Poem: "Fey and Holy Women"
Jan. 25th, 2014 06:16 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
This is the freebie for the January 2014 Crowdfunding Creative Jam. It was inspired by a prompt from
chordatesrock. It also fills the "torture" square in my 8-12-13 card for the
hc_bingo fest, the "abduction and kidnapping" square in my 12-8-13 card for the
genprompt_bingo fest, and the "magical creatures" square in my 12-11-13 card for the
ladiesbingo fest.
WARNING: This is a warning that is also a spoiler. Highlight to read. The following poem mentions sexism, abduction, implied sexual slavery, involuntary restraint, domestic abuse, torture, and other violence against women. If these are sensitive topics for you, please think carefully before deciding whether to read onward.
"Fey and Holy Women"
It began with the Wycliffites, who believed
that laymen could officiate over the Eucharist
and that the selling of papal indulgences was evil,
and who advocated the vernacular Bible.
After Wycliffe recanted and returned to orthodoxy,
the radical fringe of his followers kept making trouble,
a busy group of heretics called the Lollards,
who made illegal translations of the Bible
and allowed women to serve as wandering preachers.
One of these women was Margery,
who left her husband to travel in search of God.
Along the way she listened to many people
who spoke of their relationship with the Church --
some complaining of abuse and corruption
while others swore it was their best support.
"Nothing is ever that simple," Margery said
to all of them, whether they complained or praised.
"The Church is inspired by God but made of mortal men.
It is always a mixture of light and shadow, good and evil."
Through her pilgrimages, Margery met
many women whom Church and men had betrayed.
She spoke to them of the Lollard faith
and how they might meet God on their own terms,
without requiring a priest to intercede.
Not all of the women she met were human,
for men and Church often quarreled
with magical creatures, especially
those that happened to be female.
One day Margery found a nude woman
limping along the dusty road,
who said her name was Fionnuala.
As she flew in the shape of a swan,
a hunter shot her down
and then plucked out all her feathers
so that she could no longer change shape.
Margery gave Fionnuala her cloak
and led her to a nunnery
that gave refuge to women
who had been mistreated by men.
On a desolate beach Margery found
a woman weeping upon a rock.
Roanie had been swimming
with her selkie kin when a fisherman
flung a net over her and hauled her away.
He stole her sealskin and forced her
to live as if she were his wife.
Margery helped Roanie search
through the isolated cottage
until they found her sealskin
underneath some floorboards.
Roanie swirled the skin around herself,
changed into a seal, and humped away
into the foaming waves of the sea.
Margery stopped to preach
in a village too small for a chapel
or a priest of its own.
There she saw a woman
whose long sleeves and high collar
could not quite conceal all the bruises.
Brigit was her name,
and she was not an ordinary woman
but a faerie and a priestess of the Goddess.
She had fallen prey to a human man
who promised to treat her well
but then bound her with a ring of iron
so that she could not escape to Faerieland.
He beat her and scolded her
and let the traveling priests torture her
in hope that suffering would give her a soul.
Margery went to the local midwife
for herbs and salves to treat the wounds.
They tried spells and prayers
to remove the iron ring,
but it would not budge.
In the end, they went to a woman smith
who used a bronze knife to cut off Brigit's finger,
which finally broke the binding and set her free.
Brigit swore on the blood of the Goddess
that it was worth the price.
Margery stayed with Brigit
in the loft above the smith's stable
until the wounds healed enough
for her to return to Faerieland.
It was no end of trouble and puzzlement
to the less savory elements of the Church
how there came to be nunneries
that would shut the door in their faces,
how the wild swans would lead men astray
from the forest trails into danger,
how heretic women could disappear
on a beach or in a boat or into the green hills.
The fey and holy women had made their own alliance,
from the teachings of the White Goddess
and of the Son of God who had once walked
poor and starving across a burning land
and been chided for His use of magic
in coming to the aid of others.
There were those in the Church
who put it all down to the work of the Devil,
but it was never that simple.
* * *
Notes:
Read about the Wycliffites and the Lollards online.
The character of Margery was somewhat inspired by Margery Kempe, rumored to have been a Lollard.
Enchanted beasts and faerie women are connected in the old tales. These include magical swans and the children of Llyr, selkies, and faerie wives. Notice that in relationships where the women had the power to negotiate, what they bargained for was protection against domestic abuse. The fey, like the Lollards, held women in higher regard than standard for the time.
The Church had a very mixed role in women's lives throughout history. It's often demonized as a patriarchal institution, yet it also offered women a way out of marriage and into more powerful roles as abbesses or other religious leaders.
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WARNING: This is a warning that is also a spoiler. Highlight to read. The following poem mentions sexism, abduction, implied sexual slavery, involuntary restraint, domestic abuse, torture, and other violence against women. If these are sensitive topics for you, please think carefully before deciding whether to read onward.
"Fey and Holy Women"
It began with the Wycliffites, who believed
that laymen could officiate over the Eucharist
and that the selling of papal indulgences was evil,
and who advocated the vernacular Bible.
After Wycliffe recanted and returned to orthodoxy,
the radical fringe of his followers kept making trouble,
a busy group of heretics called the Lollards,
who made illegal translations of the Bible
and allowed women to serve as wandering preachers.
One of these women was Margery,
who left her husband to travel in search of God.
Along the way she listened to many people
who spoke of their relationship with the Church --
some complaining of abuse and corruption
while others swore it was their best support.
"Nothing is ever that simple," Margery said
to all of them, whether they complained or praised.
"The Church is inspired by God but made of mortal men.
It is always a mixture of light and shadow, good and evil."
Through her pilgrimages, Margery met
many women whom Church and men had betrayed.
She spoke to them of the Lollard faith
and how they might meet God on their own terms,
without requiring a priest to intercede.
Not all of the women she met were human,
for men and Church often quarreled
with magical creatures, especially
those that happened to be female.
One day Margery found a nude woman
limping along the dusty road,
who said her name was Fionnuala.
As she flew in the shape of a swan,
a hunter shot her down
and then plucked out all her feathers
so that she could no longer change shape.
Margery gave Fionnuala her cloak
and led her to a nunnery
that gave refuge to women
who had been mistreated by men.
On a desolate beach Margery found
a woman weeping upon a rock.
Roanie had been swimming
with her selkie kin when a fisherman
flung a net over her and hauled her away.
He stole her sealskin and forced her
to live as if she were his wife.
Margery helped Roanie search
through the isolated cottage
until they found her sealskin
underneath some floorboards.
Roanie swirled the skin around herself,
changed into a seal, and humped away
into the foaming waves of the sea.
Margery stopped to preach
in a village too small for a chapel
or a priest of its own.
There she saw a woman
whose long sleeves and high collar
could not quite conceal all the bruises.
Brigit was her name,
and she was not an ordinary woman
but a faerie and a priestess of the Goddess.
She had fallen prey to a human man
who promised to treat her well
but then bound her with a ring of iron
so that she could not escape to Faerieland.
He beat her and scolded her
and let the traveling priests torture her
in hope that suffering would give her a soul.
Margery went to the local midwife
for herbs and salves to treat the wounds.
They tried spells and prayers
to remove the iron ring,
but it would not budge.
In the end, they went to a woman smith
who used a bronze knife to cut off Brigit's finger,
which finally broke the binding and set her free.
Brigit swore on the blood of the Goddess
that it was worth the price.
Margery stayed with Brigit
in the loft above the smith's stable
until the wounds healed enough
for her to return to Faerieland.
It was no end of trouble and puzzlement
to the less savory elements of the Church
how there came to be nunneries
that would shut the door in their faces,
how the wild swans would lead men astray
from the forest trails into danger,
how heretic women could disappear
on a beach or in a boat or into the green hills.
The fey and holy women had made their own alliance,
from the teachings of the White Goddess
and of the Son of God who had once walked
poor and starving across a burning land
and been chided for His use of magic
in coming to the aid of others.
There were those in the Church
who put it all down to the work of the Devil,
but it was never that simple.
* * *
Notes:
Read about the Wycliffites and the Lollards online.
The character of Margery was somewhat inspired by Margery Kempe, rumored to have been a Lollard.
Enchanted beasts and faerie women are connected in the old tales. These include magical swans and the children of Llyr, selkies, and faerie wives. Notice that in relationships where the women had the power to negotiate, what they bargained for was protection against domestic abuse. The fey, like the Lollards, held women in higher regard than standard for the time.
The Church had a very mixed role in women's lives throughout history. It's often demonized as a patriarchal institution, yet it also offered women a way out of marriage and into more powerful roles as abbesses or other religious leaders.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-01-26 02:14 am (UTC)Thank you!
Date: 2014-01-26 02:32 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-01-26 05:07 am (UTC)Thank you!
Date: 2014-01-26 05:15 am (UTC)I'm glad you like it.
>> The idea of a shelter/religious place for abused animal-women and faerie-women... <<
This came from the original prompt, since
>> particularly because the old stories of kidnapping and forcing them to live with the person who kidnaps them, are so abusive. <<
Yes, I hate that. I've always tended to write such stories as a condemnation of domestic violence. So some are tragedies, while others are revenge stories or, like this one, tales of women's communities.
Feel free to ask for more of this if you like it.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-01-26 07:44 am (UTC)Thank you!
Date: 2014-01-26 07:53 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-01-27 04:23 am (UTC)Thank you!
Date: 2014-01-27 04:32 am (UTC)I'm glad you enjoyed it!
>> And I do like your description of the Son of God, fitting into the background of it. <<
Over the years I've written a fair bit about Jesus in different contexts. I usually portray him as an outcast who is sympathetic to other people's hardships, and not fond of those in power increasing such hardships. I kinda feel sorry for the guy. His more fanatic followers must make him cry a lot.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-01-26 04:03 am (UTC)Thank you!
Date: 2014-01-26 04:23 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2014-01-27 03:21 am (UTC)Thank you!
Date: 2014-01-27 03:28 am (UTC)I'm glad this resonated for you.
>> I have similar experiences now and then, being such an odd duck of a person with such a weird and tangle spirituality. <<
That makes sense. I've had to intervene in some unsavory situations myself. It helps to have a wide spiritual base to draw on then.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-01-28 10:33 pm (UTC)That link downloads a PDF for me (on a Mac) and does not let me view the info online. Just sayin' in case someone else does.
Okay...
Date: 2014-01-29 12:21 am (UTC)Re: Okay...
Date: 2014-01-29 05:35 am (UTC)Apologies for not being clear in my original comment, above.
Re: Okay...
Date: 2014-01-29 05:39 am (UTC)Re: Okay...
Date: 2014-01-29 05:40 am (UTC)As it is I have just downloaded and read the PDF and it does explain a lot about how the Catholic Church viewed heresy in the middle ages so thank you for the link!
Re: Okay...
Date: 2014-01-29 05:43 am (UTC)