Arms of Joseph Antonio Manso de Velasco, Count of Superunda (1688 - 1767)
Merry Christmas!
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Oh, this is spectacular! I don’t know how well this will go, but I’ll give it a shot! The sinister half of the arms are definitely those of the house of Velasco - I’m going to ignore this weird, weird interpretation of a “bordure of Castile and Leon” - but I couldn’t find anything on the dexter ones. (Admittedly, I haven’t had the time to dig quite as deep.) Given that they’re on the dexter, I suspect they were granted due to something he achieved in his lifetime (possibly the title Count of Superunda, of which he was the first bearer).
Blazon: Per pale, I per fess i per quarterly 1 gules a lion rampant or, 2 azure three towers or, 3 azure a crescent decrescent argent, 4 argent a tree eradicated proper surmounted by a hound (?) courant proper; ii per quarterly 1 and 4 sable a Paschal lamb passant argent, 2 and 3 azure two towers or*; II chequy of fifteen or and vair within a bordure gules charged with four castles azure and as many lions rampant combatant or, alternating (Velasco)
*I cannot quite make out the charge between them; could be a sun in splendor?
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Gilded insignia above the portal to Strahov Monastery in Prague. The lower one is a Marian monogram (Maria), and the other reads Vidi supra montem Sion agnum (“I saw on Mount Zion a Lamb,” cf. Rev. 14:1).
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You cut through the lies
I saw the rain dirty valley
You saw Brigadoon
The Waterboys, Gene Kelly and Friday Night driving home. #wormmoon
#Lenten #Pentecost #Springwatch
Friday night, I was driving home.
First Southbound along the M1 then on to the M18, followed by an A-road.
The moon.
The moon was big.
Massive.
At first I wasn’t sure whether it was just a full-moon,
Or, whether it was something different.
As the road curved, or trees appeared I would lose-sight,
For, it was low at that time,
Maybe seven in the evening.
I wondered whether other…
Last Sunday, as you may recall, was the feast of the Baptism of Our Lord, and we heard St. Matthew’s account of that event. Today we get a second version of that event, taken from the Gospel of St. John. Now, in Matthew’s account, Jesus sees the heavens open up and the Spirit descend like a dove. But it isn’t absolutely clear if anyone else sees what Jesus sees, or hears what he hears. Well, St. John’s Gospel clarifies the matter. John the Baptist also saw the descent of the Holy Spirit at Jesus’ baptism. And for him this was the sign he had been waiting for, that the “One who was coming into the world” had finally arrived.
The Baptist announces to all within hearing distance that Jesus is “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” That’s a rather curious expression, and the meaning is not self-evident. The most common interpretation of this metaphor is that John is equating Jesus with the paschal lamb, the animal that was slaughtered, roasted, and eaten in a communal meal each year at the Passover in commemoration of the Exodus. Now, the sacrifice of the paschal lamb was a symbol of the redemption of Israel. But St. John the Baptist goes further when he states that this sacrificial lamb takes away the sin of the world. This is something completely new. In Judaism there was no sacrifice that took away the sin of the whole world.
As the Church Fathers noted long ago, there are also eucharistic overtones to the Baptist’s paschal metaphor, overtones that elucidate its meaning for us today. For just as a paschal lamb was sacrificed and then shared in a communal meal, so Jesus was sacrificed on the Cross, and the Sacrament of his Body and Blood is shared in a communal meal, namely, Holy Communion.
If the Gospel reading for today had stopped halfway through, it would have been enough. For we would have gained a more profound understanding of the true identity of Jesus: he is both God’s Son and the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.
But today’s Gospel reading does not stop at identifying Jesus. Instead, it continues with the story of how two of the Baptist’s disciples leave their master in order to follow Jesus, as he walks by. When Jesus notices these two men trailing him, he turns and asks them one simple question, “What are you seeking?” Oddly, they never answer his question. Instead, they ask him a question in return: “Rabbi, where are you staying?” He responds with the invitation: “Come and see.” And that’s exactly what they do…with one detour. For Andrew makes a side-trip to collect his brother Simon.
Now we can learn a lot from Jesus’ actions in today’s Gospel reading. (And we can learn a thing or two from Andrew’s actions as well.) Note what Jesus does. He encounters two people. He discerns that they are spiritual seekers. So, he invites them to “come and see.” He even opens his home to them. And what comes of this? Andrew, one of the two seekers, brings his brother Peter. He, in turn, invites many others to be Jesus’ disciples. A couple of millennia later, there are over two billion Christians in the world. And it all started with Jesus’ words: “Come and see.”
Well, folks, this parish is growing smaller, and we need new members if we are going to carry on. The cure for that problem starts with an invitation. Oh, there’s more to church growth than that, but it starts with an invitation. I know that some of you are reluctant to invite people to church. Some of you have told me that it seems “pushy.” Stuff and nonsense! It’s not pushy to invite someone to church; it’s caring. If you know someone who’s hurting, tell them, “Come and see.” For this is a community that can bring healing. If you know someone who’s alone in the world, tell them, “Come and see.” For this is a community that cares about people. If you know someone who has questions about the meaning of life, tell them, “Come and see.” For this is a community that welcomes questions and that has some answers.
I encourage you to do this, not just because the parish needs new blood, but because it is the caring thing to do. Even more, it is the Christian thing to do. So invite your children to come back to church. Invite your grandchildren and great-grandchildren to come to church with you, when they’re visiting on a Sunday. Invite your next-door neighbor and your pharmacist and your local librarian and your bus driver and the lady from the garden club and the guy at the pet-food store. And when you’ve asked all of them, start inviting complete strangers! We have something here that is worth sharing—I truly believe that. So let’s do our very best to share it!
