Month: January 2020

Beelzebub

In the Old Testament, Beelzebub is a fertility god worshipped by the Philistines of Ekron and other Semitic groups. In the New Testament, he is the leader of the devils, sometimes identified with Satan and sometimes with his chief assistant. One of the fallen angels of John Milton’s 17th-century epic Paradise Lost, Beelzebub is described by the author as being next to Satan in power. His name, Beelzebub, ultimately derives from the Hebrew words bá’al zebub, meaning “lord of” what? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Feast of the Ass

This festival recalling the flight of the Holy Family (Jesus, Mary, and Joseph) into Egypt to escape King Herod reached its peak during the Middle Ages in France. It was customary to have a girl carrying a baby and riding an elaborately decorated ass led through the streets to the church. But the celebration gradually took on comic overtones, with the priest and congregation imitating the braying of an ass during the service and the ass itself being led into the church. By the 15th century the feast was nothing more than an occasion for laughter and was suppressed by the Church. Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

The Angora Rabbit

A popular pet of 18th-century French royalty, the Angora rabbit is a striking-looking variety of domestic rabbit that resembles a large, fluffy snowball. Its long, silky wool is valued for its softness and fluffiness and is often used in knit apparel like sweaters. It is important that these rabbits are regularly groomed and have their wool harvested; otherwise their coats can become matted or be ingested by the animal and cause digestive problems. How big can Angora rabbits get? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Silvesterklausen (Old Silvester Day)

The custom known as Silvesterklausen in the town of Urnäsch, Appenzell Outer Rhoden, Switzerland, is performed both on December 31, New Silvester Day (St. Sylvester‘s Day), and on January 13, or Old Silvester Day (reflecting the change from the Julian, or Old Style, calendar to the Gregorian, or New Style, calendar in 1582). The men of the village, wearing masks, costumes, and heavy harnesses with bells, traditionally walk in groups from house to house singing wordless yodels. The friends and neighbors who receive them offer them a drink before they move on to the next house. Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Henry Percy, 9th Earl of Northumberland

Percy was an English aristocrat who inherited his title from his father when he was in his early 20s. Under James I, Percy was imprisoned in the Tower of London for suspicion of involvement in the Gunpowder Plot, which was undertaken in part by his relative Thomas Percy. While in prison, he made the acquaintance of Sir Walter Raleigh, who was also confined there, and earned the sobriquet “The Wizard Earl” for his scientific experiments. What luxurious amenities did Percy have while imprisoned? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Feast of the Baptism of the Lord

Jesus’ baptism by John the Baptist in the River Jordan has always been considered a significant manifestation of Jesus’ divinity, and has been celebrated on Epiphany by the Orthodox Church since the end of the second century. However, in 1961 the Roman Catholic Church began to celebrate it as a separate feast in its own right. The original date for the feast was January 13, but when the Church calendar was reorganized in 1969, the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord was moved to the Sunday following the Epiphany. Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Gaeltachts

Irish Gaelic was made an official language of Ireland in 1921. Although hundreds of thousands of Irish citizens and people of Irish descent have some competence in Irish Gaelic, it is a true community language only for a small number of people on Ireland’s western coast in what are called Gaeltachts—an Irish Gaelic term for regions in Ireland where it is spoken as a native language. In what ways has the government attempted to revive Gaelic as the primary language of the country? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary