medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
The Church of St. Etheldreda, in downtown London (right in the heart
of The City, in fact), dates from the 13th century and is the oldest
surviving Church in England that has been continuously in Roman
Catholic control. It is a beautiful little church, though some of its
parishioners appear to take the name "tawdry" as something of a
battle cry in terms of their present-day decorations.
Scott Carson
On 22 Jun 2006, at 20:34, Phyllis G. Jestice wrote:
> medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and
> culture
>
> Today (23. June) is the feast day of:
>
> Etheldreda (d. 679) Etheldreda (aka Audrey) was one of a quartet
> of saintly sisters, all daughters of King Anna of East Anglia. E.
> married, but her husband died soon, and E. retired to the isle of
> Ely. She spent five years praying there, but then agreed to marry
> again. At first she convinced her husband that they should live
> without sexual relations, but changed his mind when he became king
> (of Northumbria, I think). E. appealed to Wilfrid of York, who
> ruled that she should be allowed to become a nun. She became
> abbess of a double monastery that she built at Ely. Her shrine was
> a major pilgrimage center during the MA---it's now empty, but is
> still a major tourist attraction. [In an odd aside, theword
> "tawdry" is derived from this saint's name, first used to refer to
> the cheap necklaces, etc. sold at her annual fair.]
**********************************************************************
To join the list, send the message: join medieval-religion YOUR NAME
to: [log in to unmask]
To send a message to the list, address it to:
[log in to unmask]
To leave the list, send the message: leave medieval-religion
to: [log in to unmask]
In order to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write to:
[log in to unmask]
For further information, visit our web site:
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/medieval-religion.html
|