Tea at Trianon: Manners in Genesis

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Tuesday, July 2, 2019

Manners in Genesis

From Aleteia:

The beauty of this story is that Abraham and Sarah didn’t question the importance of offering comfort and sustenance to their guests — three total strangers. No doubt they were busy, with a lot to do that day. But hospitality for the ancient peoples of the Middle East was considered a mitzvah, a commandment from God. If a stranger was in need of food or drink, or a place to rest or sleep, it was a sacred duty to see to those needs. Never mind your to-do list, there were people in your midst who needed to be welcomed and cared for.

What can Abraham and Sarah teach us today? For one thing, that hospitality isn’t about throwing parties with impressive cocktails, but treating anyone who comes into our home with respect. Today, when so many people are busy and lonely, anxious and depressed, something as simple as a warm welcome can be a life-changing balm. And Abraham and Sarah can also teach us that hospitality changes us. Not only does it teach us to set aside our own needs for someone else, but shows us that we never know what God wants to do for us through others. In Abraham’s and Sarah’s case, their three guests told them of a great promise: that the following year, the old couple would finally have a child. And so they did. (Read more.)