St. Brigid and Anamchara: Love, Loyalty, and Friendship

St. Brigid and Anamchara (Love, Loyalty, and Friendship) – By Daniel Sheridan

It is St. Brigid’s Day in Ireland. Who was she?

Brigid was a goddess worshiped in ancient Ireland. A Gaelic chieftain named his daughter in her honor. She converted to Christianity, and a legend claims Saint Patrick himself led her to Christ. After her conversion, Brigid and her followers, in the language of McCourt, “doused the perpetual light of the goddess and lit a new one in honor of Christ.”

Brigid and her friends became the first society of Christian women in Ireland. Her generosity was legendary. Her care for the poor inspired others to imitate her. Brigid’s name became so famous, her character so admired, that she became the ideal of femininity, and men began calling their loved ones by her name – BRIDE.

Many believe that the concept of Anamchara originated with Brigid. “Anam” means soul, and “chara” means friend. It’s a concept that sprang from the Irish Monasteries of Patrick’s day, embracing men and women from all walks of life. Brigid of Kildare once said,

“Anyone without a soul-friend is like a body without a head.”

An Anamchara is a confessor, an advisor, a spiritual companion, and a compassionate presence. It is about coming together with one another in service to God and humanity.

My Aunt Bridie is named after Brigid. Just before her death, she said to me in her Irish brogue:

“What we need today is Christian virtue. I see friends my age paying seven to eleven thousand dollars per month just to stay alive in horrible homes! Where’s the family? Where is the Christian care? When I was a child in Ireland, my parents believed it was their duty to take care of anyone in the neighborhood who was sick. A neighbor took care of my grandmother. Every day she would come to change her sheets. Pride and comfort have replaced Christian love. Politics will never solve our problems, but love will. The true riches of a nation have nothing to do with its military or technology, but in how its people treat each other.”

Love, loyalty, and friendship are the greatest needs of our generation.

Illinois and the Thirteenth Amendment

Illinois and the Thirteenth Amendment – by Daniel Sheridan

#OTD, January 31, 1865, Americans made amends when Congress passed the Thirteenth Amendment. The words of the Declaration of Independence, that “all men are created equal,” are consistently applied.

I was sharing with my daughter the story of the Thirteenth Amendment since our home state played such a significant role in its passage.

Illinois instructed its Congressional delegation to vote for the Thirteenth Amendment. President Abraham Lincoln signed it on February 1, and then it went to the states for ratification. The amendment reads,

“Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.”

Illinois Senator Lyman Trumbull, a co-author of the amendment, telegraphed Illinois Governor Richard J. Oglesby moments after President Lincoln signed it, earnestly encouraging the legislature of the President’s home state to be the first to ratify. Lyman’s reason:

“It is just, it is constitutional, it is right to do so.”

By the end of that February day, Illinois became the first state to ratify the Thirteenth Amendment. During that same session, the legislature repealed the horrible “Black Laws,” which had been in force since the state’s birth.

The Thirteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution became part of our nation’s governing document on December 6, 1865. My little girl is proud of our home state, and so am I. I know you are, too.

“Not without thy wondrous story, Illinois, Illinois,

Can be writ the nation’s glory, Illinois, Illinois…”

Abolishing Slavery! Illinois and the 13th Amendment – by Daniel Sheridan

Today (December 6) is the anniversary of the ratification of the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, abolishing slavery. Here’s the very short story.

Congress passed the 13th Amendment in early 1865 (watch the movie Lincoln, starring Daniel Day-Lewis). President Lincoln signed it on February 1, and then the Amendment went to the States for ratification. The Amendment reads,

“Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.”

Senator Lyman Trumbull from Illinois, a co-author of the Amendment, telegraphed Illinois Governor Richard J. Oglesby moments after President Lincoln approved the Amendment, earnestly encouraging the legislature of the President’s home state to be the first to ratify. Oglesby urged the legislature, saying,

“It is just, it is constitutional, it is right to do so.”

Illinois ratified it that very day, becoming the first state to do so. During that same session, the horrible “Black Laws,” which had been in force since the state’s birth, were also repealed.

The 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution became part of our Nation’s governing document on December 6, 1865.

“Not without thy wondrous story, Illinois, Illinois,

Can be writ the Nation’s glory, Illinois, Illinois…”

Reformation Day

While chewing your Halloween candy, please take a few minutes and chew on this. Your religious liberty is the result of what occurred 506 years ago today!

Reformation Day

Don’t Give Up the Ship!

#OTD, June 1, 1813, an American Navy Captain, as he lay dying, shouts out his heroic final command, which becomes the rallying cry of his countrymen. Who was he? What was his command? Here’s the story.

Don’t Give Up the Ship!

The United States Navy was in its infancy during the War of 1812. Although it suffered defeats, it achieved some brilliant victories. For example, Captain James Lawrence, who commanded the Hornet, captured the British brig called the Peacock, after which he took command of the Chesapeake.

Then, on June 1, 1813, while refitting the Chesapeake at Boston, Captain Phillip Bloke of the British Frigate Shannon was lying just off the harbor. He sent a message to Captain Lawrence, challenging him to a naval duel. Captain Lawrence was at a significant disadvantage:

First, he recently discharged some of his crew. 

Second, those still on board hadn’t been paid and were near mutiny. 

Third, these remaining men only had a few weeks of training. 

Finally, the Chesapeake was partially disabled. 

The situation was grim. However, the brave Captain accepted the challenge and headed to sea with his half-busted ship and untrained crew.

The Chesapeake didn’t fare well. The British took advantage and boarded her. Bloody hand-to-hand combat followed. All officers onboard were killed or wounded, including Captain Lawrence. As he lay dying, covered in blood, the dying Captain issued his final heroic order:

“Don’t Give Up The Ship!”

Unfortunately, the crew couldn’t fulfill the command as the British overpowered them. However, Captain Lawrence’s words became the rallying cry of his countrymen, inspiring a turn in the tide of the war just a few months after his death.

Inspired by Words

There was the dangerous possibility that the British could take possession of the Great Lakes, enabling them to send troops across Lake Erie to occupy American soil. The American Captain Oliver H. Perry gathered a fleet of nine armed vessels, five of which his men built out of timber on the banks of the lake. Perry manned the flag-ship Lawrence, named after the fallen hero. The crew of the Lawrence hoisted a flag with the words “Don’t Give Up the Ship” woven on it. Do you have chills? Can you guess where this is going? 

With the Lawrence leading the way, the American Navy met a British fleet on Lake Erie, and a hot battle ensued. The Lawrence sank. Perry escaped the wreckage with his twelve-year-old brother, and together they rowed in a small vessel right through the thick of the battle for another ship. The rowboat took heavy fire, and bullets shredded Perry’s little brother’s hat. They made it to another boat and led the fleet to Victory!

Perry sent this message to General Harrison, who was defending Ohio:

“We have met the enemy, and they are ours!” 

The battle was a turning point, and the British never rechallenged the Old Northwest. Captain Lawrence and his men courageously faced overwhelming odds and perished, but their example inspired the American Navy to turn the tide of the war.

Morse Code: What Hath God Wrought! – By Daniel Sheridan

Morse Code: What Hath God Wrought! – By Daniel Sheridan

On this day, May 24, 1844, the most significant discovery in the methods of communication, an invention born out of personal tragedy, was successfully put to the test, thus launching the worldwide communications revolution and marking a turning point in the advancement of human civilization.

Professor Samuel Morse was born in Massachusetts in 1791. After graduating from Yale, he became a famous portrait painter, capturing the images of men like John Adams and James Monroe. In 1825, while working in Washington D.C. on a painting of America’s French revolutionary ally Lafayette, Morse received a letter stating that his wife was very sick. She was already dead and buried by the time he made it home. She was only 25.

Morse was devastated. The snail’s pace of news travel prevented him from responding quickly enough to be by his wife’s side. The memory haunted him. Morse turned his attention to the study of electricity, hoping to improve communications. By 1835 he had invented the electric telegraph. He tested the new technology on May 24, 1844, setting up his telegraphic sounder at the Federal Supreme Court. The inventor sat before the contraption and ticked off the Biblical words: “What hath God wrought.” Seconds later, Morse’s assistant in Baltimore responded to everyone’s astonishment.

Professor Morse believed this was only the beginning, predicting his wires would encircle the earth carrying messages across America and under the ocean to Europe. In 1844, Morse’s invention brought the news of the election of James K Polk from Baltimore to Washington D.C., a forerunner of today’s election night coverage with its instant results. Telegraph lines started spreading rapidly throughout the country. Morse lived to see his invention change the world.

In 1871, the elder Morse published his final words through his invention when he dictated to the operator these words: “Greeting and thanks to the Telegraph fraternity throughout the world. Glory to God in the Highest, on Earth Peace, Goodwill to men.” He died shortly after.

“In a sense, social media began on May 24, 1844, with a series of electronic dots and dashes tapped out by hand on a telegraph machine.” Morse’s invention is probably the most significant discovery in the methods of communication, launching the worldwide communications/social revolution and marking a turning point in the advancement of human civilization.