I loved Firefly. So sad they never rebooted.

I had a wonderful time at Lectures on Tap at Theory in Chicago last night. Great audience and fun questions. Highly recommend their events. lecturesontap.com

Agreed.

I wanted to share probably the most important sermon I’ve given and it’s while I’m being arrested. It’s torture pure and simple what happens at #Broadview. I’m ok, though I was thrown to the ground and choked with my pectoral cross. A review of the video shows I was peaceful - did I deserve this?

Never considered the incongruity there. Very interesting. Let me know what you come up with. I didn’t know there were “high end” versions of scholastic texts. I tend to be in the messy weeds of pecia.

Go Dolly!

Louie Louie (The Song) In 1963, a rock group named the Kingsmen recorded the song “Louie, Louie.” The popularity of the song and difficulty in discerning the lyrics led some people to suspect the song was obscene. The FBI w...

If you haven’t read the FBI file on the song “Louie Louie” it’s worth a look. vault.fbi.gov/louie-louie-...

My email is nrcleme@gmail.com.

It’s open access! Thank you!

From ISU's Carthusian Breviary. Any idea who the saint is ? Stephen the protomartyr (stoned to death) or Antony (self-mortification)?

Thanks

Happy to zoom sometime if she wants to chat.

Very sorry to see you leave. I was just getting to know your scholarship, which is outstanding.

Saint holding a book and a cross on bright blue background.

Wanted to share this beautiful miniature from Illinois State University’s Special Collections. These are from a Carthusian Breviary.

Many #children with #autism are non-verbal, so if a child knocks on your door and holds out their blue #pumpkin, just know that many won’t talk or say trick or treat. Don’t take it as rude; they're just trying to enjoy #Halloween like everyone else.

#TrickOrTreat #NonVerbal #BluePumpkin

An advertisement for a lecture on medieval manuscripts at a River North Bar in Chicago, November 19, 20205

Some shameless self promotion if anyone happens to be in Chicago and wants a beer and a talk on medieval manuscripts.

This is amazing! Is this in your collection? And is the fur on the outside of the codex? Or it was intended to be the outside and then another binding was added? Thanks so much. Ray

Good luck from a fellow image hoarder.

Congratulations!

Love the summary!

Statement of Cardinal Blase J. Cupich, archbishop of Chicago, on Standing with Immigrants Oct. 21, 2025 My dear brothers and sisters, today I speak to you as your shepherd, but also as a fellow pilgrim who shares the pain of many of our immigrant communities. Families are being torn apart. Children are left in fear, and communities are shaken by immigration raids and detentions. These actions wound the soul of our city. Let me be clear. The Church stands with migrants. We stand with a mother who crosses borders to feed her children. We stand with the father who labors in silence to build a better future. We stand with the young person who dreams of safety and a better future. Our parishes and schools will not turn away those who seek comfort, and we will not be silent when dignity is denied in the enforcement of the law, it is essential that we respect the dignity of every human being. Now I want to say something directly to those immigrants without documents. Most of you have been here for years. You have worked hard. You have raised families. You have contributed to this nation. You have earned our respect. As the Archbishop of Chicago, I will insist that you be treated with dignity. Americans should not forget that we all come from immigrant families. You are our brothers and sisters. We stand with you. God bless you all.

NEW: Cardinal Blase Cupich, the Archbishop of Chicago, has issued a new statement declaring that Chicago "communities are shaken by immigration raids and detentions. These actions wound the soul of our city. Let me be clear. The Church stands with migrants."

Congratulations!

open.substack.com/pub/raymondc...

Woman holding a sign that reads: you hate our presence by rely on our labor.

Chicago No Kings Rally. 10/18/2025

What a beautiful B!

Constructing Microhistories through Silences in the Archive

Fascinating micro-history done in the Newberry collections by a U of Chicago intern about a man charged with bigamy. www.newberry.org/blog/constru...

Opened palimpsest codex (Leiden UL Or. 14236) with Syriac upper text and Armenian undertext. The upper text is written in black and red ink and decorated braided band patterns. There's also a fragment with Arabic on it between the two pages of the opened codex.

Mind-numbing how many layers of history there can be to a single manuscript page: Syriac upper text (10th c.), Armenian undertext (pre-10th c.), Arabic material used for binding (11-12th c.?), Coptic foliation in the margin (date?), modern foliation at the bottom. Image: Leiden UL Or. 14236, link ⬇️

Public Engagement in the European Middle Ages - Arc Humanities Press This manual uses the medieval past to teach modern scholars how to succeed in public engagement. Combining a careful study of public engagement in Europe bet...

Chris Fletcher’s new book is out and it’s open access! I’ve heard him speak on it and it sounds fascinating and very helpful for those teaching public humanities. www.arc-humanities.org/978180270096...

Animal with a human faces on a green verdant background.

This unusual animal? is from Newberry Ayer MS 612, a seventeenth century copy of Tarih-i Yeni Dünya, el-musemma be hadis-i nev, A History of the India of the West, written in Turkish. I hope to post more, especially amazing maps that accompany the manuscript.

Congratulations on doing so well with your work! Great to meet you at the Newberry.