More Big Days

[Ross Clark]

10 February - Feast of St Paul's Shipwreck (Malta)

Why? Because it's Malta's only appearance in the Bible (Acts 28:1ff.).
And he's the patron saint of Malta. The text says "Melita", but scholars
don't seem to have a problem with the identification. The Maltese of the
time (?59 AD) were Roman citizens, and treated Paul (also a Roman
citizen) well. They are described as _barbaroi_, meaning they didn't
speak Greek. (Fr McKenzie thinks probably Punic.)
Paul was on his way to Rome to appeal to Caesar against charges of
making trouble.
Why 10 February? Don't have any information on that.

https://axhotelsmalta.com/discover-activities-in-malta/activities/feast-st-pauls-shipwreck-malta/

11 February - National Foundation Day (Kenkoku Kinen no Hi) (Japan)

Proclaimed in 1873; abolished after WWII; revived 1967. 11 February (660
B.C.) is the accession date of Emperor Jimmu, first emperor of Japan.
(All this is pretty legendary, but...) also "coincidentally" (Wiki),
date of promulgation of the Meiji Constitution (1889), i.e. the
foundation of modern Japan.
"In contrast with the events associated with earlier Kigensetsu,
celebrations for National Foundation Day are relatively moderate. During
the post-war period and up to 2000, there were two opposing sentiments:
a caution to prevent ultra-nationalism and a desire to revive cultural
traditions. As such people generally didn't overtly express nationalism
or patriotism in public. As a public holiday, government offices,
schools, banks, and many companies are closed."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Foundation_Day_(Japan)

12 February - Makha Bucha Day (Thailand)

Māgha Pūjā, a Buddhist festival (also celebrated in Cambodia, Laos,
Myanmar and Sri Lanka). Magha is the name of the third lunar month, and
Puja is a ritual or religious observance. "it celebrates a gathering
that was held between the Buddha and 1,250 of his first disciples,
which, according to tradition, preceded the custom of periodic
recitation of discipline by monks. On the day, Buddhists celebrate the
creation of an ideal and exemplary community, which is why it is
sometimes called Saṅgha Day, the Saṅgha referring to the Buddhist
community..."
"...became widely popular in the modern period, when it was instituted
in Thailand by King Rama IV in the mid-19th century."
” It is an occasion when Buddhists go to the temple to perform
merit-making activities, such as alms giving, meditation and listening
to teachings. It has been proposed in Thailand as a more spiritual
alternative to the celebration of Valentine's Day."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C4%81gha_P%C5%ABj%C4%81

[Athel Cornish-Bowden]

Post by Ross Clark
10 February - Feast of St Paul's Shipwreck (Malta)
Why? Because it's Malta's only appearance in the Bible (Acts 28:1ff.).
And he's the patron saint of Malta. The text says "Melita", but
scholars don't seem to have a problem with the identification. The
Maltese of the time (?59 AD) were Roman citizens, and treated Paul
(also a Roman citizen) well. They are described as _barbaroi_, meaning
they didn't speak Greek. (Fr McKenzie thinks probably Punic.)
Paul was on his way to Rome to appeal to Caesar against charges of
making trouble.
Why 10 February? Don't have any information on that.

I've been labouring under a delusion for 60 years, as I thought that
happened at Matala in Crete, not Malta. Matala has a linguistic
signifcance for me. As one of a group of five in 1964, we rented a car
in Heraklion in order to go to Phaestos. For some reason I wanted to
see Matala, but the road deteriorated until it was little more than a
cart track. Worrying that we might get lost we asked a shepherd that we
passed which was the way to Ματάλα (getting the stress wrong). He
looked totally blank until I tried Μάταλα, when his face lit up and he
told us to continue in the way we were going. It was then that I became
conscious that getting the stress right could be absolutely crucial,
even more than in English or Russian.