[Ansteorra] hiding mundane
Michael Silverhands
silverhands at sbcglobal.net
Wed Jun 13 08:58:47 PDT 2007
On Jun 13, 2007, at 10:52 AM, Jay Rudin wrote:
> Eventually, Henry VII decreed that literate people who were not in
> holy
> orders would only be able to claim benefit of clergy once. The
> Renaissance
> playwright Ben Jonsson got off from a murder charge by claiming
> benefit of
> clergy, even though he was never connected with the church.
>
> The test was always reading Psalms 51 (or 50, depending on the
> numbering
> system). It was the appallingly appropriate "Miserere mei, Deus,
> secundus
> misericordiam tuam" ("O God, have mercy upon me, according to thine
> heartfelt mercifulness"). Since it could be used to keep your neck
> out of
> the noose, it came to be known as the "neck-verse".
>
> Robin of Gilwell / Jay Rudin
Very cool trivia! Thanks, Robin. :-)
Michael
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