Not long ago I was reading a book I received as a Christmas present, More Desired than Our Owne Salvation, The Roots of Christian Zionism. On page 72 I came across this sentence: "In 1605 [English] authorities discovered the 'Gunpowder Plot' designed by Catholics to assassinate [King] James as well as the Puritans then sitting in Parliament."
Several years ago I addressed this event in a blog post. I wrote, "November 5 is Guy Fawkes Day. In 1605 thirteen young men conspired to blow up Britain's House of Parliament. Among them was Guy Fawkes, a Catholic who protested the Protestant government of his day. The 'Gunpowder Plot,' as it was called, was thwarted, and the leader, Guy Fawkes, was caught, tortured, and executed.
Since that time Britons commemorate the capture of Guy Fawkes with bonfires and fireworks, and by burning an effigy of Guy, or sometimes of the Pope.
"Interestingly, the memory of Guy Fawkes continues 400 years later on Ocracoke Island (albeit in a diminished and corrupted fashion) in a now rare saying. If an islander is thought to be up to no good, hiding his malicious intentions, an islander might comment, 'He's sneakier than old Guy Hall.'"
Anyone want to organize a bonfire on the beach next fall in memory of "Guy Hall"?
This month's Ocracoke Newsletter is about the almost forgotten 1890 "Oyster Wars" that
pitted islanders against outside business interests. You can read the
article here: http://www.villagecraftsmen.com/news012115.htm.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Of course I do.
ReplyDeleteBefore there was Vatican city the Vatican was a country. A country with leaders living a lavish lifestyle. Anyway NPR was just discussing a book Gods Bank and the manner in which the Bank accounts of nefarious entities , yes, those nefarious entities were, are kept secret. PS with the internet lets give credit where credit is due Fawkes not Hall, unless of course you want to sell T-shirts.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bonfirenight.net/bonfire.php
ReplyDeleteGlad to see the book has made its way to Ocracoke! Please give our greetings to Fiddler Dave Tweedy from the Smiths in Jerusalem.
ReplyDelete