www.byzcath.org Forums Faith & Christian Life Faith & Theology Troparion of the Groundhog

Living not far from the famed groundhog, we have a saying here in central PA. If it's reported taht we have six more weeks of winter, we say, "Let's eat the rat!"

BOB

But then, won't you be violating the fast?

I thank brother Edmac for his contribution to figuring out this quandry. I'm currently in email contact with Br. Lemuel from St. Raggedundie's Abbey in North-Westphalia in Germany. He purports to have a missal (from Paderborn) with the first written form of making of a rodent bishop on 2nd February, from the early 10th century. This investure happened during Lauds on that day, prior to the Candlemass ceremonies at Mass. If this missal does indeed exist, it would prove to debunk the myth of the Bobaki and cast off the shadow of St. Minimaximos, that Br. Lemuel says has been hanging over the Abbey since the 17th century visit of an anonymous Eastern hieromonk, and to rout out heresy and paganism from underneath the church. I am hoping to get facsimile copies of these pages sent to me and have been requested to send them off to certain liturgical experts in both Eastern and Western studies in Rome as well. Br. Lemuel says that this text is well guarded in a sub-terranean chamber in the cloister of the abbey and is only brought out briefly one morning each year, though will not tell me which it is. Please stay tuned.

Did any Old Calendar parishes keep this rite this morning??? Pictures would be much appreciated!

John K: interesting development. I do not think, however, that
we will find the two traditions to be related. The distance
in time and space is great, for one thing. On the other, recall
that the 10th Century was a BAD time for the Church, Germany,
and people in general, at least in the West.The terms "bishop"
and "rodent" might easily become associated in people's minds,
especially if the people were the subjects of a Prince-Bishop,
numerous in Germany.Why,the same association has even been made
in later centuries! (I am thinking of course of most of the
English bishops under Henry VIII and of the likes of Talleyrand).
Now, as you undoubtedly know from your perusal of VonSchmeckenmacher's
History of Monasticism in Northern
Westphalia and Western Saxony 731 - 1212ADSt. Raggeduddie's
Abbey's monks on just awful terms with Bishops of Muenster, Osnabruck, Cologne
and occasionally Utrecht during the whole
of the Tenth and Eleventh Centuries due to those prelates forcing their
sons, brothers, uncles and cousins
on the monks as their abbots and subsequently seizing upon
the entire stock of very strong beer produced by the monks,
leaving nothing for the good brothers. It would tick anyone off!
(Innocent III solved the problem by making the place an
Abbey of Papal Beer-Right, and taking only 10% of their beer.
This is probably why the monks stayed Catholic at the Reformation,
especially when they heard that Martin Luther liked
his beer). Anyhow, I can easily imagine the monks inaugurating
this ceremony of making a rodent-bishop in scorn and mockery
of their oppressors.

Let me know!

Edmac

Y'all have WAAAAAYY too much time on your hands. For which I am deeply grateful!

Some foods (and I use the term with reservations) are penitential by nature.

Also considering that the use of "fake foods" such as soy burgers and non-dairy creamer is considered cheating, perhaps taking advantage of the fast to abstain from a dubious delicacy such as ripe rodent might be considered too joyous an occasion for Great Lent.

Two questions:

Can we hold a vesperal liturgy the night before (of Presanctified Gifts) ?

Is there a potluck afterwards?

-- John

Well--if you're on the OS calendar, it's not Lent for you yet, so there is no need to celebrate the Liturgy of the Pre-Sanctified Gifts, either Great Vespers or the Vigil should be done. And, since it is a Great Feast, a potluck after the Vespers or Vigil would most definitely be in order!


Edmac--I did consult my VonSchmeckenmacher's, however I am missing pages 78-143 dealing with the great beer revolts. Photo-copies of yours would be greatly appreciated. What is your take on the visit of the mysterious hieromonk from the East to St. Raggedundie's in the 17th century? Do you have more on the life of St. Minimaximos? I'm trying to stay focused, but something smells of cross-pollenation of rites here! The committee in Rome is getting itchy for evidence! Br. Lemuel must be to church and bed by now, for it's 9:15 in Germany.

John K

John: alas, no! My copy of VonSchmeckenmacher was lent to the
Subprior of St. Pantagruel's Abbey in Duluth who needs it for
his magnum opus, Beer in the History of Western Christianity
and who is worse than usual at returning books. His name
is Fr. Obsurantissimus Heiligenkreutz-Murphy-O'Connor OSB if you care to write to him.
Try writing in Old High German if possible, or failing that, Middle Low German.
Avoid General In-Between German, as it is lost on him. In case you were wondering,
he is a second cousin once removed of the Archbishop of Westminster, and on the other side,
17th in line for the position
of Holy Roman Emperor, should that dignity be restored. He humbly
denies that he has any claim to be the Real High King of Ireland.
That claim belongs to his nephew Liam, a bartender on W. 45th
St. in Manhattan.

As for the mysterious hiero-monk, I strongly suspect that it
was Minimaximos himself who was a great wanderer. After seeing
his beloved Bobaki safely and warmly settled in the Crimea, he
is said to have wandered off in a northwesterly direction muttering
about needing a drink. (It was not the time of the
Great Fast, of course). A few months walking could easily have
brought him to St. Raggedundie's which, thanks to Innocent III,
had plenty of beer on hand. It was strong beer, mind you! Very
strong beer.

I need not tell you that the greatest of saints are still sinners.
I fear, I very much fear, that after a few pints of
St. Raggedundie's Reserve with, perhaps, the cellerer, or maybe
the precentor, or maybe both, Minimaximos heard the story of
their rodent-bishop and became envious. Here was a holy rodent
many centuries older than his, and belonging to these Western
schismatics! Not to be borne! Everything in the East is older,
better and more Orthodox than anything the West (except, of
course, the beer, he admitted that). I think Minimaxie
(for short) made up a tale that took the Holy Rodent of the Bobaki
back to the times of Cyril and Methodios, Apostles of the Slavs,
with himself as the renewer of the tradition. I think it is this
that
has niggled at the minds of the holy brothers of St. Raggedundie's ever since.
They were not sophisticated men, that
monastery being known for beer, not learning, and St. Minimaxi was
obviously very holy, since he levitated even when sober. He also glowed in the dark,
but this could have been because of the
uranium long after discovered in large quantities in the valleys
formerly inhabited by the Bobaki, but the monks were not to know
this.

The only other source for the life of St. Minimaximos is a late
18th Century biography written by Fr. Vanya Ilarionovich
McGillicuddy (a convert), parish priest of the Bobaki in the
time of Catherine the Great, and based on the stories told by
his oldest parishioners. There is a copy in the Patriachal
Library in Moscow, another in the Vatican, and a third in
the public library of Alice Springs, Australia. Be warned that
it is written in a mixture (as far an anyone can tell) of
very bad Russian, very bad Ukrainian and so-so Munster Irish.
Those dudes in Rome are just having to go bide their time.
(The only person I know of who could possibly translate it
would be Mitred Archmandrite Serge Keleher of Dublin).

I wonder if you have heard of the miracle of the revivification
of St. Minimaximos. It happened in the time of the Boshies, in
1920. A party of the heathen dogs came to St. Minimaximos' Church
in Crimea, the only one dedicated to him in the whole world,
and tried to dig up his remains, buried in the altar. They
succeeded, and found the remains to be incorrupt, although
smelling somewhat of beer. Buried with him was his trusty
iron-shod walking stick. While the boobies were gaping,
St. Minimaxie opens his eyes, jumps to his feet, and starts
laying about him vigorously with his walking stick meanwhile
singing the troparia of the day in a voice more than human.
When he had floored the lot, he gave a whistle, and the church
was suddenly full of sirokiwho mercilessly bit the
kommunistiwhere-ever they could have them. It is reported
that seventeen of the malefactors thereafter died of rabies,
while three, who fled the country, became monks. No unbeliever
has dared to come near the place ever since. The affair being
over, St. Minimaxie laid down in his grave and the faithful beasts reburied him
and there he remains to this day.

Do try to get access to the missing pages of
VonSchmeckenmacher. The beer wars were very dramatic.
Just think of the heroic defense of the
Brewery by the Bd. Thombongorus of Bubenheim, two
novices and a passing hostler against twenty four
men-at-arms belonging to the insatiable Bishop
of Osnabruck in the year 993. The four heros died,
but not before they had slaughtered the men-at-arms.
I am happy to report that when the Emperor Otto I
heard of it, he had the bishop drowned in a barrel of
beer. Cheap beer.
Edmac

Thank God somebody has finally translated this troparion to the holy groundhog Basil. Was the text from the Slavonic or the original Greek?

Ukrainian

Hmm. What are the groundhog's views on the Filioque?

Fr. Serge

This translation appears to have all the markings of I.H. on it. I would guess that it was from the Slavonic and not the Greek.

Happily for the peace of the Church, the groundhog is unable
to express his (or, it may be, her) views on the Filioque.

AMEN!

Prayers for those Clergy, and any others, who consistently bring forward divisive issues.

May the Lord show them ways to be constructive.