The League of Bearded Catholics

Happy Birthday, Jack

A happy belated birthday to C.S. Lewis, November 29th. It would have been what his friend Tolkien might have called his eleventy-first birthday (Lewis would be 111).

November Notes on Tolkien

At the Called to Communion blog, in response to a brief but salient blog post from Fr, Dwight Longnecker, Andrew Preslar posts a three part series on the Catholicity of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. Definitely worth a read.

Also, how cool is this? - (from the Wikipedia entry)

The Father Christmas Letters is a collection of letters written and illustrated by J.R.R. Tolkien between 1920 and 1942 for his children, from "Father Christmas". They tell of the adventures and misadventures of Father Christmas and his helpers, including the North Polar Bear and his two sidekick cubs, Paksu and Valkotukka.

The collection was published in one volume by Houghton Mifflin in 1976, and is available currently in a revised edition that includes more letters and illustrations. A great stocking stuffer for the Tolkien fan.

Tasty AND Stylish

Photo courtesy of North Dakota Department of Game and Fish

We have not been made aware of any other bird that sports a beard.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Chesterton on Beards

Proto Leaguer Darin wrote to remind me of this from G.K. Chesterton;

"You cannot grow a beard in a moment of passion."

It is from a short essay Chesterton wrote on the Boer War (or at least tangentially on the Boer War) called How I Met The President.

Chesterton often got to the point of his essays by way of the Rolling English Road, so to speak, which wound in a leisurely way in and out of observations and metaphors. Blogger Jennifer Pierce (Just Jen) recently noted that his way of thinking and writing has the quality of a braid.

Call Me Jolly Again, and I'll...

St. Nicholas Saves Three Innocents From Death - Ilya Repin, 1888

There exists a whole universe of great saints, many of whom would make a smashing patron, but for a variety of reasons, I would like to propose St. Nicholas of Myra as the Patron Saint of The League of Bearded Catholics.

He is a Bearded Catholic, anyway, though not that much else is positively known about him. Legends abound. He was loved and celebrated in many places throughout Christendom long before he came to be associated with Christmas presents.

Questions? Comments? Cantankerous quibbles?

Long Live Christ the King!

This is a bit behind the curve, unfortunately. Yesterday was Christ the King Sunday, and if anyone can remain unmoved during those readings at the Mass, they have a heart of stone.

We can forget at times that all of our earthly associations - government, business and social ties - are strictly provisional and temporary, because we are already the subjects of our King, and ever will be, and being the lowliest subject in his Kingdom beats the tar out of everything the world could possibly offer.

At Mass last night, it occurred to me that the Feast of Christ the King ought to have a real holiday Feast attached to it, and it is maybe even a gross oversight that it does not. Of course it is a Holy Day, but it darn well ought to be a holiday, as well. It needs a traditional feast and a party. It is, after all, the last day of the Christian year.

Something like Rex-mas?

On The Radio, No One Can See Your Beard

Incredibly, the kind people at Relevant Radio contacted me last week regarding a brief interview about The League of Bearded Catholics. Listen in Monday, November 23rd between 7:00 and 7:30 a.m., on Morning Air with (the bearded) Sean Herriot. That will be great fun, because my daughter and I often catch Sean, et al on Morning Air as I drive her to school.

I've also been asked to write a short article about The League for a respectable Catholic journal, but I'll give more details (assuming they don't come to their senses) when the article has actually been accepted and scheduled for publication.

Do you think I should remind them that we have yet to, you know... hold an actual, official meeting? Or is that best kept under my fedora?

This One's For The Ladies...

 

Reader and soon-to-be Founding Member John Kasaian writes;

Would Flannery O'Connor be considered a Bearded Catholic Lady? Or at least a Bearded by Intent Catholic Lady?

Now... that is a little spooky, because I had just been considering the same sort of question - namely, what official status should be given and by what title should we address admired Catholic ladies?

And the FIRST name I thought of was Flannery O'Connor!

Then, you also have some formidable contemporary Catholic women who(whom?) I would be very privileged to recognize, if they wouldn't find the whole thing too trivial or insulting.

I would consider the title Honorary Bearded Lady to be the highest sort of compliment, but they might not see it that way. :-)

There was a similar inquiry over at Jimmy Akin's blog, from a lady reader who wondered whether there ought to be some sort of Women's Auxiliary, or something.

My first response would be that The League is far too absurd an undertaking to warrant the forming of any kind of Auxiliary. Plus, one hallmark of healthy Catholic men is that we respect, admire and enjoy the company of good Catholic women. I don't see the strict need for a Women's Auxiliary or what have you, since everyone is welcome at League meetings. Yes, the focus is on manly Catholic pursuits, but the thought of making it an exclusive "men's club" I find rather dull. Let our company be graced with women... if they can stand it.

Then again, I am completely open to some kind of ancillary women's group if that is what the women prefer. I know men + beer/wine/smokes can make for tedious company. A separate group might afford these redoubtable ladies the opportunity to foster friendships with other Catholic women in a more civilized and intelligent atmosphere. If there are any ladies so inclined, please feel free to organize however you please. Either way, we will be more than happy to be allowed to be associated with you, and will endorse your efforts with great satisfaction.

The Tangled History of the Catholic Beard

 

Listening to Catholic Answers Live last night (featuring the bearded Jimmy Akin) I heard that the Catholic Answers website has now incorporated the entire original Catholic Encyclopedia. Tons of articles, references and links.

One of the articles is a very informative and fascinating short history of the Catholic beard. Really. Unlike our brothers in the Eastern churches, who have nearly always promoted beard growth, the relationship between the Roman Catholic Church and facial hair has been, well, rather scraggly and uneven.

The official attitude of the Western Church to beards (especially for clergy and religious) has waxed and waned and been influenced by all sorts of factors both inside and outside the Church. It was often a response to trends in contemporary society, as when clergy were discouraged from "aping the fashions of military folk". Do read it if you get the chance.

One cool thing about digging into an encyclopedia is that you can catch yourself browsing and learn all kinds of things you hadn't intended to. I enjoy doing this with the Online Etymology Dictionary, too.

The Catholic Encyclopedia article on beards is, of course, sandwiched between two other articles arranged in alphabetical order by topic. Did you know that Art Nouveau illustrator Aubrey Beardsley died at the age of 25? Tuberculosis. I had forgotten, I suppose. He was also " ...always a man of deep religious feeling and became a Catholic at the close of his life". Not bearded, though. Quite the opposite of bearded, actually.

Hirsute Happenings

 

We've begun establishing a list of handy links in the right-hand column >>>.

There is the American Chesterton Society, the American and UK Tolkien societies, and a Hilaire Belloc Society (UK). I, surprisingly, was not able to find a C.S. Lewis Society per se, but I did link to the C.S. Lewis Institute and the the C.S Lewis Foundation. Of these two, the C.S. Lewis Foundation seems to be more like a literary society, but both groups seem more activist and outreach oriented - more evangelical - than common literary societies that focus more on promotion, appreciation and preservation of the work a particular writer.

The Beard and Moustache Clubs link comes from the website of the World Beard and Moustache Championships. I could have sworn I saw on there a link to some local high school beard club, which I would heartily support, but I'll be darned if I can find it, now.

Now, those of you who are aware of cool blogs, websites and other items that fit, please send them in. Truthfully, I'm not that familiar with the work of some of the groups, but look forward to finding out more.

ALSO -  send in your ideas for short blog posts and articles, or write some yourself! We are working on some profiles of contemporary Bearded Catholics, what you might call Honorary Members, and will be most grateful for your contributions here, as well.

IN ADDITION - Incredibly, I've been invited to do some interviewing and that kind of thing regarding TLBC. More on those as they develop.