Thursday, July 13, 2023

It is the 13th of July, 2023. Welcome to the Christian History Almanac brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org. I’m Dan van Voorhis.

So, this show has rules- and like the British Constitution, they are largely unwritten- you just kind of “know them.” And chief among them is that anytime a character or event ties, in some way, to both the church and the story of Robin Hood, I am bound to tell that story. It’s the rules.

And of all the historical characters in the story of a cartoon fox who steals from the rich to give to the poor (yes, he’s not always a cartoon fox, but he should be), there is one behind the scenes. A man so important that he would influence both Richard the Lionhearted and King John. He would help establish the role of the Archbishop of Canterbury and forever change English history. Also, he was barely literate, uneducated, and seems to have made his way in life through force of will, confidence, and being tall and handsome; the more things change…. You know the rest.

He was Hubert Walter, born to what we might call middle-class parents in about 1160. He did not go to school and would have been forgotten in history if not for his enterprising uncle- Ranulf de Glanville. Glanville was a sheriff who helped King Henry II survive the various rebellions (you might remember Henry’s French wife- Eleanor of Aquitaine, wasn’t a fan- neither were his three sons, one of whom would be King Richard the Lionhearted). Ranulf also captured a few of Henry’s noble foes and was made Justice of the King’s Court. All the while, Hubert accompanied his uncle and was noticed- tall and handsome- by the King, who appointed him as his personal chaplain (neither formally educated nor ordained- but the King does what he will).  

When Richard came to the throne, he had his dad’s men removed and many thrown in prison, including Uncle Ranulf. But Hubert must have had a way about him- he became the Bishop of Salisbury and vowed to fight with Richard on the 3rd Crusade.

While in Acre, Hubert is said to have radically reorganized the army- used funds from a deceased Archbishop to get them paid and came into more favor with Richard. When Richard was kidnapped by the Duke of Austria, it was Hubert who arranged his release, and for this, he was made Archbishop of Canterbury- the chief religious head of the nation (under the King).

It was Hubert Walter- now Archbishop but also becoming a financial wiz that led to his popularity- he arranged for taxes and revenues to be kept (and recorded- writing things down would prove to be helpful!) And when Richard was killed and that dastardly Prince John (although not that dastardly and not a lion voiced by Peter Ustinov) was next in line, it was Hubert who had to crown him in 1199. Hubert would further be a churchman but also an exchequer and a diplomat. He was behind many of the monetary reforms which helped England out of the state it found itself in after the 3rd Crusade and the reign of Richard the Lionhearted that almost bankrupted the state. It would be rumored that he was as powerful, if not more so, than the king. Although lacking a formal education - theological or otherwise- he managed to hold both the English church and state together during those radical years that could have seen financial or theological disaster. He mediated between the Pope and the King (a position the Archbishop of Canterbury would often need to take), and he called a council in the year 1200 in London to solidify the English church’s theological rapport with Rome.

Historians have debated just how much control he had- but the perception of being the “man behind many kings” and a powerful Archbishop of Canterbury who strengthened both church and court life loomed large for both his reputation and the role of the Archbishop of Canterbury to come.

Born in 1160, Hubert Walter- something of a self-made man who learned as he went and altered the history of England died on this the 13th of July in 1205. He was roughly 45 years old.

The last word for today comes from Psalm 65- a picture of nature in the Kingdom of God- as opposed to where you might be scorching hot today-

You care for the land and water it;
    you enrich it abundantly.


The streams of God are filled with water

    to provide the people with grain,

    for so you have ordained it.

You drench its furrows and level its ridges;

    you soften it with showers and bless its crops.

You crown the year with your bounty,

    and your carts overflow with abundance.

The grasslands of the wilderness overflow;

    the hills are clothed with gladness.

The meadows are covered with flocks

    and the valleys are mantled with grain;

    they shout for joy and sing.

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 13th of July 2023, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.

The show is produced by a man also tall and handsome (but also with fancy degrees) he is Christopher Gillespie.

The show is written and read by a man who just recently realized that “Salisbury steak” is no steak at all; it’s just hamburger…and always in TV dinners…  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.