Today we experience something of a time warp, traveling from the 19th century back to the days of the early church. We encounter John Keble -- priest, poet, academic, and major player in the revival of the Church of England and Thecla -- companion of the apostle Paul and passionate pursuer of holiness.
In yesterday's saintly action, Juan Diego advanced to the Saintly Sixteen with a 57% to 43% victory over Hadewijch. He'll face the winner of Dorcas vs. Frederick Douglass.
As an aside, we've been delighted to see the number of comments that come in throughout the 24 hours each matchup is open. They are a wonderful blend of thoughtful and gracious and educational and inspirational -- basically the opposite of nearly every other online forum!
And in case you missed yesterday's episode of Monday Madness, it included a verifiable miracle involving a corporeal Golden Halo. Not that Tim and Scott are angling to make it into the 2089 bracket or anything...
John Keble
Though devoted to his calling as a country priest, serving for thirty years as the vicar of Hursley, John Keble is best known as an influential founder of the Oxford Movement. This movement sought to renew the Church of England through a better understanding and adherence to the practices of the early church. In 1833 he preached the Assize Sermon, soon published with the provocative title “National Apostasy.” Keble was a key player in the Oxford Movement and wrote nine of the ninety Tracts for the Times. In addition to writing poetry, tracts, and sermons, Keble also translated the works of Iranaeus and prepared a three-volume edition of the works of Richard Hooker.
During his life, he was perhaps best known as a poet. First published anonymously, his collection The Christian Year went through ninety-five print editions by the time of his death in 1866. Embarrassed by its success, Keble dedicated the profits to restoring the church building at Hursley. Some of these poems are still familiar as hymns today. He was elected professor of poetry at Oxford in 1831 and held the (non-residential) post for ten years.
In 1845, Keble began exploring the possibility of creating a college at Oxford that would be of moderate cost and hold fast to the best practices of the Church of England. Established in his memory, Keble College quickly shifted focus from theological formation toward more traditional pedagogy but remained committed to making an Oxford education more widely available to all economic classes.
Keble would no doubt be shocked at how distant today’s Church of England is from the established church he sought to renew, but there are still parts of his Assize Sermon that ring true today.
“The surest way to uphold or restore our endangered Church will be for each of her anxious children, in his own place and station, to resign himself more thoroughly to his God and Savior in those duties, public and private, which are not immediately affected by the emergencies of the moment: the daily and hourly duties, I mean, of piety, purity, charity, justice.”
Collect for John Keble
Grant, O God, that in all time of our testing we may know your Presence and obey your will; that, following the example of your servant John Keble, we may accomplish with integrity and courage what you give us to do, and endure what you give us to bear; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Thecla
Thecla was a follower of the Apostle Paul, whose life was recorded in the Acts of Paul and Thecla, a prominent piece of early Christian literature.
This book recounted a missionary journey of Paul to Iconium, where he was proclaiming “the word of God about abstinence and the resurrection.” Thecla, upon hearing Paul’s message, found herself enraptured. Her devotion to Paul and his teaching so deeply concerned her mother and fiancé (worried that she would follow Paul’s demands to live in chastity), they formed a mob and imprisoned Paul.
Thecla broke into the prison, and when discovered with Paul, they were both brought before the authorities. Paul, enjoying the privilege of both his Roman citizenship and his being born male, was whipped and expelled from the town, while Thecla was sentenced to burn at the stake — an example for those who might consider Paul’s preaching. When Thecla was to be executed, “God took compassion on her, and caused a great eruption from the earth beneath, and a cloud from above to pour down great quantities of rain and hail; Insomuch that by the rupture of the earth, very many were in great danger, and some were killed, the fire was extinguished, and Thecla was preserved.”
Thecla followed after Paul, desperate to be baptized. She traveled to Antioch, where a nobleman fell in love with Thecla and offered Paul money for her. When Paul denied knowing her, the nobleman tried to take her by force. Thecla resisted, and “tore his coat, and took his crown off his head, and made him appear ridiculous before all the people.” Again she was brought before authorities and sentenced to die by being eaten by wild beasts. Facing what she believed to be a near-certain death, Thecla saw a pit of water filled with ravenous seals. Believing this was her only opportunity to be baptized, she threw herself into the water, saying, “In thy name, O my Lord Jesus Christ, I am this last day baptized.” And in another miracle, the seals died before they could devour her.
In the Eastern Church, Thecla is regarded as an “apostle and protomartyr among women.” Observance of her holiness flourished around Seleucia, where a church was built over her alleged tomb. Thecla remains among the most celebrated female saints of the earliest ages of Christianity, demonstrating that regardless of the truth or fiction of her life and story, women have played an indispensable role in the mission and growth of the early Church. In recognizing the holiness of Thecla, the Church honors the witness of all women who have lived and died in sharing the good news of Jesus and his love.
Collect for Thecla
Almighty and everlasting God, who kindled the flame of your love in the heart of your servant Thecla: Grant to us, your humble servants, a like faith and power of love, that we who rejoice in her triumph may profit by her example; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Vote!
[poll id="112"]
315 comments on “John Keble vs. Thecla”
I was wondering if the "first" nominee on the ballot is the one to loose. Is there any scientific foundation for this? Just wondering.
"ravenous seals"?
Last night I listened to the audio version of The Last Week by Borg and Crossan who spent their academic lives studying Jesus, a man who may once have been called crazy or fanatical. Now the term passionate is used to describe him. Yet in a few minutes of reading about Thecla, she is often dismissed as a groupie, a drama queen (my term), or crazy. So I want to recognize her passion and dedication to the Good News. Keble gets points fot his intellect and wisdom, but I haven't seen anything about passion in the comments on him. Though he expressed it differently, he must have been passionate about the church to have dedicated a lifetime to it...the church today needs both passion and wisdom. Now to go back and vote! I still don't know where my stylus will land.
Thanks, Gloria - I am currently reading Borg's wonderful book "The Heart of Christianity" and agree that truth trumps fact when it comes to faith. I'm voting for Thecla.
Because I am incredibly shallow, I almost voted for the handsome guy, then went with the spectacular story of Thecla, who broke INTO prison, escaped being burned at the stake and threw herself into a pool of ravenous seals (say what?) in order to be baptized. Hollywood, where are you?
As an alumnus of Keble College - this one is a no-brainer for me
You got me at ravenous seals. I voted Thecla.
Well, the description of Thecla's life and times certainly sounds rather Monty Python-esque (ravenous seals? Why not the Comfy Chair?). I attended a lecture a couple of years ago that focused on Thecla, and her importance, as well as the Church's effort in later centuries to downplay her contribution (and that of other women) in the significance of growing the early Church. She apparently was more than just a" Paul groupie" and ascended to a leadership role that over time was forgotten, or simply re-written to diminish her. I like the write up on Keble, but I'm casting a vote for Thecla. May the best saint move on to the next round!
The bio of Thecla is an interesting yarn but my willing suspension of disbelief evaporated at the introduction of human-eating seals. My vote goes to Keble but I will go to see the biopic about Thecla (if the casting is right).
Really can't do ravenous seals...lion, tigers, or bears perhaps. But seals????
I was an 18-year old Postulant in a semi-cloistered women's religious community. An ancient, diminutive Sister named Thecla, would seek out all the "newbies". She would take both of your hands in her tiny ones, look into your eyes and say: "You must love the Lord passionately, passionately, passionately". Sister Thecla was the embodiment of Saint Thecla for me and for generations of women who wanted to follow the Lord.
SEC, there really needs to be a thumbs-up option. Not to elevate a particular comment over another in actual rankings, but to indicate, dare I say it, "ditto!"
Educate me. I've always thought the Church of England was born out of King Henry VIII's desire to divorce his first wife so that he could have a male heir. Thus, he became the head of a new Church of England, which was separate from the Catholic Church led by the Pope. If this is not true, I really would like to know the truth - no sarcasm meant here. I really would like to know.
It's my understanding that while the Church of England may have been born out of Henry's desire for a divorce, but it was not the only factor involved by any means. It was/is sort of a non-papal Catholicism, with lots of reform, though.
He wanted an annulment based on being too closely related, not a divorce, and the practice of such annulments as a technical way out of inconvenient marriages goes back pretty far - look at Eleanor of Aquitaine. The Pope's reasons for denying the annulment were as political as Henry's reasons for asking for it (if not more so - there's some suggestion Henry honestly thought God cursed him for marrying his brother's widow.) The ultimate question is how much authority should the Pope have, and again that's a very political one, and it ties into struggles England has been having for over 1,000 years before that (though they also had plenty of waves of loyalty to Rome, too,)
For me at least, that's the ultimate question - does the Bishop of Rome have more spiritual power or connection to God's will than any other religious leader? And my own answer is no, although I can understand that that position deserves a certain amount of respect for its historical importance.
In the century after Henry, John Milton scandalized England by arguing for divorce on grounds of incompatibility. Way ahead of his time. The C of E continued to oppose divorce (as distinct from annulment) for centuries and remains touchy on the subject of royal marriages. Back in tbe 60s my mother confided to our family doctor, a fellow Episcopalian, that she wanted a divorce from my father, and he told her, "We all have our crosses to bear." And my father probably rolled over in his grave when his
beloved Republican Party nominated a divorced and remarried man (the remarriage while the first spouse was still alive, not the divorce, is what the Church objected to; see the transcript of the Sir Thomas More trial), Ronald Reagan, for president. God and history have a weird sense of humor, as the lives of Saints and rulers show.
Susan, Henry was the only one in England with the political power to make the break with Rome happen. There were a number of clergy and others in the Church of England, not the least of whom was the Archbishop of Canterbury, who admired the reforms that were happening on the Continent and wanted to make changes in England as well. They had to wait until Henry had his own reasons to finally do it.
Thecla seems pretty unreal and Paul's views and beliefs uncharacteristic, so I'm going with Keble.
For those of us who don't get to Madness until coffee break, Pacific Standard Time, is there some way to go back to the comments of the previous day's match?
Yes, as a fellow PST person. When you first open Lentmadness.org, you can still scroll down to the previous days matchup and click on the names. Then at the top right of the page there is tiny script linking to the comments and you can click on that.
Thecla has my vote - a strong woman with deep convictions that she follows to the max in the face of familial opposition and the threat of death.
This is particularly a difficult choice. As a woman, I believe the enormous contributions of the female gender to God's church has and should continue to be recognized and honored. But John Keble's contribution to the Oxford Movement and the subsequent development of AA, Al-Anon, and all 12 Step Programs is too difficult to ignore! So many lives were transformed by Keble's life. My vote MUST be for this gentle parish priest.
It's the Oxford "Group" that influenced the founding of A.A.; the Oxford Movement was reform movement in the Church of England that began about a century earlier.
You had me at "ravenous seals."
Thecla also has my vote - but as an icon, a symbol, of the triumph of God's intent that we all are equal before the Lord's eyes in faith and respect in the Church, even if it's been 2000 years and we still aren't on the same page as our Creator.
Who's Thecla I asked when I received an icon as a gift from the estate of a retired deacon. It also said protomartyr. Wait! I thought Stephen was the protomartyr. So I looked Thecla up and first found her story. What I am reading today in these comments is the strong backgrounds of each of us. Thecla is/was more well known in the Eastern Church, Keble in Anglicanism. Thanks, SEC, for bringing the very large community of saints to our attention regardless of what faith background we come from (or not). And today I feel that Thecla is the underdog, so I'm voting for her.
Wow, first time actually reading the comments -- just terrific. I've read Keble before but this matchup sent me to read Thecla (in Bart Ehrman's "Lost Christianities"). Ehrman: Tertullian reported that a church tribunal tried and convicted a presbyter in Asia Minor for fabricating the miraculous tales of Thecla as a way to make Paul's journeys more exciting. I'm voting for Keble.
Tertullian had ulterior motives.
From Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acts_of_Paul_and_Thecla): "It is attested as early as Tertullian, De baptismo 17:5 (c 190), who inveighed against its use in the advocacy of a woman's right to preach and to baptize. "
Good catch. I'm changing my vote to Thecla. Better story anyway.
As I wrote above, please educate me on the other reasons. I'm sure the wealth of the Catholic Church was an issue, as was the ego of Henry being directed by the Pope. But what else? And, to me, you could apply the same to the U.S. Civil War; slavery was not the only issue, but it has become the cornerstone today. I seriously would like to know more, or if there's a book I can read to learn more, please suggest.
"There is a public perception, especially in the United States, that Henry VIII created the Anglican church in anger over the Pope's refusal to grant his divorce, but the historical record indicates that Henry spent most of his reign challenging the authority of Rome, and that the divorce issue was just one of a series of acts that collectively split the English church from the Roman church in much the same way that the Orthodox church had split off five hundred years before."
anglican.org/church/ChurchHistory.html
If you want to know more you should do your own research instead of asking us to enlighten you. Empower yourself! As did Thecla.
Into each vote a little snark must fall.
that remark did seem a little unfriendly.
Susan, the divorce and particularly Henry's desire for a male heir was part of the driving force in the English Reformation, but as others have said, there was a great deal more to it than that. And one of the tangled bits of the divorce/annulment matter is religious, as well. Henry's first wife had been married for some months to Henry's older brother, who died while still in his teens. There is a text in the old testament forbidding a brother marrying his brother's wife (Lev. 20:21) and it says the consequence shall be childlessness (or no son). Catherine had a great many pregnancies resulting in stillbirths or miscarriages or infants who died after very brief lives, so it perhaps did genuinely seem to Henry that he was being punished for this Biblical prohibition. The other thing is yes, there was a great deal of political struggle for power between secular princes and the Catholic church. But there was also widespread discontent with Catholic corruption--greedy and sexually active clergy, monasteries that did little good for the laity, priests with no schooling or preparation, being appointed through favoritism, the sale of indulgences (which was seen by reformers as a scam), and more. Efforts had been made to clear these things up, but to little avail, and so a number of clerics throughout Europe began to see breaking with the Catholic church as the only way to have a church that would adhere to ethical systems. Concurrently, there was a move to translate scriptures and perform services in the languages of the people--a concept fiercely resisted by the Catholic church. There was a lot going on, and after Henry got his divorce, he still took a very direct and hands-on approach to every bit of English reforms through the remaining years of his life.
Thecla for me. No particular reason other than I like Paul and his teachings. Tough choices either way!!!!
I usually enjoy the wild exploits of long-ago saints. Whether the stories are true or not they often still hold some message for me. Today though, it's John Keble because I love anyone who makes higher education more accessible so that more people have an opportunity to stretch themselves and contribute to the world without being limited by their class or birth.
So many people unthinkingly discount women's role in establishing the church. We need to hype ourselves to be recognized. Anyway Mary M saw the metaphor. Thecla was SEALED as a saint by God.
Great friendships portrayed. Though Paul and Thecla could be classed, today, a bit O-C D.
But the great friendships of Ambrose St John, John Newman and John Keble - what dimensions of conversation and mirth. He got my vote for his good company.
Although Thecla's name is unfamiliar in the West, she is remembered throughout the world.
St. Thecla Churches abound, and, until a few years ago, pilgrims came to visit what is purported to be her tomb in Ma'loula, Syria. A small mountain village north of Damascus, Ma'loula is one of the few places where Aramaic was in daily use by the villagers and the nuns who cared for the tomb, monastery and church.
Reached by climbing narrow, steep steps carved into the mountainside, flickering candles, sweet incense, and tiny vases of local flowers adorned Thecla's small,cramped cave tomb. Visiting her tomb was a holy experience heightened by the love and fervor of the Aramaic speaking nun who was our guide. How prophetic that she mirrored Thecla's emotions and call to proclaim Jesus as Lord!
Two years ago, Syrian rebels besieged the village, desecrated the church, and kidnapped approximately twelve nuns.
In honor of St. Thecla, of her determination to follow Christ despite the consequences, and of the nuns who loved and cared for her, my vote is for St. Thecla.
Shame on Paul for treating her so badly!
I think I'm going to have to vote for Thecla. I can't know if she was real, but her story is inspiring and full of mystery, kind of like a parable. I've never heard of ravenous seals before, but in prior comments there is a marvelous link about leopard seals killing a woman in Antarctica, so I'm not going to quibble. And if seals were synonymous with pests, then they illustrate the point well. Yep. I'm pretty sure I've talked myself into voting for Thecla. Pretty sure.
Thecla, you go girl. You get my vote, but RAVENOUS SEALS?? Must have been imported from Lebanon.
Could we have Seals in the Lentorium next year? After they have been thru the annual Pet Blessing, of course.
Brilliant! Maybe a collection of killer animals that show up in the lives of the saints?
If there are seals in the Lentorium next, I think we really do need to be fair and have snails there also.
'@Susan.... You can read lots more on this at Anglicans Online, under Church History at http://anglicansonline.org/basics/churchhistory.html
But here is some basic stuff......
"There is a public perception, especially in the United States, that Henry VIII created the Anglican church in anger over the Pope's refusal to grant his divorce, but the historical record indicates that Henry spent most of his reign challenging the authority of Rome, and that the divorce issue was just one of a series of acts that collectively split the English church from the Roman church in much the same way that the Orthodox church had split off five hundred years before." (Anglicans Online)
Neither story desperately inspired me, but I must say "Ravenous Seals" would be a marvelous name for a rock band!
My vote is for Keble on the grounds of historicity. Thecla seems to be a fictional character in a pious legend, similar to many of the legends which made the rounds in the ancient and medieval churches.
In other news, why are some commentor's names red and others black?
For those of you who doubt that diving in amongst the seals was brave, consider that penguins often fall victim to ravenous seals - in fact they will have the odd "volunteer" give up his life to save the multitude. A familiar story I'm sure.
It's Thecla for me.