Random Historical Moments

3rd September, feast day of Gregory the Great

Who must be in the running for some kind of award for honest promotional material:

... many things are at hand which were not before, viz. changes of air, and terrors from heaven, and tempests out of the order of the seasons, wars, famines, plagues, earthquakes in several places; which things will not, nevertheless, happen in our days, but will all follow after our days. If you, therefore, find any of these things to happen in your country, let not your mind be in any way disturbed; for these signs of the end of the world are sent before, for this reason, that we may be solicitous for our souls, suspicious of the hour of death, and may be found prepared with good works to meet our Judge. (Letter to King Ethelbert of Kent)

Schola Gregoriana have a CD of gregorian chant (what else?) celebrating Gregory and Saint Augustine.

It's kind of depressing to think how sophisticated Gregory's view of natural disasters is (in the sixth century!) compared with some people in the present day. Basically he's trying to head off the English (new converts and a bit over-keen) from turning into either some kind of domesday cult or thinking anything bad is some kind of punishment - or possibly deciding the old gods are angry and reverting to paganism. He wants to convince them that the proper attitude to disasters is to accept they can happen to anyone, anywhere, anytime (and in any case we're all going to die eventually).

I bet Ethelbert said, "Hurricanes, earthquakes? In Birmingham?" though.

posted by Brituncula @ 4:28 PM