Short passages for reading, drawn from history, legend, poetry and fiction.
After Samuel Cooper (1609–1672), via the National Portrait Gallery and Wikimedia Commons. Licence: ? Public domain.
In 1657, Sir John Evelyn celebrated Christmas in a church for the first time in years. Unfortunately, someone told the authorities what he was doing.
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By Bruno Liljefors (1860–1939), Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.
Sir Nicholas L’Estrange recalls two astonishing eyewitness accounts of the resourcefulness the fox.
© HoppyH, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0.
When William Shakespeare agreed to be godfather to Ben Jonson’s baby boy, he forgot that he would have to think of a gift for his christening.
By John Linnell (1792–1882), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public Domain.
A prophet-for-hire agreed to help Balak, King of Moab, try to do something about the flood of Israelites pouring into his kingdom.
By the Euphiletos Painter, via the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.
In a sermon for the Feast of All Saints, eighth-century Northumbrian monk St Bede explains why it is worth going for the spiritual burn.
By the Hattatt Painter, via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.
Eighth-century Northumbrian monk St Bede urged Christians to think of heaven, and then fight our way there for all we are worth.