Posted on 11 Sept., 2017<\/p>\n
Canterbury Tales<\/p>\n
Geoffrey Chaucer was born, the son of a vintner, in London in about 1342.\u00a0 His value as an Englishman was such that Edward III paid a part of his ransom in 1360 after he had been captured while fighting the French.<\/p>\n
He was well versed in the doctrines of the Christian faith.\u00a0 He knew the Fathers and quotes freely from all the Scriptures as well as the Apocrypha.\u00a0 In his career as a statesman, he made two journeys on behalf of the king to Italy, first to Genoa in 1372 and a second to Milan in 1378, where, presumably he encountered the dawn of the Renaissance.<\/p>\n
Providentially, it would seem, he was deprived of his offices in December of 1386 when the Duke of Gloucester, no fan of Chaucer, replaced John of Gaunt, a friend of Chaucer. \u00a0(He would be returned to his office upon John’s return to his office in 1389.)\u00a0 Thanks be to God, it was during that interim – without his office – that he composed The Canterbury Tales.<\/p>\n
He died on 25 October, 1400.<\/p>\n
The prologue to The Canterbury Tales contains an introduction to the several characters of whom he writes.\u00a0 One of those is the church pastor\/priest in part as follows:<\/p>\n
A holy-minded man of good renown Wide was his parish, with houses far asunder, For if a priest be foul in whom we trust He did not set his benefice to hire Posted on 11 Sept., 2017 Canterbury Tales Geoffrey Chaucer was born, the son of a vintner, in London in about 1342.\u00a0 His value as an Englishman was such that Edward III paid a part of his ransom in 1360 after he had been captured while fighting the French. He was well versed in the doctrines […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12,21,14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2332","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-character-or-not","category-political-ministry-of-the-churches-of-god","category-prisoners-and-other-servants"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/michaelbray.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2332","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/michaelbray.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/michaelbray.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michaelbray.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michaelbray.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2332"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/michaelbray.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2332\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2339,"href":"https:\/\/michaelbray.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2332\/revisions\/2339"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/michaelbray.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2332"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michaelbray.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2332"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/michaelbray.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2332"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nThere was, and poor, the Parson<\/em> to a town,
\nYet he was right in holy thought and work.
\nHe was also a learned man, a clerk,
\nWho truly knew Christ’s gospel and would preach it
\nDevoutly to parishioners, and teach it . . .<\/p>\n
\nYet he neglected no in rain or thunder
\nIn sickness or in grief, to pay a call
\nOn the remotest, whether great or small,
\nUpon the his feed, and in his had a stave
\nThis noble example to his sheep he gave,
\nFirst following the word before he taught it
\nAnd it was from the gospel he had caught it. . .<\/p>\n
\nNo wonder that a common man should rust;
\nAnd shame it is to see – let priests take stock –
\nA shitten shepherd and a snowy flock . . .<\/p>\n
\nAnd leave his sheep unencumbered in the mire
\nBy singing masses for the wealthy dead,
\nOr find some Brotherhood and get enrolled.
\nHe stayed at home and watched over his fold
\nSo that no wolf should make the sheep miscarry.
\nHe was a shepherd and no mercenary.
\nHoly and virtuous he was, but then
\nNever contemptuous of sinful men,
\nNever disdainful, never too proud or fine,
\nBut was discreet in teaching and benign.
\nHis business was to show a fair behaviour
\nAnd draw men thus to Heaven and their Saviour,
\nUnless indeed a man were obstinate;
\nAnd such, whether of high or low estate,
\nHe put to sharp rebuke to say the least.
\nI think there never was a better priest.
\nHe sought no pomp or glory in his dealings,
\nNo scrupulosity had spiced his feelings.
\nChrist and His Twelve Apostles and their lore
\nHe taught, but followed it himself before.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"