona (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Lupercalia & Candlemas

In ancient Rome, the Lupercalia (Lupercus) took place between February 13th and 15th.  This “pagan” feast is sometimes associated with Candlemas, celebrated on February 2nd, using the Gregorian calendar as opposed to the Julian calendar, called O.S., old style.  In the Gregorian calendar, feasts were celebrated about 12 days earlier, than in the Julian calendar. The Eastern Church reflects this discrepancy.

As we will see, there was a motivation to transform the Lupercalia into a Christian feast.  However, the Lupercalia endured until the 5th century CE and was celebrated beginning on the Ides of February, i.e. the 13th, ending two days later, on the 15th.

At the start of the Lupercalia, two goats and a dog were sacrificed.  Next, two young Luperci, members of a corporation of priests, were led to the altar and anointed with the blood of the sacrificed animals.  Luperci then dressed themselves in thongs, called februa, taken from skin of the of the sacrificed goats and dog and ran around the walls of the old Palatine city carrying thongs and striking the crowd.

Pancake Day or La fête des crêpes

Later, salt meal cakes prepared by the Vestal Virgins were burnt, which is interesting because in France, Candlemas, celebrated on 2nd February, is “la fête des crêpes” or Pancake Day and today, 12th February is International Pancake Day.  It would be my opinion that pan of pancakes is the pan of pots and pans, but would that it were the Pan of the “Greek god of the wild, shepherds and flocks, nature, of mountain wilds, hunting and rustic music, and companion of the nymphs” (Pan, Wikipedia).

Pan’s Roman counterpart was Faunus.  But Pan protected the flocks from wolves, which would suggest that he was also the counterpart of Lupercus, the above-mentioned Roman god of shepherds who replaced an earlier god named Februus (see Lupercalia, Wikipedia).

A fourth-century Roman depiction of Hylas and the Nymphs, from the basilica of Junius Bassus

A fourth-century Roman depiction of Hylas and the Nymphs, from the basilica of Junius Bassus (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Valentine’s Day

However, for our purposes, the ancient and “pagan” Lupercalia was a raucous event which Pope Saint Gelasius I (494–96) wanted to abolish.  Senators opposed him so he invited them to run nude themselves.  After a long dispute, Gelasius replaced the Lupercalia with a “Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary,” to be observed on Candlemas.  It was a noble thought, but eventually a “pagan” feast arose, Saint Valentine’s Day or Valentine’s Day, celebrated on the 14th of February, near the Ides of February.  According to Britannica, “[i]t came to be celebrated as a day of romance from about the 14th century.”[i]  That would be in Chaucer’s (born c. 1342/43 died 25 October 1400) lifetime.

The many Saints called Valentine

There was a St Valentine a convert and a physician, who may have restored the sight of his gaoler’s blind daughter.  According to Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, this Valentine was clubbed to death c. 270.  His feast day is the 14th of February.  However, there could be other beatified Valentines.  According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, there are three saints named Valentine, one of whom would the bishop of Terni, formerly Interamna.  However, the Roman Martyrology recognizes only one St Valentine, a martyr who died on the Via Flaminia and whose feast day is the 14th of February. (See Saint Valentine, Wikipedia.)

Conclusion

I will break here.  We have gone from the Lupercalia to Valentine’s Day and stumbled upon la fête des crêpes (2nd February) or Pancake Day, which is quite a journey.  Let us return to the Lupercalia.  Pope Saint Gelasius I did abolish disorderly “pagan” festival.  However, although there is at least one saint named Valentine, Valentine’s Day is very much as described in Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable.  It is a “relic” of a pagan feast celebrated in February that remains a celebration of love and friendship and a bit of a carnival.  In fact, not only is today, 12th February 2013, International Pancake Day, but it is also Mardi-Gras (Shrove Tuesday), which is the end of the carnival season.

Capitoline Wolf. Traditional scholarship says the wolf-figure is Etruscan, 5th century BC, with figures of Romulus and Remus added in the 15th century AD by Antonio Pollaiuolo. Recent studies suggest that the wolf may be a medieval sculpture dating from the 13th century AD

Capitoline Wolf, bronze, 13th and late 15th century CE or c. 500 – 480 BCE. Musei Capitolini, Rome, Italy (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

______________________________
[i] “Valentine’s Day”. Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online.
Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2013. Web. 14 Feb. 2013
<http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/858512/Valentines-Day>
 

—ooo—

composer: Jacques Offenbach (20 June 1819 – 5 October 1880)
piece: Barcarolle
performers:
Philippe Jaroussky (born 13 February 1978 in Maisons-Laffitte, France) countertenor
Natalie Dessay (19 April 1965, in Lyon) coloratura soprano
 

© Micheline Walker
12 February 2013
(revised: 2 February 2016)
WordPress

The Twelve Days of Christmas

06 Wednesday Jan 2016

Posted by in Epiphany, Feasts, Hymnology

≈ 10 Comments

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hb_43_98_1

The Journey of the Magi by Stefano di Giovanni Sassetta, 1435 (Courtesy The Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY)

http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/43.98.1

Twelfth Night

A list of articles based on the Nativity was posted on 16 December 2015. It can be found at the foot of the current post. This year’s Nativity post is based on Twelfth Night & Carnival Season (8 January 2014), and the story of Epiphany, celebrated on January 6th. We are closing the “twelve days of Christmas.”

12-days-title

The Twelve Days of Christmas

The “Twelve Days of Christmas” is a song published in England in 1780 in a book of children’s songs entitled Mirth without Mischief. The song has a longer title: “The Twelve Days of Christmas Sung at King Pepin’s Ball.” There was a King Pépin, Pépin the Short, Pépin le Bref or, literally, Pepin the Brief, the first Carolingian to be king. And the song may be French in origin:

Cecil Sharp observed that from the constancy in English, French, and Languedoc versions of the ‘merry little partridge,’ I suspect that ‘pear-tree’ is really perdrix (Old French pertriz) carried into England”; and “juniper tree” in some English versions may have been “joli perdrix,” [pretty partridge]. Sharp also suggests the adjective “French” in “three French hens”, probably simply means “foreign”. (See The Twelve Days of Christmas, Wikipedia.)

It is a cumulative song, in folklore and Stith Thomson calls it a “chain song” in his Motif-Index of Folk-Literature (1955-1958). It is Roud Folk Song Index number of 68. 

On each of the twelve days between Christmas and Epiphany, January 6th, a new gift is offered to the loved one: a ‘partridge in a pear tree,’ 2 turtle doves, 3 French hens, 4 Calling Birds, 5 Gold Rings, 6  Geese a-Laying,  7 Swans a-Swimming, 8 Maids a-Milking, 9 ladies Dancing, 10 Lords a-Leaping, 11 Pipers Piping, 12 Drummers Drumming.

The song’s current musical form was set by Frederic Austin (30 March 1872 – 10 April 1952) and dates back to 1909.

Botticelli_-_Adoration_of_the_Magi_(Zanobi_Altar)_-_Uffizi

Adoration of the Magi by Sandro Botticelli, 1475 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

We Three Kings…

Associated with the Epiphany, the twelfth day of Christmas, or January 6th, is “We Three Kings.” The three kings are Melchior, Caspar and Balthazar. Spellings vary.

“[A]ccording to Western church tradition, Balthasar is often represented as a king of Arabia, Melchior as a king of Persia, and Gaspar as a king of India.” (Encyclopædia Britannica.) They brought gifts to Jesus. (See Biblical Magi, Wikipedia.)

The Julian & Gregorian calendars: Eastern & Western churches

The Western church does not celebrate Christmas on the same days as the Eastern church, the Orthodox church. In Russia, Christmas is celebrated on January 7th. The difference is due to the Orthodox church’s use of the Julian (45 BCE) rather than Gregorian calendar (1582 CE) to situate Christmas. Gregory VIII‘s (7 January 1502 – 10 April 1585) calendar introduced the leap year. In Russia, festivities begin on December 31st and end on January 10th. The Orthodox church has fewer days of Christmas. (see Christmas in Russia, Wikipedia ), but Advent begins on 28 November and lasts until December 31st. (See whychristmas.com.)

In the Western church, Christmas is celebrated on or near the Winter Solstice which, this year, was December 22nd. Protestant churches celebrate Christmas on the same day as Roman Catholics. But both the Western Christmas (Catholic and Protestant) and Eastern Christmas are celebrated at the same time as a former ‘pagan’ feasts. Therefore, the seasons have remained the marker. The Christianization of Kievan Rus’  dates to the year 988 CE, when Vladimir the Great was baptized in Chersonesus and then went on to baptise members of his family and the people of Kiev (Ukraine). (See Christmas in Russia, Wikipedia.)

Babushka

In Russia, a story is associated with the Kings of Orient (the Wise men), that of Babushka, who gives the kings a room to rest. They leave without her noticing. She goes to Bethlehem, but the kings have left. The origin of this story may be American. (See whychristmas.com.)

http://www.whychristmas.com/cultures/russia.shtml

With kind regards to every one. ♥

Nativity Feasts and Hymnology

—ooo—

Frederica von Stade, Kathleen Battle, André Prévin at Carnegie Hall

800px-XRF_12days
Robert Shaw Chorale

800px-Sandro_Botticelli_083© Micheline Walker
5 December 2016
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Sandro Botticelli (detail)
Adoration of the Magi
(self-portrait)