Anna's Legends of Western Cinema Week Tag Answers 2021

                             

Hello! I am back for the Annual Anna's Post (yes, I know, it's ridiculous). I may be a failure when it comes to posting, but thanks to Irene's constant reminders I am here to celebrate the wonderful, amazing week that is "Legends of Western Cinema Week". What kind of a western fan would I be if I didn't put time aside for this?
Anyway, enough about me, let's get onto the questions!

The Legends of Western Cinema Week Tag

1) Western movies or western TV shows? 

A: First off, what kind of a question is this? How can one possibly choose between the two most wonderful things to ever grace the movie screen? But as an answer, I really can't choose between the two. It depends on my mood and who I'm with.

2) Funny westerns or dramatic westerns? 

A: Once again, I can't really choose between the two. I would say half of my favorite westerns are funny and half are dramatic.

3) Westerns that focus on loners or westerns that focus on families? 

A: My gut instinct was loner, because who doesn't like a mysterious, gritty stranger riding into town with a weird aversion to people? But then I thought about the perfect combination. A loner finding a family. That, that is where it's at.

4) Male-centric westerns or female-centric westerns? 

A: The only female-centric western I've ever seen was with Irene and we didn't finish it...Why'd you let us down Joel? Why?

5) 1930s to 1960s westerns or 1970s to 2020s westerns? 

A: I would say my favorite time period for westerns is definitely the late 50's into the 60's. That was when they were really getting the hang of it.

6) Westerns that take place in America or westerns that take place internationally? 

A: Considering the only two I've seen that didn't take place in America were Hidalgo and the Man from Snowy River (both fantastic movies), I would have to go with America. 

7) Family-friendly Westerns or edgier Westerns? 

A: That depends on your definition of edgy, but I don't go for the super gory or gross westerns.

8) Straightforward good guy or conflicted hero? 

A: I love both! A nice healthy mixture is what I would say. Too much goody-goody is bleh, and too much conflict-shmonflict is also bleh.

9) Historically accurate Westerns or Westerns that aren't afraid to take some creative liberties?

A: Welllllllllllllllllll, ya see, I am willing to look over some inaccuracies and whatnot, but I would be a lot happier if all westerns were accurate. Too many creative liberties just throw me off.

10) Bittersweet or happily-ever-after endings?

 A: BOTH! It allllll depends on my mood. I love a good heart wrenching ending where you hate everything and cry yourself to sleep, but I also like to have those happy endings where everything is right with the world and the hero and everyone else is happy!

There you have it! Once again, this tag was super fun and I feel like a new person...Not really, but I feel good for finally writing something on here. I hope you all enjoy the rest of this brilliant week and watch lots of westerns.

- Anna

Irene's Legends of Western Cinema Week Tag Answers 2021

Hi there everyone! After being AWOL for a stupid amount of time, I come back just when I'm needed most... Legends of Western Cinema Week! This special, so-far-yearly event is just what I need to get the blogging juices flowing. Westerns are beautiful things, and Anna and I had an especially lovely experience with our favorite western, The Magnificent Seven, when we showed it to a bunch of our friends in Eastern Washington who had never seen it. They had a screen projector so it felt like we were in a movie theatre. Everybody loved it, the reactions were ideal, and the thundering applause at the end was ample proof that the film had been a hit. It made me so happy. This blog party in celebration of westerns and all that makes them beautiful is hosted by three ladies at three great blogs: Rachel at Hamlette's Soliloquy, Heidi at Along the Brandywine, and Olivia at Meanwhile, in Rivendell... I don't know why everybody has such great blog names, but they do. Just a quick note: The absence was actually not my fault! (uh huh, fer sure, yeah right). No, really! Anna and I returned from our trip to Eastern Washington (where there was no wifi). I was rearing to blog, so ready, had one day to answer a couple comments, and then our own internet connection absconded, leaving us high and dry! It was out for about ten days, but we should be good now. I'll do another post later this week, but for now, I'll just answer the extremely difficult tag answers, and I'll try to get Anna to do her own answers as well. 

1) Western movies or western TV shows?
... Both? I know I can't do both... I'm gonna do both for all of them... But honestly, it's both. Stand-alone westerns are of more quality, but I have such fond memories of binge-watching Lawman and the Rifleman, I'm just gonna go with both.

2) Funny westerns or dramatic westerns?
I like a mix of the two, but I would have to say I like it (usually) if they lean a bit more comedic. Big Jake (really not super comedic, but kind of so), Rio Bravo, and El Dorado all come to mind. Then again, The Magnificent Seven, Red River, The Tin Star, and The Searchers come to mind in the latter category... Dang it, I'm going with both again.

3) Westerns that focus on loners or westerns that focus on families?

I would have to say found-families. That conglomeration of different characters with different backgrounds who grow together and eventually form a family that's technically not related. I love the 'gang' feel, as Anna and I call it. Marshal Dan Troop, Johnny McKay, and Lilly Merrill have such a gang feel. Such togetherness, it's absolutely beautiful. I do enjoy epic loners though, but their full potential is only met when they meet a family and have to help them out, so yet again, I like the family theme.

4) Male-centric westerns or female-centric westerns?

I can't even think of a female-centric western... so male-centric lol. Well, I like it best when it has a bunch of different people, but it's still usually male-centered anyway. 

5) 1930s to 1960s westerns or 1970s to 2020s westerns?

1930s to 1960s, I would have to say. I haven't seen a lot of good 30s westerns, the 40s were hit and miss, but the 50s and 60s were just *chef's kiss*. The Golden Era, for sure. I have not seen many westerns from the 70s through the 2020s, but I like older movies in general, so it's not hard to pick. The 70's did have a surprising amount of good westerns, since all the other movies from that time period seem to be terrible most of the time. And of course Silverado was in the 80s, so that elevates that decade to generally undeserved movie heights.

6) Westerns that take place in America or westerns that take place internationally?

Ya know, a western anywhere is good. The Man from Snow River is the only out of country western I can think of, and it's really very good, so I'm open-minded, haha. I do love America more than anywhere else though, so will say American westerns are just a *tiny* bit better. (I almost forgot Hidalgo, which is in Arabia and is epic)

7) Family-friendly Westerns or edgier Westerns?

Family-friendly bruh. I am not edgy. No bueno. 
Like, it can be darker and have a kind of mature theme, but I don't want no hanky-panky or gratuitous violence at play. No-siree-bob!

8) Straightforward good guy or conflicted hero?

I love me a hero who knows good from bad and never flinches doing what's right, but I feel like it's easy to make those characters shallow and cardboard, so I don't mind a conflicted hero, as long as he pulls through in the end.

9) Historically accurate Westerns or Westerns that aren't afraid to take some creative liberties?

What a good question! I'll watch a western even if it's obviously not historically accurate in any way, but I prefer my movie makers to put some effort into authenticity. It adds just that extra teaspoon of hard work that makes a really solid film. For instance, can we just not have the obviously 1968 hairdo? Like, would it be that hard to wait until you were done filming to get the hard done up like a beehive or a perfectly symmetrical beach wave?

Nothing against dear old Audra, but her hair wasn't exactly 1880's

10) Bittersweet or happily-ever-after endings?

😭😭😭 I don't know!!! I love happy endings, but the end of The Searchers is the quintessence of bittersweet and it's the most beautiful thing ever! Same with The Magnificent Seven. I think I'll put bittersweet just above happily-ever-after, but the ending to Big Jake takes the place as my favorite western ending for some reason, and it's as happy as can be.

Just casually inserting a picture from Chisum just after I was talking about Big Jake.

And there you have it folks! Great questions, without a doubt. Have fun with the rest of this western-loving week, and remember: Don't squat with your spurs on (courtesy of Sam Elliot).


                                                                             ~Irene

 

Irene's Five Favorite Book Characters

                                                     

It's redundant to say 'Irene's Five Favorite Male Book Characters', because all of my favorite characters are always men *grins sheepishly*. Like, women usually aren't that interesting in books? I can literally fit them into a boring formula, and even if they fail to fill the formula perfectly, I still don't like them *grins sheepishly again*. As I saw Megan say in the comment section on one of her blog posts, it's not like I have a crush on the male characters (at least, not all of them), but they're exceedingly more lovable, likable, and interesting than their female counterparts in fiction. I do have a couple female characters I'm genuinely fond of in books, but I'll keep them for another time and another blogathon. This one is focused on men so it makes my job easy! But also hard, because I have to choose between so many amazing characters. I wanted to do my top ten favorite book characters, but I felt I didn't have an absolute undying love for that many characters. I might, but I'm doing this rather last minute, so these are just the characters that immediately come to mind when I think of who I love. It's raw and authentic folks!
Without further ado, let's get into this!

Edmund Pevensie (mah boi)
Aghhghghghghgh!!!!!! Edmund has always been my favorite Chronicles of Narnia character, closely pursued by Puddleglum. This is quite a statement to make, as the Chronicles of Narnia has more lovable characters than even the Lord of the Rings, in my opinion. Like, I feel closer and more friendly with them than I could ever be with the epicness of Aragorn or the majestic majesty of Legolas. Edmund's story arc (which you've no doubt heard of) is actually interesting in a very unique way. In The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe he represents humanity. The traitor who must be saved, not by his own blood, but by the blood of a perfect savior, i.e. Aslan, i.e. Christ. He's a symbol in that sense, but he is also a real character who just happens to fit the role of humanity perfectly. He begins bitter, spoiled and just generally nasty. To see how he changes, you must read the books, but his is a perfect arc. He doesn't end up perfect, but from his position of knowing the darker side of humanity, he carries himself extremely humbly but also with great perception of human nature. He's noble and just, and he also seems like such a good sibling that you can't help but warm to him. Older siblings can have a tendency to be slightly condescending, if not in their attitude, in what they think about their younger siblings, but Edmund actively prevents himself from ever thinking he knows more than Lucy simply because he's older. One of my favorite moments with him takes place in Prince Caspian. Lucy says she's seen Aslan but no one else has. Lucy claims Aslan indicated that they should go a certain way to leave the forest behind them, but it seems counterintuitive to common sense. Peter puts it up to a vote. Susan wishes to go a different way that looks more comfortable, as do Peter and the dwarf Trumpkin, but despite the uneven opposition, Edmund remains firm to his convictions.

                                                      

"Edmund?" said Peter.
"Well, there's just this," said Edmund, speaking quickly and turning a little red. "When we first discovered Narnia a year ago - or a thousand years ago, whichever it was - it was Lucy who discovered it first and none of us would believe her. I was the worst of the lot, I know. Yet she was right after all. Wouldn't it be fair to believe her this time? I vote for going up."
"Oh, Ed!!" said Lucy and seized his hand.

What a flippin' sweetheart! Humble as he is, Edmund is also a formidable warrior, famed throughout Narnia and beyond for his swordsman ship and sense of justice during his time as king. Edmund the Just is his name, and he's Just Wonderful... Sorry for that.

Edmund, Rosa's Cousin
Isn't it epic that my second favorite character on this list is also called Edmund? I now love that name, simply because I love everybody with the name. If you have not read The Golden Princess and the Moon by Anna Maria Mendell, you'd best get to it, right quick! plz ^-^
Seriously, the book is amazing. There are many Catholic writers producing work currently, and I have enjoyed sooo many new Catholic books, but none struck me as so deep, well thought out, enjoyable, and simply beautiful as the Golden Princess and the Moon, and I fell in love with a character named Edmund in it. So basically, the book is an in depth retelling of the classic fairy tale Sleeping Beauty. It explains why everything went down the way that it did, expounds on and creates an entire kingdom and backstory around the infamous events of the fairy tale, and is absolutely beautiful while it's at it. I really need to do a review of the book next time I read it.
Edmund, the cousin of the main character Rosa, is bitter and sardonic in the beginning of the tale. This all stems mostly from insecurity. I'm hesitant to explain too much, as I want you to be as surprised by everything in the book as I was. Anyway, like Edmund Pevensie, he has a beautiful character arc, but its nature is much more tragic and fraught with intense grief. He had me going 'Whyyyyyyy??????' so many times, I can't even. He kind of caused the whole "You will prick your finger on the spindle of spinning wheel" thing. But I love him anyway. One reason is that I am a typical teenager and like angsty, troubled youths that have sad backstories, but another reason is that his utter redemption from the abyss is so complete and so noble, it makes me cry. His place as a strange opposite of the main hero, Erik, is fascinating in their differences of strength and weakness. I'm really trying not to give anything away here, but it's very hard. Let's just say, tragic as Edmund's story his, he shows that no matter how late the hour, it's never too late to right the wrongs of the past and show your true mettle, your true integrity, your true nobility!

                                                        

"Did you love him, Edmund, I mean?"
She spoke after a pause. "Yes... but not in the way you mean. Edmund needed me to rescue him. He had not the strength to rescue himself."

UNTIL IT WAS TOO LATE GUYZ 😭😭😭

Sef
Hold onto your hearts girls, 'cause this guy's amazing. One of my favorite books is called The Borrowed House, by Hilda van Stockum. Anna already did a review of the book, and it explained a bit why Sef is amazing, but let me just reiterate some of those points.The Borrowed House is a magical dream of a book, what I would literally think of as the perfect story as I lay in my bed at night. It takes place in World War 2, occupied Holland. A young German girl name Janna lives in a large, mostly uninhabited house with her two busy, actor parents. One day, while playing hiding seek with a spoiled neighbor boy, she falls into a false panel at the back of her closet and finds a hidden room wherein lies forging equipment, falsified papers, and Sef. Sef (short for Josef) is a young man (seventeen, I believe) and is helping the Dutch resistance in secret. He is Jewish himself. Janna grows extremely attached to him after he threatens to kill her if she reveals the secret of his existence. Sef is passionate about what is right, and never hesitates to criticize Janna's foolish and naive tendencies, and this sometimes causes Janna to be, um, upset with him. But he's also quick to forgive and he eventually grows a serious attachment to Janna, foolish little German that she is. I encourage you to read the book (duh). It's like a fairy tale, it's so perfect.

                                                   

"No, I was wrong," said Janna. "Can you forgive me? I really like you just as much... it's only...only..."
"You've lost your Siegfried," said Sef, smiling.
"Yes, how did you know?" asked Janna wonderingly. "That's exactly it."
"So I'm just Sef now. That's good. That's what I want to be."

Mac
I've already written a post detailing the reasons why I love Mac, which you can read HERE, but his amazingness never dwindles. Mac (Mackenzie) Campbell is one of the main characters in Louisa May Alcott's Eight Cousins and its sequel, Rose in Bloom. Spectacled and scholarly, Mac is a young man of integrity and inner strength that hides his gold underneath a crust of dusty curmudgeonly book-wormishness. He made me laugh out loud and squeal with delight many times when I first frequented Rose in Bloom, and then later Eight Cousins. After angsty, dark young men with sad backstories, I have a thing for guys with glasses in books, so go figure.

                                                  

"Mac, do you ever write poetry?"
"Never."
"What do you call the song Phebe sang with her bird chorus?"
"That was nothing till she put the music to it. But she promised not to tell."
"She didn't. I suspected and now I know," laughed Rose, delighted to have caught him.
Much discomfited, Mac gave poor Keats a fling, and leaning on both elbows, tried to hide his face, for it had reddened like that of a modest girl when teased about her lover.

Or one of my personal favorite moments:

"Mac, are you in love?"
"Do I look like it?" and he sat up with such an injured and indignant face that she apologized at once.

Puddleglum
And after much consideration, fifth place will indeed fall to Puddleglum the Marsh-wiggle, of Narnia fame. What can I say about Puddleglum's utter pessimism, optimism and humility that hasn't been said already? In the Silver Chair, Eustace and Jill Pole are tasked with discovering the lost Prince Rillian, son of the aged King Caspian. Tasked with being their guide and helper is Puddleglum, a member of the race 'Marsh-wiggle,' who, though a confirmed pessimist and wet blanket, is considered too flighty by his Marsh-wiggle neighbors. That'll tell you something about their outlook on life. I literally laugh out loud when I read the dialogue in the Silver Chair. Puddleglum is bloody hilarious! Though he constantly says the most negative things possible and, owing to his race, is a rather unimpressive, wrinkly looking creature, Puddleglum turns out to be the bravest and wisest of all the characters in the Silver Chair, I don't hesitate to declare. That is excluding Aslan, of course. He's rather like Mac in the sense of gold hidden underneath a rough exterior, only his exterior is rougher than most. Mama calls him the greatest Philosopher and the way he handles the illusions and lies of the Green Witch is beautiful and insightful and utterly inspiring. He's an absolute crusher of relativism. We should all be like Puddleglum, though a little less depressing maybe.

"Good morning, Guests," it said. "Though when I say good I don't mean it won't probably turn to rain or it might be snow, or fog, or thunder. You didn't get any sleep, I dare say."

"Yes we did, though," said Jill. "We had a lovely night."
"Ah," said the Marsh-wiggle, shaking his head. "I see your making the best of a bad job. That's right. You've been well brought up, you have. You've learned to put a good face on things."
"Please, we don't know your name," said Scrubb.
"Puddleglum's my name. But it doesn't matter if you forget it. I can always tell you again."

What a beautiful character introduction! Gosh, Puddleglum's lines could go on for an age of a wizard. Let me share one more interaction that literally makes me wheeze, and then a really beautiful one.

He quite expected the Marsh-wiggle to give him an angry reply, but it only said, "That's the spirit, Scrubb. That's the way to talk. Put a good face on it. But we all need to be very careful about our tempers, seeing all the hard times we shall have to go through together. Won't do to quarrel, you know. At any rate, don't begin it too soon. I know these expeditions usually end that way: knifing one another, I shouldn't wonder, before all's done. But the longer we can keep off it -"

Lollllll Here's one so deep I melted when I read it 'cause I reached the core of the Earth. You may have heard it before. Take that relativists!

And there are my top five favorite book characters! Some runner-ups include Sydney Carton, Fish (Benedict) fron the Regina Doman fairytale retellings, Peter Pevensie, Francois Joubert, Faramir, Pippin, Legolas, Samwise Gamgee, Reepicheep, and many others. This list will undoubtedly change soon, but this is how I stand at the moment. All five of these characters are men, good men, but they're all completely different! What can we gain from that? Being 'good' and being 'a real Man' isn't one set narrow definition. Goodness isn't boring. Holiness isn't lame. Virtue isn't dry.

Goodness
Is
Epic.

This has been Irene at Horseback to Byzantium's first entry into the Thank Goodness for Good Men Blogathon. Please do join!

Thissss ↑

Thank Goodness for Good Men Blogathon 2021!

~THE BEST BLOGATHON YOU'VE EVER SEEN IS HERE ~

 

After that momentous introduction I've set the bar pretty high, haven't I? I am supremely confident in the epicness of Anna's and mine and Megan Chappie's (of the Pen and the Cross) blogathon/blog party thingy-ma-bob (Yes, it is three words. Thingy. Ma. Bob.). 
This year of our Lord, 2021, is officially dedicated to St. Joseph and in honor of him and all the amazing and virtuous men who go unoticed all too often (real and fictional), Megan and I decided to host together a celebration of epic, righteous, honorable, virtuous, courageous and yes, good, men.

So here's how the papaya slices: as I stated in my original post about this blogathon and Megan in hers, your contribution to this celebration can be basically anything you want that's about cool and epic men. A character review (or two) of that special man, a list of your favorite male historical figures, a five thousand word essay on the beauty of responsible men (I'm not guaranteeing anyone will read it), anything you want! You can post your entry or entrees into thecomment section on ours or Megan's blog and they'll all be rounded up into a neat little list by the end of the blogathon. You'll also be able to see the many other posts by different bloggers that inevitably will be there, even if only Megan, Anna and myself participate... Do join in the fun and comraderie as we appreciate and honor the goodness of good men and thank God and His goodness for all they do and have done!

~ Anna and Irene

P.S. Feel free to grab any of the posters/banners either Anna or Megan have made and post them on your own blog.

I Confess (1953)

 Horseback to Byzantium's second blog entry into:

If you knew what he knew - what would you do?...

I Confess (1953)

Out of all of Alfred Hitchock's masterpieces, this one is probably my favorite. I feel like an insider to a mainstream 1950's movie (though not as mainstream as it should have been), and it's just so amazing. Beautiful and exact black and white cinematography, a haunting score, a unique and supsensful plot (I'm going to be using the word suspensful a lot here) and some great actors come together to make this a wonderful film. Not to mention, it's underrated, so that makes me like it even more, contrarian that I am. But why, you may ask, am I reviewing this for Catholic blog week? If you haven't already guessed from the title and picture, this movie is all about the sacrament of Confession and a priest so brave he wouldn't break the holy sacrament even to save his own neck. Now for a brief summary of the film:

-
Fr. Michael Logan, a Catholic priest living and serving his flock in Quebec, finds his faith challenged in a shocking way when one late night, whilst hearing the confession of German immigrant Otto, the man confesses to murdering a local wealthy banker. The seal of confession cannot be broken, and Fr. Logan is weighed down by his knowledge of the murder that he cannot reveal to the police. As if that wasn't enough, soon the stakes are raised. Fr. Logan himself is suspected of the murder and has no way to clear himself, and soon his past life comes back to haunt him and a motive of murder on account of blackmail becomes all too believable.

-
Once we showed this to our friend on a sunny afternoon when we felt like watching a movie, and when we mentioned it another day, she sad "Oh, isn't that the one with the hot priest?" Lolll I'm sorry, I just thought that was really funny and true. Anyway....
Since Alfred Hitchcock directed this movie, when I think of it and the moments that struck me, I can literally feel a chill. Some scenes just... were magical, in a dark way. Masterful would be a better word for it. Montgomery Clift is a masterful actor himself, and his eyes are so piercing that the way he looks when Otto reveals he murdered Mr. Rich-mean-banker is just like 'wow'. He carries the role of a man with a noble secret so well. I loooovvveee it when characters have something they just can't tell anyone and you know it's for a good cause and that it will cost them so much but they'll never tell because they're brave and everyone is trying so hard to get them to speak, but they just won't. I say this because I haaattteee it when characters have a secret that they really should tell and it's not that bad and they're just being silly and overly dramatic. I had to get that off my chest.
It seems that Montgomery Clift never changes his expressions noticibly, yet the subtle buildup of tension in the film is unmistakable.

Otto has piercing eyes as well, but creepy piercing eyes instead of beautiful piercing eyes.

So a couple days go by, an investigation ensues, and a tenacious police detective, played by an *excellent* Karl Malden, begins to suspect Fr. Logan for various reasons. He doesn't like to suspect a priest, but Fr. Logan does appear incredibly suspicious when he cannot account for his movements at a certain time of night that happened to be the time of the murder. And a man in a priest's cassock was seen near the scene of the crime by two young schoolgirls. Plus, he has a motive, which I will now tell you about in the messy part of the story. You see, at one time, Fr. Logan was........ IN LOVE!

It was before he became a priest, when he was young and Ruth (Anne Baxter's character) was just as young and almost as beautiful. But Michael (that's his first name) had to join the army and go off to fight in World War II, I believe. All this is showed to us in a mercifully brief flashback that I actually kind of enjoy. It's really dreamy and everyone looks beautiful and the music is lovely. I just close my eyes when they kiss. Long story short, Ruth thinks Logan is dead, and ends up marrying the man she works for, who is actually a very nice man. But Michael Logan WASN'T dead, and he comes back to Canada, looking for Ruth. She, in her joy at realizing her lost love is still alive, spends one entire magical day with him, without telling him she's married. Needless to say, we know this isn't gonna end well.
Caught in the rain, Ruth and Michael take cover under a little gazebo next to a house. They sit down and fall asleep at the table.
When they wake up, they see a man, the owner of the house apparently. He makes some crude insiuations about the two of them and reveals that Ruth is married. This man is the later-to-be-murdered-mean-old-banker... I should just look up his name.
Montgomery Clift looks so darn betrayed at this point, I just can't. He immediately breaks off their little rendezvous like a honorable man, and they don't see each other again, except in passing, because they awkwardly both live in Quebec.

As times goes on and Michael goes to seminary school and becomes a priest, Ruth and Michael's days together are mostly forgotten. Until Mr. Roberts (that's right, I looked it up) comes a-pokin' about Ruth's place, talking about what a shame it would be if her husband found out about a little affair she had with a man. Not just any man, but a priest! And KABAM. Next thing ya know, he's blackmailing her. Doesn't matter that Logan wasn't even a priest then and that nothing actually hanky-panky went on, he blackmails her anyway. 
And there you have Fr. Logan's motive.

I won't spoil anymore of the plot. Since the idenitity of the murderer is revealed early on in the story, this whole film is just suspense and more suspense.

Nothing (that I can think of) about Catholicism is misrepresented here and though Fr. Logan *did* run off to the seminary *after* he was left broken-hearted, it's clear that his heart is, when the film starts, in his vocation as a priest. He has no regrets, as is especially evident in his talks with Ruth. She obviously yearns for him, but he shows no such hankering after the forbidden. His path is laid out before him, and he does not wish to stray from it. God has put him there, and he wishes to serve God. 

Religion isn't mentioned too much in the film, but, as I said earlier, all is correct and as it should be. The center crisis of the film is brilliant and every single actor plays their part perfectly, just perfectly.

Watch for the part near the climax of the film, where Fr. Logan walks down the streets of Quebec, worn down by the secret he holds, and the theme piece of music grows louder and louder until Fr. Logan shows his frustration in one brief moment of exasperation. Absolutely beautiful direction. This is film making as it should be. 

This has been Horseback to Byzantium's second entry into the Catholic Blog Party, hosted by the Pen and the Cross and Bookshire. 
Irene signing out.

Irene's Top Ten Favorite Saints

 

Hellllllllooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I've been watching the calendar for this week since it was announced, for one simple reason. I want to talk about epic Catholic stuff! I'm pretty sure I'll be getting Anna to write a post of her own, and I'll be doing at least two. I mustn't forget to mention that this blog party/week is created by two great Catholic bloggers, Megan and Samantha. All the other Catholicy stuff will be on their blogs, compiled into neat little lists. My first blog post is not an easy one to create. My top ten favorite saints! I just want to say that this list has changed, and will change in the future. These are just the saints whom I find particularly epic and inspiring at the moment.

1. St. George
St. George is literally a legend. I have a soft spot for soldier saints, as the nobleness of fighting for one's country joins with the greater nobleness of fighting for God, and it makes the most epic combination ever. St. George is the patron saint of England and was born in Cappadocia sometime in the 200's, A.D. St. George was rasied a Christian. He became a soldier in the Roman army later in life, under the Emperor Diocletian, one of the most vicious Christian-killers of the Roman emperors. George was likely a member of the emperor's own personal bodyguards, a highly trained body of soldiers. George would not recant his Christian faith when ordered to by the pagan Romans, and so he was beheaded. Many different cultures tell of the many miracles in relation to St. George, and you can find a lot of them available for researching on line. St. George's legendary status reached especially great heights during the Crusades, and he is still one of the most famous saints in both the Eastern and Western churches. He is the patron saint of England. Here he is depicted as St. George, the Dragon-slayer, as he defeated Satan by holding onto his faith, even in death, and of course Satan is the Dragon, a symbol of utmost evil. I highly recommend the children's book 'Saint George and the Dragon', by Margaret Hodges. It is absolutely beautiful.

2. St. Irene the Great Martyr
I have to have St. Irene, my patron saint and namesake, on this list! St. Irene, born Penelope, was raised a pagan but was converted by her tutor Apellian, who himself was a Christian. He told her about Jesus Christ and she was soon baptized by a priest named Timothy and changed her name to Irene, which means peace in Greek. She then smashed all her father's pagan idols (#epic) and urged her parents to be baptized as well. This they did not like, and her father, Licinius, odered that she be trampled underfoot by horses. The horses would not do this and one of them rose up and attacked Licinius. Some sources say the horse killed him, some say he just brutally harmed him, but whichever it was, St. Irene prayed over her father and he was healed. Seeing this miracle, both Licinius and his wife converted to Christianity, as well as about three thousand other souls. St. Irene devoted her life to serving God and converting pagans, and the governor did not like this, so he subjected her to many tortures, but God protected his handmaid from them all. The governor thought this was sorcery. Hah! After Irene had been doing the Lord's work for a time, He revealed to her that her life would soon be over. She entered a tomb after making the sign of the Cross, and then told her friends to roll the stone over the entrance. They came back in four days and she was gone. God had lead her to heaven.

3. St. Moses the Black
St. Moses the Black was one terrible guy. He was born in Ethiopia and was a slave who was released by his master because he was suspected of theft and murder. He roved around doing generally terrible stuff, and whilst on the run from the authorities, took shelter in a monastery. The monks happiness and deep love of God touched him and he became one of them, converting to Christianity. Moses had a hard time adjusting to the contemplative life, and was discouraged when he discovered he would never become perfect enough. A fellow monk, Isidore, told him one morning as they sat watching the sun rise over the horizon, "Only slowly do the rays of the sun drive away the night and usher in a new day, and thus, only slowly does one become a perfect contemplative."

At the age of seventy five, St. Moses received word that a band of bandits were coming to attack the monastery. He ordered the other monks to retreat and not fight, but he deigned to stay, explaining that death at the point of the sword was fitting for a robber and murderer. Seven other monks stayed at the monastery with him and they were all martyred by the bandits. I'm afraid I would definitely try fighting the attacking bandits, but you have to admire St. Moses anyway, specifically for that reason. He is now among the great martyrs of heaven.

4. St. Alexander Schmorell, the Passion Bearer
Anybody who has read my blog before knows I absolutely love this man, and I've written about him several times. Here's a link to his biography, by me, and the letters of Sophie and Hans Scholl, where he appears briefly.
Yet I cannot sing his praises enough. Alexander Schmorell has the advantage of living less than a hundred years ago, so information regarding his character and life is more readily available that that of many early Christian saints. He was a beautiful human being, bringing light to all he came into contact with. He fought the nazis to the bitter end and died for God and fellow man. And guys, he took long walks in the rain and helped random ladies carry their groceries! A genuinely beautiful soul who we should all emulate. The scroll on the icon says, "One thing above all I urge upon you: do not forget God!"

5. St. Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney
St. Magnus was a literal viking! His life story is wonderfully recounted in a book by Susan Peek called 'Saint Magnus: The Last Viking', which I encourage you all to read. I thought a good deal of the tale of Saint Magnus was fiction when I read Susan Peek's book, but on looking it up, it's almost all historically available! I don't recall all the details, but raised in the Orkney Islands by his father who was an Earl of the Orkney Islands and ruled jointly with his brother Paal, Magnus was described in historical text as 'a quiet sort of man'. His home was attacked when Magnus was young and he was kidnapped and went through many trails that make an unbelievably exciting tale. He was always a Christian, pious and gentle, and was mocked by the Norwegians, who of course viewed gentleness as weakness and cowardice. He was beheaded as a young man by his own cousin, who had grown to hate him because of his lust for power. Magnus prayed for the souls of his executioners just before he died, and the rocky hill where he was buried became a green field after he was laid to rest and white flowers sprouted where his blood fell. He was killed on Easter Sunday. His life is like a political intrigue drama, dashed with high seas adventure and at the center of it all, strong, stolid, pious Magnus, a true viking saint.

6. St. Nicholas of Japan
St. Nicholas was a Russian Orthodox priest who was the first man to bring Eastern Christianity to Japan in a meaningful way. He volunteered to go to Japan and studied dilligently the Japanese culture and language. He studied Buddhisim for the first eight years of his life in Japan where, in his words, he, “strove with all diligence to study Japanese history, religion, and the spirit of the Japanese people”.

An absolutely fabulous occasion occured when he was at the consulate chapel in Japan. He converted three Japanese men, one of which was a former samurai and Shinto priest named Sawabe Takuma. Mr. Takuma had actually come to the home of Fr. Nicholas in order to kill him! After he converted, Sawabe Takuma became one of the first Orthodox priests in Japan. St. Nicholas had an incredibly hard time during the Russo-Japanese war. He was urged to return to Russia, but he stayed in Japan and helped the Japanese people as well as Russian prisoners of war. The Japanese government required that priests prayed, during the liturgy, not only for the safety of Japan's soldiers, but for their victory and the defeat of their enemy. This lead Fr. Nicholas to perform no public liturgies during the war. He could not pray for the defeat of Russia. All in Japan, including the Emperor Meiji, were impressed by Fr. Nicholas' holiness and diplomatic skills. He converted thousands of Japanese and translated the liturgy and many parts of the bible into Japanese. He died in 1912 and is venerated as the first member of the Japanese Orthodox Church.

7. St. Mary of Egypt
Mary of Egypt was a prostitute who revelled in her business. She was so debased and godless that she often did not even request money for her services. She merely did it for the pleasure of satiating her passions. It happened that she joined a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, a pilgrimage going to the the Holy Land to celebrate the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. She said that she went on a sort of 'anti-pilgrimage', to continue her promiscuous way of life and lead pilgrims astray. She lived in Jerusalem for awhile, continuing her evil ways, until one day she saw many people entering the Church of the Holy Sepulchre for the great feast and so she attempted to follow them in. But she was barred from entering by an unseen force. She then saw an icon of the Theotokos and bowed down to it in remorse, repenting of her sins sincerely. A voice appeared on the air and said "If you cross the Jordan, you will find glorious rest." And so St. Mary of Egypt became an aescetic and lived in the desert the rest of her days, praying for forgiveness. There is so much more to her life story, but this post is already long. She is the patron saint of chastity, deliverance from demons, and many other attributes and virtues.

8. St. John Chrysostom
One of the most famous and revered fathers of the church, St. John Chrysostom's name means 'golden-mouth', a fitting title for one famed for his preaching and inspiring homilies. St. John lived in Antioch and was an incredibly popular bishop who did not shrink from the task of condemning sin and evil, even when it was dangerous to his safety. He condemned the Empress Eudoxia for having a silver statue made of herself and placing it directly outside the Hagia Sophia. 
The first time he was exiled from Constantinople an earthquake shook the city. St. John died in exile, but not before he had written many beautiful homilies and letters, as well as the divine liturgy which we use today in our church. Also, as an extra note of epicness, St. John is credited with leading a group of Christians to destroy the temple of Artemis, one of the seven ancient wonders of the world. St. Cyril of Alexandria referred to him as "the destroyer of demons and overthrower of the temple of Diana." I don't usually approve of burning down buildings, but that was epic as heck.

9. St. Valentine
The legend himself, St. Valentine. I won't write a lot about this 3rd century saint of Rome, but I wanted to note him, as he is one of my favorite saints, probably because of his uniqueness. A saint that falls in love with a person as well as God is unique indeed, and the story of Valentine and the judge's daughter is beautiful and worthy of its place in the annals of time. Needless to say, both the judge's (some sources say jailer's) daughter and St. Valentine were martyred for their love of Christ and the Saint before Valentine was somehow cast out of our modern world, and now he's commemorated by the secular world by a secular day of love, even though he had the deepest love imaginable for his God, as well as for the girl he loved. It's a shame people don't know about the man behind the holiday. Sighhhh. You can read more about him on Wikipedia and other websites, and you definitely should. He's a wonderful saint.

10. Blessed Martyr Theodore Romzha

This saint is amazing for a lot for reasons, and one of them is that he's a Ruthenian Greek Catholic saint. Like, how often do we get represented like that? Never, that's how often! Anyway, Holy and Blessed Theodore Romzha was born in Austria-Hungary. After he completed his time in the Gymansium (kind of like high school) Theodore entered the seminary. He was ordained a priest on Christmas Day of 1936. This was during the time of the USSR, the communist terror. The communists did not appreciate Christians. Not at all. At the young age of 33, Theodore was consecrated a bishop. He immediately had to face the Red Army, who were occupying Catholic churches and assigning them to the Russian Orthodox Church (they didn't like the Orthodox either, but whatever). Bishop Romzha was asked to break with the pope and he refused. He organized a celebration for the feast of the Dormition which would contain about 80,000 pilgrims, but this was not allowed by the communists. They began to plot his demise. On his way home one night in a horse-drawn carriage, Blessed Theodore was hit (purposely) by a Soviet truck. The soldiers, dressed as civilians, came out and beat Theodore and his companions. A real civilian truck came driving by and the soldiers fled. Theodore and his companions were taken to a nearby hospital. Rhomza was recovering, when one fateful night, the nuns who had been nursing him were dismissed and replaced by a new nurse. A little after midnight, Bishop Romzha was dead, murdered by the NKVD. A man of his faith and holiness could not be allowed to live. He is commemorated on the thirteenth of October, the day he was martyred. 

And there you have it folks, my ten most favoritist saints as of May, 2021 A.D. Holy men and women deserve recognition, as they are the strongest among us. God bless you and keep you in the palm of his hand :)

This has been Horseback to Byzantium's first entry into Catholic Blog Week.

Tortured Soul by Theresa Linden

                                                  A Review of Theresa Linden's

A supernatural thriller about a lady's visions of a soul from purgatory who appears in an empty house in the countryside and won't go away. Fun stuff, not gonna lie.
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Basically, a woman in her early thirties, Jeannie Lyons, is unceremoniously kicked out of her home by her older brother and moves to a home in the country. Jeannie is lonely and unsatisfied with life, and she has an inability to relinquish the memory of her dead parents, whom she loved very deeply. Her brother, Erwin, is concerned that she will end up living the rest of her life as a single cat lady, possibly with psychiatric problems and a dash of schizophrenia. Jeannie's niece once saw her dearly beloved aunt talking to the vision of Jeannie's dead mom, and the frightened little girl told this to Erwin's wife and himself. Erwin, with a quickly growing family, is determined that a new house and maybe a decent guy will snap Jeannie out of her tendency to live in the past and maybe give her something to look forward to in the future. Except the new house he finds for her is anything but helpful in the endeavor for mental stability and happiness, as Jeannie begins to hear noises every night. It is not long before a dark figure appears at six o'clock in the morning and six o'clock at night, frightening Jeannie nearly to death and causing her to question her sanity. Who is this ghastly specter, what does he want, and what should Jeannie do?

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I was irritated for the first two or three chapters of this book. I have read all of the books in the wonderful West Brothers series by Theresa Linden, and I really liked them (even loved some of them), so my expectations were high.
But by the time I had been introduced to Jeannie, her family, and her troubles, I was growing annoyed at the fact that I hated everyone in her family and found her tendency to frequent emotional breakdowns exasperating, to say the least. Her niece Danita is scared of every darn thing and her nephew Gabriel finds delight in taking advantage of this fact, tormenting his sister whenever he can. Neither is disciplined, and their mother and the wife of Erwin, Trella, has the audacity to be angry at Jeannie when Jeannie is more concerned with the well-being of her heirloom lamp than she is with her niece's (or nephew's) arm when the little monster runs and break the poor old lamp. Gosh darn it woman, I wouldn't care about the little brat either! Needs a slappity slap slap.
Now that my frustration and harsh heart and abusive tendencies have been brought to the fore front, I'll bring you the good news about this book. The annoying family soon goes away and the book takes a exciting and terrifying turn. The noises start, as well as Jeannie's bed being shaken and waking her from sleep. A dark shape appear in the corner of Jeannie's bedroom, a shape that blends into the drapes almost completely. Jeannie's first reaction to to this is not to politely ask the good ghost what his business is in her house, but to run out of the room at light speed. I cannot blame her. I went to the bathroom after I read a chapter or six of this book and I must say, I saw movement in every crease of the shower curtain, in every roll of the towel. I would've been too scared too sleep, but I was so tired I fell asleep before I could convince myself to be afraid of the dark. Anyway, I will try to restore structure to this review.
Because Erwin fears his little sister will lead an ever lonely and miserable existence if she does not try to get a grip on her life soon, he makes it his duty to set her up with a gentleman named Oliver. Oliver was one of my favorite aspects of the story, as it doesn't seem when you first meet him that he will be an important character. More likely just a comic sideshow. He's not bad looking, slightly awkward, has a beard and loves photography. He carries his camera with him everywhere and he meets Jeannie when Erwin invites him over to the family house for dinner. Jeannie immediately discounts him as a love interest possibility, and so we do too. Very well played on the author's part, I must say. He helps Erwin with Jeannie's move to the new house in the country, and Jeannie is slightly concerned that he has feelings for her. She briefly attempts to think of a gentle yet firm way to tell him he's okay, but not her type. Yet when the ghostly occurrences begin, Oliver is the only one to believe Jeannie. Her sister refers her to a counselor, her brother says she has an overactive imagination and needs to get a grip, and even her priest suggests professional help is needed and has a hard time believing her fantastic tales. Oliver knows Jeannie is not crazy. And he also knows that there is life after this life, and although generally people from the next life don't come visiting this one, these things do happen.

  

The next time the ghost comes to visit, Jeannie forces herself to observe him. He does not seem evil, but his pathetic, miserable and otherworldly presence is too much too bear, and so Jeannie once again fails to discover why this specter continues to visit her and banishes him from her sight.
As time goes on and the visits continue, Jeannie, with the help of ever helpful and protective Oliver, begins to unveil a startling story and starts to realize that when she prays for the souls of the dead, she doesn't understand what is happening. She doesn't understand that though she goes to church every week and fancies she loves God, her own soul is a mess of bitterness and a lack of forgiveness. She hold onto the past and neglects the present and the only way to banish the absolutely terrifying ghost is to become a real Christian, with all the trimmings. 

The apparitions to Jeannie in this book are based on the real life visions of purgatory that appeared to Eugenie von der Leyen, a German mystic from the 1800's. Excluding biblical examples and teachings, purgatory has always been one of the most logical teachings of the Catholic church to me. Nothing unclean enters heaven. There are those who cannot enter heaven, and yet it seems unbelievable for them to go to Hell. Those who see God just before they die, who repent, must have somewhere to go, and so in purgatory their evil works are burned up and they are cleansed through fire and the prayers, requests to God pleaded by others. Makes sense.
Tortured Soul is incredibly enjoyable and it makes me happy that someone is writing about purgatory, a strangely forgotten place and teaching of the Church, though it should not be. I think it is not mere coincidence that no one thinks about the poor souls locked in purgatory, pleading for our prayers, because they cannot pray themselves. The Devil doesn't like it when we sincerely think about the not-yet-lost souls and purposefully ask God to deliver them. He doesn't like it at all. I don't think the book has achieved the status of Great Modern Art (like that of The Golden Princess and the Moon), but it is an inspiration to all Christians and an exciting supernatural thriller that homeschoolers like me can read without having too many nightmares for weeks to come. I enjoyed it immensely, and I think you will too.
Until next time, God bless you and make sure you don't move into creepy big houses in the middle of the woods by yourself. There are always ghosts there, without fail. Better safe than sorry, I always (never) say.

~ Irene