Tag Archives: Venice

Every Eye Shall See

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Eve is born from the side of Adam.
Left: Cathedral of Monreale, Sicily (built AD 1172-1267)
Right: Basilica of St. Mark, Venice (mosaic approx. 13th century)

“Every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all peoples on earth will mourn because of him.” (Apoc. 1:7)

The first chapter of the Apocalypse is the “cover letter” that was sent to accompany each of the seven letters to the seven churches, whose contents we read in chapters 2-3. This sentence quotes Zechariah 12:10, which is also quoted in the Gospel of St. John (19:37) in connection with Christ’s side being pierced by a spear as he hung on the Cross. The prophet in the Old Testament describes how God will share the suffering of His people in exile and that those who inflict this suffering will realize–too late?–who it is that they have been really tormenting. The gospel cites this allusion to illustrate how Christ is the fulfillment of all that Israel has been hoping for. In the Apocalypse, the true identity of the letter-writer–the true author who ‘dictates’ the letter to John, to be written down–is the same Christ who hung on the Cross and was pierced.

When Christ’s side was pierced on the Cross, blood and water poured forth. (Scientists report that the “water” was most likely hydropericardium, a clear fluid that collects around the heart during intense physical trauma.) Early Christians saw the piercing of Christ’s side as the birth of the Church. Just as Eve was born from Adam’s side as he slept in Paradise, many preachers and teachers said that the Church was born from the side of Christ as he “slept” on the Cross. Methodius of Olympus, a famous second century preacher and Biblical interpreter, said that “Christ slept in the ecstasy of his Passion and the Church–his bride–was brought forth from the wound in his side just as Eve was brought forth from the wound in the side of Adam.” The Church, the Bride of Christ, is often identified as the “new Eve” just as Christ is the New Adam. (In other contexts, the Mother of God is also identified as the New Eve. Both can be the New Eve, just as the Church and the Eucharist are both the Body of Christ–just in different manner and context.)

The blood and water that poured from Christ’s side are also considered signs of baptism and the Eucharist. Read selections from a sermon by St. John Chrysostom here about those images.

Ascension Day: “Beating the Bounds”

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Ascension Day, celebrated on the 40th day after Easter, is always a Thursday and marks the last post-Resurrection appearance of Christ to the apostles.

Ascension Day, celebrated on the 40th day after Easter, is always a Thursday and marks the last post-Resurrection appearance of Christ to the apostles.

Ascension Day was a vital day in the pre-modern and agricultural cultures of Christian Europe. In many places it marked the beginning of the ploughing and planting seasons and in England there were processions to ask for God’s blessing on the crops to be planted. These processions often included “beating the bounds,” a practice in which young men would be led around the boundaries of each local farm and their backs lightly beaten so as to impress upon them where the limits of each farmer’s lands were; beating the boys’ backs helped stamp the landmarks and boundaries of each field into the boys’ memories so that any future disputes between farmers could be resolved by asking the boys what they remembered of the processions.

Some parishes continue the custom (e.g. the church of St Michael at the North Gate in Oxford). Today members of the parish walk round the parish boundaries, marking boundary stones (e.g. by writing on them in chalk) and hitting them — rather than the boys of the parish — with sticks. In addition to settling disputes between farmers, knowledge of the parish boundaries was once important since churches had certain duties such as the care of children born out of wedlock in the parish. One of the purposes served by beating the bounds was that of warning the young men of the parish that any sexual misbehavior ought to take place with women who lived outside the parish.

In Venice the ceremony of the Wedding with the Sea was traditionally celebrated on the Feast of the Ascension, while in Florence the holy day was observed by having a dove slide down a string from the high altar of the cathedral to ignite a large decorative container filled with fireworks in front of the main entrance of the cathedral.

There is a veritable treasure trove of folklore and folk practices associated with Ascension Day in the Encyclopedia of Superstitions, Folklore, and Occult Sciences, which you can read here. You can also read more in the very interesting study Eastertide in Pennsylvania which describes Pennsylvania Dutch customs.

St. Mark’s Eve

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St. Mark's in Venice (begun in 832 and burned in a rebellion in 976, was rebuilt in 978 and completed in 1647) is full of treasures taken from Constantinople in 1204 by the Fourth Crusade.

St. Mark’s in Venice (begun in 832 and burned in a rebellion in 976, was rebuilt in 978 and completed in 1647) is full of treasures taken from Constantinople in 1204 by the Fourth Crusade.

 

St. Mark’s Eve is the day before the feast day of St. Mark the Evangelist. His feast is observed on April 25 of each year; thus St. Mark’s Eve is April 24.

On St. Mark’s Eve it was the custom in the villages of England, from the 17th century to the late 19th century, to sit in the church porch between the hours of 11.00 p.m. and 1.00 a.m. for three successive years. On the third such sitting, it was said that the ghosts of those to die during the coming year would be witnessed passing into the church. This practice took place throughout England, but was most prevalent in northern and western counties. Some accounts of the custom state that the watchers must be fasting, or must circle the church before taking up position. The ghosts of those who were to die soon would be the first observed, while those who would almost see out the year would not be witnessed until almost 1.00 a.m. Other variations of the superstition say that the watchers would see headless or rotting corpses, or coffins approaching.

Another, one might say opposite, tradition holds that a young woman can see the face of her future husband appear on her smock by holding it before the fire on St Mark’s Eve.