இன்றைய புனிதர்கள் மார்ச் 26

 Bl. Magdalena Caterina Morano

#மாமனிதர்கள் 

#அருளாளர்_மதலேனா_கத்தரினா_மொரனா 

(1847-1908)

மார்ச் 26

இவர்‌ (#BlMaddalenaCaterinaMorana) இத்தாலியில் பிறந்தவர். இவருக்கு எட்டு வயது நடக்கும்போது இவரது தந்தையும் இவரது மூத்த சகோதரரியும் இறந்தனர்.‌ இதனால் குடும்பத்தைப் பராமரிக்க வேண்டிய பொறுப்பு இவரது தலையில் விழுந்தது.

இவர் ஏறக்குறைய பன்னிரண்டு ஆண்டுகள் படித்துக்கொண்டே குடும்பத்திற்கு உதவி வந்தார். 1878 ஆம் ஆண்டு இவர் புனித ஜான் போஸ்கோ நிறுவிய "மரியாவின்‌ புதல்வியர்" என்ற சபையில் சேர்ந்து துறவியானார்.

இதன் பிறகு இவர் சிசிலிக்கு அனுப்பி வைக்கப் பட்டார். அங்கு இவர் பெண்களின் முன்னேற்றத்திற்காக உழைத்தார்; நிறைய பள்ளிக் கூடங்களைத் தொடங்கினார்; ஆசிரியர்களை நன்கு பயிற்றுவித்தார். இவ்வாறு அயராது பணியாற்றிய இவர் 1908 ஆம் ஆண்டு இறையடி சேர்ந்தார்.

இவருக்கு 1994 ஆம் ஆண்டு நவம்பர் திங்கள் 5 ஆம் நாள் திருத்தந்தை புனித இரண்டாம் ஜான்பால் அவர்களால் அருளாளர் பட்டம் கொடுக்கப்பட்டது.

Feastday: March 26

Birth: 1847

Death: 1908

Beatified: Pope John Paul II

St. Margaret Clitherow

† இன்றைய புனிதர் †

(மார்ச் 26)

✠ புனிதர் மார்கரெட் க்ளித்ரோவ் ✠

(St. Margaret Clitherow)

இங்கிலாந்து மற்றும் வேல்ஸ் மறைசாட்சியரில் ஒருவர்:

(One of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales)

பிறப்பு: கி.பி. 1556

யோர்க், யோர்க்ஷைர், இங்கிலாந்து

(York, Yorkshire, England)

இறப்பு: மார்ச் 25, 1586

யோர்க், யோர்க்ஷைர், இங்கிலாந்து

(York, Yorkshire, England)

ஏற்கும் சமயம்:

ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபை

(Roman Catholic Church)

முக்திபேறு பட்டம்: டிசம்பர் 15, 1929

திருத்தந்தை பதினொன்றாம் பயஸ்

(Pope Pius XI)

புனிதர் பட்டம்: அக்டோபர் 25,1970

திருத்தந்தை ஆறாம் பவுல்

(Pope Paul VI)

முக்கிய திருத்தலம்:

ஷேம்பில்ஸ், யோர்க், வடக்கு யோர்க்ஷைர், இங்கிலாந்து

(The Shambles, York, North Yorkshire, England)

நினைவுத் திருநாள்: மார்ச் 26

பாதுகாவல்:

பெண் வியாபார்கள், மாற்றப்பட்டவர்கள், மறைசாட்சியர், கத்தோலிக்க பெண்கள் சமூகம், இலத்தீன் பெரும் சமூகம்

புனிதர் மார்கரெட் க்ளித்ரோவ், ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபையின் ஆங்கிலேய புனிதரும், மறைசாட்சியுமாவார். சில வேளைகளில், “யோர்க்கின் முத்து” (The Pearl of York) என்றும் இவர் அழைக்கப்படுவதுண்டு.

கி.பி. 1556ம் ஆண்டு, வடக்கு இங்கிலாந்து (Northern England) நாட்டின் “யோர்க்ஷைர்” (Yorkshire) மாகாணத்தில் பிறந்த மார்கரெட் க்ளித்ரோவின் தந்தையார் பெயர் “தாமஸ்” (Thomas) ஆகும். நகரின் கௌரவமான மெழுகுதிரி வியாபாரியான இவர், கி.பி. 1564ம் ஆண்டு, மாநகர ஷெரிஃப் ஆகவும் பதவி வகித்தார். மார்கரெட்டின் தாயார் பெயர் “ஜேன் மிட்ல்டன்” (Jane Middleton) ஆகும். மார்கரெட்டுக்கு பதினான்கு வயதாகையில் இவரது தந்தை மரித்துப் போனார்.

நகரின் அரச பிரதானியும் (Chamberlain of the City), கசாப்பு (Butcher) வியாபாரியுமான “ஜான் க்ளித்ரோவ்” (John Clitherow) என்பவரை கி.பி. 1571ம் ஆண்டு, திருமணம் முடித்தார். இவர்களுக்கு மூன்று குழந்தைகள் பிறந்தன. இவர்களது குடும்பம் “ஷேம்பில்ஸ்” (The Shambles) எனப்படும் பழைய தெருவில் வசித்தது. மார்கரெட் க்ளித்ரோவ், கி.பி. 1574ம் ஆண்டு, கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபைக்கு மதம் மாறினார். இவரது கணவர் ஜான் க்ளித்ரோவ், எதிர் திருச்சபையைச் சேர்ந்தவராயினும், தமது சகோதரர் “வில்லியம்” (William) ஒரு கத்தோலிக்க குரு என்ற காரணத்தால், அவர் ஆதரவாகவே இருந்தார்.

எதிர் திருச்சபையின் தேவாலய சேவைகளில் கலந்துகொள்ளாததற்காக மார்கரெட்டுக்கு விதிக்கப்பட்ட அபராதத் தொகையை அவரது கணவர் செலுத்தினார். தேவாலய சேவைகளில் கலந்துகொள்ளாததற்காக, முதன்முறையாக கி.பி. 1577ம் ஆண்டு மார்கரெட் கைது செய்யப்பட்டு சிறையிலடைக்கப்பட்டார். மேலும் இரண்டு முறை, “யோர்க் கேஸ்ட்டில்” (York Castle) என்றழைக்கப்படும் சிறைக் கூடத்தில் அடைக்கப்பட்டார். இவரது மூன்றாவது மகனான வில்லியம் (William) இங்கேதான் பிறந்தான்.

மார்கரெட், கத்தோலிக்க குருக்களுக்கு தங்க இடம் கொடுப்பதிலும், அவர்களைப் பராமரிப்பதிலும் தமது உயிரையே பணயம் வைத்திருந்தார். தமது வீட்டுடன் ஒட்டியிருந்த அறையை குருக்கள் மறைந்து வசிப்பதற்கு கொடுத்திருந்த மார்கரெட், தமது வீட்டின் சிறிது தூரத்திலிருந்த இன்னொரு வீட்டையும் வாடகைக்கு எடுத்து குருக்களுக்கு அளித்திருந்தார். குருக்கள் மறைவாக வசித்த அங்கேயே திருப்பலிகளும் நிகழ்த்தப்பட்டன. கத்தோலிக்க திருமறையும் திருப்பலிகளும் தடை செய்யப்பட்டிருந்த அக்காலத்தில், கத்தோலிக்க குருக்களுக்கு அடைக்கலம் தருவது தண்டனைக்குரிய குற்றமாகும். இங்கிலாந்தின் வடக்கில் தப்பியோடிய குருமார்களின் மிக முக்கியமான மறைவிடங்களில் அவரின் வீடும் ஒன்று ஆனது.

மார்கரெட், தமது மூத்த மகனான ஹென்றியை (Henry) ஃபிரான்ஸ் நாட்டின் “கிராண்ட் எஸ்ட்” (Grand Est region) மாகாணத்தின் “ரெய்ம்ஸ்” (Reims) எனும் நகரிலிருந்த ஆங்கிலேய கல்லூரியில் (English College) குருத்துவ கல்வி கற்க அனுப்பினார். அவரது மூத்த மகன் வெளிநாட்டிற்கு ஏன் போனார் என்பதை விளக்குமாறு, மார்கரெட்டின் கணவர் அதிகாரிகளால விசாரிக்கப்பட்டார். கி.பி. 1586ம் ஆண்டு, மார்ச் மாதம், க்ளித்ரோவ் வீடு சோதனையிடப்பட்டது. விசாரணையில், பயம் கொண்ட சிறுவன் ஒருவன், குருக்களின் மறைவிடங்களைக் காட்டிக் கொடுத்தான்.

மார்கரெட் உடனடியாக கைது செய்யப்பட்டார். ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க குருக்கள் தங்க மறைவிடங்களை ஏற்பாடு செய்து தந்த குற்றத்துக்காக “அஸ்ஸிசெஸ்” (Assizes) நீதிமன்றங்களில் விசாரிக்கப்பட்டார். மார்கரெட் வழக்காட மறுத்தார். இதன்காரணமாக, அவரது குழந்தைகளை விசாரிக்கவும், குற்றம் சாட்டவும், துன்புறுத்தவும் இயலாமல் போனது. தமது நான்காவது குழந்தையை கருத்தரித்திருந்த மார்கரெட், கி.பி. 1586ம் ஆண்டு, “லேடி டே” (Lady Day) என்றழைக்கப்படும் அன்னை மரியாள் தினத்தன்று, கொல்லப்பட்டார். அன்றைய தினம், அந்த வருடத்தின் பெரிய வெள்ளிக் கிழமையுமாகும்.

Feastday: March 26

St. Margaret Clitherow was born in Middleton, England, in 1555, of protestant parents. Possessed of good looks and full of wit and merriment, she was a charming personality. In 1571, she married John Clitherow, a well-to-do grazier and butcher (to whom she bore two children), and a few years later entered the Catholic Church. Her zeal led her to harbor fugitive priests, for which she was arrested and imprisoned by hostile authorities. Recourse was had to every means in an attempt to make her deny her Faith, but the holy woman stood firm. Finally, she was condemned to be pressed to death on March 25, 1586. She was stretched out on the ground with a sharp rock on her back and crushed under a door over laden with unbearable weights. Her bones were broken and she died within fifteen minutes. The humanity and holiness of this servant of God can be readily glimpsed in her words to a friend when she learned of her condemnation: "The sheriffs have said that I am going to die this coming Friday; and I feel the weakness of my flesh which is troubled at this news, but my spirit rejoices greatly. For the love of God, pray for me and ask all good people to do likewise." Her feast day is March 26th.

Saint Margaret Clitherow (1556 – 25 March 1586) is an English saint and martyr of the Roman Catholic Church,[2] known as "the Pearl of York". She was pressed to death for refusing to enter a plea to the charge of harbouring Catholic priests. She was canonised in 1970 by Pope Paul VI.

Life

Margaret Clitherow was born in 1556,[3] one of five children of Thomas and Jane Middleton. Her father was a respected businessman, a wax-chandler and Sheriff of York in 1564,[4] who died when Margaret was fourteen. In 1571, she married John Clitherow, a wealthy butcher and a chamberlain of the city, and bore him three children; the family lived in The Shambles.

She converted to Roman Catholicism in 1574. Although her husband, John Clitherow, belonged to the Established Church, he was supportive as his brother William was a Roman Catholic priest.[5] He paid her fines for not attending church services. She was first imprisoned in 1577 for failing to attend church, and two more incarcerations at York Castle followed.[6] Her third child, William, was born in prison.[7]

The Black Swan, Peasholme Green, York

Margaret risked her life by harbouring and maintaining priests, which was made a capital offence by the Jesuits, etc. Act 1584. She provided two chambers, one adjoining her house and, with her house under surveillance, she rented a house some distance away, where she kept priests hidden and Mass was celebrated through the thick of the persecution.[4] Her home became one of the most important hiding places for fugitive priests in the north of England. Local tradition holds that she also housed her clerical guests in the Black Swan Inn at Peaseholme Green, where the Queen's agents were lodged.[7]

She sent her older son, Henry, to the English College, relocated in Reims, to train for the priesthood. Her husband was summoned by the authorities to explain why his oldest son had gone abroad, and in March 1586 the Clitherow house was searched.[8] A frightened boy revealed the location of the priest hole.[6]

Margaret was arrested and called before the York assizes for the crime of harbouring Roman Catholic priests. She refused to plead, thereby preventing a trial that would entail her three children being made to testify, and being subjected to torture. She was sentenced to death. Although pregnant with her fourth child,[4] she was executed on Lady Day, 1586, (which also happened to be Good Friday that year) in the Toll Booth at Ouse Bridge, by being crushed to death by her own door, the standard inducement to force a plea.[9]

The two sergeants who should have carried out the execution hired four desperate beggars to do it instead. She was stripped and had a handkerchief tied across her face then laid across a sharp rock the size of a man's fist, the door from her own house was put on top of her and loaded with an immense weight of rocks and stones so that the sharp rock would break her back. Her death occurred within fifteen minutes, but her body was left for six hours before the weight was removed.

Veneration

Clitherow was beatified in 1929 by Pope Pius XI and canonised on 25 October 1970[10] by Pope Paul VI among the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales. Their feast day in the current Roman Catholic calendar is 4 May in England and 25 October in Wales. She is also commemorated in England on 30 August, along with martyrs Anne Line and Margaret Ward.

A relic, said to be her hand, is housed in the Bar Convent in York.[6]

St. Margaret's Shrine is at 35-36 The Shambles. John Clitherow had his butcher's shop at 35.[11] However, the street was re-numbered in the 18th century, so it is thought their house was actually opposite.[10]

Legacy

St Margaret Clitherow is the patroness of the Catholic Women's League.[12] Church - Saint Margaret Clitherow - Grahame Park ,Colindale London. A number of schools in England are named after Margaret Clitherow, including those in Bracknell, Brixham, Manchester, Middlesbrough,Thamesmead SE28, Brent, London NW10 and Tonbridge. The Roman Catholic primary school in Nottingham's Bestwood estate is named after Clitherow.[13] In the United States, St Margaret of York Church and School in Loveland, a suburb of Cincinnati, Ohio, is also named after her. Another school named after her is St Margaret Clitherow RC Primary School, located next to Stevenage Borough Football Club.

She is a co-patroness of the Latin Mass Society, who organise an annual pilgrimage to York in her honour. A group of parishes in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Liverpool, Sacred Heart in Hindsford, St Richard's in Atherton, Holy Family in Boothstown, St Ambrose Barlow in Astley, St Gabriel's, Higher Folds in Leigh are now united as a single community with St Margaret Clitherow as its patron.[14][15]

The English poet and Jesuit priest Gerard Manley Hopkins wrote a poem honouring "God's daughter Margaret Clitheroe."[16] The poem, entitled "Margaret Clitheroe" was among fragments and unfinished poems of Hopkins discovered after his death and is a tribute to the woman, to her faith and courage, and to the manner of her death.[17]

Commemorative plaque on the Ouse Bridge, York

In 2008, a commemorative plaque was installed at the Micklegate end of York's Ouse Bridge to mark the site of her martyrdom; the Bishop of Middlesbrough unveiled it in a ceremony on Friday 29 August 2008

St. William of Norwich

Feastday: March 26

Death: 1144

Supposed martyr. According to discredited tradition, he was a young boy and an apprentice to a tanner in Norwich, England. William was murdered by two Jews in a terrible ceremony prompted by a hatred for Christ. There is no evidence to support the legend, and it declined owing to papal displeasure in the years prior to the Reformation. It is now suppressed.

William of Norwich (2 February 1132 – c. 22 March 1144) was an English boy whose death was, at the time, attributed to the Jewish community of Norwich. It is the first known medieval accusation against Jews of ritual murder.

William was an apprentice tanner who regularly came into contact with Jews and visited their homes as part of his trade. His death was unsolved; the local community of Norwich attributed the boy's death to the Jews, though the local authorities would not convict them for lack of proof. William was shortly thereafter acclaimed as a saint in Norwich, with miracles attributed to him.

William's story was told in The Life and Miracles of St. William of Norwich,[3][4] a multi-volume Latin work by Thomas of Monmouth, a monk in the Norwich Benedictine monastery. Thomas started The Life in 1149/50; he completed volume 7 by 1173.[5] Augustus Jessopp (1823–1914), one of the editors of the first printed edition of Thomas' work, describes Thomas as belonging to the class of those who are "deceivers and being deceived."[6]

The murder

Since most information about William's life comes only from Thomas, it is difficult to distinguish the facts of the case from the story of martyrdom created around it by Thomas. Thomas wrote that William was born on 2 February 1132 to a local Anglo-Saxon couple, Wenstan and Elviva. He was apprenticed to a skinner and tanner of hides, often dealing with local Jews.

Shortly before his murder, William's mother was approached by a man who claimed to be a cook working for the Archdeacon of Norwich. He offered William a job in the Archdeacon's kitchens. William's mother was paid three shillings to let her son go. William later visited his aunt in the company of this man. His aunt was apparently suspicious, and asked her daughter to follow them after they left. They were then seen entering the house of a local Jew. This was the last time William was seen alive; it was Holy Tuesday.[7]

On Holy Saturday, the twelve-year-old William's body was found in Mousehold Heath, part of Thorpe Wood, outside Norwich.[5][8] A local nun saw the body, but did not initially contact anyone. A forester named Henry de Sprowston then came across it. He noted injuries which suggested a violent death and the fact that the boy appeared to have been gagged with a wooden teasel. William was wearing a jacket and shoes. After consultation with the local priest, it was decided to bury the body on Easter Monday. In the meanwhile, local people came to look at it, and William was recognised. The body was then buried at the murder site, and the following day, members of William's family, one of whom was a priest, arrived to confirm the identity of the body. They exhumed it and then reburied it with proper ceremony.[7]

The Christians of Norwich appear to have quickly blamed the local Jews for this crime, and to have demanded justice from the local ecclesiastical court. Members of the Jewish community were asked to attend the court and submit to a trial by ordeal, but the local sheriff, John de Chesney, advised them that the ecclesiastical court had no jurisdiction over them, as they were not Christians. He then took the Jews into protection in the castle. After the situation had calmed down, they returned to their homes. The issue was revived two years later, when a member of the Jewish community was murdered in an unrelated incident. King Stephen agreed to look into the matter, but later decided to let it drop.[7]

In the meanwhile, William's body had been moved to the monks' cemetery. Some of the local clergy attempted to create a cult around him as a martyr, but this plan did not succeed. There is no evidence that the initial accusations against the Jews implied that the murder was related to ritual activity of any kind, but as the cult developed, so did the story of how and why he was killed.[5][7]

Thomas' version of events

The crucifixion of William depicted on a rood screen in Holy Trinity church, Loddon, Norfolk

Thomas of Monmouth arrived in Norwich around 1150. He decided to investigate the murder by interviewing surviving witnesses. He also spoke to people identified as "converted Jews" who provided him with inside information about events within the Jewish community. He wrote up his account of the crime in the book The Life and Miracles of St William of Norwich.[7]

In Thomas of Monmouth's account, of the murder he writes that “having shaved his head, they stabbed it with countless thornpoints, and made the blood come horribly from the wounds they made. . . some of those present ad judged him to be fixed to a cross in mockery of the Lord's Passion . . .”[9] William's body was later said to have been found in Thorpe Wood with a crown of thorns atop his head.

One convert, called Theobald of Cambridge, told Thomas that there was a written prophecy which stated that the Jews would regain control of Israel if they sacrificed a Christian child each year. Every year, Jewish leaders met in Narbonne to decide who would be asked to perform the sacrifice; in 1144, the Jews of Norwich were assigned the task. According to Thomas, the man who claimed to be a cook had been employed to entice William into the house where the sacrifice would occur. William was initially treated well, but was then bound, gagged and suspended in a cruciform position in a room where he was tortured and murdered in a manner imitating the Crucifixion of Jesus: the Jews lacerated his head with thorns and pierced his side. His body was then dumped in the nearby woods.[7]

Thomas supports this claim by saying that one converted Jew told him that there was an argument over how to dispose of the body. He also says that a Christian servant woman glimpsed the child through a chink in a door. Another man is said to have confessed on his deathbed, years after the events, that he saw a group of Jews transporting a body on a horse in the woods.[7]

Context

The Jews in Norwich

The Jewish community is thought to have been established in Norwich by 1135, only nine years before the murder (though one Jew called 'Isaac' is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086). Most lived in a Jewish quarter or "Jewry", located in what is now the Haymarket and White Lion Street.[10] The Jews were a French-speaking community, like the recently established Norman aristocracy and they were closely associated with them. The "Jewry" was very close to Norwich Castle, a pattern seen in other English towns where Jews were under the protection of the local aristocracy.[11]

William's family were local Anglo-Saxons, several of whom were married priests following local tradition.[12] Conflicts with the Norman authorities may have been mediated through accusations against the "alien" Jews protected by the foreign Norman rulers themselves. Tensions were particularly strong in the chaotic reign of King Stephen (known as The Anarchy) when the murder occurred. Thomas of Monmouth claims that the sheriff was bribed by the Jews to protect them.[8] There may also have been background conflicts between the cathedral, the sheriff and local people about rights in the city and suburbs. Thomas repeatedly invokes God as a source of protection for the people against the corrupt Norman sheriffs, claiming that John de Chesney, the sheriff who protected the Jews, was punished with internal bleeding.[13]

Cult

The site of the chapel consecrated to William on Mousehold Heath (2010). The chapel was demolished during the English Reformation; its remains are listed as a Scheduled monument[14]

The wish of the clergy – in particular, William de Turbeville (Bishop of Norwich 1146–74) – to establish a cultus may have been partly financially motivated. De Turbeville encouraged Thomas of Monmouth to write his book.[5]

After being buried in the monk's cemetery, the body of William was moved to progressively more prestigious places in the church, being placed in the chapterhouse in 1150 and close to the High Altar in 1151.[15] Thomas devotes most of his book not to the crime, but to the evidence for William's sanctity, including mysterious lights seen around the body itself and miraculous cures effected on local devotees. Thomas admits that some of the clergy, notably the Prior, Elias, were opposed to the cult on the grounds that there was little evidence of William's piety or martyrdom. Thomas actively promoted the claims by providing evidence of visions of William and miracles.[15]

Historian Paul Dalton states that the cult of William was predominantly "protective and pacificatory" in character, having similarities to that of another child saint, Faith of Conques.[13] Despite its origins, the cult itself was not associated with the promotion of anti-Jewish activity. The cult was a minor one even at its height. There is little evidence of a flourishing cult of William in Norwich – surviving financial records listing offerings made at his shrine at Norwich Cathedral suggest that, although its fortunes waxed and waned, for much of its history there were few pilgrims, although offerings continued to be made until at least 1521.[16] A temporary boost to the shrine's popularity occurred after 1376, when William was adopted by the Norwich Peltier's Guild, whose annual service at the Cathedral included a child who played the part of William.[17] There was also a scholars' guild dedicated to St William in the Norfolk town of Lynn.

The rood screen of St John's Church Garboldisham

Images of William as a martyr were created for some churches, generally in the vicinity of Norwich. A panel of painted oak, depicting both William and Agatha of Sicily, is in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London; William is shown holding a hammer and with three nails in his head. The panel was formerly part of a rood screen at the Norwich Church of St John Maddermarket. The screen was commissioned by Ralph Segrym (died 1472), a merchant who became a Member of Parliament and Mayor of Norwich.[18]

William is depicted on the rood screens of a number of other Norfolk churches. St Mary's church, Worstead[19] and St John's Church, Garboldisham[20] depict William hold nails. The screen in Holy Trinity Church in Loddon depicts William being crucified.[19]

Aftermath

As a result of the feelings generated by the William ritual murder story and subsequent intervention by the authorities on behalf of the accused, the growing suspicion of collusion between the ruling class and Jews fuelled the general anti-Jewish and anti-King Stephen mood of the population. After Thomas of Monmouth's version of William's death circulated a number of other unsolved child murders were attributed to Jewish conspiracies, including Harold of Gloucester (d. 1168) and Robert of Bury (d. 1181).[21] The best-known of these was Little Saint Hugh of Lincoln (d. 1255).[22] This became known as the blood libel.

By the reign of Richard the Lionheart attitudes towards Jews had become increasingly intolerant. This, in conjunction with the increase in national opinion in favour of a Crusade, and the conflation of all non-Christians in the Medieval Christian imagination, led to the Jewish deputation attending the coronation of Richard in 1189 being attacked by the crowd.[23] A widespread attack began on the Jewish population, most notably in London and York, leading to massacres of Jews at London and York. The attacks were soon followed by others throughout England. When the local nobility of Norwich attempted to quash these activities, the local yeomanry and peasantry revolted against the lords and attacked their supporters, especially Norwich's Jewish community. On 6 February 1190, all Norwich Jews who didn't escape to the support of the local castle were slaughtered in their village.[citation needed]

Hostility against Jews increased in the area until in 1290, Jews were expelled from all of England to Spain, Italy, Greece and elsewhere. Jews were not officially allowed to settle in England again until sometime after 1655, when Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell commissioned the Whitehall Conference to debate the proposals made by Menasseh ben Israel. While the Conference reached no verdict, it is seen as the beginning of readmission.

Modern theories of the crime

A map of medieval Norwich reproduced in Jessopp and James' edition of the Life. The "Jewry" is to the left of the castle in the centre, part of the "New Town" area on the other side of the town from the monastery and the wood.

The story of William's supposed martyrdom in a Jewish conspiracy persisted for many centuries. As late as 1853, the author Susan Swain Madders, in her book on the history of Norwich, attributes William's death to a murderous conspiracy of "the Jews, then the leading doctors, merchants and scholars of the day". She also repeats the story that they escaped punishment "by some clever monetary arrangement with the authorities".[24]

Thomas of Monmouth's account of William's life was published in 1896 in an edition by Augustus Jessopp and M. R. James. James's introduction to the book is the first modern analysis of the evidence provided by Thomas. James notes that Thomas is keen to prove the truth of his version of events by citing witnesses to build up a consistent account. He argues that some testimonies seem to be pure invention, others are unreliable, but that some appear to describe real events, though facts are clearly being manipulated to fit the story. James dismisses the claim of planned ritual murder as a fantasy, which only emerges some years after the crime, promoted by the convert Theobald, keen to ingratiate himself with the Christian community. Independent support is very flimsy, such as the servant who is supposed to have glimpsed a child through a crack in the door, but did not report this until interviewed by Thomas years later.[25]

James suggests several possibilities: 1. an accident in the woods; 2. a murder by a Christian who arranged the scene to cast blame on Jews; 3. a murder by an unknown person that was blamed on Jews for reasons unrelated to the crime itself; 4. accidental or deliberate killing by a Jew that was then covered up by the Jewish community who feared they would all be blamed.[25] James thinks that all these are possible, including that a "deranged or superstitious" Jew might have killed William in a quasi-ritual way. He says that the convert Theobald himself is a possible suspect.

In an 1897 review of James' book Joseph Jacobs in the Jewish Quarterly Review argued that William's own family were the most likely suspects, speculating that they had held a mock crucifixion over Easter during which William fell into a "cataleptic" trance and died as a result of burial. Jacobs argues that it would make no sense for Jews to hide the body in Thorpe Wood, as they would have had to carry it through the whole of the Christian part of the town to get there.[26] According to a 2005 paper by Raphael Langham, Jacobs provided "no evidence" for his speculation about a family crucifixion.[7] In 1933 Cecil Roth argued that a different type of mock crucifixion may have led to the accusations against Jews, because of a masquerade involving the mock execution of Haman enacted by the Jews at Purim. In 1964 Marion Anderson developed this idea, combining it with Thomas's original arguments. She suggests that William had been told not to associate with Jews following one such masquerade; he was then kidnapped and tortured by the Jews to find out why they were being ostracised. He died as a result and the body was disposed of.[7]

In 1967, Vivian Lipman argued that the murder was a sex crime, suggesting that Thomas's comment that William was wearing a "jacket" and "shoes" implied that the boy's body was naked below the waist. It was probably perpetrated by the man who represented himself as a cook, and who enticed William away from his family to commit the crime. This man was never identified by Thomas and mysteriously disappears from the story without explanation.

In 1984, Gavin I. Langmuir endorsed Lipman's "sane" account, dismissing Anderson's theories and criticising both James' and Jacobs' speculations, adding that Theobald was an unlikely suspect as he appears to have been in Cambridge when the murder was committed.[5] In 1988, Zefirah Rokeah nevertheless revived James' suggestion that Theobald was the killer. In 1997, John McCulloh followed Lipman in arguing that it was a sadistic sex crime. Raphael Langham, writing in 2005, believed that Theobald was a disturbed individual with a hatred of his own community and thus the most likely killer.[7]

In 2015, E. M. Rose's investigation of the subject, The Murder of William of Norwich[27] received the 2016 Ralph Waldo Emerson Award of the Phi Beta Kappa Society for "a scholarly study that contributes significantly to interpretation of the intellectual and cultural condition of humanity"[28] and was named a "Top Ten Book in History" by The Sunday Times (London).[29] Rose points out that road robberies and kidnappings gone wrong were a frequent cause of death in the region during Stephen's reign, when the Crown struggled to safeguard the roads, and could offer another explanation of William's death.

Saint Ludger of Utrecht

† இன்றைய புனிதர் †

(மார்ச் 26)

✠ புனிதர் லூட்கர் ✠

(St. Ludger)

'முன்ஸ்டர்' மறை மாவட்ட முதல் ஆயர்:

(First Bishop of Münster)

சக்ஸனி நகர அப்போஸ்தலர்:

(Apostle of Saxony)

பிறப்பு: கி. பி. 742

ஸுய்லேன், நெதர்லாந்து

(Zuilen, Netherlands)

இறப்பு: மார்ச் 26, 809

பில்லர்பெக், ஜெர்மனி

(Billerbeck, Germany)

ஏற்கும் சமயம்:

ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபை

(Roman Catholic Church)

கிழக்கு மரபுவழி திருச்சபை

(Eastern Orthodox Church)

நினைவுத் திருநாள்: மார்ச் 26

பாதுகாவல்: 

க்ரோநின்ஜென் (Groningen), நெதர்லாந்து (Netherlands), டேவெண்டேர் (Deventer), கிழக்கு ஃபிரிஸியா (East Frisia), வேர்டேன் (Werden), முன்ஸ்டர் மறைமாவட்டம் (Diocese of Münster), ஜெர்மனி (Germany).

புனிதர் லூட்கர், "ஃப்ரீசியன்ஸ்" (Frisians) மற்றும் "சக்ஸன்ஸ்" (Saxons) ஆகிய மாநிலங்களில் மறைப் பணியாற்றிய மறைப்பணியாளரும், "வெர்டேன்" (Werden Abbey) துறவு மடத்தின் நிறுவனரும், "முன்ஸ்டர்" (Münster) மறை மாவட்டத்தின் முதல் ஆயரும் ஆவார்.

இவரது பெற்றோர், "தியாட்க்ரிம்" (Thiadgrim) மற்றும் "லியாஃபர்க்" (Liafburg) ஆவர். இவர்கள் செல்வம் படைத்த ஒரு கிறிஸ்தவக் குடும்பத்தினராவர்.

கி.பி. 753ம் ஆண்டு, லூட்கர் ஜெர்மனியின் பெரிய அப்போஸ்தலரான (great Apostle of Germany) புனிதர் "போனிஃபேஸ்" (Saint Boniface) அவர்களைச் சந்திக்கும் வாய்ப்பு கிட்டியது. அதனைத் தொடர்ந்த சம்பவமாக அப்புனிதர் மறை சாட்சியாக கொல்லப்பட்டது, அவரில் ஆழ்ந்த பெரும் தாக்கத்தினை ஏற்படுத்தியது.

கி.பி. 756 அல்லது 757ம் ஆண்டு, இவர் புனிதர் "கிரகோரி" (Saint Gregory of Utrecht) அவர்கள் நிறுவிய பேராலய பள்ளியில் இணைந்து கல்வி கற்றார். கல்வியில் நல்ல முன்னேற்றம் கண்ட இவர், 767ம் ஆண்டு, இங்கிலாந்திலிருந்து வந்து "யோர்க்" (York) மறை மாவட்டத்தின் ஆயராக பொறுப்பேற்கச் சென்ற "அலுபெர்ட்" (Alubert) என்பவருடன் துணையாகச் சென்ற இவர், அங்கேயே பேராயர் "எதெல்பெர்ட்" (Ethelbert of York) என்பவரால் திருத்தொண்டராக அருட்பொழிவு பெற்றார். அங்கேயே ஆங்கிலேய அறிஞர் "அல்ஸுய்ன்" (Alcuin) என்பவரின் கீழ் கல்வியைத் தொடர்ந்தார். லூட்கர், "அல்ஸுய்ன்" ஆகிய இருவரும் வாழ்நாள் நண்பர்களானார்கள்.

லூட்கர், 777ம் ஆண்டு, ஜூலை மாதம், ஏழாம் நாளன்று, கொலோனில் (Cologne) குருத்துவ அருட்பொழிவு பெற்றார். பிறகு சாக்சன் சென்று மறைப் பணியாற்றினார். கற்பிக்கும் பணியையும் செய்தார். இங்ஙனம் சுமார் ஏழு வருடங்கள் பணியாற்றினார். கி.பி. 784ம் ஆண்டு, "விடுல்கைன்ட்" (Widukind) என்பவன் "ஃபிரிஸியா" மாகான மக்களை துன்புறுத்த ஆரம்பித்தான். மறைப் பணியாளர்களை அங்கிருந்து விரட்டுவதற்காக அவர்களை கொன்றும், கிறிஸ்தவ ஆலயங்களை தீயிட்டு எரித்தும் துன்புறுத்தினான். ஆலயங்களில் பாகன் கடவுளர்களை கொண்டுவந்து வைத்தான்.

இத்தீவிர துன்புருத்தல்களிளிருந்து தமது சீடர்களுடன் தப்பி ஓடிய லூட்கர் கி.பி. 785ல் ரோம் நகர் சென்றார். அங்கே திருத்தந்தை முதலாம் "அட்ரியான்" (Pope Adrian I) அவர்களால் வரவேற்கப்பட்ட அவருக்கு திருத்தந்தை நிறைய ஆலோசனைகள் வழங்கினார். பின்னர் அங்கிருந்து "மான்டே கஸினோ" (Monte Cassino) சென்ற லூட்கர், அங்கே "பெனடிக்ட் சட்ட விதிகளின்"படி (Rule of Saint Benedict) வாழ ஆரம்பித்தார்.

கி.பி. 787ம் ஆண்டு, லூட்கர் "லாவெர்ஸ்" (Lauwers) நதியின் கிழக்குக் கரையோரமுள்ள ஐந்து மாவட்டங்களுக்கு மறைப் பணியாளராக நியமிக்கப்பட்டார். மிகவும் சிரமமான இப்பணியை செய்ய தொடங்கிய இவருக்கு உள்ளூர் மொழியும் உள்ளூர் மக்களின் பழக்கவழக்கங்களும் அறிந்திருந்தபடியால் அவரது பணிகள் சற்றே இலகுவாக இருந்தன. லூட்கர் பல்வேறு இடங்களில் பணியாற்றினார். புனிதர் "வில்லிப்ரார்ட்" (Saint Willibrord) மறைப்பணியாற்றிய இடமான "ஹெலிகோலேண்ட்" (Heligoland) சென்றார். அங்கேயிருந்த பாகன் கோவில்களை அழித்தார். கிறிஸ்தவ தேவாலயம் ஒன்றினை கட்டினார். பின்னர் அங்கிருந்து திரும்பும் வழியில், கண் பார்வையற்ற கவிஞரான "பெர்ன்லெஃப்" (Bernlef) என்பவரை சந்தித்தார். கண் பார்வை திரும்பவேண்டுமென இறைவனை நோக்கி உருக்கமாக இவர் செபித்ததால் "பெர்ன்லெஃப்" மீண்டும் பார்வை பெற்றார். அத்துடன் முழு விசுவாசமுள்ள கிறிஸ்தவராக மாறினார்.

தூய ரோமப் பேரரசர் முதலாம் சார்லசின் (Charlemagne) வேண்டுகோளுக்கிணங்க, கி.பி. 805ம் ஆண்டு, மார்ச் மாதம், 30ம் நாளன்று, ஆயராக அருட்பொழிவு செய்விக்கப்பட்டார். லூட்கருக்கு அருட்பொழிவு செய்வித்தவர் "கொலோன்" பேராயர் "ஹில்டேபோல்ட்" (Hildebold, Archbishop of Cologne) ஆவார்.

லூட்கரின் அமைதியான மறை போதனை, பேரரசர் சார்லசின் சூழ்ச்சி முறைகளை விட கிறிஸ்தவத்தை பரப்புவதில் அதிக வெற்றியைத் தந்தது. தேவாலயங்களுக்கு நகைகளாக போய்ச் சேரவேண்டிய பணத்தை தானமாக கொடுப்பதாக இவர் மீது குற்றச்சாட்டுகளும் எழுந்தன. ஆனால், அதில் தவறேதுமில்லை என்று எடுத்துரைத்து அவர் பேரரசரை சமாதானம் செய்வித்தார்.

கி.பி. 809ம் வருடம், "கொயேஸ்ஃபெல்ட்" (Coesfeld) என்ற இடத்தில், தவக்காலத்தின் ஐந்தாம் ஞாயிறன்று, (Passion Sunday) அதிகாலை தேவாலயத்தில் மறையுரையாற்றி திருப்பலி நிறைவேற்றினார். பின்னர் மீண்டும் காலை ஒன்பது மணி பூஜையிலும் மறையுரையாற்றி தமது கடைசி திருப்பலி நிறைவேற்றினார். அன்று மாலையே அவர் அமைதியாக மரித்துப் போனார்.

Also known as

• Apostle of Saxony

• Ludger of Münster

• Liudger, Ludiger

Additional Memorials

• 24 April (translation of relics)

• 3 October (translation of relics)

Profile

Son of Thiadgrim and Liafburg, wealthy Frisian nobles. Brother of Saint Gerburgis and Saint Hildegrin. Saw Saint Boniface preach in 753, and was greatly moved. Studied at Utrecht, Netherlands under Saint Gregory of Utrecht. Studied three and a half years in England under Blessed Alcuin. Deacon.

Returned to the Netherlands in 773 as a missionary. Sent to Deventer in 775 to restore a chapel destroyed by pagan Saxons, and to recover the relics of Saint Lebwin, who had built the chapel. Taught school at Utrecht. Destroyed pagan idols and places of worship in the areas west of Lauwers Zee after they were Christianized. Ordained in 777 at Cologne, Germany. Missionary to Friesland, mainly around Ostergau and Dokkum, from 777 to 784, returning each fall to Utrecht to teach in the cathedral school. Left the area in 784 when pagan Saxons invaded and expelled all priests.

Pilgrim to Rome, Italy in 785. Met with Pope Adrian I, and the two exchanged counsel. Lived as a Benedictine monk at Monte Cassino, Italy from 785 to 787, but did not take vows. At the request of Charlemagne, he returned to Friesland as a missionary. It was a successful expedition, and he built a monastery in Werden, Germany to serve as a base. Reported to have cured the blindness of, and thus caused the conversion of the blind pagan bard Berulef.

Refused the bishopric of Trier, Germany in 793. Missionary to the Saxons. Built a monastery at Mimigernaford as the center of this missionary work, and served as its abbot. The word monasterium led to the current name of the city that grew up around the house - Münster. Built several small chapels throughout the region. First bishop of Münster in 804, being ordained at Westphalia.

Ludger's health failed in later years, but he never reduced his work load. No matter how busy or dangerous his outside life, he never neglected his time of prayer and meditation, it being a source of the strength to do everything else. The man's life can be summed up in two facts -

• he was reprimanded and denounced only once during his bishopric - for spending more on charity than on church decoration

• on the day of his death, he celebrated Mass - twice.

Born

c.743 at Zuilen, Friesland (modern Netherlands)

Died

• in the evening of Passion Sunday, 26 March 809 of natural causes

• buried at Werden, Germany

• relics also at Münster and Billerbeck, Germany

Patronage

• 2 dioceses

• 13 cities

Blessed Maddalena Caterina Morano

Profile

Her father and older sister died when Maddalena was 8 years old, and the girl had to work to help support her large family. She managed to work and study, and in 1866 she graduated as an elementary school teacher. She wanted to enter religious life, but her family needed her, and she worked for 12 years as a teacher in rural Montaldo, Italy teaching catechism in her parish.

In 1878, having helped raise her siblings, and saved enough to insure her mother‘s future, Maddalena entered the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians, the congregation founded six years earlier by Saint John Bosco. In 1881 she was sent to Trecastagni in the Diocese of Catania, Sicily, and took charge of an existing institute for women, inspiring it with Salesian principles.

Sicily became her second home. She opened new houses, set up after-school activities and sewing classes, trained teachers, and taught catechism. She spent 25 years in Sicily, serving her community as local and provincial superior, guiding novices, and faithfully living the charism of Mother Maria Mazzarello, co-foundress of the institute.

Born

15 November 1847 at Chieri, Italy

Died

26 March 1908 at Catania, Sicily, Italy of cancer

Beatified

5 November 1994 by Pope John Paul II

Saint Castulus of Rome

Also known as

• Castulus of Moosburg

• Castolo, Castulo, Catulus, Kastl, Kastulis, Kastulus

Profile

Married to Saint Irene of Rome. Military officer in the imperial palace in Rome during the reign of Emperor Diocletian. A quiet Christian, he was denounced to authorities for sheltering fellow Christians; arrested, tortured and martyred.

Died

• buried alive in 288 on the Via Labicana outside Rome, Italy

• a cemetery named for him developed on the land

• a church dedicated to him was built in the 7th century on the site of his execution

• relics transferred to a Benedictine monastery in Moosburg an der Isar, Germany c.768

• relics transferred to Landshut, Germany in 1604

Patronage

• against blood poisoning

• against drowning

• against erysipelas

• against fever

• against horse theft

• against lightning

• against storms

• against wildfire

• cowherds

• farmers

• shepherds

• Hallertau, Germany

• Moosburg an der Isar, Germany

Saint Bercharius

Also known as

Bercario, Bererus

Profile

Godson of Saint Nivard of Rheims; student of Saint Remaclus of Maestricht. Monk at Luxeuil Abbey under the leadership of Saint Walbert. First abbot of Hautvillers Abbey; he expanded it and built other houses, one of which was populated by brothers who were redeemed slaves. First abbot of Montier-en-Der Abbey. Pilgrim to Rome, Italy and to the Holy Lands, bringing back relics for his houses. Venerated as a martyr as he died defending the principles of his religious order.

Born

636 in Aquitaine (in modern France)

Died

• fatally stabbed on Holy Thursday, 28 March 696 at Moutier-en-Der Abbey by his godson, a monk named Daguin, whom Bercharius had reprimanded

• died on Easter Sunday, 31 March 696 forgiving his killer

• relics taken to a church in Burgundy, France in the 9th century to protect them from invading Normans, but were returned to the abbey by 924

• some relics taken to the collegiate church of Châteauvillain, Haute-Marne, France, but were destroyed in the anti-Christian excesses of the French Revolution

Saint Peter of Sebaste

Profile

Youngest of ten children born to Saint Basil the Elder and Saint Emmelia; brother of Saint Basil the Great, Saint Gregory of Nyssa, and Saint Macrina the Younger. His father died when Peter was an infant, and he was raised and educated by Saint Macrina. Monk in a monastery in Armenia on the Iris River, a house that had been founded by his parents and was headed by his brother Basil. Abbot of the house in 362. Worked to help people suffering in a famine in Pontus and Cappadocia. Ordained in 370. Bishop of Sebaste, Armenia in 380. Fought fiercely against Arianism in his see. Attended the General Council of Constantinople in 381.

Born

c.340 in Caesarea, Cappadocia

Died

c.391 in Sebaste, Armenia (in modern Turkey) of natural causes

Saint Basil the Younger

Profile

Hermit near Constantinople. Being a foreigner, and being odd in his appearance and behavior, he was arrested, questioned and tortured as a spy, but his gift of miracles and prophecy convinced his captors that he was just a holy man, and they freed him. Friend of Saint Theodora of Constantinople. He later publicly denouced the immorality of the area's aristocracy, including Princess Anastasia, which led to further persecution by the authorities.

Died

952 near Constantinople (modern Istanbul, Turkey) of natural causes

Saint Eutychius of Alexandria

Profile

Sub-deacon in Alexandria, Egypt and leader of a group of Christians who supported Saint Athanasius of Alexandria and opposed Arianism. Arrested, scourged and condemned to slavery in the mines for adhering to orthodox Christianity. Martyr.

Died

from abuse and exhaustion while on the road to the mines in Egypt in 356

Saint Barontius of Pistoia

Also known as

Barontus, Baronce, Baronto, Baronzio

Profile

Member of the French nobility and a courtier to King Theirry II. Married and a father. Retired to become a monk at Lonrey, France. After receiving a vision, he moved to become a hermit near Pistoia, Italy. Friend of Saint Desiderius of Pistoia.

Died

c.725

Saint Maxima the Martyr

Also known as

Massima

Profile

Married to and martyred with Saint Montanus the Martyr in the persecutions of Diocletian.

Died

drowned in 304

Saint Govan

Also known as

Cofen, Gofan, Goven, Gowan

Profile

Sixth century hermit who lived on the face of a cliff at Saint Govan's Head, Dyfed, Wales; his stone hut survives today, and attracts many visitors. Spiritual student of Saint Ailbe.

Died

buried under the altar in his stone hut

Saint Emmanuel

Also known as

Emanuele, Maneul

Profile

Martyred with 42 companions in the persecutions of Diocletian.

Died

c.304

Representation

man tied and nailed to a tree

Saint Quadratus of Anatolia

Also known as

Codrato

Profile

Bishop in Anatolia (in modern Turkey). Martyred with 42 companions in the persecutions of Diocletian.

Died

c.304 in Anatolia, Asia Minor (modern Turkey)

Saint Mochelloc of Kilmallock

Also known as

Celloch, Cellog, Motalogus, Mottelog

Profile

Abbot at Kilmallock, Ireland.

Died

c.639

Patronage

Kilmallock, Limerick, Ireland

Saint Montanus the Martyr

Also known as

Montano

Profile

Priest. Married to and martyred with Saint Maxima the Martyr in the persecutions of Diocletian.

Died

drowned in 304

Saint Sincheall of Killeigh

Profile

Spiritual student of Saint Patrick. Founded the Killeigh monastery in Offaly, Ireland.

Died

5th century

Saint Felicitas of Padua

Profile

Nun in Padua, Italy.

Died

• 9th century

• relics in the church of Saint Justina, Padua, Italy

Saint Desiderius of Pistoia

Also known as

Dizier, Desiderio

Profile

Hermit at Pistoia, Italy. Friend of Saint Barontius of Pistoia.

Saint Theodosius

Also known as

Teodosio

Profile

Martyred with 42 companions in the persecutions of Diocletian.

Died

c.304 in Anatolia, Asia Minor

Saint Sabino of Anatolia

Profile

Martyred with 42 companions in the persecutions of Diocletian.

Died

c.304 in Anatolia, Asia Minor

Saint Bathus

Profile

Martyred along with his wife, two sons and two daughters for their faith.

Died

burned to death in their church c.370 somewhere in the Balkans

Saint Felix of Trier

Profile

Bishop of Trier, Germany in 386, consecrated by Saint Martin of Tours.

Died

c.400

Saint Wereka

Profile

Martyr.

Died

burned to death in their church c.370 somewhere in the Balkans

Saint Garbhan

Profile

Seventh century abbot at Dungarvan, Ireland.

Born

Irish

Martyrs of Rome

Profile

A group of Christians martyred together. The only details to survive are the names - Cassian, Jovinus, Marcian, Peter and Thecla.

Died

Rome, Italy, date unknown