Sunday, March 17, 2013

The Great Saints of March 17



Blake's Joseph of Arimathea among the Rocks of Albion.
While today is Passion Sunday, which sweeps away the feast days of the saints of the day, it does not mean we have to forget them entirely.  A blessed day to those of you with a devotion to St. Gertrude, patroness of cats and therefore mistress of the internet. 

As for myself, I have a special devotion to St. Joseph of Arimathea, whom the legends tell us brought Christianity to the British Isles when he landed at Glastonbury and made it the “holiest erthe in Englande.”  The all-in versions of the story say that earlier he brought the boy Jesus with him on one of his trading journeys, inspiring William Blake to write:
And did those feet in ancient time.
Walk upon Englands mountains green:
And was the holy Lamb of God,
On Englands pleasant pastures seen!
Am I forgetting anyone?  It's such a busy time of year it's hard to keep up.