Comments on: Angelus Novus

By: James Hanrahan

James Hanrahan — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 06:09:37 +0000

On my many trips to Ireland, I would get a warm feeling of nostalgia when I heard the bells of the Angelus on RTE television. In my youth,whenever we heard the Angelus bells, we were expected to stop, face in the direction of the church and to recite the prayer called the Angelus “The angel of the Lord declared unto Mary that she was conceived by the Holy Ghost. Hail Mary full of gtace…..” Angelus is the first word in the Latin version of the prayer.
When I was young, dogs were not confined to back yards or tied up and were free to roam. Many times a pack of four or five neighborhood dogs would run down the middle of the street toward the church, howling and yipping when the Angelus was ringing. A nun of the order of the BVM laughingly suggested that it was the dogs’ way of honoring Mary.
Another prayer that we said each morning was the Salve Regina. “Hail Holy Queen,Mother of Mercy….to thee do we send up our sighs mourning and weeping in this vale of tears….”

By: Substance McGravitas

Substance McGravitas — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 03:28:37 +0000

(that is Ramadan for you unclean)

You forgot the ر.

By: Map Maker

Map Maker — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 03:05:33 +0000

Ah well, Henry – you will be well prepared when dining establishments are closed for مضان (that is Ramadan for you unclean), the pubs switch from thick warm beer to thick hot coffee, and classes are paused 5x a day for prayer.

By: roac

roac — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 20:23:58 +0000

Hiram Fong of Hawaii and Albert Spong of Alaska

That was William Spong of Virginia.

By: Eimear Ní Mhéalóid

Eimear Ní Mhéalóid — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 18:39:35 +0000

Some of my country relations used to stop everything for the angelus and mumble feverishly (to my small ears) some set rite
Oh, this was pretty standard among people of a certain vintage. A friend of mine, raised Church of Scotland, has a good story about the first time she visited her Irish boyfriend’s highly Catholic parents. He went off to have a shower and she was there making chit-chat and thinking “well, no holy water thrown over me yet anyway”. Next thing the telly issues forth a repeated “bong… bong… bong…” and the parents immediately stop their conversation midsentence and without preamble or explanation start reciting prayers. It made her think of “The Exorcist”.

By: Commenter

Commenter — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 18:16:55 +0000

There’ s a lot of religious language in the Irish constitution but it needs to be understood in the context of the provisions that forbid discrimination or an established church.

Articl e 44.2:

Freedom of conscience and the free profession and practice of religion are, subject to public order and morality, guaranteed to every citizen.

Article 44.3

The State guarantees not to endow any religion.

By: NomadUK

NomadUK — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 17:31:45 +0000

I don’t think I’m going to stop laughing for a week.

By: bad Jim

bad Jim — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 08:49:20 +0000

Some time ago Herb Caen recounted how Senators Hiram Fong of Hawaii and Albert Spong of Alaska sponsored a resolution to commemorate the American table tennis team’s history-making visit to China, asking all the churches in Hong Kong to ring their bells in unison on its anniversary. This is how we got:

The Fong-Spong Hong Kong Ping Pong Ding Dong Bell Bill.

By: Doug

Doug — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 07:35:44 +0000

I think they shot canons more regularly in Geneva than in Rome, at least back in the day.

By: Gene O'Grady

Gene O'Grady — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 04:17:34 +0000

I grew up reciting the Angelus (hardly reflective of the dominant California culture of my youth!), but was glad when I got to learn the Latin words since the English words are just too awful—even for someone like me who used to think “mourning and weeping in this vale of tears” had quite a resonance.

Isn’t the canon shot at noon in Rome that I used to set my watch by an old signal that it was time for the Angelus?

By: Bloix

Bloix — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 00:17:14 +0000

The Preamble of the Constitution of Ireland:

“In the name of the Most Holy Trinity, from Whom is all authority and to Whom, as our final end, all actions both of men and States must be referred,
We, the people of Ireland, humbly acknowledging all our obligations to our Divine Lord, Jesus Christ,
Who sustained our fathers through centuries of trial,
Gratefully remembering their heroic and unremitting struggle to regain the rightful independence of our Nation,
And seeking to promote the common good, with due observance of Prudence, Justice and Charity, so that the dignity and freedom of the individual may be assured, true social order attained, the unity of our country restored, and concord established with other nations,
Do hereby adopt, enact, and give to ourselves this Constitution.”

From Article 44, Religion:
“(1) The State acknowledges that the homage of public worship is due to Almighty God. It shall hold His Name in reverence, and shall respect and honor religion.”

Ireland may have become a bog-standard post-religious society, but it doesn’t appear to be a bog-standard post-religious polity. Broadcast of the Angelus itself isn’t in the Constitution, but the obligation of the state to provide for public worship is at least arguably there.

By: belle le triste

belle le triste — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 17:51:34 +0000

also zebedee at the end of magic roundabout

By: ejh

ejh — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 17:15:30 +0000

We shouldn’t overlook the football results as read by James Alexander Gordon.

By: Martin Wisse

Martin Wisse — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 13:28:42 +0000

It’s rather more like Pause For Thought for the Day than the Shipping forecast, a daily one minute muse on something vaguely religious in the middle between the first news broadcast [1] and Farming Today on Radio 4. Usually awful in its bladness, but occasionally with fresh voices, like the African Muslim preacher who was on a few weeks ago.

(My weekday morning routine revolves around BBC World/Radio 4: get up at 6 and make sandwiches; know I have to hit the shower by the time the switchover happens, then get out to catch the tailend of the news, by out the door by the end of Farming Today. Makes it almost impossible to miss my bus, unless the internet feed has suffered a delay.)

[1] Which replaced the UK theme for no great reason other than “people need news all the time”, forgetting that Radio 4 starts broadcasting at 5:20 and before that you have the main BBC World news broadcast.

By: JMG

JMG — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 11:38:55 +0000

This appears to this Yank to be very similar, sociologically, to the New York TV station, which I believe is Channel 9, that broadcasts a picture of a burning Yule log with Christmas music in the background on December 24-25. The most multi-religious and cultural city in the country would freak out if the Yule log show was canceled, although I believe it’s hours have been reduced.
The customary always has fans.