Scott Knitter, Chicago
A Benedictine oblate

The term “Guardian” is the title of the “superior” in OJN. Since we have both monks and nuns, I had to find a gender-neutral word and borrowed it from the Franciscans. “Superior” was too strong in its modern connotations. “Abbess” would always have to be changed to “Abbot” (and vv) in all the documents. So, “Guardian” seemed to work - with all its implications.

Charles 1 because he was, for a time, part of the BCP (until old Victoria cancelled him - also because I rather liked the idea of an “incompetent martyr”; Swithun because some of us had grown up with “St. Swithun’s Prayer Book”; Thomas More, I suppose because of “Man for All Seasons” (however inaccurate); Wilfred since he was omitted from LFF because he was nasty (like me); Walsingham — well, I guess obvious as the major Anglican devotion of BVM (and we have a small shrine in our chapel).

I already confessed to personal bias….so they can all be put down to that, if nothing else. One of the few perquisites of being Founder, I guess!

I’m a little surprised by some of the British choices, or rather some of the missing British choices. Audrey (Aethelthryth) is probably the Anglo-Saxon saint most like Julian. Of course, I would also like to see Oswald commemorated more widely in the US as he is throughout the rest of the Anglican Communion. Charles I is an interesting choice. Our Lady of Guadalupe would be a nice North American choice. I don’t know why its not on the episcopal calendar.

Michelle:
An interesting Kalendar from OJN. Can I ask how you choose which saints to include?

John-Julian, OJN:
Michelle:

Not an easy question to answer, because a lot originally depended on my personal biases, but here goes:

1. All Prayer Book feasts.
2. All commemorations from Lesser Feasts and Fasts (originally I omitted some of the “low church” folk, but eventually decided to be straight-out Episcopalian - although the Guardian says he is about to cut back a bit)
3. Founders of primary religious orders (Gilbert, Norbert, Scholastica, Cassian)
4. Most familiar mystics (Bonaventure, Birgitta, de Sales, John of Cross, John Vianney, Therese, Eliz of the Trinity
5. “Spiritual leaders” (Grafton, John XXIII, Ramsey)
6. Some British folk (Charles 1, Swithun, More, Wilfred, Walsingham)
7. Venerable traditional Catholic feasts (Conception BVM, O.L. of Sorrows. Corpus Xti, Sacred Heart, Beheading of J Baptist, Lucy - the last because her feast sets the dates for Ember Days)
8. Some contemporaries I respect or knew (Romero, Dorothy Day, Merton, Joe Hunt)
9. Saints named by Dame Julian (John of Beverly, Cecelia, etc.)
10. Martyrs whose relics are in our altar stones.
11. A memorial of our own Order’s founding.

That’s kind of a patchwork, but that’s how it came out….