St Margaret and Her Chapel
It’s a very small chapel - it doesn’t hold more than about twenty people, and it’s
very old and it’s very lovely. We have all heard of Macbeth. Well, Macbeth was
succeeded by King Malcolm III, and Malcolm III married the Princess Margaret,
who had been sheltered from the storm of the sea in Scotland, and after whom
Queensferry, near the Forth Bridge, is still named. Queen Margaret was one of
the most lovely Queens there has ever been, and she was loved because she
herself loved so much, and did all se could for her subjects. Above all, she
loved God; and, loving her people, she wanted then to love God too. And so
she built on Edinburgh Castle these long years ago this little Chapel that is
called after her now - St Margaret’s Chapel. It has stood until this day on tis
very spot where it now stands, a place set apart where in days of siege and
war, as well as in days of plenty and of peace, people have come to give God
their worship. Into this place during these long years Scotland’s folk have
come: those who were great in power, those who were great in humility, or just
ordinary folk like you and me, who aren’t great in very much. There they’ve
come: kings and queens, lords and ladies, knights and lairds, soldiers of the
sword, and soldiers of the cross, and that endless stream of strong and simple
folk, who have made the name of Scotland so honoured and loved and great
throughout the world. Not only Scots have come and still come here, but our
brothers and sisters from over the Border, not in the old days always as
friends. (Extract from article by Ronald Selby Wright.)
The Pilgrim to Lourdes who so far forgets his holy business as to go round
looking for a piece of tolerable statuary will be surprised to find what it is - an
effigy of Queen Margaret, presented by the Catholic women of Scotland. Nor
were they guilty of insular prejudice: Queen Margaret is a saint of the Universal
Church, and was, besides, an Englishwoman. History reads like romance when
you find a Saxon princess going into exile at the time of the Conquest, and find-
ing in Scotland not merely a home but a crown. Female saints always seem to
be canonised either as virgins or as widows; St Margaret falls into the latter
class, but only by a technicality - she survived King Malcolm by four days. “He
first deceased; she, for a little, tried to live without him, liked it not, and died.”
Thus, she may fairly be regarded as the patroness of wives, who have, in these
days, much need of a patroness. The young Queen had no very high standards
to live up to, her predecessor being Lady Macbeth. But no commonplace
virtues would suffice for her; she became, unquestionably, a saint. Nor was her
sanctity all of the other-worldly type; she brought up a family of eight, shared
the whole burden of royalty, and reformed the life of a kingdom. (Extract from
article by Ronald A. Knox)
- contributed by Allan Asquith
St Margaret's News
9
May 2017