Lent begins with Ash Wednesday
Before Our Lady of Peace Parish's noon service in Ashtabula, Father John Keehner said he had a busy day planned out.
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National Geographic
17-07-2025
- National Geographic
Nun's skeleton reveals that some ancient women were extreme hermits
Head of a holy woman, from a mosaic in Turkey. Photograph By Bridgeman Images Today the most extreme forms of devotion to God in Christianity involve tithing, abstaining from meat on Fridays and during Lent, taking religious orders and devoting oneself to a life of celibacy, and, perhaps, taking vows of poverty or even silence. All of these practices pale next to the forms of asceticism practiced in the Byzantine period, when the most dedicated monks isolated themselves from human contact in the desert, restricted their food and sleep, wrapped themselves in uncomfortable sore-inducing chains, and lived their lives on top of small pillars. Traditionally, the most hardcore ascetics were believed to have been men, but recent scholarly and archeological research has revealed that female monastics were equally devoted to self-mortification. In 1924, excavations at Khirbat el-Masaniʾ near Ramat Shlomo (in Israel) uncovered a Byzantine monastery dating to approximately 350–650 CE. Located just three kilometers northwest of Old Jerusalem, the monastery stood along one of the main roads leading from Jaffa and Lydda to the city. Among the tombs discovered at the site were the remains of an unidentified individual unusually wrapped in a metal chain. During the fifth century CE, as Christian monasticism was on the rise, the practice of self-chaining gained popularity among ascetics in Syria. Asceticism and bodily self-denial was seen as a way of emulating the suffering of Christ and drawing closer to God. At the time the tombs were excavated, it was widely believed that such ascetic practices were exclusive to men. So for nearly a century, scholars assumed this person had been male. However, a recent study employing advanced DNA analysis has revealed that the remains belonged to a woman. This would make this one of the first-ever archaeological finds of extreme asceticism among Byzantine women. (Eight things people get wrong about ancient Rome) Byzantine-style mosaic of the Garden of Eden, part of the Old Testament cycle from the Monreale Cathedral Mosaics in Palermo, Siciliy. The Latin inscription reads, MULIER SUGGESTIONI SERPENTIS TULIT DE FRUCTU ET COMEDIT DEDITQUE VIRO SUO ('At the serpent's suggestion, the woman picked the fruit and ate it, and gave it to the man.') Photograph By Ghigo Roli / Bridgeman Images Byzantine churches were often decorated with shimmering mosaics, portraying events from the life of Christ on their upper walls. This fragmentary head of Christ, with its caring expression, is probably from such a scene. Photograph By Gift of Mary Jaharis, in memory of her late husband, Michael, 2017, The Metropolitan Museum of Art A self-tormenting nun During the original excavation of Khirbat el-Masaniʾ, archaeologists uncovered two crypts containing scattered skeletal remains of multiple individuals—including children, women, and men. Based on the grave goods, burial context, and stratigraphy, these interments were dated to the fifth century CE. A third tomb, which held the highly fragmentary remains of the chained individual, was also discovered. At the time, the bones were too incomplete to determine the individual's sex or age at death. But this spring, a team of Israeli researchers, led by archeological scientists Dr. Paula Kotli from the Weizmann Institute of Science, finally pinned down an identity. By conducting a proteomic analysis on enamel obtained from the only tooth recovered from the tomb, the team determined that burial belonged to an adult aged between 30 and 60 years old at the time of their death. The results, published in the Journal of Archaeological Science, proved that the individual buried in chains in tomb three was actually a woman. As the authors note, 'the ascetic nun symbolizes a phenomenon of isolation, perhaps enclosure, and in extreme cases self-torment. This is the first evidence showing that the Byzantine self-torment ritual was performed by women and not exclusively by men.' The discovery marks a significant advance in the methods used to determine sex in fragmentary remains. Yet, evidence for asceticism among late antique women is more widespread than one might assume. (Christianity struggled to grow—until this skeptic became a believer) Detail of the 'Procession of Virgins' mosaics from the Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo in Ravenna, Byzantine School, 6th century. Photograph By Leemage/Corbis/Getty Images Dr. Caroline Schroeder, Professor of Women's and Gender Studies and Professor of Data Scholarship at the University of Oklahoma and author of several pioneering studies on monasticism, told National Geographic, 'in late antiquity and Byzantium, people of all genders engaged in a wide variety of ascetic practices. In Egypt in the fourth and fifth centuries we have irrefutable evidence from papyri, monastic letters, and episcopal writings for women who practiced asceticism in their family homes, in homes they themselves owned or rented, and in communities of women [monasteries].' In general, asceticism meant abstaining from sex (even if married), limiting one's food intake, withdrawing from the world, rigorous engagement with prayer, and a life of discomfort and seclusion. These practices were not limited to Egypt. In Syria, we have copious evidence documenting what might be considered more extreme forms of asceticism. Schroeder mentioned a ninth-century male monk who described a women's monastery he encountered where residents lived in seclusion as stylites. Stylites 'were monks who lived for years atop a tall pillar, often exposed to nature's elements and totally dependent upon people on the ground to provide them with food and water,' Schroeder explained. 'The most famous is the original stylite, Symeon the Elder, who lived on his pillar for 36 years, praying, doing prostrations and other exercises, and experiencing physical decay. People came from all over for his blessings, to hear his preaching, and also to request his judgments in disputes between individuals and political leaders.' Stylites were physically constrained by the pillars—they were not able to stretch out fully, there were no bathroom breaks (which caused quite a stench), and they were exposed to the elements—and they also survived on limited sustenance and without the comfort of companionship. Schroeder pointed out that 'a monastery with women stylites is evidence that some women practiced as physically rigorous and severe asceticism as men.' With respect to the new study of the chained woman from outside Jerusalem, Schroeder pointed to an example recorded by fifth-century CE theologian Theodoret of Cyrrhus in his Religious History. In this collection of saint's lives, Theodoret describes visiting two Syriac sisters, Marana and Cyra, who wore heavy iron rings and chains as a form of extreme self-denial. According to Theodoret, these women lived in a roofless house—that exposed them to the unforgiving elements—the door of which had been sealed with mud and stones so that they were shut off from the world and unable to leave. Small windows allowed for food and water to be passed to the women. (Schroeder told me that Theodoret says that, since he was a bishop, they allowed him to dig through the door to see them.) The women wore iron collars, iron belts, and chains on their hands and feet. Even though the two women were secluded from the world, they, like Symeon the Stylite, became ancient Christian celebrities. They attracted pilgrims who travelled to receive their blessing. Saint Donatus, priest and anchorite, from "Les Images De Tous Les Saincts et Saintes de L'Année" (Images of All of the Saints and Religious Events of the Year.) Print By Jacques Callot , The Metropolitan Museum of Art Gender is a complicating question when it comes to asceticism because some women dressed as men when they entered monasteries. Dr. Christine Luckritz Marquis, Associate Professor of Church History at Union Presbyterian Seminary and author of 'Better Off Dead? Violence, Women, and Late Ancient Asceticism,' said 'the reality is that we have many individuals who were trans saints. While some women might merely dress as male monks to safely practice asceticism among men, there is no reason to believe that others did not truly feel themselves trans monks. And some men were castrated, becoming eunuchs for God, so they too did not fit into a simple two-sex binary.' The more fluid gender categories were complicated by the ambivalent attitude that male religious leaders had toward women in general. For commentators like Theodoret, Schroeder added, ascetic women were 'a bit of a paradox… On the one hand, women were viewed as inherently weaker than men and also the gender that carried the guilt of Eve for breaking God's command in the Garden of Eden. But on the other hand, they were capable of such strenuous devotions and, when they achieved them, were seen as even extra holy for going beyond the expectations of their gender.' An anchorhold against the south wall of All Saints church in Norfolk, United Kingdom. Built circa 1500 CE, it would have housed an anchorite devoted to solitary prayer. Photograph By UrbanImages/ Alamy From late antiquity onwards, into the medieval period, women's asceticism persisted. Anchorites—men and women who walled themselves up in permanent enclosures in lifelong solitary confinement—became more common among European women. Many of them lived in small cells, known as anchorholds, that were attached to local churches. In German-speaking regions, bishops would say the office for the dead as the anchorite entered their cell as a symbol of the ascetic's death to the world. Though small windows allowed them a limited view of the church's altar and access to food, water and the Eucharist, anchorites took vows to remain in their cells. The eleventh-century hagiographer Goscelin of Saint-Bertin refers to several anchorites who burned—or came close to burning—alive when the towns in which they lived in were sacked or looted. Other women embraced physical suffering an illness. In her book Holy Feast and Holy Fast, Caroline Walker Bynum documents the centrality of pain and illness to the spiritual lives of late medieval women. For those women even self-inflicted illness was a way of drawing near to God. Bynum writes that 'some Italian saints drank pus or scabs from lepers' sores.' In the German Nonnenbücher, a fourteenth-century collection of inspirational spiritual biographies of nuns authored by women, the desire for illness was so strong that the sisters exposed themselves 'to bitter cold' and prayed 'to be afflicted with leprosy.' The late fourteenth century, French anchoress Jane Mary of Maillé, 'stuck a thorn into her head in remembrance of Christ's crown of thorns.' As late as the sixteenth century, an account of the life of St. Alda of Siena recalled that she slept on a bed of paving stones, whipped herself with chains, and wore a crown of thorns. 'Among the more bizarre female behaviors' in this period, writes Bynum, 'were rolling in broken glass, jumping into ovens, hanging from a gibbet, and praying upside down.' For modern readers the critical question is why late antique people would want to engage in these practices of self-punishment and self-effacement at all. Theodoret characterizes Marana and Cyra's ascetic devotion as a kind of spiritual athleticism. Schroeder explained that the women took on these goals 'on these challenging practices with joy, knowing that the 'goal' or prize of their contests is a 'crown of victory' and eternity with Christ their 'beloved.'' Luckritz Marquis agreed, saying that while there were many reasons that people practiced asceticism, the goal was 'ultimately to be closer to God.'
Yahoo
27-06-2025
- Yahoo
The Fishy McDonald's Menu Item That Was Discontinued After Only Three Months
The Filet-o-Fish has been a McDonald's mainstay for decades, debuting nationwide in 1965 after a Cincinnati branch created it because of sales tanking on Fridays during Lent. The iconic cheese- and tartar sauce-topped fish sandwich has stood the test of time, but it isn't the only seafood menu option McDonald's has ever had. The fast food giant has tried out others over the years, including fried fish nuggets called Fish McBites that disappeared after only three months. McDonald's was looking for ways to rev up sales amid a decline when it put Fish McBites on the menu in the U.S. in February 2013, also coinciding with Lent, when Catholics can't eat meat on Fridays. It had tested the bite-sized fish in a few markets a year earlier, after the success at the time of its Chicken McBites. Small pieces of Alaska pollock (the same real fish used for the Filet-o-Fish) were breaded and fried, with a seasoned coating that included dried garlic, dried onion, and spices. You could buy a 10-McBite snack size, 15-piece regular, or 30-piece shareable, and they came in a carton that fit in a car's cupholder, with a slot on top to hold the tartar sauce mini-cup. There was also a Fish McBites Happy Meal for kids, with company research showing moms wanted more seafood from McDonald's. Fish McBites were introduced as a limited-time item, but that can always change if a product takes off. However, despite the ad campaign's catchy "Fishy Fishy!" jingle, customers didn't warm up to them, and they came off the menu in April 2013. Read more: Fast Food Chains That Serve The Highest And Lowest Quality Fish Sandwiches Despite Fish McBites never becoming popular, there are still fans who want McDonald's to bring them back. A petition launched in 2019 that called for a return of the "really delicious" fish nuggets garnered 965 signatures. Supportive comments were posted as recently as 2024, including one calling them "delicate, delectable delicacies." McDonald's never responded. McBites may be long gone in the U.S., but a close copy surfaced in the U.K. and Ireland in 2024, available only at some locations. Called Fish Bites -- minus the "Mc" -- they're very similar, if not quite identical. They're also breaded, fried fish nuggets made with Alaska pollock, however the coating appears to be plain, with no dried garlic, onion, or spices among the ingredients. A few McDonald's fans also remember a super-obscure seafood item from around the same time called Shrimp McBites. A Redditor posted about them looking for information after coming up empty in online searches. One respondent said they emailed McDonald's, and the company answered, saying they were breaded, fried whole shrimp with mild salt and pepper flavor that came with cocktail sauce. But if you blinked, you missed them. They were only sold in three Illinois McDonald's locations for less than five weeks, from March 25 to April 29, 2013. Anyone really interested in trying a McDonald's shrimp offering, however, could always hop a plane to Japan, where Mickey D's serves an unbeatable shrimp burger. For more food and drink goodness, join The Takeout's newsletter. Get taste tests, food & drink news, deals from your favorite chains, recipes, cooking tips, and more! Read the original article on The Takeout.
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Yahoo
A new Target boycott begins June 3. Here's what to know in Wisconsin
Another boycott of Target begins on June 3, the latest in a series of week-long spending freezes targeting major corporations across the U.S. The Minneapolis-based retailer been the subject of several other actions this year, including a boycott on the fifth anniversary of George Floyd's murder, a Black History Month boycott and a 40-day "fast" organized by faith leaders to coincide with Lent. Like previous week-long boycotts, the action was organized by The People's Union USA. John Schwarz, the group's leader, told The Arizona Republic the boycotts aren't directly related to companies' DEI positions, but rather to "hold corporations and corrupt systems accountable." In January, Target announced it would be ending its DEI program this year after President Donald Trump returned to office. Here's what Wisconsin shoppers should know: The Target boycott begins on June 3 and runs through June 9. Though the spending freeze is intended to last for a week, a post on Schwarz's Instagram indicated the group is calling for a "permanent boycott" of the retailer. "They've had their chance," the post said. "Now we show them the true power of the people. There are 38 Target locations across Wisconsin, according to its store directory. The People's Union USA has more consumer boycotts through July. Here's the schedule: McDonald's: June 24-30 Independence Day boycott: July 4 After these week-long boycotts, the group has also planned month-long boycotts for July and August, according to Schwarz's Instagram. In July, consumers are urged to boycott Starbucks, Amazon and Home Depot. Walmart, McDonald's and Lowes are the subject of August's boycotts. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Why are Wisconsin consumers boycotting Target this week?
