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Uplifting Thoughts for the Isolated and Depressed in Times of Plague

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Praefectus Praetorio said:
In the Gospel of Mark, the ‘triumphal’ entry of Jesus into Jerusalem on ‘Palm Sunday” is very simple, almost humble.

Then they brought the colt to Jesus, threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it. Many spread their cloaks on the road and others spread branches they had cut in the fields. Both those who went ahead and those who followed kept shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!” Then Jesus entered Jerusalem and went to the temple. And after looking around at everything, he went out to Bethany with the twelve since it was already late.

The action is a not subtle reference to a passage in Zechariah, the penultimate book of the Old Testament.

Rejoice greatly, daughter of Zion!
Shout, daughter of Jerusalem!
Look! Your king is coming to you:
he is legitimate and victorious,
humble and riding on a donkey –
on a young donkey, the foal of a female donkey

Several commentators have raised the idea of this being a contrast to another event. The Roman procurator (not Governor, Judea wasn’t big enough to rate being a provincia with a propraetor or proconsul ruling. Pontius Pilate was a procurator, the administrative level below a Rector provinciae, a kind of chief accountant, more responsible for money than rule) spent most of his time in the very Romanized city of Caesarea Maritima, the civilian and military capital and the official residence of the Roman ruler. However, with the approach of the religiously and politically turbulent time of Passover, Pilate would move his headquarters and much of his military force to the nexus of Jerusalem. Scholars have speculated as to whether Pilate’s entry might have coincided with that of Jesus.

Image the contrast this would establish. You can envision Pilate arriving, riding a large, decorated warhorse with a large contingent of heavy cavalry and armored legionaries. Before would march the trumpeters and the standard bearers carrying the eagles and wearing their ferocious animal hides! It would have been a calculated and orchestrated display of Roman might to awe the restless and oppressed population.

One the other side of town, an itinerant preacher from the disregarded region of Galilee (recall Nathanael’s words in the Gospel of John, “Can any good thing come from Nazareth?”), accompanied by a rag-tag body of poor peasants and cheered by a few random onlookers, rides in on a donkey. A very much underwhelming display!

But Jesus entry echoes that described in Zechariah, where the king is described as “legitimate and victorious, humble and riding on a donkey.” So God will send his righteous King, not the Roman tyrant.

Pilate, coming from the coast, would surely enter Jerusalem by the Western Gate, beside which was Herod’s Palace, his residence while in the City. Jesus entered by the Eastern Gate, coming from Bethpage. The Roman in the West, where the day ends, Jesus in the East where a new day rises.

Whose world was ending and whose beginning.

Rejoice today, even in isolation, for God is with us.

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Incidentally, Nicholas Cleobury,the musical director here, sadly passed a few months ago after leading the Choir for many years since succeeding David Willcocks.
 
twonines said:
Incidentally, Nicholas Cleobury,the musical director here, sadly passed a few months ago after leading the Choir for many years since succeeding David Willcocks.
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Nicholas is the brother of the director. Nicholas is alive and well in Queensland, as far as I can tell. Stephen Cleobury died last Nov after being director since 1982.
 
Praefectus Praetorio said:
Nicholas is the brother of the director. Nicholas is alive and well in Queensland, as far as I can tell. Stephen Cleobury died last Nov after being director since 1982.
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Yes, that's Sir Stephen conducting in that 2013 clip. Although a slightly ropey video, it's a lovely chance to see the wonderful windows of King's Chapel, usually in darkness at Christmas. The Chapel, and the College (and the sister institution at Eton), were founded by Henry VI, but put on hold during the reign of Yorkist Edward IV, who had St George's Windsor (across the river from Eton) rebuilt as the triumphant statement of the House of York. But when Henry Tudor disposed of Richard of York, he resumed work on King's (and also commissioned King Henry VI Chapel in Westminster Abbey), he got the Chapel building pretty well complete. But it was his son, Henry VIII, who commissioned the glass, which uses Scriptural imagery to make subtle - or not so subtle - propaganda points proclaiming the greatness of the Tudor dynasty. Fortunately the work was complete before the Reformation took hold, and those windows were simply too big, too inaccessible, and too expensive to replace even with plain glass, for either the Puritans or the Roundheads to destroy them.
 
A delightful little clip passed to me by l'bogo :)
(the deer who thinks he's a dog)

video.repubblica.it

Firenze, il daino che 'crede di essere un cane': 'Viene a spasso con noi e insegue la palla'

Negli ultimi giorni questo giovane daino (animale che da cucciolo spesso viene confuso con un cerbiatto) ha adottato una famiglia italiana che vive sulle colline alla periferia di Firenze. L'animale è stato ribattezzato 'Bob', va a spasso con il cane e con gli esseri umani, corre in giardino e...
video.repubblica.it video.repubblica.it
 
Praefectus Praetorio said:
Things to see while staying isolated:
"The Orchid Show," New York Botanical Garden, the Bronx, New York
View attachment 844255
www.nybg.org

The Orchid Show: Jeff Leatham’s Kaleidoscope » New York Botanical Garden

NYBG is temporarily closed and The Orchid Show will not reopen. Learn more. Experience Famed Designer Jeff Leatham’s Bold and Colorful Vision The dazzling floral creations of Jeff Leatham, famed artistic director of the Four Seasons Hotel George V, Paris and floral designer to the stars...
www.nybg.org

Thomas Jefferson Memorial in Washington D.C. (National Cherry Blossom Festival)
View attachment 844256

BloomCam — Trust for the National Mall

nationalmall.org nationalmall.org

More to come
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Keukenhof Gardens, Lisse, Netherlands
18001998256_938b635f47_k.jpg
www.holland.com

Visit the Keukenhof, the largest flower garden in the world

Read all about Keukenhof. What is there to see, how do you get there and when is it open? You can also book your discount tickets online.
www.holland.com
Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve, Lancaster, California
poppies.jpeg
www.parks.ca.gov

Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve Live Stream

Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve Live Stream
www.parks.ca.gov www.parks.ca.gov
 
Things to go see while staying home and isolated:
Royal Horticultural Society Chelsea Flower Show, London, United Kingdom
27184540490_91bd0185ae_k.jpg

The RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2022 / RHS Gardening

The world's greatest flower show reveals cutting-edge garden design, fabulous floral displays and simply the best shopping
www.rhs.org.uk www.rhs.org.uk

Theodore Payne Foundation’s Native Plant Garden Tour, Los Angeles, California
garden-7-del-rey-a.jpg
 
Praefectus Praetorio said:
Things to go see while staying home and isolated:
Royal Horticultural Society Chelsea Flower Show, London, United Kingdom
View attachment 845640

The RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2022 / RHS Gardening

The world's greatest flower show reveals cutting-edge garden design, fabulous floral displays and simply the best shopping
www.rhs.org.uk www.rhs.org.uk

Theodore Payne Foundation’s Native Plant Garden Tour, Los Angeles, California
View attachment 845642
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Not cultivated by man, but stunning and uplifting!
 
Eulalia said:
A delightful little clip passed to me by l'bogo :)
(the deer who thinks he's a dog)

video.repubblica.it

Firenze, il daino che 'crede di essere un cane': 'Viene a spasso con noi e insegue la palla'

Negli ultimi giorni questo giovane daino (animale che da cucciolo spesso viene confuso con un cerbiatto) ha adottato una famiglia italiana che vive sulle colline alla periferia di Firenze. L'animale è stato ribattezzato 'Bob', va a spasso con il cane e con gli esseri umani, corre in giardino e...
video.repubblica.it video.repubblica.it
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In the United States, the white-tailed deer (in the east, and I assume the mule deer in the west) is the mortal enemy of flowers--especially lilies, but many others as well. They are all over the place, including urban environments (along with coyotes, a mini-wolf). The deer were almost wiped out by hunting in the 19th and early 20th centuries which coincided with forest decline, but were re-introduced for hunting and now there isn't enough hunting to control them. They are termed a "weed" animal. People are starting to worry about diseases they help spread via ticks (chiefly Lyme Disease, named after Lyme, Connecticut, which is overrun with them, but also a "chronic wasting disease" which is caused by a prion--like the bovine encyphalytus which hit the UK some years ago, but this seems to be confined to deer). People can tame them enough so they will feed from your hand here, too, but generally I just try to run them out of my garden with my pitchfork. They will run from you, but they conserve energy and will only run just far enough to make you stop chasing them. I haven't had them eat California poppies, but I have lots of trouble growing those anyway, and they don't seem to self-seed for me. I really like them, but have had little success. Nature is not always an idyll--I have a book called "What Animals Are Really Like" which features an angry panda on the cover.
 
Frank Petrexa said:
In the United States, the white-tailed deer (in the east, and I assume the mule deer in the west) is the mortal enemy of flowers--especially lilies, but many others as well. They are all over the place, including urban environments (along with coyotes, a mini-wolf). The deer were almost wiped out by hunting in the 19th and early 20th centuries which coincided with forest decline, but were re-introduced for hunting and now there isn't enough hunting to control them. They are termed a "weed" animal. People are starting to worry about diseases they help spread via ticks (chiefly Lyme Disease, named after Lyme, Connecticut, which is overrun with them, but also a "chronic wasting disease" which is caused by a prion--like the bovine encyphalytus which hit the UK some years ago, but this seems to be confined to deer). People can tame them enough so they will feed from your hand here, too, but generally I just try to run them out of my garden with my pitchfork. They will run from you, but they conserve energy and will only run just far enough to make you stop chasing them. I haven't had them eat California poppies, but I have lots of trouble growing those anyway, and they don't seem to self-seed for me. I really like them, but have had little success. Nature is not always an idyll--I have a book called "What Animals Are Really Like" which features an angry panda on the cover.
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Yes, red and roe deer are a pesky nuisance in Scotland, a bane to gardeners, preventing forest regeneration, causing traffic accidents and carrying Lyme-disease ticks (I had a narrow squeak - I was in hospital being got ready for a minor op, the theatre nurse noticed target-like red rings on my back - not the usual whip-marks! so after the surgery I was sent along to the dermatologist who gave me a heroic dose of anitbiotics to zap it) I do by bit by eating plenty of venison, finding all sorts of nice ways to cook it ;)
 
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Eulalia said:
Yes, red and roe deer are a pesky nuisance in Scotland, a bane to gardeners, preventing forest regeneration, causing traffic accidents and carrying Lyme-disease ticks (I had a narrow squeak - I was in hospital being got ready for a minor op, the theatre nurse noticed target-like red rings on my back - not not the usual whip-marks! so after the surgery I was sent along to the dermatologist who gave me a heroic dose of anitbiotics to zap it) I do by bit by eating plenty of venison, finding all sorts of nice ways to cook it ;)
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My father-in-law was an outstanding hunter, always brought home game. Bambi burgers and Bambi chili (secret ingredient - cocoa powder) were our favorites.
 
Barbaria1 said:
Deer overpopulation is a similar nuisance here in the Midwest too, as is Lyme disease and a deer-borne wasting disease. They are plentiful in farming areas and quite brazen about making appearances even in urban neighborhoods
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Not the only brazen wildlife in urban neighborhoods
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