 |  |
Angel Playing a Trumpet, detail from the Linaiuoli Triptych (1433)
OUTSIDE TEXT:
Gold Foil G-clef against the stars
And suddenly there was with the angels a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased. —Luke 2:13-14
INSIDE TEXT:
Merry Christmas
| Monecarlo Altarpiece |
'God Almighty, and with Him
Cherubim and Seraphim,
Filling all eternity-- GK Chesterton
Adonai Elohim.'
|
the first four Mary Poppins books
St Giles Kirk, Edinburgh
©1995-2007 Gazetteer for Scotland
Thistle Chapel ceiling. Photo: WordRidden
The hymn which he composed on his way to Worms,
and which he and his companion
chanted as they entered that city,
is a regular war-song. The old cathedral
trembled when it heard these novel
sounds.
The very rooks flew from their
nests in the towers. That hymn,
the Marseillaise of the Reformation, has
preserved to this day its potent spell
over German hearts."
Have you thought about a cathedral trembling from hymns!
These songs have been set in four parts, for no other
reason than because I wished to provide our young people
(who
both will and ought to be instructed in music and other
sciences) with something whereby they might rid
themselves of
amorous and carnal songs, and in their stead learn
something
wholesome, and so apply themselves to what is good with
pleasure, as becometh the young.
AND a taste of some of the theses:
Out of love for the truth and the desire to bring it to light, the following propositions will be discussed at Wittenberg, under the presidency of the Reverend Father Martin Luther, Master of Arts and of Sacred Theology, and Lecturer in Ordinary on the same at that place. Wherefore he requests that those who are unable to be present and debate orally with us, may do so by letter.
In the Name our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
1. Our Lord and Master Jesus Christ, when He said Poenitentiam agite, willed that the whole life of believers should be repentance.
94. Christians are to be exhorted that they be diligent in following Christ, their Head, through penalties, deaths, and hell;
95. And thus be confident of entering into heaven rather through many tribulations, than through the assurance of peace.
A quick, bright smile went round like a streak of sunshine. Beth clapped her hands, regardless of the biscuit she held, and Jo tossed up her napkin, crying, "A letter! A letter! Three cheers for Father!"
"Yes, a nice long letter. He is well, and thinks he shall get through the cold season better than we feared. He sends all sorts of loving wishes for Christmas, and an especial message to you girls," said Mrs. March, patting her pocket as if she had got a treasure there.
Origin
This comes from the practise of marking the dates of church festivals on calendars in red.
The first explicit reference to the term in print that we have comes from America. This is a simple use of the term "Red letter day" in the diary of Sarah Knight - The journals of Madam Knight, and Rev. Mr. Buckingham ... written in 1704 & 1710, which was published in American Speech in 1940.
The practice is much earlier than that though. William Caxton, referred to it in The boke of Eneydos, translated and printed in 1490:
"We wryte yet in oure kalenders the hyghe festes wyth rede lettres of coloure of purpre."
The term came into wider use in 1549 when the first Book of Common Prayer included a calendar with holy days marked in red ink. For example, Annunciation (Lady Day), 25th March, was designated in the book as a red-letter day.
The term is sometimes written without the hyphen - 'red letter day'.
DID you catch Rev. Mr. Buckingham!
The Wisdom of Little Women
Little Women was first published in October 1868. Louisa's publisher, Mr. Niles, had urged her to write a book for girls. She wrote:
“I plod away, through I don't enjoy this sort of thing. Never liked girls, or knew many, except my sisters, but our queer plays and experiences may prove interesting, though I doubt it. ... Sent twelve chapters to Mr. N. He thought it dull; so do I. But I work away and mean to try the experiment; for lively, simple books are very much needed for girls, and perhaps I can supply the need.”
~Journals of Louisa May Alcott, 1868
Seventeen years later, Louisa was able to write:
“The copyright made her fortune, and the “dull book” was the first golden egg of the ugly duckling.”
