Wednesday, February 15, 2023

It is the 15th of February, 2023. Welcome to the Christian History Almanac brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org; I’m Dan van Voorhis.

On this the 15th of February in 1386, the so-called last of the European countries joined the larger project of Christendom when its king, Jogaila would be baptized, taking the name Ladislas II. The country had resisted attempts at becoming Christian despite all of its surrounding countries having a common faith.

Technically, In the Mid 13th century, the King was baptized, and the Pope proclaimed the nation Christian- it was likely politically expedient, and the King continued to worship the local Gods. And there had been some Christian missions into Lithuania in the past, but they came from the East after the Christianization of the Kievan Rus. So, Orthodoxy was there first but didn’t leave the legacy that the western Church would.

The context for all of this is the Crusades. Yes- the Crusades, but not “those” Crusades. As Popes sent armies into the Holy Land, they would also send them to other non-Christian areas to do battle with pagan religions. One of which was Lithuania. This is where the Teutonic Heights come into play. They had initially been an order of Hospitallers in the Middle East (a military, religious order that took on humanitarian crises- the Knights of Malta also began as Hospitallers). It would be advantageous for the Lithuanians to convert to Christianity to stop foreign intrusions. His father’s wife was Russian and Orthodox- during this time, it was the Golden Horde- those Mongols- who threatened Lithuania from the East- so it was advantageous for him to marry a Russian.

But it would do no good for Jogaila to convert to his mother's Eastern Orthodoxy if his enemies were Latin Christians from the West. So, a union with Poland would make sense from the perspective of geography and ideology. And thus, it would be Queen Jadwiga (or Hedwig) of Poland who would marry Jogailo, Lithuania, and Poland would unite. Jadwiga would die, but Jogailo would remain, and a later wife gave him the first in the Jagiellon line). But importantly, Jogailo converted to Christianity and was baptized on this day in 1386.  He would prove a helpful eastern friend for the Pope when Jan Hus began his reform movement early in the 1400s.  

He was baptized as Ladislas II, and unlike one of his predecessors who also was Baptized, this new King of Lithuania-Poland would actively work to convert his entire country. So, if I may jump out of the story for a second, he was baptized for political reasons and forced his citizens to convert? How can that be of God? I don’t know, man. It’s certainly not the model put forth in the New Testament, but it became all too common in the Middle Ages. But the Spirit moves as it will- and where the good news of Jesus is proclaimed, his Spirit goes forth- even if it would come with generations of baggage. 

So Lithuania became the last of the countries in the pan-Eurasian plan for Christendom. From the South of Spain to the border of the Baltic, there was supposedly a united front. Of course, this never happened- it was a mess, maybe even a bad idea. Nevertheless, Lithuania was Christianized and would eventually produce a strong Catholic population that could withstand absorption into the USSR and remains- at least by church membership- it is 86% Catholic today.  

The Jagiellon dynasty would eventually put kings on the thrones of Hungary and Bohemia as well. It would be involved in the early Reformation as an ally to the Pope and remain a power in the East until the Habsburgs eclipsed them in the 16th century.

Today we remember the baptism of a king, the subsequent conversion of his people, and the Christianization of the last country in Christendom- until it exploded.  

The last word for today comes from the daily lectionary from the oft-quoted but not on this show (for some reason) book of Proverbs, from Proverbs 2:

My son, if you accept my words
    and store up my commands within you,

turning your ear to wisdom
    and applying your heart to understanding—

indeed, if you call out for insight
    and cry aloud for understanding,

and if you look for it as for silver
    and search for it as for hidden treasure,

then you will understand the fear of the Lord
    and find the knowledge of God.

For the Lord gives wisdom;
    from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 15th of February 2023, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.

The show is produced by a man whose favorite Knights include the Teutonic, Brady Bunch’s Christopher, Rider the talking car, but not the Hoosier Bobby. He is Christopher Gillespie.

The show is written and read by a man reminded of the late 80s Mac Tonight ads from McDonald's with the big moon-face guy. I’m Dan van Voorhis.

You can catch us here every day- and remember that the rumors of grace, forgiveness, and the redemption of all things are true…. Everything is going to be ok.