Saint Matilda on the façade of Notre Dame. Any idea what the snake is about? If you google ”Saint Matilda” you’ll discover that this was one very, very powerful woman. Just a tid-bit from the retreat. There’s another Church next to that. A post on that later, if I’m brave enough. Anyway, some joker said that the snake blinding her eyes with his mouth wide open on top of her head means that she’s the patron saint of women who don’t know their hat sizes…. There must be a better story than that.
Lightning, I’ve discovered, has irremediably taken out the internet at the hermitage. However, there is a viable option to getting it back, something about “Verizon 4G home fusion”, for about 1/6 the price for this earlier 3rd party model. Anyone have any experience with that?
Addendum: I can get just a bit of connection, about 0.75 “bars” average, with the non-antenna USB thing. I’ll have to do less on the blog until the home fusion bit becomes a reality if that be the Lord’s will. Meanwhile, I’d like to start re-writing The Judas Crisis series with, um, less exclamation points, and a deeper ecclesiological, Christological, and therefore more hard hitting message that might do a better job of turning the The Judas Crisis around.
Accompany me, Father George David Byers, S.S.L., S.T.D., as I begin life as a Catholic Priest-Hermit by choice. Holy Souls Hermitage is dedicated to the sanctification of my fellow priests, bishops, deacons & seminarians going through the purgatory of this life or the next. Prayer and sacrifice go up, of course, for both Benedict XVI and the next Successor of Saint Peter. 
Notice that her crown has fallen to the ground by her left foot. She has a strong stick in her left hand and tablets or sheets in her right hand. What is the meaning of these?
I don’t have Verizon 4G experience; I do have experience with AT&T version of using cell tower Internet for home computer. I can tell you that what they say is true; if you have great cell reception you’ll likely have great Internet via cell reception. Or digital or whatever they’re calling it now. You must like exclamation points as I like semi-colon’s.
Looking up St Matilda
I am in favor of “The Judas Crisis” with less exclamation points and without the emphasis on “they’re trying to kill priests”. Make the material listenable to people who need to be persuaded. I bet similar issues were probably discussed, especially behind the scenes, at the recent USCCB meeting but they just reiterated that rebuilding the Church’s public credibility depends on adherence to the Dallas Charter.
St Matilda of Saxony
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/10049a.htm
While I can’t know for certain I’m wondering if this is the Saint at Notre Dame? If so, perhaps the snake is over her eyes to symbolize her blindness in choosing one son over the other ? Along with, perhaps, her later pennance in choosing to abandon herself to the persecution of her sons. To submit to what God allowed evil to do to her.
Very wonderful interpretation of that, natselle.