NOVEMBER

"This name signifies the ninth month, which position it occupied in the ten-month calendar ascribed to Romulus.  The name was retained when two additional months were added.  The Emperor Tiberius was born in this month.  Hence the Senate wished to give it his name, following the precedent set by Augustus, but he declined the honor, saying, “What will you do, conscript fathers, when you have thirteen Caesars?"

“It was the Windmonath or Wind Month, of the Saxons, who knew it also as Blotmonath, for this was the month when cattle, pigs, and sheep were slaughtered and preserved for the winter's meals.”  Now begin the days of salting, smoking, and pickling the larger cuts of meat, while the scrapings go into sausages and head-cheese.

No warmth, no cheerfulness, no healthful ease,

No comfortable feel in any member, 

No shade, no shine, no butterflies, no bees,

No fruits, no flowers, no leaves, no birds - 

November.

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Astronomy for November   

Fall Back!  Daylight Saving Time ends at 2:00 AM on Sunday, the 3^rd, for those who follow it.  Put your clocks back one hour before you go to bed Saturday night [and gain an hour of sleep, if you don’t have animals whose stomach clocks take priority over your alarm clock.]

The full moon on the 17^th is the Full Beaver Moon (also known as the Full Frost Moon). 

A total eclipse of the sun on the 3^rd.  Visible from Africa.  Eastern North Americans can see the tail-end at sunrise.

Meteor Showers   

The South Taurid Meteor Shower  peaks after midnight on November 4th and 5th.  There won’t be any moonlight to mar the enjoyment, so even though this isn’t one of the larger showers, bundle up and go watch.

The waxing half moon rises between 1 and 2 pm and sets after midnight on November 11^th and after 1 am on the 12^th, the peak time of the North Taurid Meteor Shower , so wait for the moon to set before you bundle up again and go outside.  Take a thermos of hot cider with you.

This year is a bust for the Leonid Meteor Shower.  The moon is at full on the 17^th, and will drown out all but the brightest shooting stars during the peak on November 16 – 17.

See EarthSky's Meteor Shower Guide for a list of upcoming showers.

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November is dedicated to the Holy Souls in Purgatory. 

EWTN has a novena for them and for us.  It takes nine days (nov = nine), so I start on the 1st, start over again on the 10th, and again on the 19th, making the entire month one of prayer. On the 28th, I triple the prayers, so that that the nine prayers are again said on the final three days.

And if that is too much, try to find time each day to say Saint Gertrude's Prayer:

"Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the Masses said throughout the world today, for all the Holy Souls in Purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the Universal Church, those in my own home and within my family. Amen."

 Liturgical Celebrations

All Saints                             1 November

All Souls                              2 November

St. Martin de Porres             3 November

St. Charles Borromeo          4 November

Dedication of St. John Lateran (Lateran Basilica)  9 November

St. Martin of Tours             11 November

St. Josephat                         12 November

St. Francis Xavier Cabrini  13 November

St. Albert the Great             14 November

St. Margaret of Scotland     16 November

St. Gertrude                         16 November

St Rose Philppine Duchesne  18 November

Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary  21 November

St. Cecilia                             22 November

St Clement                            23 November

St. Columban                         23 November

Blessed Miguel Agustin Pro  23 November

Christ the King                      24 November (new calendar)

St Catherine of Alexandria    25 November

St, Andrew, Apostle              30 November

Novenas for November

Holy Souls in Purgatory  .......... continues from 24 October

Saint Martin de Porres .............. continues from 25 October

Saint Hilda …………………… begins 8 November

Christ the King ........................   begins 15 November

The Miraculous Medal ………. begins 18 November

Saint Francis Xavier  …………  begins 24 November

Saint Nicholas ………………..  begins 27 November

The Immaculate Conception …. begins 29 November

Advent Novena .......................... begins 30 November

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Dull November brings the blast

Then the leaves are whirling fast. 

Weather for November 

Based on the 12 Days of Christmas: Clear skies and very cold. 

Based on the first 12 Days of January: Overcast and cool. 

Based on the Ember Days:  Bright, clear, warm.

[Perhaps a little of each?]

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Weather Lore for November: 

If the latter end of October and the beginning of November be for the most part warm and rainy, then January and February are likely to be frosty and cold. [A pretty safe bet, no matter what the weather of October and November]

And vice versa:

If October and November are cold, then the following January and February will be mild and dry.

If the robin becomes more familiar than usual at the fall of the year, a severe winter may be expected [I have a couple who sit outside the window and complain that I haven’t filled the feeders.  Is that familiar enough?]

Ice in November brings mud in December.

If there's ice in November that will bear a duck, there will be nothing at Christmas but mud and muck.

Flowers in bloom late in autumn indicate a bad winter [even if the bad winter won’t show up until the following year]

As in November, so the following March.

A heavy November snow will last until April.

Thunder in November, a fertile year to come.

A wet November, a plentiful year.

11/1 - If All Saints' Day will bring out the winter, Saint Martin's Day will bring out Indian Summer (and vice versa)

         All Saints’ Day has a little summer of three days. When it is warm at this time of year, it is called “All Saints’ Rest”.

         If on All Saints’ Day the beechnut be found dry, we shall have a hard winter; but if the nut be wet and not light, we may expect a wet winter.

         As on November 1^st, so is the winter.

11/4 – If it storms on the first Sunday of the month, it will storm every Sunday.

11/10 – The weather on Martinmas Eve is supposed to indicate the weather for the winter, and where the wind is, there it will be for the coming winter.

            If there is a frost before Martinmas, the winter will be mild.

11/11 – Around St. Martin’s day, we can expect some warm weather.  This is called St. Martin’s Summer.

                                   However,

            At St. Martin’s Day, winter is on his way.

            If ducks do slide at Martintide, at Christmas they will swim;

            If ducks do swim at Martintide, at Christmas they will slide.

            If the geese stand on ice, they will walk in mud at Christmas.

            If Martinmas is fair, dry, and cold, the cold in winter will not last long.

           If the wind is in the south-west at Martinmas, it remains there until after Christmas (Candlemas for the optimists), and we shall have a mild winter up to then and no snow to speak of.

           Wind north-west at Martinmas, severe winter to come.

           If the leaves of the trees and grape vines do not fall before Martin’s Day, a cold winter may be expected.

           If this day be fair, the next winter will bring but little rain and snow along with it; but if the first half of the day be clear and the other half cloudy, the beginning of winter will accordingly be fair, but its end and spring will turn out rigorous and disagreeable.

11/21 - As November 21st, so is the winter.

11/25 - As at Catherine foul or fair, so will be next February.

             Also

            As on Saint Catherine, so will be the New Year.

            If there is snow on St. Catherine’s day, winter will be hard.

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November take flail,

Let no more ships sail.

 

Farming and Gardening for November

"The business of the garden this month is principally in preparing manure, making all clean and neat, and defending plants against the coming frosts."

Thunder in November, a fertile year to come.

A wet November, a plentiful year.

When in November the water rises, it will show itself the whole winter.

11/1 - Set trees at Allhallowtide, and command them to prosper; Set them after Candlemas, and entreat them to grow.

           If the weather holds clear on the first of November, sow the last of your wheat for the year.

           Begin making cider today

11/5 – Tulips should be planted today.  In fact, if the weather holds, and you have not already done so, now is a good time to dig up, separate, and replant any spring-flowering bulbs – tulips, daffodils, narcissus, hyacinths, etc.

11/9 – Plant raspberry canes today.

The 1817 Almanac advises the gardener: "If the season proves mild, you may continue to prune Apple Trees, be they Standards, Wall Fruit, or Espaliers; but you should not prune them later, lest Rains and Frosts should hurt the Trees, when the Wounds are fresh.”

“Trench your Ground, by laying it up in Ridges to mellow.  Set Crab-Tree Stocks to graft on; continue to plant Suckers and Cuttings of Gooseberries, Currants and Raspberries; make Hot-beds for Asparagus; fell Coppices, and lop Trees, plant Timber and Fruit-Trees, if the Weather be open."

Cassell’s Illustrated Almanac 1871 for November

Flowers —Plant hyacinths early in the month, and tulips should also be in the first week, if possible. Climbing plants and flowering shrubs may now be obtained and planted. Take up dahlias; watch any plants you may have in pits, giving them light and air freely on the few milder days of the month, and carefully covering them again as soon as the sun goes down.

Vegetables —A sowing of early beans may now be made, at a depth of about two inches, and when they rise they must be well protected with litter. Clear away all decayed leaves from your young crops, and keep the ground well cleaned between the plants. Cover over the crowns of rhubarb and seakale with dry dung, sand, or some similar material.

Fruit —The pruning and transplanting of fruit trees should now be completed. Newly-planted trees of a tender kind should be well protected against frost, and fruit trees on walls may now be freely pruned, and their training attended to.

… Mushrooms and the Fungus race,

That grow as Allhallowtide takes place.   (Nov 1)

Soon the evergreen Laurel alone is seen,

When Catherine crowns all learned men.    (Nov 25)

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Health Advice for November 

"The best Physic this Month is good Exercise, warm Clothes, and wholesome Diet.  But if any Distemper afflict you, finish your Physic this Month, and so rest till March."

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Artwork:

November. Limbourg frères. Grandes Heures of Jean, Duc de Berry, Fifteenth century.

The calendar pages of the Grandes Heures carried more religious symbolism than that of the more famous Très Riches Heures.  Each month was dedicated to a part of the Apostles Creed, with the relevant prophecy from the Old Testament and scripture from the New Testament. November is dedicated to the article of the Creed which says “…I believe in… the resurrection of the body…”.  Here we see (left to right) Saint Paul instructing Philemon and his companions from Corinthians 15:51: “…we shall all indeed rise again…”.  Above the gates of the New Jerusalem, Our Lady holds a banner depicting the Hand of God returning the soul of a righteous man to his body [the artists have finally caught up].  Beneath the arc of heaven, Sagittarius, the Archer, astrological symbol of November, fires an arrow at the trees whose leaves are dying and falling off.

“All Souls”, woodcut from a Dutch copy of The Golden Legend, 1489.

November. Limbourg frères. Grandes Heures of Jean, Duc de Berry, Fifteenth century.

Depicted at the bottom of the calendar pages in the Grandes Heures is the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets of the Old Testament by the articles of the Apostles Creed.  In each, a prophet (cloaked to show the obscurity of prophecy) takes a stone out of the building representing the Old Law and offers it to an apostle, who, by raising the cloak ‘uncovers’ the prophecy with an article of faith.  Here, the cupolas of the citadel of the Old Law have fallen and the walls have been breached, while before it the Prophet Ezekiel stands holding a banderole with the words “…I… will bring you out of your sepulchers, my people…” (Ezekiel 37:12).  St. Thaddeus the Apostle presents the relevant part of the Apostle’s Creed, “…the resurrection of the body…”

November – Group Around a Fire. Engraving based on an 11^th century manuscript. William Walsh, Curiosities of Popular Customs (1898), p. 755

15 August - Assumption

Weather: On Saint Mary's Day, sunshine brings much good wine.

If the sun shines on Mary's day, that is a good token, and especially for wine.

[Heretofore I have entered that last word as ‘wind’ because that is the way I found it, but I do believe the typesetter of that book made an error; therefore I have changed it to wine.  Wind at this time of year is not a good token, too often taking the form of Category I or higher.  Of course, overindulgence in a good wine can make you feel like you’ve been through a Category 1 or higher.]

Rain on St. Lawrence is late but good            (August 10)

Rain on Assumption is also late but good     (August 15)

But if St. Bartholomew rains, slap him!         (August 29)

[once the harvest begins, we need dry weather.  A late rain can mildew the plants in both field and barn]

Farming and Gardening:

When Mary left us here below,

The Virgin's Bower begins to blow;

The Holy Queen of Heaven gives us the first nuts.

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Hail! Holy Virgin mother, wedded Maid;

Blest Temple of the Trinity ador’d;

All Angels’ joy, meek Virtue’s Cypress shade,

Fountain of clemency, pure Spouse of God,

Lost pilgrims’ Loadstar on life’s troubled way;

Candle of heavenly unction, Patience’s Palm

Sweet light of morning, bright Star of the day,

Lamp of Devotion, wounded sinners’ Balm.

Chaplet of graces, Posy of our prayers,

Chastity’s Cedar, Humility’s fair cell,

Hope’s constant magnet, solace of our cares,

Vessel of comfort for Affliction’s dell,

Rose of sweet heavenly odors, Lily pure,

Beneath thy foster care we rest secure.

                                 Thomas Forster, Philosophia Musarum, 1845

Here we are again at the glorious high-summer festival in honor of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.  Take herbs to be blessed at Mass today, or make an Assumption bouquet of flowers and herbs.  And chocolate was discovered today!  Huzzah!

Good wine and good chocolate and a beautiful summer’s day – doesn’t get much better than that.

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Once upon a time, not too long ago, this was an important Feast, a Double of the 1st Class, with a Vigil (with its fast) fore and an Octave aft, and a Plenary indulgence attached.  Now it is a Solemnity, with all the accoutrements stripped away that might make Protestants even more nervous than they already are with this further evidence of Catholic Mariolotry (got to keep that ecumenism going!)

Okay, I am being facetious.  Over the years, several popes have decided to make things easier (you can say 'dumbing down' if you like - I do) and so instead of a truly awe-inspiring Feast, we now have something from the category, "oh-bother-not-another-holy-day-of-obligation-I-just-went-to-Mass-on-Sunday-I-have-other-things-to-do!".  Can't get much easier than that.

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Artwork: “Assumption” from the Hours of Catherine of Cleves, 15^th century. Morgan Library, New York.

AUGUST

The Obligatory Memorial of the Beheading of John the Baptist.

“The beheading of St. John the Baptist, who was put to death by Herod about the feast of Easter.  However, the solemn commemoration takes place today, when his venerable head was found for the second time.  It was afterwards solemnly carried to Rome, where it is kept in the church of St. Silvester, near Camp Marzio, and honored by the people with the greatest devotion.”

He was invoked against epilepsy and convulsions – known as Morbus sancti Johannis or le Mal de St. Jean – probably because of miraculous healings of those two maladies on the feast of his nativity in Sainte-Christophe church, Creteil (France). 

The story of his beheading (well, my take on it) here, and what happened to the (other) principal players here.

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For today’s tea, I am having JOHNNYCAKE [yes, I know the name may be a local pronunciation of “journey cake”.  I don’t care.]

This one uses molasses, making it darker and sweeter than other forms of Johnnycake.

Heat the oven to 400° F.  Grease an 8-inch square pan.

Sift flour to make 1 cup.  Then sift together the (sifted) flour, 4 teaspoons of baking powder, and 1 teaspoon of salt.  To this mixture stir in 1 cup of yellow cornmeal.  Set aside.

In another bowl, lightly beat one egg.  Stir in ¼ cup of molasses and 1 cup of milk.  Blend thoroughly and stir it into the flour mixture.

Melt ¼ cup of shortening, and blend it into the batter.

Pour batter into greased pan and bake for about 25 minutes.

Those for whom this cake is not sweet enough might try a dusting of powdered sugar on top.  If you have or can make a cake stencil, it will make your johnnycake very festive indeed.

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Ant: Among those born of woman none arose greater than John the Baptist.

V: He was a man sent by God.

R: Whose name was John. 
Prayer:
Show Thyself, we pray, O omnipotent God, so that Thy household may go by the way of salvation, and by following the encouragements of the blessed John, forerunner of Christ, may reach Him whom he with certainty foretold, our Lord Jesus Christ.

                        Early 16^th century prayer found in the Hypertext Book of Hours

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Artwork: “Saint John the Baptist” from the Hours of Catherine of Cleves, 15^th c.  Morgan Library, New York.  Look very carefully and you can see that, under his mauve cloak, John is wearing a camel skin – the camel’s head and hooves are still attached.

“Beheading of Saint John the Baptist”, woodcut from The Golden Legend, 1489.

JULY

“As the fifth month in the old Roman year, this was called Quintilis, or fifth.  It was the birth-month of Julius Caesar, and after his death Mark Antony named it Julius in his honor.  In the old Alban calendar it had thirty-six days.  Romulus reduced the number to thirty-one, and Numa to thirty, but Julius Caesar again made it thirty-one.  The early Saxons called it Hegmonath, it being the month in which they usually mowed and made their hay-harvest.”     William Walsh, Curiosities of Popular Customs (1898) p. 586.

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Astronomy for July: Full Buck Moon on the 22^nd.

Meteor Shower: The Delta Aquarids start in mid-July and peak around the 30th.  This year, the waning moon will not have waned enough by the end of July to make viewing easy, but EarthSky says to keep watching through early August.  It will be easier to see the meteors (and the start-up of the Perseids) as we get closer to the New Moon on August 6^th.  Look south in the pre-dawn hours.

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July is dedicated to The Precious Blood of Jesus

Liturgical Celebrations

Blessed Junipero Serra………   1 July

St. Elizabeth of Portugal……..  4 July (Canada), 5 July (USA), 8 July (traditional calendar)

Saint Maria Goretti …………   6 July

Translation of Saint Benedict    11 July

Saint Henry ………………..    13 July (15 July, traditional)

Saint Bonaventure .………....   14 July (traditional; 15 July new calendar)

Saint Kateri Tekakwitha ……  14 July

Our Lady of Mount Carmel…  16 July 

Saint Mary Magdalene ……..   22 July

Saint Bridget of Sweden …...    23 July

Saint James the Greater …….   25 July

Saints Joachim & Anne …….   26 July

Saint Martha ………………     29 July

Saint Ignatius of Loyola ……   31 July

Novenas for July

Saint Maria Goretti …………. Continues from 27 June

Holy Face of Jesus …………. begins 3 July (St. Veronica)

Saint Kateri Tekakwitha …….begins 5 July (in USA)

Our Lady of Mount Carmel … begins 7 July

Saint Vincent De Paul ……… begins 10 July (traditional calendar)

Saint Anne ………………….. begins 17 July, also here

Saint Martha ………………... begins 20 July, also here and here

Saint Peter Julian Eymard ….. begins 24 July

Transfiguration ……………... begins 28 July

Saint Dominic ………………. begins 30 July

Saint John Marie Vianney …... begins 30 July (traditional; 26 July in the new calendar)

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Weather for July

According to the Twelve Days of Christmas: Mostly cloudy and cool.

According to the first twelve days of January: Mostly sunny and warm.

According to the Ember Days: Mostly cloudy, warm, and humid.

Weather Lore:

As July is, so will be next January

[does this refer to extreme weather? If it is really hot in July it will be correspondingly cold in January? Because, trust me, while I may want July weather in January, it doesn't happen.]

Never trust a July sky. [Indeed!  It might look beautifully clear in one direction, but turn around and notice those massing cloudbanks]

It never rains at night in July.

Rain in the third hour of a July afternoon is the heaviest of the year.

The first Friday in July is always wet.

A shower of rain in July is worth a plough of oxen.

When July alternates between rain and sunshine, the harvest will be abundant.

July thunder indicates that the wheat and barley will suffer harm [especially if accompanied by heavy winds and hail]

On the other hand

Thunder in July signifieth the same year shall be good corn, and loss of beasts.

If there is a tempest in July, the corn will be blighted with mildew.

7/1 - If it rains between the first and the fourth of July, it will rain for forty days.

       

        If the first of July be rainy weather, it will rain more or less for four weeks together.

        If it rains on July 1st, it will rain seventeen days in the month.

        If it rains on July 1st, there will be no grapes that year.

7/2 - If it rains on St. Mary's Day, it will rain, off and on, for four weeks.

        If it rains on St. Mary's Day, it will last until St. Mary Magdalene (July 22)

        If it rains on the feast of Saint Processus and Martinian, there will be great rain storms and hail.

        If it rains on the feast of Saint Processus and Martinian, it suffocates the corn.

7/3 - As the Dog Days commence, so they end.

        If it rains on the first Dog-Day, it will rain for forty days after [or for thirty days after.  Take your pick]

         Dog Days bright and clear, indicate a happy year.

        But when accompanied by rain, we hope for better times in vain.

7/4 - If Bullion's Day be dry, there will be a good and early harvest.

        If the deer rise up dry and lie down dry on Bullion's day, there will be a good harvest.

        If it rains on Bullion's Day, it will rain for forty days.

        If it rains on the fourth of July, there will be no grapes that year.

7/6 - The weather on St. Godelieve's day foretells the weather of the next six weeks.

         If it rains on St. Godelieve, it will rain for forty days.

         If it rains on St. Godelieve, the Lord is blessing the vegetable garden.

7/7 - Rain today means rain for the next four weeks.

7/10 - If it rains on July 10th, it will rain for seven weeks.

          As the weather is on the Feast of the Seven Brothers, so will it be for seven weeks.

7/11 – If it rains on St. Benedict’s day, it will rain for forty days.

7/15 - Saint Swithin's Day, if thou dost rain, for forty days it will remain

           Saint Swithin's Day, if thou be fair, for forty days will rain no more.

          If on St. Swithin's day it proves fair, a temperate winter will follow; but if it is rainy, stormy, or windy, then the contrary.

         If it rains today, Saint Swithin is christening the apples, and the early sorts can be picked.

7/20 - If St. Margaret's Day be dry, God will give us a fine autumn.

7/21 - If it rains on the 21st, we will have fair weather following.

7/21 – Mary Magdalene weeps for her Lord

           That is why it rains these days.

7/25 - As the weather is on Saint James' Day, so it will be on Christmas Day.

          If St. James' day is clear, then Christmas will be cold and frosty [that's a pretty good bet, either way].

          On St. James' day, the weather before noon foretells the winter before Christmas, and the weather after noon foretells the winter after Christmas.  If the sun shines, there will be cold weather; if it rains, there will be warm and moist weather; if it is between the two, it will be neither too warm nor too cold.

7/26 - If it rains on St. Ann's Day, it will rain for a month and a week [however, some people call the rain on this day "Saint Ann's Dower" and consider it a good thing].

          If on St. Anne’s day, the ants are building up their sand-hills, it is a sign of coming severe winter.

7/27 – If it rains on the day of the Seven Sleepers, it will rain for seven weeks.

            A wet Sleeper’s day is not good for barn or barrel.

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Farming and Gardening:

July, God send thee calm and fair

That happy harvest we may see.

Cut thistles in July,

Then they will die.

Against St. Swithin's hasty Showers,  (July 15)

The Lily white reigns queen of the Flowers;

And Poppies a sanguine mantle spread,

For the blood of the Dragon St. Margaret shed. (July 20)

Then, under the wanton Rose, again,

That blushes for penitent Magdalen. (July 22)

7/9 - St. Kilian sets the reapers going (July 9)

7/20 – Start harvesting on St. Margaret’s Day (July 20).

7/22 – Roses begin to fade on Magdalene's day (July 22).

          On Magdalene’s day, the nuts are plentiful,

7/25 – If you plant turnips on the 25^th of July

           You will have turnips, wet or dry [i.e., no matter what the weather]

7/26 – On St. Anne’s day, the July grapes are ripe.

Sow your cabbage seeds on the first Wednesday after the 29th of July.

Cassell’s Illustrated almanac 1871 for July:

Flowers.— Carnations and picotees should be layered when they have done flowering. Hydrangeas may be propagated freely by cuttings or layers. As soon as pergoniums have flowered they should be cut down; and if plants in pots have done blooming, they should be transferred to the ground, where, after a short time, they will again bloom freely.

Vegetables.— Plant out your cabbages and other plants; and transplant cauliflowers in moist situations. Stake your scarlet runners, and sow your last crop of kidney beans in the first few days of the month. Plant celery in shallow trenches, and keep it earthed up as it advances in growth. Remove weakly shoots, etc, from cucumbers, and keep them well watered.

Fruit.— Cherries and plums may now be budded in the same manner as roses (see operations for last month). Select some of the strongest runners for making new plantations of strawberries, which, if put in now in showery weather, or kept well watered, will be strong plants by the winter. Keep back the summer growths of all fruit trees, except those portions which are suitable for training.

My 1817 Almanac advised its readers to "Sow Turnips and Onions to stand the Winter; as also Carrots, Coleworts, and Cauliflowers.  Keep your Garden clean from Weeds, and do not neglect to weed frequently your new-planted Quicks*.  Gather such Seeds as are ripe, as also Flowers; dry them in the Shade, then in the Sun."

   "Plant out Celery, Cabbages, and Broccoli in cloudy Weather.  Earth up Peas and Beans."

  

Health for July:

"Forbear superfluous Drinking.  Use Cold Herbs.  Shun boiled, salt and strong Meats, and abstain from Physic."

*Quicks: Quickset, a living plant set to grow, especially for a hedge.  Specifically, hawthorn planted to form a hedge.

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Artwork

July. Limbourg frères. Grandes Heures of Jean, Duc de Berry, Fifteenth century.

The calendar pages of the Grandes Heures carried more religious symbolism than that of the more famous Très Riches Heures.  Each month was dedicated to a part of the Apostles Creed, with the relevant prophecy from the Old Testament and scripture from the New Testament.  July is dedicated to the article of the Creed which says “…from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead…” Here we see (left to right) Saint Paul instructing the Colossians (although the scripture “…Who shall judge the living and the dead…” comes from II Timothy 4:1); Our Lady stands above the battlements of the New Jerusalem, holding a banner with a depiction of Our Lord’s Ascension [once again, the artists are behind by a month, and will be for the rest of the year]; the sun is now at its apex in the arc of heaven; and Leo, the Lion, astrological symbol of July, stands in a rocky landscape near a waterfall

Jan van Eyck, 1432.  Detail, “Adoration of the Lamb”, from the Ghent Altarpiece.

July. Limbourg frères. Grandes Heures of Jean, Duc de Berry, Fifteenth century.

Depicted at the bottom of the calendar pages in the Grandes Heures is the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets of the Old Testament by the articles of the Apostles Creed.  In each, a prophet (cloaked to show the obscurity of prophecy) takes a stone out of the building representing the Old Law and offers it to an apostle, who, by raising the cloak ‘uncovers’ the prophecy with an article of faith.  The Prophet Sophonius holds a banderole quoting from Malachi: “…And I will come to you in judgment and will be a speedy witness…” (Malachi 3:5), while the brick he pulls from the edifice has caused both towers to crumble and the superstructures to cave in; meanwhile St. Philip the Apostle presents the relevant part of the Apostle’s Creed, “…from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead …”

July – Haymaking. Engraving based on an 11^th century manuscript. William Walsh, Curiosities of Popular Customs (1898) p. 586

JUNE

It’s June already?  What happened to May?

“June. The sixth month of the year in the modern or Gregorian calendar.  Ovid in the "Fasti" indicates that it was named after Juno, but a more likely etymon derives it from Juniores, the lower branch of the original Roman legislature, as that of May was from the higher branch. In the old Latin or Alban calendar the month of June had but twenty-six days.  Romulus gave it thirty. This was reduced to twenty-nine by Numa, and restored to thirty by Julius Caesar, a number it has ever since retained.”

“Among the old Romans June was a lucky as May was an unlucky month for marriages, the especially favorable seasons being at full moon and at the conjunction of the sun and moon.” William Walsh, Curiosities of Popular Customs (1898) p. 591

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Astronomy for June:

Full Strawberry Moon on the 23^rd.

Summer solstice on the 21st at 0104 (1:04 am) EDT.

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June is dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

Liturgical Celebrations

Saint Justin …………………………… 1 June

Corpus Christi ………………………..  2 June

Saint Boniface ………………………..  5 June

Most Sacred Heart of Jesus …………..  7 June

Immaculate Heart of Mary …………… 8 June

Saint Barnabas ………………………. 11 June

Saint Anthony of Padua ……………..  13 June

Saint Basil the Great ………………..   14 June

Saint Aloysius Gonzaga ……………..  21 June

Nativity of St. John the Baptist ……… 24 June

Our Lady of Perpetual Help …………. 27 June

Saint Irenaeus ………………………..  28 June

Saint Peter and Saint Paul, Apostles…. 29 June

Saint Paul the Apostle ………………   30 June

Novenas forJune

Corpus Christi …………………….. continues from 24 May

Saint Erasmus …………………….. continues from 24 May

Sacred Heart of Jesus ……………..  continues from 29 May (there are 5 more on that website)

Immaculate Heart of Mary ……….   continues from 30 May (also here)

Saint Anthony of Padua …………... begins 4 June (and 4 more)

Our Lady of Perpetual Help ………  begins 18 June (and 3 more)

Saint Peter the Apostle ……………  begins 20 June

Precious Blood …………………....  begins 22 June (traditional calendar)

Saint Maria Goretti ……………….. begins 27 June

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Weather for June:

According to the 12 Days of Christmas: Bright sunshine and clear skies.  Beautiful!

According to the first 12 days of January: Precipitation early; cloudy skies, warm.

According to the Ember Days: Sunny to start with, ending with rain.

Weather Lore for June:

A June damp and warm does the farmer no harm.

If June be sunny, harvest comes early.

A dry June means a good corn crop.

June that is dry more than it is wet fills the barrels with good wine.

Calm weather in June, sets corn in tune.

A cold and wet June spoils the rest of the year.

however

A good leak in June sets all in tune.

and

 A wet June makes a dry September.

When it is hottest in June, it will be coldest in the corresponding days of next February. [I don't even want to think about February yet]

Mist in May and heat in June,

Make the harvest come right soon.

Thunder in June means a good year for straw and hay.

“Thunder in June signifies that same year that woods shall be overthrown with winds, and great raging shall be of lions and wolves, and so like of other harmful beasts.”  Book of Knowledge [which is only natural if their domiciles have been overthrown with winds…]

6/1 - 3  If it rains in the first three days of June, there will be no wild grapes.

6/1    If St. Fortunatus’ day be fine, we may expect a fruitful season [except possibly for the wild grapes]

         If it rains on June 1st, there will be fifty-seven rains in June, July, and August.

6/2  If it rains on June 2nd, there will be no blackberries.

6/6  If it rains on June 6th, there will be no mast [nuts of forest trees, such as acorns, upon which hogs 'pastured' in the forests feed.]

        The rains that fall on St. Norbert’s day inundate the earth [i.e. expect the rains to be heavy]

6/8  If it rains on St. Médard's day, it will rain for forty days, unless it is dry on St. Barnabas [and then all bets are off]

and 

       If it rains on St. Médard's day, there will be a wet harvest.

and

      If it rains on the day of Saint Médard, we will not have wine nor lard.

6/10  If it rains on St. Margaret’s day, it will rain for fourteen days.

6/11  If it rains on St. Barnabas' day, it is good for grapes

and

The general character of the weather during the last twenty days of June will rule the weather for the Summer.

6/15   If St. Vitus Day be rainy weather, it will rain for thirty days together.

       If it rains on St. Vitus’ day, the year will be fruitful.

On the other hand

      When it rains on St. Vitus’ day, half of the grapes will be destroyed.

and

      When St. Vitus’ day is rainy, the oats will not thrive.

6/19  If it rains on the day of Saint Protais and Gervais, it will rain for forty days after.

6/20   As the wind and weather at the solstices, so will they be for the next three months.

          The first three days of any season rule the weather for that season.

6/23   If it rains on the eve of St. John’s day, the filberts (hazelnuts) will be spoiled.

6/24    If it rains today, we may expect a wet harvest.

          Midsummer rain spoils hay and grain.

          If it rains on St. John's Day, nuts will spoil and wicked women will thrive [how wicked?], but apples, pears, and plums will not be hurt.

          If it rains on St. John’s day, it will rain another four weeks, and we can expect a poor harvest.

6/26   Weather on the last Sunday of the month indicates the weather for the next month

6/27  If it rains on June 27^th, it will rain seven weeks.

6/28  If it rains on the eve of St. Peter, the vintage will be reduced by one-third.

6/29  If it rains on the day of Saints Peter and Paul it will rain for the next 30 days.

And

It always rains on St. Peter’s day [so putting two and two together…]

On the other hand

If it is bright and clear on St. Paul’s day, we will have full mouths and full purses.

[Let us hope that it rains in between the above days (except for St. Fortunatus and St. Barnabas).  A good soak is one thing; drowning my seeds and new plants is quite another]

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Gardening for June

June brings tulips, lilies, roses,

Fills the children’s hands with posies.

When St. Bamaby bright smiles night and day, (June 11)

Poor Ragged Robin blooms in the hay.

The scarlet Lychnis, the garden's pride,

Flames at St. John the Baptist's tide.  (June 24)

When the bramble blossoms early in June, an early harvest is expected.

6/11   On St. Barnabas’ day, it is time to cut your hay.

6/15   Sow cabbage on St. Vitus’ day.

6/17  Sow your Swedes today.

6/24  The best hay is made before midsummer

         St. John’s Day is considered a good time for sowing, and when the sun shines on his day, nuts will be abundant during the coming year [this being an election year, an abundance of nuts is a sure bet.]

         Cut your thistles before St. John, you will have two instead of one [so leave those thistles standing another day]

        Up to St. John’s day, wine is fit only for peasants. [in other words, the wine of last year’s vintage is not good until after Midsummer.  Fine.  Along with the thistles, leave last year’s vintage alone for another day.  Or be a peasant with me.]

Cassell’s Illustrated almanac 1871 for June:

Flowers.— Propagate verbenas, heliotropes, etc., by cutting.  A few annuals, such as Clarkia and Virginia stock may still be sown. Others should be thinned out from the border and potted for window-plants. Take up choice bulbs as soon as the foliage dies down. Tie up carnations, &c, and look after aphides, which may be kept under by dusting a little Scotch snuff upon them. The budding of roses may be performed towards the end of the month. The operation is not attended with much difficulty. A strong shoot should be selected for the bud, and a slit like the letter T should be made in the bark. Then take a full-grown bud, paring it off by a sharp knife, with a piece of the wood attached.  Trim this carefully, and insert the base of the bud in the top of the T-shaped slit, raising the bark a little at the sides to receive it. When the bud is inserted, close the bark down again, and bind over the whole with bast to exclude the air; sometimes a coating of clay is used for this purpose.

Vegetables.— Gather herbs for drying, and remove all kinds of decaying crops. Make your last sowing of beans and peas early in the month.

Plant out your young cabbage, &c., and make a good sowing of turnips, sprinkling young plants, when they come up, with soot or lime. 

Fruit. – Still look over vines, and cut away weak and useless growths. Keep strawberries well watered in very dry weather. Protect cherry trees, etc., from the ravages of black-fly, by dipping the points infested by it in a mixture of clayey soil and water, which will quickly dry in the sun, and may be washed off when the insects have perished.

From the 1817 Almanac:

Sow Broccoli the Beginning of this Month, for a second Crop.  Transplant Celery for Blanching.  Transplant Savoy and Cabbage Plants for Winter Use.  Sow Kidney-Beans and brown Dutch Cabbage Lettuce for a late Crop.

Gather such Herbs for drying as are now in Flower, and let them dry leisurely in a shady Place, and not in the Sun.  Sow all Sorts of small Sallad Herbs every three or four Days.  Keep your Garden free from all Sorts of Weeds, for they spoil whatever Plants they are near.  Weed your corn, and sow Rape, cole-seed, and Turnip-seed.

Health for June:

Cooling Sallads, as Lettuce, Sorrel, Purslane, &c. will prevent too great a Perspiration, and throw off feverish Disorders.

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Artwork

June. Limbourg frères. Grandes Heures of Jean, Duc de Berry, Fifteenth century.

The calendar pages of the Grandes Heures carried more religious symbolism than that of the more famous Très Riches Heures.  Each month was dedicated to a part of the Apostles Creed, with the relevant prophecy from the Old Testament and scripture from the New Testament.  June is dedicated to the article of the Creed which says “…He ascended into Heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty…” Here we see (left to right) Saint Paul instructing the Phillipians (although the scripture “…He [that descended is the same also that] ascended above all the heavens, that he might fill all things…” comes from Ephesians 4:10); Our Lady stands above the battlements of the New Jerusalem, holding a banner with a depiction of Our Lord’s resurrection [yes, that belonged to last month, but the artists weren’t too accurate here, as we’ve seen]; Cancer, the Crab, astrological symbol of June, emerges from the gate; the sun has moved higher in the arc of heaven; and below it are flowering trees in a green meadow.

José de Páez, c1770, Sacred Heart of Jesus with St. Ignatius of Loyola and Saint Louis Gonzaga.  Swiped from Wikipedia.

June. Limbourg frères. Grandes Heures of Jean, Duc de Berry, Fifteenth century.

Depicted at the bottom of the calendar pages in the Grandes Heures is the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets of the Old Testament by the articles of the Apostles Creed.  In each, a prophet (cloaked to show the obscurity of prophecy) takes a stone out of the building representing the Old Law and offers it to an apostle, who, by raising the cloak ‘uncovers’ the prophecy with an article of faith. The Prophet Amos holds a banderole which translates to “…He that builds his ascension in heaven…” (Amos 9:6), while the brick he pulls from the edifice has caused the buttress and tower to crumble and the columns holding the loggia roof to buckle; Saint James Minor presents the relevant part of the Apostle’s Creed, “…He ascended into Heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father Almighty…”

June – Cutting Wood. Engraving based on an 11^th century manuscript. William Walsh, Curiosities of Popular Customs (1898) p. 591