I love the story of the Harrowing of Hell ever since I encountered it years ago. Can you imagine?! What a jail break!
On a side note, the medieval writers would have been familiar with the term 'harrowing' as it is an agricultural practice still in use today. To 'harrow' a field is to drag (essentially) a giant rake over it, which turns over/loosens the stones and smooths out the ruts that might cause problems in the planting, and pulls out or loosens the weeds. One might even go so far as to say a harrow sifts the soil and brings the things not supposed to be there to the surface. It's kind of a violent process all things considered. So to think of Christ harrowing Hell -- He is down there violently sifting it, shaking loose the foundation stones, and bringing out all the souls not supposed to be there. ❤️
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I love the story of the Harrowing of Hell ever since I encountered it years ago. Can you imagine?! What a jail break!
On a side note, the medieval writers would have been familiar with the term 'harrowing' as it is an agricultural practice still in use today. To 'harrow' a field is to drag (essentially) a giant rake over it, which turns over/loosens the stones and smooths out the ruts that might cause problems in the planting, and pulls out or loosens the weeds. One might even go so far as to say a harrow sifts the soil and brings the things not supposed to be there to the surface. It's kind of a violent process all things considered. So to think of Christ harrowing Hell -- He is down there violently sifting it, shaking loose the foundation stones, and bringing out all the souls not supposed to be there. ❤️
"He saw the doors of hell brightly shining
which had been locked long ago,
shrouded in darkness. The **thegn** was full of joy"
Exactly what is a "thegn" ?
The Anglosaxon word for a feudal lord. Also spelled "thain" or "thane".
Thank you 😊
Christ is Risen !