MEDIAEVAL FAITH AND FABLE By J. A. MacCulloch The title
of this book, Mediaeval Faith and Fable (Harrap. Via.), is less intriguing than the book Itself, and those who fear to be bored by theology will be pleasantly surprised, since it is a collection of the popular beliefs of the Middle Ages, and treats of folklore and fairy tale inore than of religion. The subjects range over witches, shape-shifting, werewolves, super- naturals, mistresses and fairy lovers ; and Madonna legends show her as the humanizing influence in mediaeval religion in stories similar to that of The Miracle. We find, in survivals of paganism, spirits inhabiting trees and rocks, charms to keep off illness, as well as waxen images made to confound enemies. Belief in brownies is witnessed by a passage in an early con- fessional where the charming question occurs "Bast thou made little bows or shoes and cast them into thy cellar or barn for the amusement of the satyri or pilosi (i.e., the shaggy borne-sprite), that they may bring the goods of others and thou become richer ? " Another attractive ,record of the thirteenth century is of two green-skinned children found weeping in a hollow, who would cat nothing but beans, on which diet they lost their green hue. The book becomes less consciously pagan, and more and more Christian, chapter by chapter. It shows how popular credulity made undignified and unspiritual legends about the Host, which was said, if used by magicians for nefarious purposes, to turn into veritable flesh and blood. The least attractive parts of the book are those which deal with social movements, such as heretics and sceptics, which do not mingle well with traditional beliefs. These subjects arc too complex and too important historically to be treated adequately in a Wok of this scope; and their inclusion makes the book too heterogeneous. It should not be read from cover to cover at one sitting, but dipped into, so that its wealth of fable will have a chance of hieing properly digested.
Previous page
