With Georgina Protheroe Beynon

Mary in England

How did Mary become so revered in England?
Christianity came to pagan Britain by the mid-second century from the Celtic Christians. In 597 AD Augustine brought Roman ways and. the ascetic, fervent Celtic church gave way to legalistic Roman discipline from the Synod of Whitby in 664 AD During this time a steady form of inculturation was taking place. There were many shrines devoted to female gods, often near wells or caves. Mary (Acts 1:14) the model disciple,with her perfect assent and compliance with the will of God, gently superseded these euhemerous deities.*

May is Mary’s Month. Why is this?.
May became Mary’s Month taking over from the pagan Flora, goddess of Spring. In pagan belief, every plant had its own deity. Christian missionaries wisely dedicated all plants to Our Lady. Two of the most familiar are the rose and the lily. Consider making your own “Mary Garden” on a windowsill, patio or border.

Why is England known as "Mary’s Dowry"?
From 700 AD most reformed monasteries were dedicated to Mary. By Norman times, her cult and the ideal of chivalry were firmly intertwined. King Richard II in thanksgiving for the safety of his realm, solemnly dedicated England as "Mary’s Dowry" in 1347 in the Chapel of Our Lady of Pew (power) in the Palace of Westminster. Following the Reformation, iconoclasts condemned devotion to Our Lady as mere idolatry. These rabid fundamentalists forgot that one never goes alone to Jesus. No-one does. We all have our teachers who show us the way. Mary, the Mediatrix of all Graces helps us on our rocky path to her Son. Just as our faith is grounded in love, why should we not love Mary our Mother; given us by Jesus on Calvary? She is a bridge to all Christians. Revered by Islam in the Quran. Our ideal of motherhood, our ally and our friend.

Pilgrim Paths
Going on Pilgrimage was a familiar part of medieval life, from the little local shrines to holy places all over Europe and the Middle East. Today, Cardinal Cormac Murphy O’Connor encourages us to rediscover the Mary-paths of Pilgrimage. From the Scilly Isles to the Borders, Glastonbury is probably the earliest. Walsingham is the most durable, founded around 1130 AD. Recently, near Liskeard in Cornwall, Ladye Park, particularly dedicated to Christian unity, has been restored. Even science bows to Mary. Recent geophysical research on magnetic flow in the earth, has revealed the phenomenon of the “Mary and Michael lines”. From Land’s End to Walsingham there is a line of churches, shrines and holy wells dedicated to Mary. Where is your nearest Mary Shrine? Make this your month of Pilgrimage.

* Euhemerous was a 3rd Century BCE philosopher who held that gods of mythology are deified mortals; their deeds the amplification of human acts with all their inherent faults &. myth is interpreted as history transformed by imagination.

THE RECIPE:
"Mystical Rose, Lily of the Valley, Garden of Delight, Bud of Promise" are all loving names that we give to Mary. Like the Coptic Christians who call her "Ya Habibi" meaning "O my Darling," we call on our heavenly Mother as a dear friend. Here is a cake to help you celebrate in May. It’s full of tender young carrots which remind us of the third and sixth days of Creation and the loving gifts of God.( Gen 1:1: 9-14, 29-31)
9 eggs,separated
1½ cups mashed cooked carrots
1¾ cups sugar
1 tablsp grated zest of orange
1 tablsp brandy
2½ cups ground almonds
Line base & sides of a 9” springform pan & pre-heat your oven. Beat yolks of eggs with sugar till thick, fold in the carrots, almonds, zest and brandy. Fold in the stiffly beaten whites of eggs. Turn into prepared pan. Bake at 325ºF for 50 mins. Drizzle orange juice* over it when it comes out of the oven. Cool and remove from the pan when cool.
*(You could use Cointreau instead. on the 13th for Fatima or the 24th for Our Lady Help of Christians)