Much like myself many of you may know of St. Bartholomew, whose feast day
is August 24, but you may not know much about him. To begin, his proper Hebrew
name תולמי-בר, Bartholomaios (Greek: Βαρθολομαίος), is translated into
English as “son of Tôlmay” and reveals, obviously enough, that he was of Hebrew
descent. Aside from that there has been a great deal of speculation about his
life, as not many concrete facts are known about it, however, his death…well,
that’s another story.
Purportedly, Bartholomew, while performing his ministry work in Albanopolis in
present day Armenia was flayed alive, crucified inversely and then beheaded by
the order of Astyages for converting his brother, King Polymius, to
Christianity. After he was tortured and killed it is said that Bartholomew’s
body was thrown into the sea to sink to the depths, but that was not to be. His
body washed up on Lipari a small island off the coast of Sicily where a large
piece of his skin and many of his bones are kept in the Cathedral of St.
Bartholomew the Apostle. Because of the manner of his death St. Bartholomew is
often represented in artistic depictions such as Michelangelo’s Last Judgment
as being flayed and holding his skin in hand – which is also an indicator as to
why he is the patron saint of tanners and leather workers.
St. Bartholomew purportedly performed many miracles both before and after his
death but two of the most important ones that led to his beatification as a
Saint came after his corpse washed up on Lipari. When the Bishop of St.
Christopher’s Church on Lipari heard the news he sent several men to retrieve
Bartholomew’s corpse. The men attempted to retrieve the corpse but it was too
heavy. The men went back to the beach with several others to aid them, but when
they attempted to retrieve the body the second time it was even heavier. When
these many men failed to retrieve the body the Bishop sent some children to get
the body – who easily brought it ashore. A feast was ordered in Bartholomew’s
honor and a golden statue of his likeness was to be cast and carried in a parade
through the streets of town. The procession route for the statue was to lead
from the hill top church down to the town, but as the statue made its way toward
town its weight became heavier with each passing step. Eventually the statue
became so heavy the men carrying it had to set it down. When the men regained
their strength they attempted to lift the statue again, but it became even
heavier and it had to be taken back to the church. Thusly St. Bartholomew is
also the patron Saint of balance, weights and measures in both a literal and
spiritual aspect. Additionally he is associated with hospitals, medicine and
healing the sick.
The Church
One of London’s oldest churches, St. Bartholomew the Great was founded by a
prebendary of St. Paul’s Cathedral named Rahere in 1123. While traveling abroad
during a time of ministry work Rahere contracted malaria and was believed to be
near death when a vision of St. Bartholomew appeared to him and miraculously
healed him. In return for sparing his life Rahere, indebted with gratitude,
returned to London and began work on St. Bartholomew the Great church and the
adjoining hospital. Rahere, now an Augustinian canon, spread word about his
vision and his subsequent recovery from an ailment that was, at the time, almost
always fatal. Because of the latter events the church and its patron saint are
believed to have curative powers that can heal the faithful who are sick and, at
no time is this more evident, than on St. Bartholomew’s feast day – August 24 –
a time when the pews are filled to capacity with both the faithful and the
hopeful, preying together for a cure to what ails them.
St. Bartholomew the Great, originally intended to be used as an Augustinian
priory, is housed in a section of London known as “The City” and has been in
continual use as a place of worship since around 1143. Now an Anglican church,
St. Bartholomew’s still displays some of the most beautiful, well preserved
examples of Norman architecture on the continent, but the ornate architecture is
often overshadowed by a feeling that many of the clergy there term as “the Holy
Gloom” – a state within the church that casts a somber and, at times, a somewhat
eerie weight to the shadowy corridors. The feeling has validity, however. St.
Bartholomew’s is believed to be one of the most haunted churches in London.
The Ghosts
It is said that there are many ghosts that haunt the church and grounds of St.
Bartholomew the Great. Not all of these restless spirits that still walk the
earth are tied to the church, however. Time and nature have a way of covering
the transgressions of the past, but one merely has to peer in the not so distant
history of the surrounding land to find that in close proximity to the church
there is a place where the sins of the fathers were punished – an execution site
where hundreds, perhaps thousands, lost their lives in the manner of beheading,
hanging and being burned alive.
There are two hauntings that are specifically identified with and connected to
the church. The first of the two ghosts is most active in the church satory area
and is connected to the spirit of a priest who once tended the church. Although
his name and transgression – if there was one – is unknown. His restless spirit
still roams the church tending to his long past holy duties. The priest met his
fate during the notorious reign of King Henry VIII when he was locked inside a
small iron cage and burned alive. Witnesses to the manifestation of the spirit
have noted that they have heard cries of someone in pain, but can not locate the
area from which the sounds originate. Additionally, many have ascribed the
unmistakable but fleeting odor of burning flesh in the vicinity to the priest as
well.
The second spirit in the church has been identified as none other than the
founder of the church himself, Rahere. People who have witnessed the
manifestation of his apparition are certain it is Rahere as the ghost rises out
of the tomb where Rahere was laid to rest centuries ago. The ghost has set off
motion detector alarms at night and startled clergymen, but other than that he
doesn’t seem to pay much attention to the world of the living. Many of the
witnesses, mostly clergy, have noted that it seems that Rahere wanders about the
church as if he is looking for something, but what that something may be is
nothing more than an object of speculation.
This article was written from information compiled from these websites:
