“lyke tru and fayghthefull crystyn pepyll this was restoryd to this churche by the wyche doyngis hyt schowyth that they dyd lyke good catholyke men.” – Sir Christopher Trychay

I’m almost finished with The Stripping of the Altars by Eamon Duffy. It’s such an exquisite work, and whilst academic, has some very lovely prose (e.g. the dead became as shadowy as the blanks in the in the stripped matrices of their gravestones). My progress has been slowed by work commitments, copious note taking, and passages of old English¹.

In terms of personal impact, this book cracks my top ten and joins the ranks of Admiral of the Ocean Sea by Samuel Eliot Morison and The Abolition of Man by C.S. Lewis. All these books (and probably authors) would be burned today by SJWs (and ironically Morison taught at Oxford and Harvard). Duffy’s book makes it clear though that in order to snuff out tradition (the permanent things) the radicals will grow more violent, extreme, and deceptive but that some saints and laity will labor at great sacrifice to preserve those traditions. The BIG debate is whether or not there is hope in the proles -or- if men without chests can be engineered by our elites.

“When the Edwardine spoilation of the church began William Clopton systematically bought up many of the images, and was given a free hand by the wardens to remove material from the Clopton family aisle and chapel, including all the images, ‘and to do yt at hys plesur’. One of these images, of the Virgin and Child in bed being venerated by the Magi, was discovered unbroken under the church floor in the nineteenth century, so it seems likely that Clopton took the images to preserve them.”

One other book is my top ten is C.S. Lewis for the Third Millennium by Peter Kreeft (Boston College) and this interview with him on Pints with Aquinas is recommended. It’s related to this post because Kreeft wrestles with Aquinas on the subject of whether or not the permanent things are extinguishable.

Related
‘Where Is Your God Now?’ Portland Cops Do NOTHING as Antifa Attacks Prayer Event Led by Persecuted Christian Pastor (PJ Media)

Shaun King [BLM] says Jesus images ‘a form of white supremacy’ that must go: ‘They should all come down’ (Washington Times)

¹MY ambitions of being a Medieval scholar were dashed by my inability to handle old English.