An Easter Poem
A slightly revised version. To avoid any misunderstanding, the speaker is the eternal spirit of Simon Magus.
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Wednesday’s Child: The Great American Eclipse
This Monday a great solar eclipse will cross the United States. It is the second such omen in the last decade, which is itself an omen, as one total eclipse so closely followed by another has not been seen in the country since its founding. Hence commentators are quoting the Book of Exodus: “And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe thee, neither hearken to the voice of the first sign, that they will believe the voice of the latter sign.”
Pisa, I: Prologue
In Pisa every year on the last Saturday in June, two groups of representatives from the different areas of the city meet at either end of the Ponte di Mezzo. The representatives are dressed in Medieval garb and divided into two teams, one for the north side of the river, the other for the south.
A Simple Thought on Good Friday
Those who reject Christ, reject the God who sent him to die for the salvation of mankind.
Tuscan Communes, The Big Picture
The creation of the city-commune in Pisa, Lucca, Siena, and Florence would have enormous ramifications for the future of the Europe. The institution of the commune is a more fundamental revolution than the establishment of the nation-state, and it will outlive the nation-state, in whose birth it played a significant part.
Wednesday’s Child: Of Life and Death
The other week I came across news reports of a crime that was apparently committed some years ago, but one that still captivates the mind.
The Historical Consciousness of George Garrett
This essay on George Garret appeared in a special volume of the Texas Review devoted to Garret.
Tuscan Histories: The Salian Dynasty
With the death of Henry II (1024), the male line of the Saxon Emperors failed entirely. His successor Conrad II, was a Franconian or Salian Frank who traced his descent from the daughter of Otto I.
Wednesday’s Child: Forgiveness Sunday
I once read somewhere that the tradition of Forgiveness Sunday, with which last week ended for the Orthodox, arose in Egypt, when monks bid their farewells to each other before leaving the safety of the monastery to wander in the desert for Great Lent. In Russian we still use the same word for “farewell” and “forgive.”
