Evening star., 1909-06-01
RELICS OF CATHEDRAL
Sacred Mement0S Brought
From Ancient Glastonbury.
LEGEND OF HOLY THORN
Story of Joseph of Arimathea and
Conversion of England.
OPINION OF DIR. BRATENAHL
Persistent Tradition Sustained in
Part by Names and Incidents.
Traces in Germany.
OPINION OF DR.. BRATENAHL
BY WILLIAM T.. tI RTIS.

BI WILLIAM T. a. RTIS.
Written for The Star and the Chicsso Record
Herald
The late Bishop Satterlee took great
deal of interest in securing relics o.
sacred places for the proposed Protestant
Episcopal Cathedral OF SS. Peter and
Paul in this city. Several such souvenirs
of the past MAY now be seen AT the bapis-
Try and the Little sanctuary with the ca
rhedral close.
The altar is built OF stone cut from the
ledge Of rock in which is the tomb where
the Savior layin the historical garden Of
Joseph Of Arimathea. There is a stone
from the foundation Of the first Christian
church erected in America. built by Co
lumbus at the town of Isabella on the
north coast of Haiti on his second voyage
in 1919. There is bishops chair made
rom stones sent from the ancient British
abbey of IS. Peter and Paul inscribed
by tho churchmen of Glastonbury TO the
cnurchmen of America.
And what is more interesting than ali,
planted against the walls is an onshoot
OF the Holy Thorn of Glastonbury.
which is believed TO have been grown
from the staff of Joseph of Arimathea
The parent tree was cut down at the time
of the reformation. but Sprouted again
afterward from the root. and its white
blossom still appears every year at Christ
mas time.
Ancient Town of Glastonbury.
The ancient town of Glastonbury. one
Of the oldest in Britain. whose origin is
los; among the early legends lies in SOM
erset county. in the southwest of Eng
land, tuenty-one miles south of the city
OF Bristol. It's ruined abbey and great
cathedral were founded early in the
Christian era, but were desecrated under
Henry VIII.
The cathedral was 522 feet long and
of the largest ever constructed.
4 chapel dedicated to ST Joseph is the
oldest part of the building The abbotts
kitchen, of the fourteenth century, is the
most picturesque.
The plan of the cathedral is square.
with many buttresses, but the high stone
root is octagonal. Several interesting
structures belonging to the abbey have
been converted TO modern uses.
The Isle of Avalon, which in Celtic
mythology is an earthly paradise in the
western sea is situated near Glaston-
bury. Great heroes like King Arthur
Morgana, Morgan le Fay holds her
court. She was a sister of King Arthur.
Another brother. Auberon, the Oberon of
Shakespeare. and other fairy romances,
Legend of the Holy Thorn.
The Rev George c. F. Bratenahl, canon
of the cathedral and rector of the Church
of St. Adams in the cathedral close, told
me the other day the legend, as follows
During the persecution of the Christians.
which followed the stOning of st. Stephen.
a party. consisting of Joseph of Arima-
thea. Mary and Martha their brother
Lazarus and other disciples escaped in
a boat. which was blown without sails
or oars across the sea to Marseille
There Lazarus. Mary and Martha re-
mained, but Joseph of Arimathea and
twelve companions re-entered the boat
and were again blown without sails or
TO Britain.
Proceeding inland. they rested Christ
mas day near Glastonbury, what is
now known as 'Weary-AH HILL where
Joseph stuck his staff into the ground.
1t took root and at Christmas every
year since has blOssomed, being known
as the Holy Thorn of Glastonbury. The
miraculous taking root of Joseph of .Ari-
mathea's staff was accepted as a token
that the travellers had reached their jour
neyS end.
The king of the country, Avigarus by
name. received them kindly and gave
them twelve hides of land (about 400
acres on Inis Witrin. marshy tract
afterward scalled the Isle of Avalon. st.
Joseph and his companions erected here
a wattles church and wattled huts for
themselves. thus establishing the first
Christian church in the British Isles.
In the Library of Congress. said Mr..
Bratenahl. is a copy of the great (Bene-
dictine, | think edition of the Ecclesias-
teal Annals by Cardinal BaroniuS. In
these annals Baronius says substantially:
St Peter founded the Church of
Rome about AID. G1 but as early as AD
II Joseph of Arimathea sailed from Pal
estine to Massliaus CMarselles, and
went through Gaul to Britain where he
founded the British Church. 4 marginal
note opposite this account declares that
this statement concerning Joseph of Ari-
niathea is based on MSS. in the Vatican
Library.
The Librarian Of Congress Mr.. Put
nam, Very kindly wrote at my request
10 the prefect of the Vatican Library
regarding this marginal note of Baronius
and the MSS. to which il refers. but has
received no reply.
Basis of Legend.
We told continued Mr. Bra,e-
nahl that the earliest historian OF the
antiquities OF Glastonbury. William of
Malmsbury. lived in the twelfth century
and tnat the story OF Joseph Of Arima-
thea was born OF monkisn creduIity and
inposture. To those on tho hard. bar
standing ground of the fact idol
ater no evidences in favor of the his
toricity OF the legend likely to ap-
peal. Rut from the standpoint Of James
Anthony Froude there is something to be
said He asserts that in the records of
all human affairs il cannot be too often
insisted that two kinds of truth run for
ever size by side OF, rather, crossing in
and ont with each other form the
warp and the Woof of the colored web
which we call history: the one the ljt
sral and external truths of feeling and
of thought The former embodv Them
selves in dry chronicle OF facts: the
latter often embody themselves in some
heroic biography, tradition or popular
legend
christianity existed in some form in
the British Isles in the frs; three CEN
turies. How did IL get there? Chris
tianity is found first, not along the line