Today is the feast of St John Climacus (St John of the Ladder, pictured above), a 7th century abbot of the monastery at Mt Sinai who was famous in his time as a holy man. His lasting fame is based on his book, Ladder to Paradise, where he pictures growth in the Christian life as a ladder with 30 rungs, each rung representing a subject such as detachment, pilgrimage, the stomach, pride, talkativeness, and stillness of body and soul.
‘As far as my meagre knowledge permits (for I am like an unskilled architect) I have constructed a ladder of ascent. Let each look to see on which step he is standing: Is it self-will, or human glory, or weakness of tongue, or hot temper, or too great attachment?’ St John Climacus, Ladder to Paradise
Moses Maimonides, the Jewish philosopher, physician and scholar, was born in Córdoba, Spain, on the eve of Passover, today in 1135. He is revered for his copious and influential writings on the Jewish law, and also wrote extensively on medicine. He is best known outside the Jewish world for his book A Guide for the Perplexed, which was an influence on Thomas Aquinas and Meister Eckhart.
It is the birthday of Vincent van Gogh, who came into the world today in 1853. Born in the southern Netherlands, Vincent’s father and grandfather were ministers in the Dutch Reformed Church, while his uncles were art dealers. Both art and religion shaped his young life – by his mid-20s he had worked for an art dealer and as a missionary.
Today in 1920, British soldiers digging a trench in the ancient ruins of Dura-Europos, on the bank of the River Euphrates in Syria, uncovered wall paintings in what was once the town’s Temple of Bel. Their discovery eventually led to the excavation of the earliest known Christian house church, used by Christians for worship between the 230s and 250s. The church contained some of the earliest known images of Jesus, including one of him walking on the water.
The theologian, mystic and apocalyptic teacher Joachim of Fiore died today in 1202. Basing his teaching on obscure verses in the book of Revelation, he predicted that a new age of universal love (although starting with a cataclysm) would begin around the year 1260. Hugely famous in his lifetime, after his death, his writings were attacked by Thomas Aquinas, although Dante included him among the saints in Paradise in his Divine Comedy.
Image: Wikimedia Commons