Advent 2 – 2 December 2021
Good morning,
and welcome to the second window in our St Andrews-themed advent calendar. This evening at 8.45 pm, the Chaplaincy holds our annual Service of Nine Lessons and Carols in the candlelit St Leonard’s Chapel, with choral pieces from St Leonard’s Chapel Choir, and traditional readings and congregational carols. All are welcome. We can accommodate people until all seats are taken.
The choir will be singing In the bleak midwinter, set by Harold Darke. This poem by Christina Rossetti is deservedly loved by many, with its depiction of a cold winter, frosty wind, ground hard with frost, water turned to ice, and deep layers of snow.
St Andrews, hard fast by the sea as it is, experiences cold winds every winter, and seasons of frosty mornings. Snow, on the other hand, is relatively rare. But last winter, in February, there was about a week of snow, snow on snow. Here, for example, is St Leonard’s Chapel in last winter’s snow, the venue for tonight’s service of Nine Lessons and Carols:
A poem for today’s midwinter theme is by Gavin Douglas (c.1474-1522). Douglas studied at the University of St Andrews from 1489-94 before becoming Bishop of Dunkeld. He translated Virgil’s Aeneid into Scots, as Eneados, adding original prologues. As Robert Crawford writes in the anthology The Book of St Andrews: “in this extract from the prologue to Book VII… ‘Eolus’ is Aeolus, ruler of the winds, an appropriately St Andrean minor deity.” If unfamiliar with writing in Scots say it out loud and the meaning can become clearer.
from The Prolog of the Sevynt Buik of Eneados
The frosty regioun ringis of the ȝeir, [year]
The tyme and sessoune bitter cald and paill,
Thai schort days that clerkis clepe brumaill; [clerks call wintry]
Quhen brym blastis of the northyne art [violent]
Ourquhelmit had Neptunus in his cart,
And all to schaik the levis of the treis,
The rageand storm ourwalterand wally seis; [overwhelming the seas’ waves]
Reveris ran reid on spait with watteir broune,
And burnis hurlis all thair bankis downe,
And landbrist rumland rudely wyth sic beir, [flood roaring; noise]
So loud ne rummist wyld lioun or beir…
Widequhair with fors so Eolus schouttis schyll [Everywhere; shrill]
In this congelyt sessioune scharp and chyll, [frozen season]
The callour air, penetrative and puire, [fresh]
Dasyng the bluide in every creature, [Numbing]
Maid seik warm stovis, and beyne fyris hoyt, [pleasant]
In double garmont cled and wyly coyt, [undergarment]
Wyth mychty drink, and meytis confortive, [comforting food]
Agayne the storme wyntre for to strive.
Over 500 years on from Douglas’ work, those who experienced Storm Arwen last week may recognise how he describes storme wyntre. I hope you have warm stoves, double garments and comforting food for winter days and nights.
Yours,
Donald.