Are you aware that Pope Francis declared much of this year as a Jubilee Year of Mercy? (It began Dec. 8, 2015 and will end Nov. 20. 2016.) In relation to this, there are several churches that are designated as Holy Doors of Mercy. The Monastery here in Rockdale county was one of the churches chosen for this honor.
If you would like to read more about the Holy Doors of Mercy and where they are located (they are all around the world!) you may read more about them just here.
The word "Mercy" is quite often misunderstood. It is from a Hebrew word "chesed" and it is hard to translate. You may read more about it here.
 |
| Door to the Church of Monastery- A Holy Door of Mercy |
 |
| Monastery Door At Christmas Sanctuary...it is a word that comes to mind when I think of the Monastery. Did you know that in Medieval England, a criminal could go to a church and would be protected from the law? The legal term was called "sanctuary". I remember reading that one had only to rest one's hand upon the door and no one could touch them. (I have no idea if this was correct, but from the book that I was reading at the time, it made me look up the English law.) "Sanctuary" from British history online. Sanctuary was to be defined as within 40 days and if possible, come to an agreement with those who charged him with a crime. If this failed, he had to appear before the coroner, clothed in sackcloth, confess his crime and abjure the realm. In 1529, in the year of Henry VIII, it was directed that "immediately after his confession, he would be branded upon the brawn of the thumb of his right hand with the sign of the letter A, to the extent he might be known among the king's subject to have abjured." “This hear thou, Sir Coroner, that I ................................................... of ...................................................... am a ................................................... , and because I have done such evils in this land, I do abjure the land of our lord the King, and shall haste me towards the port of [mentioning a port named by the coroner], and that I shall not go out of the highway, and if I do, I will that I be taken as a robber and a felon of our lord the King, and that at such place I will diligently seek for passage, and that I will tarry there but one flood and ebb, if I can have passage; and unless I can have it in such a place, I will go every day into the seas up to my knees assaying to pass over, and unless I can do this within forty days, I will put myself again into the church as a robber and a felon of our lord the King, so God me help and His holy judgment.” +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Visiting the church at the Monastery and placing my hand upon the doors makes me understand the relief that those criminals must have felt. Sanctuary: A sacred place, a place of refuge. |
Some forms of sanctuary did exist in places.
ReplyDeleteIn Edinburgh one small road near Hollyrood House was one such.
One street in London still is but I would doubt it would save you today.
Well, you know I had to look up the places of sanctuary in London and Edinburgh because of you! Neglecting housework to do so, my house is a mess but hey, I am sure that the knowledge of this might come in handy someday. I am sure it will. :-)
DeleteI did know about the sanctuary status of churches and wrote about sanctuary crosses here. It fills me with utter horror when I learn of crimes committed against people who were searching shelter in a church or other type of sanctuary, as keeps happening over and over again.
ReplyDeleteThankfully, even just silently talking to God in my mind offers a form of sanctuary when I need to retreat for a while from the madness and sadness out there.
I somehow missed your post on the sanctuary crosses, so I am glad you told me about it!
DeleteAnd I very much agree with your last sentence!
Mercy and sanctuary are beautiful things, i am glad to find both in the Savior. In ancient Israel, there were sanctuary cities, called Cities of Refuge. If you accidentally killed someone, and it was truly an accident, when the family of the deceased wanted revenge you could go to the City of Refuge, tell the elders of the city what happened, and they had to take you in and let you live in the city and protect you from the vengeance of the family of the deceased. You lived in that city, never stepping foot outside of its walls, until whoever was High Priest at the time you got to that city died. When he died, you went to the Temple to offer a sacrifice and you could go back home, and the family were not to touch you. If they did, it was murder, not accidental, and murder wasn't tolerated, actual murderers couldn't seek a City of Refuge.
ReplyDeleteThe idea of Western churches as sanctuaries has a long history. Mostly through the years the idea was to let the accused go in and be safe long enough for sane heads to prevail and justice to be served properly, rather than an angry mob violently taking lives and asking questions later.
I started to go into more detail about the history of sanctuary but decided not to since I hoped that someone could write of this better than I could. So, thank you!
Delete"Sane heads to prevail", I am still waiting.
What a wonderful place to visit. We're to give mercy as we have received it. God's mercy is new every morning.
ReplyDeleteOh, you have reminded me of a hymn! And the Monastery is a very special place. They offer retreats there too and they are very popular.
DeleteFascinating post. But, reading of the empathy you felt for those criminals, I need to ask what on earth you have been up to?
ReplyDeleteHa! Nothing that is against the law but it does make me wonder...perhaps one of my ancestors took advantage of this law and I feel it in my bones? It would be interesting to find out!
DeleteChurches are still places of sanctuary for people who are under deportation orders. I know here in Canada, people often are put up in churches by the congregation until the immigration issues get settled. Sometimes they stay there, living at the church and never leaving, for months. I don't know if this happens in the US too?
ReplyDeleteI think I have read that this has happened in churches in the USA also. And this also reminds me...one of the churches in London allows the homeless to come in and have a "kip" on the church benches. When we were there, I was surprised to see so many men stretched out, peacefully sound asleep.
DeleteThe monastery in Conyers is a beautiful place - I didn't know about the sanctuary designation.
ReplyDeleteYou might be my only follower who has ever seen the Monastery! So, you know I am telling the truth!
DeleteThe Door of Mercy is also very interesting to me. Not sure if you have read anymore about it, but you can go to the Catholic websites to learn more.
You always come up with the most interesting historical facts. I knew that places of worship had long been considered as sanctuaries. I also understand some of the reasons that this no longer applies in many cases. This was another interesting lesson.
ReplyDeleteThank you! I sometimes make connections that most people don't get or understand. Just ask my past teachers!
DeleteI agree with Emma. I always enjoy your historical posts. I remember as a child at a Catholic school learning about the sanctuary of the church. A naughty boy got it into his head to take sanctuary in the church after being in a fist fight (to us, a major sin). The rest of the students were enthralled. What would happen? All illusions were shattered when a nun marched into the church, grasped him by the collar of his shirt and marched him out, despite his cries about sanctuary, to face justice. We took that to mean only the innocent need bother to seek sanctuary. There never was any escaping those nuns! Have a happy week!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Pauline! I have a very good friend who went to a Catholic school and I have heard stories of the tough nuns!
DeleteHope you have a happy week too, Pauline! Always nice to see your smiling face (on your photo here!).
I have read of sanctuary many times (I read a lot of historical mysteries) but did not know about the year of mercy. I see the Cathedral in Cleveland is one of the places of pilgrimage but am sorry there are none in the Akron area....I always love reading your posts, Kay, but am often late commenting because you send me off on tangents of related research!
ReplyDeleteHmm...I wonder, that might be where I read of sanctuary, I have read some historical mysteries in my day!
DeleteI am most thankful for you reading my posts! And I am happy that it makes someone look further into what I am talking about, you have made my day!
Let me know if you see any of the Doors of Mercy, I love how they did the doors at the Monastery. xx
We learned about Sanctuary as part of history class. The Medieval folk had some weird laws. I kind of wish some of them were still around though. Or had come around sooner. In particular the Forest Laws that basically outlawed hunting. It makes me sad that there are no more wolves in England because they were hunted to extinction.
ReplyDeleteI find these old laws quite fascinating. One thing that stays with me, the one broken law where sanctuary would not be allowed was sacrilege.
DeleteI love this. Mercy and sanctuary are such simple concepts yet so deeply profound when it comes to forgiveness, we almost cannot comprehend such a gift.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment, Leonora. Deeply profound, you rarely hear a descriptive phrase like that these days. Forgiveness, another word not bandied around much either. x
DeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDelete