Royals Bibliomancy - Lesson Three: "British Folk-Tales and Legends" by Katharine Briggs

by Freneau on Apr 22, 2011 1:00 AM EDT in Royals Bibliomancy

What is this? For an explanation read the first installment.

There is joy abundant around the Royals again, after last night's dramatic come from behind victory over the Indians. At 12-7 the Royals are already five or six wins ahead of where most of us thought they'd be. But what does the spirit world say? Once again, I turn to bibliomancy to find out.

Today's source: British Folk-Tales and Legends by Katharine Briggs, page 162. This selection is from a story called "The Prize Wrestler and the Demon."

"That instant he felt himself seized, all unawares, by his waistband, and lifted clear of the ground."

Lesson: (Yes, he was lifted clear "of the ground" not clear "off the ground." I double-checked.) This passage reminds me of how Melky Cabrera must have felt stepping to the plate last night with the game on the line, seized by the tension of the moment, unawares of how to react. Nervous. Frightened. Of course, being above ground is an uncomfortable and unholy position for any Royal hitter, as the good Rev. Seitzer has certainly taught them. Ground balls only!

"It seemed as if the Old One rose with him many yards above the earth, but during a desperate struggle in the air, the man got his right arm over his opponent's shoulder, and grabbing him on the back with a good holdfast, took a crook with his legs."

Lesson: I'm glad I grew up in a world without folklore, for this is quite a sentence to make sense of. But alas, this is part of the Divine's lesson here: your mortal soul dost not always understandeth. In my pride I believed that Melky Cabrera was not actually a good hitter, that he was superfluous, that he had peaked long ago. But then we watched him struggle against Chris Perez, who for our purposes is the Devil.

"As he did so, his waistcoat touched the Evil One, who on the instant, lost his hold, fell flat on his back, as if knocked down, and writhed on the ground like a wounded snake."

Lesson: To defeat the enemy, one simply has to know their weakness. In this case, Chris Perez's weakness is any living hitter. In the 9th, Perez allowed the following: double, single, fielder's choice to the worst hitter alive, walk, single. So, in this case, any breathing opponent for Perez= a waistcoat touching the Devil.

My faith in Melky is once again strong.

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Comments

This one was a little awkward to do

Because isn’t there an actual Bible story about this already? (Hence that there would be a folktale?) Joseph wrestling the Angel/Devil? Something about a magical coat?

by Freneau on Apr 22, 2011 1:26 AM EDT reply actions

You made it work.

Bravo, sir. I applaud you! But not right now, because I’m typing, and typing and applauding at the same time, I hear tell, is impossible.

You want optimism? My glass is half full of emptiness.

by DanielSmith on Apr 22, 2011 2:19 AM EDT up reply actions

You're thinking of Jacob wrestling a man, who turns out to be God in disguise, on his way to Canaan.

As for a magic coat, I’m not sure about that one.

by RoyalCreole on Apr 22, 2011 11:02 AM EDT up reply actions

Yeah

Jacob wrestles an angel/God. Joseph simply has a valuable multi-colored coat (see: Andrew Lloyd Webber).

As for magical garments, Jesus’s robe heals a woman with a “blood condition,” usually thought to be some sort of “icky menstrual disorder” that made her unclean according to Jewish law.

There are numerous other instances as well in the New Testament and saints’ lives in which clothing has magical powers (healing or cursing, depending on who touches it).

by mikewormdog on Apr 22, 2011 12:14 PM EDT up reply actions

It doesn't matter

what the article of clothing is but who is wearing it. If Jesus and Judas Iscariot had switched robes, the woman would still have been healed.

Kind of like if Butler grabbed Escobar’s bat, he (Billy) would still be able to bat .350. (Not comparing Billy to Christ. Jesus would definitely have a better OBP. Walks on water)

by chekako21 on Apr 22, 2011 3:22 PM EDT up reply actions

Yes and no

according to standard modern American theology, yes, it was Jesus who healed her (though according to the story, it was her faith). Objects have no power…this is the modern, Protestant take.

That said, however, clothing and other objects that touch Jesus, the saints, holy places and objects, etc., have powers. Paul touches handkerchiefs in Acts to give to people to heal them. The handkerchiefs have power because Paul touched them. Touching the tomb of St. Martin or drinking water that came from a certain place can have curative powers to believers. These are known as “secondary” or “contact relics” to people who pay attention to this stuff. Yeah, it’s crazy to modern people, even to most modern Christians, but there’s plenty of biblical evidence backing up such crazy ideas.

by mikewormdog on Apr 24, 2011 1:19 PM EDT up reply actions