Whew! Well, that was quite a start to Lent Madness 2018. The epic battle between Peter and Paul did not disappoint. In very heavy and heart-thumpingly close voting, Peter edged Paul 51% to 49% with nearly 9,500 votes cast and will face the winner of Phoebe vs. John the Evangelist in the Round of the Saintly Sixteen.
Today Margaret of Scotland takes on Charles I in a Battle Royale. No, literally, it's a battle between royals -- queen vs. king. But please don't refer to this as regicide. Charles is a bit touchy on that subject.
Looking ahead, tomorrow will be the one and only matchup of Lent Madness that takes place on a Saturday. Every other pairing will take place on the weekdays of Lent. So don't forget to set your alarm, make your coffee, and then vote as Genesius takes on Quiteria.
But first, a reminder about our one-vote-per-person rule. Last night at 7:58 pm Eastern time, the SEC removed 254 votes from Paul. We found that someone in Little Rock, Arkansas, had voted for Paul repeatedly (we can verify that it was not Bill Clinton). This person was cast into the outer darkness of Lent Madness, where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth. We do appreciate saintly passion. But we ask that everyone respect the integrity of this little competition. We do keep an eye on voting irregularities. Think Big Brother -- only more purple.
Margaret of Scotland
Margaret of Scotland is the patron saint of that country. An English princess born in 1045 in exile in Hungary, Margaret was also known as Margaret of Wessex and the Pearl of Scotland, homages to both her social status and her lifelong ministry.
Princess Margaret was married to King Malcom III of Scotland, the same Malcolm immortalized by William Shakespeare in Macbeth. A deeply religious Christian, Margaret was a reformer and social justice crusader. She helped build and restore churches throughout Scotland, including Iona Monastery and the Abbey of Dunfermline, where a relic of the cross of Christ was housed and where she would eventually be buried.
Margaret endeavored to change the aged and dated ways of the clergy in Scotland, bringing that church on par with the religious practices conducted elsewhere in Christendom. For example, she believed that on the Lord’s Day, “We apply ourselves only to prayers.” She was also known to read the Bible to her illiterate spouse.
Margaret was a queen and the mother of kings, queens, a countess, and a bishop. Notwithstanding, of particular significance is that she can be considered the true patron saint of Lent Madness! As an observance of her faith, Margaret insisted that clergy start the Lenten season on Ash Wednesday.
She was a reformer beyond the church as well, establishing schools, orphanages, and hospitals throughout Scotland. Margaret and Malcolm were tireless in their efforts to improve the living conditions of the Scottish clans. Many churches are dedicated to Margaret, such as St. Margaret’s Chapel in Edinburgh Castle, founded by her son King David I in the twelfth century. Today the chapel is one of the oldest remaining buildings in Edinburgh.
Margaret died on November 16, 1093, in Edinburgh, three days after her husband and eldest son were killed in battle. Canonized in 1250, she is honored on
November 16.
Collect for Margaret of Scotland
O God, you called your servant Margaret to an earthly throne that she might advance your heavenly kingdom, and gave her zeal for your Church and love for your people: Mercifully grant that we who commemorate her this day may be fruitful in good works, and attain to the glorious crown of your saints; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Charles I
Charles Stuart was born in November of 1600, the second son of Anne of Denmark and James IV of Scotland. When he was eighteen, his elder brother died, and Charles took his place in the royal succession. Charles I became the king of England upon his father’s death in March of 1625.
As king, Charles did not get along with Parliament. They wanted a Protestant queen to bear a Protestant heir; Charles didn’t listen. He married Henrietta Maria, a Roman Catholic French princess, in May, 1625.
Meanwhile, the Thirty Years’ War was raging across Europe, pitting Protestants against Catholics, so his subjects expected Charles to despise the Catholic countries out of patriotism. Charles fought Catholic Spain but kept running out of money and raising taxes, which did not help national morale.
In 1633, Charles appointed William Laud as Archbishop of Canterbury. Together, they pushed for liturgical reforms, including many that are familiar practices to us today, such as adherence to the prayer book rubrics, use of vestments and candles, and the institution of the altar rail. To a large extent, Charles and Laud shaped Anglicanism in the way that we experience it today.
Yet his marriage, wars, and religious changes combined to create a toxic environment for King Charles. The English populace wondered if their king was Protestant or Catholic. Unrest grew. Charles’s refusal to convene Parliament for eleven years threw the country into civil war. Charles was captured in May, 1646. He was tried on charges of treason and other “high crimes” and was executed on January 30, 1649.
At his execution, one historian records that the crowd was overcome with grief and pushed forward to dip their handkerchiefs in his blood as relics. It was commonly thought that Charles was offered his life in exchange for abandoning the historic episcopate, yet he refused. Despite some failures as a monarch, he preserved the historic episcopate in Anglicanism, and ironically, may have enabled the Church to survive the English Civil War.
Collect for Charles I
Blessed Lord, in whose sight the death of thy saints is precious; We magnify thy Name for thine abundant grace bestowed upon our martyred Sovereign; by which he was enabled so cheerfully to follow the steps of his blessed Master and Saviour, in a constant meek suffering of all barbarous indignities, and at last resisting unto blood; and even then, according to the same pattern, praying for his murderers. Let his memory, O Lord, be ever blessed among us; that we may follow the example of his courage and constancy, his meekness and patience, and great charity...And all for Jesus Christ his sake, our only Mediator and Advocate. Amen.
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342 comments on “Margaret of Scotland vs. Charles I”
Comedian Eddie Izzard had some strong opinions about Charles I. (Check it out on Youtube.) I voted for Margaret. Unfortunately, two of my staff members pitted themselves against each other. Margaret - glad to support your saint. Geoffrey - don't be angry with me!
Margaret of Scotland and her Christian zeal for social justice and church rebuilding.
I had to vote Charels because we Protestants have to stick together. Lol
Well, I appear to be in the minority here, with a vote for Charles. I like the fact that he stayed true to his own mind, kept the episcopate intact, and started the civil war. Those were necessary evils that had to be borne, and he did them with Grace and Humility. So for me, it's one for ol' Chuckie.
I feel rather sorry for Charles I, and don't think he's nearly as bad as he's been painted.
That said, my vote still goes to Margaret of Scotland!
Being from South Carolina, I must make a plea for Charles. Not only is he (or at least his son) our state's namesake and mine, his travails are also ours. He was martyred by the forces of Reformed biblical fundamentalist who disdained the essential elements of Anglicanism - the via media, the three-legged stool, the prayerbook, the lectionary, hierarchy,etc. - in their quest for the perfectly pure and biblically-based church. His battle is the same as ours in our Diocese today.
I have always admired Margaret of Scotland for several reasons so had to vote for her here. Go, Margaret (sorry, Charles)!
Considered a vote for Charles I, simply because of the shout-out to his queen, Henrietta Maria, after whom my home state is named. (Henriettaland--you haven't heard of it?) But then I remembered that the Roman Catholic settlers who came here named their settlement St Mary's City, on the St Mary's River, and that the whole "named the colony after the queen" thing was most likely political bunk. So I cast my vote for Margaret of Scotland, who certainly seems more saintly to me!
I voted for Charles I because he granted the release of my ancestor Rev. John Lothropp/Lathrop (1584-1653), liberal minister of the First Independent Church of London, from the Tower of London providing that he left the country. He with 4 of his sons and many members of his congregation sailed to America, finally settling in a new town, Barnstable, Massachusetts.
Margaret had me at Iona--a "thin" holy space indeed! (and puffins near by--what more could one want in a pilgrimage site?)
I voted for Charles in part because of the Altar Rail, in part because of the historic episcopate. Thanks be to God for the Anglican/Episcopal branch of the Church!!!
Interesting: I note that many Margarets voted for St Margaret because of her name; I didn’t see a single vote for Charles from Chucks or Charlies out there. Not quite sure what that signifies, but I note it nonetheless! In another pairing, I might have voted for Charles... but up against Margaret, he didn’t stand much of a chance.
Had to cast a vote for Charles I in honor of my son, father, great-grandfather, and grandfather-in-law!
Here's a reason for a vote for Margaret that hasn't been mentioned. When I made my Cursillo (Diocese of North Carolina, Cursillo #61), I was at the table of St. Martin of Tours. But one of the other tables was of St. Margaret, and every time that group announced who they were, one of the men with a beautiful low bass voice would always add "of Scotland." I can hear his voice to this day.
Don't tarnish the Halo! Vote for Mags!
I remember one of my favorite lines from a old favorite books (1066 and All That)
"Cavaliers - wrong but wromantic
Roundheads-right but repulsive"
Wow, I remember that book! Glad I'm not the only one.
I'm off to a bad start. Paul made it possible for me to be a Gentile Christian. He was defeated. Charles and William Laud (and some others) made it possible for me to be the Anglican I am today. He too seems to be going down to defeat. Hope things go better in the days to come.
Dear SEC,
I wanted to refresh my memory of info about Charles and the English succession, so I looked him up. Oops! I was right: something was awry in our description. He was NOT the son of James IV, but of James VI. Edits, please. (And thank you.)
Margaret is running away with this match! It seems that many voters decided easily on their vote, as I did. Go Margaret!!
Charles I "meek"??? A martyr? Hardly! He was a real divine-right-of-kings guy. The very fact that he refused to convene Parliament reminds me too much of despots everywhere. Queen Margaret all the way!
Grandma Nancy Margaret (known familiarly as "Mag"); Aunt Margaret; my nickname as a child, Peggy (though my name is Lucy); but more importantly, St. Margaret was Scottish, willing and able to improve the lot of her people, restored Iona (with which I have a very intuitive and subjective connection and long to visit), and read to her husband. She gets my vote.
Of course I voted for Margaret, she's one of my ancestors!
It should be noted, surely, that Charles, King and Martyr is a direct descendant of Margaret of Scotland.
I was going to say that this was surely the first time Lent Madness had pitted relatives against each other. Then I had a dim memory of it happening to brothers Cyril and Methodius.
And what is out of place in good Anglican discussion is not necessarily out of place in Lent Madness. My first post of today, in which I snarkily trashed not just Charles but the SEC as well and employed the barbarism “coronated” for rhetorical effect, is living proof.
How’d I do that?
Thank you. We do forget that no villian is purely evil, and no saint is completely saintly. Yes. Maybe we have her to thank for this sometimes-fiasco that is western medicine. We of the establishment scarcely imagine that what we have to offer might be something less than ideal, to say nothing of the comparison to what it replaces.
I've got a middle schooler. At this point I am entirely given to any and all civility and structure around wooing. I'm glad the ladies, and gentlemen, of history have persevered in their effort to raise the standard. Art may rise from the basest motives, but it is the art itself that raises them.
Loving in truth, and fain in verse my love to show,
That she (dear She) might take some pleasure of my pain:
Pleasure might cause her read, reading might make her know,
Knowledge might pity win, and pity grace obtain,
I sought fit words to paint the blackest face of woe,
Studying inventions fine, her wits to entertain:
Oft turning others' leaves, to see if thence would flow
Some fresh and fruitful showers upon my sun-burned brain.
But words came halting forth, wanting Invention's stay,
Invention, Nature's child, fled step-dame Study's blows,
And others' feet still seemed but strangers in my way.
Thus great with child to speak, and helpless in my throes,
Biting my truant pen, beating myself for spite,
'Fool' said my Muse to me, 'look in thy heart and write.'
Sidney, "Astrophil and Stella" (but you knew that)
Also brothers John and Charles
Here's hoping that after this year's contest, both of Susannah's boys will sport the Golden Halo.
Today's choice pits two of Scottish heritage against each other, a kind of civil war of its own. Nevertheless, the vote must go on. I was born in Scotland of a Scottish mother, and half of my family lives in Scotland. I have been to Edinburgh and Iona several times (more times to Iona!). I have had the privilege of taking my two children to Scotland and seeing my daughter as a 10-year old pray in St. Margaret's Chapel. St. Margaret's faux stained glass window hangs in my house. Surprise! I vote for Margaret. That said, my father took both of his theology degrees (B.D. and Ph.D.) at Glasgow, and the fact that St. Margaret is an Edinburgh lass made it a harder choice (not).
The gremlins in my computer did it again ! They dropped days' worth of Lent Madness info. That I could handle, but when they dropped the Peter/Paul match until it was too late to vote, I was ready to strangle them all. I'm glad, however, that this match was the first for the season. I was afraid that we were going to have it at the End of all the voting.
It's a landslide, hanging chads and all!!!
Almost persuaded to vote for Charles because of the episcopate thing and the prayer, but love St. Margaret of Scotland too much! She has always been one of my favorite saints. P. S. I so enjoy St. Celia’s comments! I too, wish we had emoji responses!
I've been to that little chapel in Edinburgh Castle several times - it is a peaceful, holy little place.
St Margaret because of her connection to Iona gets my vote. I love the music of Iona.
Reading between the lines I see an argument that Margaret was involved in a top-down imposition of continental norms on a native Celtic church. In a battle of personally pious autocrats, I'll go with today's underdog--Charles the martyr.