A Brief History On December 24, 1294, Pope Boniface VIII (born Benedetto Caetani) was elected Pope of the Roman Catholic Church to replace the previous Pope, St. Celestine V, who had resigned to return to his humble, monastic pre-papal life. Fearing Celestine becoming an Anti-pope (pretender to the papacy), Boniface jailed Celestine, his predecessor (not the first Pope to ever resign the office, despite legend that he was). Celestine spent the rest of his life imprisoned. Digging Deeper Celestine, born Pietro Angelerio in 1215 in Sicily, had become a Benedictine monk at the age of 17. He led an austere…
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A Brief History On December 23, 1997, the Seinfeld television comedy show introduced us to a new, secular holiday to be celebrated during the winter season, avoiding the religious friction of Hanukkah vs. Christmas vs. Saturnalia vs. Winter Solstice and the racially charged Kwanzaa. (Note: Kwanzaa was invented by a creep that was convicted of kidnapping and torturing 2 African American women.) December 23 is the day designated for the celebration of Festivus (For The Rest of Us!!!) Digging Deeper The brainchild of Seinfeld writer Dan O’Keefe, the idea of Festivus is to provide a “holiday” without any pressures to…
A Brief History On December 22, 2001, Richard Colvin Reid, age 28, of London, England, attempted to destroy an airliner in flight on its way to Miami, Florida by the use of explosives hidden in his shoe. The comically inept terrorist failed to ignite his bomb when he was interrupted while attempting to light the fuse with a match during the flight. Ever since, this career petty criminal turned radical Islamist has been known as “The Shoe Bomber.” Digging Deeper Reid was born in London in 1973 to a White English mother and a father of mixed heritage (Jamaican/African/White). He…
A Brief History On December 17, 2017, Orthodox Christians celebrate the Feast of Daniel, a recognized prophet in Christianity, a recognized nabi in Islam (saintly or righteous man), and although Judaism does not consider Daniel a prophet, it does accord him status as a legendary example of a pious and good man. (Roman Catholic Feast of Daniel is July 21st.) Digging Deeper The story of Daniel is told in the Bible, appropriately in The Book of Daniel. The Bible relates that Daniel was a noble Jew from Jerusalem that was captured as a youth by the Babylonians and taken to…
A Brief History On December 13, 2017, our Jewish friends celebrate the Festival of Lights and the Feast of Dedication, known better as Hanukkah. Right off the bat, the confusion starts with the spelling of “Hanukkah!” You may find this word spelled several different ways, so just pick the one you like. No matter how you spell it, Hanukkah adds up to 8 Crazy Nights! Digging Deeper Celebrated to commemorate the founding of the Second Temple, Hanukkah rites center around an 8 candle candelabrum called a menorah, with a ninth candle holder holding a candle called a Shamash, usually in…