December 2000 - Nr. 12
Saint Martin's Full Moon
Sybille Forster-Rentmeister
Rich and round he hung in a cloudless sky just above our trees, but not high enough to clear the Toronto skyline. This was the stuff fairy tails are made of or legends and such. And it so happened that a few dozen munchkins and their guardians, otherwise also referred to as parents, carrying replicas of Madame Luna or Mister Moon, were seen walking through the neighbourhood close to the German Consulate General in the heart of this fair city of Toronto.
What
we call this heavenly body depends much on our heritage. If you were lucky
enough to get close to one of the teachers of the new(er) German School, you
might have learned that "der Mond" plays a prominent part in many
of the songs that were sung that night, as do the sun and the stars. And all
this of cause happens to commemorate one especially good person who once,
many moons ago, cut his cloak in half to share it with a beggar and thus
changed his life forever.
Last Year Echo Germanica published the story of St. Martin, the Good Samaritan, who, born in Hungary to a high Roman officer, detested this life of war, which was thrust upon him. His encounter with the beggar left a profound impression on him and he turned ultimately to a life of Christian charity.
No
matter which religion we consider, all of them hold the premise that taking
responsibility for one’s fellow man is a desirable thing to do. To
introduce even our smallest children to this concept in the celebration of
St. Martin’s life is as valid today as it has always been; and doing it
with this charming German custom of walking the streets with lit lanterns
illustrates like few other things the universal meaning of light. In the
absence of light dark and cold prevail. Life cannot
exist
in such conditions. By this token we also associate light with truth,
perhaps because we can examine everything in the light, yet in darkness we
are blind and mostly pretty helpless. There are many literary examples to
remind us of this concept, such as Schiller’s "Kraniche des Ibicus",
where we are reminded that it is the sun which will bring it (the truth) to
light; "Die Sonne bringt es an den Tag."
Light
and darkness, good and evil are very old concepts. We are familiar with them
since long before even our pagan past, and we still more or less operate on
this ancient agreement.
It was no surprise to us that we were stopped in the streets by onlookers unfamiliar with the significance of this procession. Even impatient motorist stopped honking their horn impatiently when it was explained to them that we were lighting up the night with lanterns in memory of St. Martin and his good deeds. And as the 200 or so marchers made their way around the neighbourhood singing the old traditional songs-so ideal for children-the moon above shone brightly and smiled down on us, or so it appeared.
At
the consulate, in the big garden, a big huge fire was waiting to light up
the night and to warm cold hands. Caring personnel handed out juices for the
children and red, hot mulled wine, or Glühwein as we call it, to the grown
ups. There were sandwiches and sausages, but best of all there was cake and
a variety of seasonal cookies, all donated by Brandt and Dimpfelmeier.
Somewhere near the entrance, on an easel, we could examine the progress of the new German School in the heart of Toronto. Many photos testified to the activities of happy children and their interaction with other children of the French school under the same roof. Able to expand as the need arises this school offers an ideal environment for today’s international requirements in education.
It also is no surprise that the St. Martin custom was picked up by the parents of this school. The core of interested parties currently consists mainly of families that are in Canada only for a few years and wish their children to be educated in a German, yet international setting. Likely they also live or work in the vicinity of Toronto’s centre. Interest in the school is growing. Perhaps the revival of old and dear German customs, so enthusiastically carried forward by these young families with ties in Europe and here, will rejuvenate our local German establishment.
Comments to: sfr@echoworld.com
