Taking ‘stock’ in the brown scapular, a Marshall matter, and that Tyler tweet...

Hey everybody,
Today is the feast of St. Simon Stock, the 13th-century Carmelite who, by tradition, received from the Blessed Virgin the brown scapular which forms part of the Carmelite habit, and which — in smaller form — is worn daily by non-Carmelite Catholics around the world (including me!).The scapular represents the filial piety of Catholics who have entrusted themselves to the protection of Our Lady — it is a sign of receiving Mary as a mother, and asking for her intercessory prayers.

It became a popular devotion beyond the Carmelites in the 16th and 17th centuries, and remains one today — and it probably helped that Pope John Paul was devoted to the scapular sacramental, reportedly asking in 1981, after an assassination attempt, that doctors leave his scapular around his neck while they operated on his body.

Of course, there are people who criticize the scapular as a kind of talismanic devotion — taking the so-called scapular promise (“whoever dies clothed in this scapular shall not suffer the fires of hell”) literalistically, instead of understanding it as a way of talking about persevering in the spiritual life.

Continued below.