Monday, April 24, 2006

Saint George's Day

Cry "God for Harry, England and St George!" (William Shakespeare, Henry V)

The feast of St.George, patron saint of England, usually falls on April 23rd. Yesterday St.George got bumped out by Divine Mercy Sunday, so for this year the English Church is celebrating the Solemnity of St.George on the 24th instead. Here is some St.George miscellanea in his honour ...

St.George and the Dragon, by Paolo Uccello


Books about St.George

Picture books
Saint George and the Dragon by Margaret Hodges
Saint George and the Dragon by Geraldine McCaughrean

Life of St.George
Saint George: Knight of Lydda by Anthony Cooney (see samples and reviews here)

Flag of St.George - the national flag of England. Already proliferating in preparation for the World Cup in June. (What do you mean, what World Cup? THE World Cup! Soccer.)
St.George Hymn (sung to the tune of Ode to Joy)

Leader now on earth no longer,
soldier of th'eternal king,
victor in the fight for heaven,
we thy loving praises sing.
Refrain:
Great Saint George, our patron, help us,
in the conflict be thou nigh;
help us in that daily battle,
where each one must win or die.


Praise him who in deadly battle
never shrank from foeman's sword,
proof against all earthly weapon,
gave his life for Christ the Lord.

Who, when earthly war was over,

fought, but not for earth's renown;
fought, and won a nobler glory,
won the martyr's purple crown.

Help us when temptation presses,

we have still our crown to win,
help us when our soul is weary
fighting with the powers of sin.

Clothe us in thy shining armour,
place thy good sword in our hand;
teach us how to wield it, fighting
onward towards the heavenly land.

Onward, till, our striving over,
on life's battle field we fall,
resting then, but ever ready,
waiting for the angel's call

(Joseph W.Reeks)
Learn more about St.George
Article on St.George

Churches dedicated to St.George












Saint George's Roman Catholic Cathedral, Southwark (left) and Saint George's Chapel, Windsor Castle (right)

The George Cross
Instituted by King George VI during the Second World War. The highest award for civilian bravery in the United Kingdom.

And finally ...
A Novena in honour of Saint George


4 comments:

Anonymous said...

What wonderful information on St. George! I love that the national flag of England is the Flag of St. George, can't wait to share these goodies with my dd.

Rebecca said...

Thanks for all the great St. George links and info! My ds6 is very dedicated to St. George. I will share this with the kiddos for a "belated" St. George day.

Anonymous said...

Thank you for this song, and for the blog as a whole. Such a breath of fresh air.

The irony of a Christian hymn to St. George set to what has been hijacked by the EU may have escaped you. I, however, will take great pleasure in teaching these words to my sons as a suitable alternative to the humanist drivel which will doubtless be foisted on our children by our lords and masters in Brussels.

Wishing you a safe delivery of a healthy child, and every blessing to you as a family.

Your brother in Christ
An Evangelical

The Bookworm said...

Thank you :).

Yes the irony had escaped me, but has now given me a good chuckle!