“On Mount Gargano, the
commemoration of the blessed archangel Michael. This festival is kept in memory of the day, when under his
invocation, was consecrated a church, unpretending in its exterior, but endowed
with virtue celestial.”
If Michaelmas day be fair,
the sun will shine much in the winter, though the wind at the northeast will
frequently reign long and be very sharp.
If Michael's day is quiet
and beautiful, it will last for the next four weeks.
If the wind is out of the
north on Michael's day, then October will be dry.
On Michaelmas day, the heat
leaves us.
A dark Michaelmas, a light
Christmas.
St. Michael's rain does not
stay long in the sky.
As many days old as the moon
is on Michaelmas, so many floods shall we have after. [the moon will be twenty-four days old this year. That’s quite a number of floods.]
If it rains on Michaelmas,
it will rain up to Christmas.
If there is a gentle rain on
St. Michael's day, we can expect a mild winter; but if there is thunder, winter
will have heavy winds.
If it does not rain on St.
Michael and St. Gallus (October 16), a dry spring is indicated for the next
year.
The winds between 6 a.m and
6 p.m. today foretell the character of the winds in the following year. For
example, if the wind during the hour of 8 a.m. is heavy and cold, then March
will have heavy weather and cold winds.
The winds between 6 am and 7
am indicate the character of January.
Between 7 am and 8 am, that
of February,
Between 8 am and 9 am, that
of March,
Between 9 am and 10 am, that
of April,
Between 10 am and 11 am,
that of May,
Between 11 am and 12 noon,
that of June,
Between 12 noon and 1 pm,
that of July,
Between 1 pm and 2 pm, that
of August,
Between 2 pm and 3 pm, that
of September,
Between 3 pm and 4 pm, that
of October,
Between 4 pm and 5 pm, that
of November,
Between 5 pm and 6 pm, that
of December.
[and thank goodness there are only 12 months.]
"If thou wilt see how
it will go that year, then take heed of the Oak-Apples about S. Michael's day,
for by them you shall know how by them it shall be:
If the Apples of the
Oak-trees, when they be cut be within full of spiders, then followeth a naughty
year [oooo, that sounds like fun];
if the Apples have within
them Flies, that betokens a meetly good year;
if they have Maggots in
them, then followeth a good year [and a
sudden loss of altitude for the apple];
if there be nothing in them,
then followeth a great Dearth;
if the Apples be many, and
early ripe, so shall it be an early Winter, and very much snow shall be afore
Christmas, and after that it shall be cold;
if the inner part or kernel
be fair and clear, then shall the Summer be fair, and Corn good also;
but if they be moist, then
shall the Summer also be moist;
if they be lean, then shall
there be a hot and dry Summer."
The Husbandman's Practice, or Prognostication for ever
Traditions: Eat a goose on Michaelmas
Day to have money in the coming year. [One roast goose, coming right up!] And check the wishbone - a
dark one means a severe winter coming; if it is light, winter will be mild.
Indeed, today has long been
a general festival and feasting day, with the newly harvested crops taking
pride of place in the menu. No manual labor was to be done today (other than, of course, getting the feast
ready). Back in the merry days
of King Ethelred, the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday preceding the feast of
Saint Michael were ordered to be spent in fasting and penance, including fixing
meals as though one was going to eat them, and then giving the whole meal to
the poor: “Let every priest with his people go in procession three days
barefoot, and let every one’s commons for three days be prepared without
anything of flesh, as if themselves were to eat it, both in meat and drink, and
let all this be distributed to the poor.
Let every servant be excused from labor these three days [that must have made the servants happy!],
that he many the better perform his task, or let him work what he will for
himself…” Those who broke the fast were fined according to rank:
A thane or nobleman was
fined one hundred and thirty shillings.
A poor freeman was fined
thirty pence,
And if “a servant break his
fast, let him make satisfaction with his hide”
The money so taken was then
to be divided among the poor. No
mention of what was done with the poor servant’s hide.
All blackberries should have
been gathered by now, for today the Devil passes his hoof over them (or
breathes or spits or pees on them) and scorches them. The legend is that when St. Michael tossed the Devil out of Heaven, the
Devil fell to earth and landed in a blackberry bush. Not comfortable on
the best of days, and this was already a bad day for Old Scratch. In his
wrath, he cursed the berries by one of the methods above, so that any still
left would be poisonous. Blackberries only, though. The other
edible berries should be just fine, if the birds haven't beaten you to them.
To bring good luck to your
homestead, give to the cows a handful of each different sort of grain that
you’ve grown this year in their supper tonight, and scatter some on the ground
for the birds.
Love charms: Gather crab-apples, carry
them to the loft (an attic will do if you haven't a loft) and form them into
the initials of possible suitors. On Old Michaelmas Day (October 10), see
which initials are the most perfect. These are considered to be the
strongest attachments and the best for choice of husbands [and the eleven days gives some enterprising young man or woman the
chance to nudge the fates in the desired direction]
And once you've got your
man:
St. Michael's chair is on
St. Michael's Mount in Cornwall. Tradition asserts that any woman who sat
in this chair would ever after rule her husband [ladies, try suggesting St. Michael's Mount for this year's
vacation. Your husband may counter with Nice or Majorca instead.]
Another superstition
regarding St. Michael’s Mount is that there is a magic circle traced on its
summit, within which demons which have been exorcised from human bodies lie
imprisoned in chains. The
unfortunate person who sets foot within this circle will be compelled to run
all night until cockcrow without being able to stop.
Gardening: Michaelmas Daisies are one
of the joys of my backyard. They are wild and grow everywhere - lovely violet-colored flowers bravely standing up to the
winds of autumn.
The Michaelmas Daisy, among
dead weeds,
Blooms for St. Michael's
valorous deeds,
And seems the last of
flowers that stood
Until the feast of Simon and
Jude...
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
WHO IS LIKE GOD?
Today is the feast of Saint Michael the
Archangel (and in the new calendar, of Saints Gabriel and Raphael, as well).
From Catholic Culture:
"... in our Catholic tradition, St. Michael has four duties: (1) To
continue to wage battle against Satan and the other fallen angels; (2) To save
the souls of the faithful from the power of Satan especially at the hour of
death; (3) To protect the People of God, both the Jews of the Old Covenant and
the Christians of the New Covenant; and (4) finally to lead the souls of the
departed from this life and present them to our Lord for the particular
judgment, and at the end of time, for the final judgment."
That's quite a lot of
duties.
Saint Michael is the patron
and protector of soldiers and law enforcement officers. In his honor, thank your
community's finest, if not in person, then with a note to the nearest precinct
or a letter to the editor of the local paper. Another good way to
celebrate the day is by a care package and a note of thanks to the
troops. Local associations which provide these will welcome your
donations.
Read more about Saint
Michael and the traditions for his day (including recipes for Roast Goose, and
St. Michael's Bannock) at Fisheaters
and at
Catholic Culture. [Use the nuts that
you cracked on Crack-Nut Sunday in the stuffing]
St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in
battle! Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May
God rebuke him, we humbly pray, and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host, by
the power of God, thrust into Hell Satan and all the other evil spirits who
roam about the world seeking the ruin of souls.
============================================================
Artwork:
“St. Michael battling
demons”, from The Hours of Catherine of
Cleves, 15th c. Morgan Library, New York.
“St. Michael and other
Archangels”, engraving from The Every-day
Book and Table Book by William Hone, p. 1327.
“St Michael”, engraving from
The Manual of Prayers, 1896.
