27 June 2011

Words of Hate for Maria Monk



Maria Monk was born 195 years ago today in Dorchester, Lower Canada (now Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec). The "Awful Disclosures" published under her name were just one awful part of an awful life that ended tragically in a New York City prison thirty-two years later. Neither the date of her death, nor her place of burial were recorded, but this didn't stop poet John J. MacDonald (a/k/a James MacRae) from putting poison pen to paper. From his self-published Poems of J. J. MacDonald, a Native of County Glengarry (c. 1877):
EPITAPH FOR MARIA MONK

Whoever ye are by this tomb that shall go,
Beware lest ye tread on the filth that’s below,
For under this monument lowly are laid
The mortal remains of a comical jade.

Ye swine that by accident hither come round,
Refrain from disturbing or turning the ground,
Or else you will die from inhaling the air;
Ye feathering songsters, be cautious, take care.

The only exception 'tis proper to make:
That Methodist preachers full freedom may take,
For they loved and accompanied her while she lived,
And from them she special attention received.
In actuality, it wasn't "Methodist preachers", but Presbyterian clergymen who used poor Maria in creating the hoax. There is a difference.


An early, hand-tinted photograph of St Marys, Ontario showing MacDonald's church, Holy Name of Mary (right) and one of the town's two Presbyterian churches (left).

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2 comments:

  1. IT WAS NOT A HOAX. EVERY WORD WAS TRUE AND HAS BEEN PROVEN TO BE THE TRUTH OVER THE LAST DECADE WITH NUMEROUS ODIOUS SEX CRIMES BEING MADE PUBLIC AT LAST. EVEN THE POPE HIMSELF HAS ADMITTED AND APOLOGISED FOR THE BEHAVIOUR OF THIS MOST DISGUSTING OF INSTITUTIONS' MEMBERS! GET YOUR FACTS CORRECT BEFORE WRITING ANY SUCH ARTICLES IN THE FUTURE!!

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    Replies
    1. Anon, Awful Disclosures of Maria Monk was first exposed as a hoax in the very year of its publication - by a Presbyterian no less. Nothing new concerning Maria Monk has been brought to light in the last decade.

      To my knowledge, Pope Francis has never said or written a word about Maria Monk.

      You'll find the caps lock key on the far left of your keyboard, second row from the bottom.

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