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Use of religous relics in period.

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From: cozzlab at garnet.berkeley.edu ()

Newsgroups: rec.org.sca

Subject: Re: Relics

Date: 11 Oct 1993 15:49:06 GMT

Organization: University of California, Berkeley

Carol Pinchefsky <pinchefs at castor.hahnemann.edu> wrote:

>More importantly, I'm looking for information on the minor wars,

>major squabbles, thievery, quests and pilgrimages caused by and

>pertaining to Said Religious Bits.

There's a fine book, recently out, on the subject. The title is

_Furta Sacra_ (=Stolen Holy Bits). Consult your library.

Dorothea of Caer-Myrddin

Dorothy Heydt

From: sclark at epas.utoronto.ca (Susan Clark)

Newsgroups: rec.org.sca

Subject: Re: Relics

Date: 11 Oct 1993 14:45:02 -0400

Organization: EPAS Computing Facility, University of Toronto

I have a nifty coffee-table book with lots of illustrations

of reliquaries: _Highways of the Faith: Relics and Reliquaries

from Jerusalem to Compostela_, by M.M. Gauthier.

You should find it useful.

But when studying relics, mi'lady, remember of corse, that the test

of a true relic is its ability to perform miracles, not whether it is

indeed "genuine". (by our standards, that is) Each of the churches

which claimed to have the head of John the Baptist

could also claim that it had healed many folk and offered its

church protection, etc. To the medieval person interested in

acquiring a relic of their own, the question was not

so much "is it real", but "what miracles has it performed"?

Nicolaa/Susan

sclark at epas.utoronto.ca

From: meg at tinhat.stonemarche.org (meg)

Newsgroups: rec.org.sca

Subject: relics

Date: Sat, 05 Mar 94 11:16:09 EST

Organization: Stonemarche Network Co-op

Viking daggers evolved into reliquaries? Interesting.

There are 3 kinds of relics.

Relics of the First Degree: an actual bodily remain of a cannonized saint

Relic of the Second Degree: an object owned by or touched by an actual

cannonized saint.

Relic of the Third Degree: a fabricated facsimile of either of the above,

ostensibly created for the purpose of

inspiring devotion.

Needless to say, Relics of the first degree are rather rare. They must be

flawlessly documented as to content and provenance,and must be

authenticated by the Vatican. St. Timothy's big toe is an example of a

relic of the First Degree. (it resided in the altar of St. Charles

Church, Staten Island, NY) A consecrated altar in a consecrated church

must contain a relic.

Relics of the Second Degree are more common, and were bestowed upon

nobility as rewards for acts of piety. (such as granting lands for a

monastary or hospital, etc). Ornate reliquaries were commissioned for

their safekeeping. Like relics of the first degree, miracles were often

attributed to these items. They were occasionally displayed publically

during Holy Days. Also, like relics of the First Degree, the pious made

pilgrimages to view them. Such a pilgimage was sometimes ordered as

penance.

By far the most common were the Relics of the Third Degree, Pardoners

frequently offered these for sale along with absolutions and prayers for

indulgences. In this category are the multitudinous "Pieces of the True

Cross", vials of "Mary's Milk" and Christ's umbilical cord, nails from

the crucifixion, Veronica's Veils, shreds of the shroud, etc. The

medieval purchaser of such objects had no illusions as to their

origins...they knew full well that they were not the *real thing*, but

they hoped that some of the benificence attached to the real objects

would somehow rub off on their own. Miraculous occurances could elevate

the status of a relic. (as well as the status of the owner!)

The market for relics being what it was, it was always possible to find a

genuine relic amoung the copies, so it made it a worthwile risk to invest

in one, especially from a promising source. Returning crusaders turned a

hefty profit in relics "brought back from the Holy Land". Unscrupulous

people were not above faking miracles to substantiate a relic's effacacy.

While it is possible that the desire for relics as talismans could have

evolved from Viking practices in certain places. it did predate the

Viking incursions in the Mediterranean. I think this practice was (is)

simply a universal human trait...owning a piece of a celebrity will

enable some of their greatness to rub off on the possessor. Autographs

and Hollywood memorabilia come to mind as modern counterparts to this

practice. And those who cannot afford the real thing have photographs or

models of the real thing to show their loyalty. (Models of the Enterprise

and trading cards, for example)

This is a fascinating subject, is it not?

Here's a question...what saint or holy person does your persona venerate,

if any? Do you possess a relic of that person?

This incursion into matters ecclesiastical was brought to you by:

Megan

In 1994: Linda Anfuso

In the Current Middle Ages: Megan ni Laine de Belle Rive

In the SCA, Inc: sustaining member # 33644

YYY YYY

meg at tinhat.stonemarche.org | YYYYY |

|____n____|

From: DDF2 at cornell.edu (David Friedman)

Newsgroups: rec.org.sca

Subject: Re: relics

Date: 11 Mar 1994 04:00:27 GMT

Organization: Cornell Law School

> A joke oft told by Duke Cariadoc:

> Q: What became of the Cedars of Lebanon?

> A: Every Crusader came home with a piece of the True Cross.

> Mikjal Annarbjorn

Close:

Q: Why are the hills of Lebanon bare?

A: Because every Frank in Frangistan has a splinter of the true cross.

Note that it is both a Frank joke and a Lebanese joke.

David/Cariadoc

DDF2 at Cornell.Edu

Date: Sun, 20 Jun 1999 14:48:15 -0500

From: Roberta R Comstock <froggestow at juno.com>

To: sca-arts at raven.cc.ukans.edu

Subject: Re: pavilion exhibits ...

Oh, yes! Orianna and I had a similar experience when we saw the

"Treasures of San Marco" (or as we called it, the "Loot from

Constantinople") exhibit at the Met in NYC. We were remarking on how

some of the objects had evolved over centuries, such as beginning with a

Roman carved stone bowl that had been rimmed in silver by a later owner,

then put on a silver pedestal a century later, with bands of enameled

medallions and semi-precious stones added at an even later date, etc.

Many of the reliquaries showed similar succession in the addition of

further ornamentation over long periods of time. You can watch the

stylistic developments and become adept at dating the separate elements

in chronological order if you pay close attention.

Hertha