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Odo of Cluny vs. Mechtild of Magdeburg
Supreme Executive Committee on March 27, 2017 — 170 Comments
We continue our march through the Saintly Sixteen this week as Lent Madness rolls on! In this round of Quirks and Quotes we'll continue to get to know our merry band of saintly souls in ever deeper ways. Don't forget, you can always return to the first round to refresh your memory of the basic bios by clicking the Bracket Tab.
Today it's Odo of Cluny taking on Mechtild of Magdeburg. To get here, Odo snuck past Theodore the Studite while Mechtild trounced Isaac the Syrian. Also, if you're in the market for a baby name, or need to suggest one to your daughter-in-law, we think "Odo" or "Mechtild" will soon wind up on the most popular list. Get ahead of the curve!
Whoever wins today will join Stephen and Florence Nightingale (who made it past Henry Beard Delany on Friday 53% to 47%) in the Elate Eight. Onward!
Odo of Cluny
Odo of Cluny, renowned for his reformation of the monasteries, was a man of deep prayer himself, and often spent days in dedicated prayer, especially at the Tomb of St. Martin. Like St. Francis, Golden Halo Winner in 2015, Odo encountered humans and animals intent on disrupting his prayer life. The animals proved much easier to deal with.
"From the sides of the road the foxes came out, at first following behind and watching him, and then throwing themselves in his way. But when they saw that they could not turn the eager youth from the straight path that he was pursuing, snarling and rushing at him with gaping mouths, they threatened to seize him by the throat. He neither fled nor resisted, but with legs together and shoulders hunched defended himself only with his shoulders and arms…[and] he guarded only his throat from their mortal wounds. Then suddenly a wolf came running swiftly and freed him from their attacks, and from thenceforth showed itself tame and acted as his companion."
John of Salerno, the writer of this account argues if we find this difficult to believe, we should remember the life of St. Paul, whose grave was prepared by lions; blessed Ammon, whose monastic cell was guarded by dragons; or Florentius, who convinced a bear to guard his lambs. So Odo having a wolf as a prayer companion is not odd. At all.
During meals, the monks would read. When the reading ended, the meal was done and the monks were to resume their daily duties of prayer. Odo, after eating, would gather up the crumbs that had fallen from his plate, not wanting any food to be wasted. The abbot ended the reading with Odo holding a handful of crumbs. "He did not know what to do, for when the reading stopped he did not dare to death them, nor yet to leave them lest they should be lost. He therefore closed his hand on them thinking it would be best to keep them to offer to the abbot." When they left their post-meal chapel, Odo prostrated himself at the abbot's feet to offer the little pile of crumbs. But on opening his hand, Odo discovered the crumbs had transformed into a heap of pearls. The community was amazed and we read they immediately used the pearls to decorate a chalice.
Odo is also the inventor (or one of them) of attributing letters of the alphabet to musical notes. He's also credited with identifying the note b-flat. Several hymns composed and attributed to Odo survive. A visitor to Cluny heralded the monks as a choir whose chants were dazzling prayers for the salvation of all souls. One of his hymns, composed for the Feast Day of Mary Magdalene, captures the dazzling love of an encounter with Christ:
She sees Jesus rising
victorious from the grave
and earns that first joy
— Laurie Brock
Mechtild of Magdeburg
Mechthild of Magdeburg received her first Holy Spirit vision at the age of twelve. Was this a quirk or something normal in the thirteenth century? It's hard to know and evidence of other quirky behaviors is long lost to history.
As an educated young woman she shared her visions through her writings:
"The love of God has moved my pen,
My book is not from the mind of men."
She wrote on loose pages she believed were a gift from God. Friar Henry of Halle collected her writings dividing them into a series of books called The Flowing Light of the Godhead.
As her works were collected she said, "I was warned by some that my book might give much offence, and that it would be burnt as evil teaching. And I turned to my Beloved, as was my wont, and said to Him that if it were so, He had Himself misled me, for it was He who commanded me to write it. Then did He reveal Himself to my sorrowful heart, as if He held the book in His right hand, and said, 'My beloved one, do not be sorrowful. The truth can be burnt by no man. He who would take it out of My Hand must be stronger than I."
Mechthilde wrote in flowery Middle Low German; unusual since most wisdom literature during this period was written in Latin. She noted "of Latin I know nothing… And now, Lord, I will commend these writings to Thy tender mercy; and with a heart that sighs, and with eyes that weep, and with a downcast spirit, I pray that they never may be read by a Pharisee, and I pray also that Thy children may so receive them into their hearts, as Thou, O Lord, hast of Thy truth given out of Thy store to me."
Like most members of the Beguine community where she lived, her time was spent tending those in need. She wrote of caring for the sick "to comfort them with the lovely words of God, and to refresh them also in a gentle way with earthly things, for God is very rich. It is needful also to bestow much care on the cleanliness of the sick-room, and it is a good thing to be merry and to laugh with them, but in a godly manner."
While she was dedicated to serving others, her most joyful time was spent in prayer, "Prayer has a marvelous power, it makes the bitter heart sweet, and the sorrowful heart glad, and the poor rich, and the foolish wise, and the fearful bold, and the sick strong, and the blind to see, and the cold to burn."
— Beth Lewis
Mechtild of Magdeburg (52%, 4,181 Votes)
Odo of Cluny (48%, 3,908 Votes)
Mechtild of Magdeburg—Unknown Artist, Public domain via Wikimedia Commons
Posted in Lent Madness 2017, Saintly Sixteen
170 Comments to "Odo of Cluny vs. Mechtild of Magdeburg"
For Odo of Cluny and Mechtild of Magdeburg
Tune: Leoni, Hymnal '82, 372, Praise to the Living God
Two saints of great renown
Who sought to do God's will
Took diff'rent roads to sanctity
As all saints will.
One worked hard for reform
For Benedict's true way.
One stepped outside of rigid norms
To live God's praise.
A true monastic star,
His trek to holiness
Was convoluted 'cause his dad
Failed his promise.
A man of strict precepts
This Odo held the line.
No shifting of the Rule's true shape
He thought was fine..
Mechtild knew from her youth
That God was her true love.
Through Flowing Light of Godhead Bright:
She lived and wrote.
As Beguine cared for those
The world had left behind.
Reviled for life beyond strict rule;
Her light still shines.
For Odo and Mechtild
We offer up our praise.
Two saints of mindset quite diverse
To choose today.
'Twas by the Grace of God
they lived and served, and they
still speak to us of faithfulness;
of holy ways.
Lovely. Thanks for the poetry. I hope the SEC is gathering all of these poems together.
March 27, 2017 - 11:35 am | Permalink
Indeed! Thank you, Diana. Enjoy reading your gift to us each day.
Doctorjan
Thank you. Wonderful poetry.
I voted odo of clunky cause his name sounds like George Cluney
I voted Odo because he was a musician and identified B flat! What would we do without B flat?!!
Judith Peterson
Use A sharp?
kesmarn
I'd love to hear these sung! Thanks again.
Beth Parkhurst
Your poetry is beautiful. I too hope the SEC is gAthering them all together and will find a way to share them all.
March 27, 2017 - 12:06 pm | Permalink
How can you not vote for a guy who has a wolf for a prayer companion?
Carol Riddick
That almost got my vote, too.
Pamela Payne
Exactly my thoughts! Our parish of St. Edmund's also has a wolf mascot (the wolf guarded the head of St. Edmund after the king was killed by the Vikings for refusing to give up Christianity). But Mechtild is very inspiring and it was a hard decision.
Tonya Eza
That wolf thing was what made me vote for Odo! I love wolves!
Alicia Calsyn
I am with Caitlin! I cannot vote against a man with a wolf as a prayer partner! 🙂
Wonderful, Diana!!
Lisa Fox
Most excellent, Diana!
Robert Coates
I voted for Mechtild. Begin the Beguine.
Tough one. Mechtild's writing regarding caring for the sick "to comfort them with the lovely words of God, and to refresh them also in a gentle way with earthly things, for God is very rich. It is needful also to bestow much care on the cleanliness of the sick-room, and it is a good thing to be merry and to laugh with them, but in a godly manner." got my vote.
Nancy C.
Yes, I almost went with Odo (being a music lover) until I read the passage you quote above from Mechtild, as well as her beautiful writings on the power of prayer. So Mechtild it is!
As a music lover, I voted for Odo, but I know he's going to get trounced by Mechtild because that's just how the brackets are going this year.
Georgene Kruzel
I fear your prediction be true!
Voted for Mechtild, not sure why…either really fit.
Kathleen Sheehy
Odo's wolf buddy almost swayed me, but Mechtild's words on prayer were the clincher. Truly the battle of the bizarre names today, however!
Yikes! This is when Lent Madness gets really difficult, and only three comments so far this morning to reflect on!! Mechtild won my heart and vote in the first round and does it again today.
Lois Keen
Mechtild!
Ntathu
Mechtild it is. "It is a good thing to be merry and to laugh wth them." For that and "joyful" prayer time. I used to think saints were a little too somber and unapproachable. Thanks again madness people.
Harlie Youngblood
Yow! I think Odo's chances are going to be diminished by his write up being so heavy on miracle stories. They don't seem to go down too well with the LM voting crowd.
By the way, just to avoid confusion, it was Paul the Hermit whose grave was dug by lions, not Paul the Apostle.
Sandra Gustafson
Re: Paul
Thank you for the clarification. As read the bio piece I wondered to myself, "where did they get that idea?!?!". I should have thought of the fact that there are many Pauls.
John Crittenden
I agree Harlie. The online write-ups were heavily weighted toward Mechtild, all the huggy-feeley things. The Odo write-up, however, did not really relate to his accomplishments, but rather to this hocus pocus about wolf-child experiences, which, if they happened, we're not the central reason for his saintification. I went with Mechtild, however, for her "saintliness".
Miss Jan
Well this is the Quirks & Quotes round you know.
Richard Gatjens
I thought I would back Odo, love the story of the foxes and the wolf by the way. I wonder what the foxes had against them? Also I love singing hymns, any by Odo in the hymnal, btw? But I appreciate Mechtild's willingness to go on her own, as opposed to Odo's insistence on strict following of Benedict's rule. I've always been fond of those who follow their own path. Next cat name: Mechtild if it's a girl, Odo if it's a boy!
I think Odo's call (the reformation of monasteries) required him to be a stickler for Benedict's Rule. The problem with the monasteries was that they had grown so very lax. To bring them back into Benedict's holy way, Odo had to insist on a strict following of that way. It was making exceptions and granting concessions that got the monasteries into the mess they were in. Of course, all our actions should be subject to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, but sometimes that guidance is in favor of the rules.
when attending spiritual directors training we all choose a saint to read about and report on. My choice was Mechtild, so had to go with her. I am however, impressed by Odo as well and would have voted for him if my loyalties were not already spoken for. Anyone with such a deep connection to our 4 legged friends that he had one as a prayer partner has my heart.
Let's hear it for B-flat!
Melody Yuhn
What would we do without F-A-C-E and Every Good Boy Does Fine. And B flat is perfect forLent!! Odo!!
Yes! I agree. Where on earth would we be without B-flat! As soon as I saw that, it was Odo for me. And the wolf… you can't argue with a wolf.
Agree heartily!
Animals, musical alphabet, gets my vote.
Margaret Caldwell
Very torn this morning, but finally went for the writer over the musician.
Ok, being that I am such a softy for animals, I could not help but vote for Odo. I agree his chances are slim because his story is so far fetched! But I still think Odo deserves to advance to the next round!
Nancy Strong
Love the Beguines! Therefore, Mechtild got my vote!
There is a tenuous link between the "Beguines"and the famous Cole Porter song "Begin the Beguine."
Verdery Kassebaum
Really? That would be so cool. I read about the Beguines in Education for Ministry (Diarmaid MacCulloch's "Christianity : the First Three Thousand Years") and wondered about the name.
This is making the "music vs. mystic" choice even harder.
It has at least one b-flat in it.
John The Beard
Friend of wolf and shape-shifter gets my vote again. Regardless, the winner of this round will surely get trounced by the heavy hitters already in the Elate 8.
PhilEsq
Let's not forget that Odo's life work was the reformation of monasteries, preserving and cleansing monastic life, enabling it to survive to provide us with examples of prayerful and mindful living, long before "mindful" was hyped as the solution to everything. On with Odo!
Ann E
Odo gets my vote. Giving us B-flat, friend of wolves, and lover 0f prayer.
Leamarie
I love it that Mechtild was concerned about cleanliness at a time that conjures up only muddy surroundings and most folks living with filth, no sanitation, and ignorance of the importance of more sanitary conditions. She clearly had a sense of humor, too, and believed God has humor,too. I like that. Mechtild for me today, though I am sorry
Odo doesn't get the credit he is due for naming musical notes, esp B flat.
Lynn D. Bonney
I'm reading a book about the Beguines — so my vote has to go for Mechtild.
Margaret Nolde
Me too! The one by Laura Swan?
Dutton in Madison, GA
Odor is still my boy, even in defeat, though Mechtild is certainly a worthy opponent. Guardian animals for mad every day.
Barbara J. Ruhe
Mechtild–hands down. My grandmother was born in Magdeburg. On a recent trip to Germany we visited Magdeburg. The first place we stopped was the Dom! I like to think my grandmother and her family had often visited the Dom and since it was begun in 1209 perhaps Mechtild did also. It is exciting to think one has walked in the footsteps of a saint.
Meant to type "guardian animals for me . . . " my iPad often has a mind of it's own.
Corban
I voted for Odo today. Though it can be very easy to be distracted when attempting to pray, not all of us will be defended from attacking foxes by a wolf. Perhaps this tale attempts to prove that dog truly is man's best friend?
Freeman Gilbert
Aside from her trailblazing contribution to Middle High German literature, Mechthild is thought by many to have influenced the great pioneer of Italian literature, Dante with her geography of hell and her evocative descriptions of the suffering souls in hell and purgatory. Some see her as the Matelda in Paradiso, a possible homage of Dante to his imaginative predecessor.
I basically voted for the first domesticated wolf, otherwise known as Man's Best Friend (and also Women's). If you've ever been blessed with one of these, you know how saintly a companion they are.
I've been reading "The Wisdom of the Beguines" by Laura Swan, so Mechtild got my vote. The book by Laura Swan is a very interesting read about a women's movement with which I was not familiar
Beth L Galbreath
Beautiful essay this morning at Huffpost about how the ACA, flawed though it is, has fundamentally changed America's expectations of who is worthy of care. So, it's appropriate to celebrate this morning one of the pioneers of nursing, Mechthild.
Rev Douglas McLemore
I'm with you Beth!
Not sure who the "Pharisees" were that Mechthild referred to (hypocrites? Jews?), but I find it troubling that she would exclude anyone from the opportunity to, perhaps, be changed by her writings. Until I read that I leaned in her direction, but I'm persuaded by Odo's humble sweetness, and by his connection to animals, which is special to me. So although I think Mechthild will win the day, I voted for Odo.
Peg S.
I voted Odo, or as I like to call him, Chants With Wolves. I really want his recipe book for leftovers. He would bring so much to the kitsch round. And what would we do without B flat?
Deborah Hays
I was undecided until Chants with Wolves swayed my vote. Can't wait for a full moon. Odo is the saint.
[me smiling]
"chants with wolves". Love that. And B flat.
The B flat is what got me. The Chants with Wolves was great also. Go Odo.
Cap'n Black
The wolf theme would make great coffee cup kitsch.
My father-in-law is suffering from Alzheimer's. He does not know who his sons are, let alone who I am. But one of his caregivers could get him to laugh and even dance, and we catch a glimpse of the Dad we knew before. Mechthild, for such care of the sick.
Very amazing to bring the "light". To one such as your father-in-law. These individuals seem to be locked in dark cells and cannot reach out from that place as their communication tools have left them. They are not, however, as one might think, actually separated, but the experience of the isolation is what is devastating to their confidence and self perception, most of what comes from the externally imposed reactions of "normal" folks. Have faith, continue to build up their self perception, let them know you know that they are still, inwardly, cognitive, emotional, and loving beings.
Carol in Alberta
That was very touching, Ruth. God bless your father-in-law, his sons, and you. And the caregiver who brought you a glimpse of the Dad you knew before.
Tough choice! After much consideration, I went with Mechthild. The b-flat was attractive, but the poetry composed for the sick won me over.
Benny Wanna Be Hinn
As a Pentecostal, Mechtild had me at "received her first Holy Spirit vision at age 12"!
love those mystics, as well as the pentecostal /charismatic brethern amongst us to keep the mystery and mystical alive and well.
I voted for Mechtild of Magdeburg. It seems that saints are creatures of God in whom the miraculous forms a core of their living and perceptions. Odo seems much more like a normal human. All this talk about foxes attacking him, foxes are, well foxy, not vicious creatures and do not normally run in packs. He is more of a human struggler with questioning, helped by the spirit and his intellectual capabilities to do what is expected of the gifted. Mechtild, however, saw this inner light and lived, much as though she were blind even before her blindness. I want to read her stories now. Odo lived his life, had his effect, which is appreciated.
Peg, I love Chants with Wolves! And I enjoyed singing Diana's words out loud to one of my favorite hymn tunes, Leoni. I'm impressed with this community's wit and creativity. But that hasn't made the choice easier. I still can't decide between the animal lover who gave us musical notation and the woman who brought laughter and cleanliness into the sickroom.
Mrs. B.
How do a bunch of bureaucrats in Washington know who is "worthy of care?" Along with Sofie I voted for Odo, the reformer, musician, and lover of animals.
Sister Mary Winifred
The bread crumb story is also included in Legenda Monastica – not sure it has anything to do with Odo, but voted for him anyway.
Celia Metz
That story immediately brought to my mind the line "…we are not worthy so much as to gather up the crumbs under thy table…" so my vote today is for Odo.
Spirit animal vs mystic visions. Doesn't seem much difference exists. And for those who wonder what we would do without B-flat, we would still have A-sharp, as my limited musical vocabulary tells it.
Lucy Porter
Musician/reformer vs. writer/nurse/mystic
with enormous gratitude for both
I vote for Mechtild
Lisa Keppeler
Well, I'm going with Odo this time. I'd forgotten about his wolf… and then B-flat and this lovely lyric:
Timothy J
Shocked to see this huge lead by Mechtild. She didn't turn bread into pearls. Don't get her at all.
Brenda McHenry
I'm dealing with a 14 pound terror of a dog who in recent times, probably because of surgery, pursues , snarls and rushes at me for reasons of his own. Working at getting him to return to his "friendly wolf" stage. So it was Odo for me today–that and the b-flat thing.
I guess I was mistaken when I wrote earlier that Odo's miracle stories would turn people off. Even though he's losing, people love the fox/wolf story!
Linda Sylvester
Mechtild seems like a great gal. Odo – awesome that he discovered? Invented? B flat. It's hard to weigh the magical stories that accompany the medieval saints. Monastic reformer or prolific writer, visionary, pioneering female scholar?
I voted Mechtild.
Carolyn D. Mack
Voted Vernacular writing so Mechtild.
Linda Hale
This was a particularly tough one for me as both seem so very worthy.
Was going to vote for Odo for Trekkies-Deep Space 9 character, but since I prayed so much yesterday, the Comment on Prayer swings it in Mechtild's favor.
Connie Hartquist Jacobs
Yes, Joanne, I've been waiting for someone to make the connection with Odo of DSN! That Odo was the spiritual center of the series, wonderful character played by master actor Rene Auberjonois. I've often wondered if the series ' writers knew of Odo of Cluny. Happy Lent Madness…
Anne E.B.
Saint Mechtild all the way!
Lauren D
Friend of a domesticated wolf (aka dog), not a waster of food (whose hands are oyster-like), and singer and composer of monastic chants – Odo has my vote today!
Maechtild is a solid contender, though, and I'll be happy to vote for her in future rounds if she wins..
Pat Floerke
I'm aware that I often vote as much for the celebrity bloggers as I do for the saints themselves. Both Beth and Laurie did a great job today.
Odo of Cluny for his generosity to the poor, his humility, and his courage.
Generosity: Even though his monastery was poor, Odo gave money to all beggars. When a poor person gave the monastery a gift, Odo would insist on paying the donor for the gift, and his payment would be more than the gift's worth.
Humility and courage: Whenever another monk would accuse Odo of a fault — which apparently happened pretty often since many of his fellow monks were jealous of him — Odo would throw himself at his accuser's feet and beg forgiveness. One time Odo's abbot became angry at him for bringing to the monastery a young noblewoman who wanted to become a nun rather than get married (her father's wish). Odo's reply to the abbot (thanks, Wikipedia): "Oh lord and father, ever from the moment that thou didst deign to receive me, a sinner, I have seen that thy sole care was the saving of souls. Other abbots may study to gain materials things and please men. Thou, relying on mercy and virtue, seek'st through the salvation of souls to please God alone. I wished to follow thy example in saving this virgin to the glory of thy name. For although in the end her tears overcame me, yet I was not unmindful of thy reproach, but I had rather suffer the flagellation of my holy father than be held guilty for her soul. And would that I could free all the women bound in the chains of the flesh who live in this province, and thou flagellate me for each in thy pious manner."
Cheryle Gardiner
Odo, because who doesn't want a wolf for a prayer partner? But it wasn't an easy choice.
I strongly suspect the "Pharisees" she refers to would be church authorities whose behaviour she calls out in other of her writings and with whom she could be described as having an uneasy relationship. The church of the time claimed the exclusive right to interpret Scripture and it was especially forbidden for women to exercise any sort of general preaching or teaching ministry. Some like Mechtild got away with it by having their writings vetted by a sympathetic male authority and/or by associating with cloistered orders so the church could keep an eye on them. I love her story and her willingness to call it as she sees it, from the love of God to rascally human behaviour.
But gosh, Laurie Brock. Swarming foxes and bread pearls. You're making this a hard choice!
Pamela Kohler-Camp
Had to go with Odo, not because I am a devout Deep Space Nine Fan, but because he named the B flat.
B Flat is the key that most bagpipes play in!
Ooo I'm happy Mechtild won! My daughter-in-law did recently give birth to a beautiful little girl, but I discovered St. Mechtild too late for her to give the child that name; I know she would have jumped at the chance to do so! I was charmed by Odo's crumb tale, tempted to vote for him although I sispected tales about him just might be a bit of baloney, but Mechtild was a writer as I am, and she worked with the sick, and I was a health care worker for years; not on the scale of excellence she was of course, but I truly feel a bond with her. On ward Mechtild!
St. Celia
Begin the Beguine! I am hopeful to see that music show up in the kitsch round. Prayer seems to be the commonality for both saints today (indeed, all the saints). Mechtild would appeal to Virginia Woolf, as she seems to be an early-ish example of a woman who found a room of her own, and paper to write on. I can understand the glee of believing sheets of paper were gifts from God. I hate to turn away from Odo's little foxes, which remind me of the Song of Songs. Those little foxes get around! but they seem to make spiritual experiences better. Though Mechtild has no little foxes, she still manages, like Rumi, to get to the Beloved. She wrote in the vernacular, and she had concern and compassion for the sick. I wish I could turn bread crumbs into pearls, but so far I lack that gift. I cannot see myself offering bread crumbs to the abbot, but I can see myself happily and faithfully writing every day and growing in spiritual grace and strength through that practice. She was an educated woman, something to celebrate. And the quill and ink well amid the medieval wall tapestries are pretty cool.
If anyone wants to see Fred Astaire and Eleanor Powell dance to "Begin the Beguine," here is the YouTube url. Alas, I cannot figure out how to embed the video directly into the textbox, though I have seen that done. Nothing says "Lent" like tap dancing en manège:
https://youtu.be/nZPndC-F5SE
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37XhIuqsWVk&w=560&h=315%5D
Sorry, everybody. I was trying to embed the video.
Karen I Ford
This is getting harder and harder,as it does every year. Both deserve to move forward to the Eight!! Still contemplating my vote because I have been singing in a choir most of my life and have also championed women's rights my entire adult life. This is really tough!
Had to go for Odo as I'm a fan of Franciscan piety, and clearly Odo's wolf and the wolf of Gubbio were kissin' cousins. Francis, like Mechtild,wrote in the vernacular, and the tale of the handful of crumbs that became a handful of pearls illustrates the Christian experience of being made precious (which we always were, are, and will be) by the agency of our Savior. And then there's his contributions to music, the art that reveals what the Kingdom of Heaven will be like.
Where is Oliver!?!?
Last week someone (can't remember who) theorized that Oliver and his family may be away on a Spring Break trip. Actually, none of our younger commenters have been posting lately, so I bet it is Spring Break that has caused their disappearance.
Thanks, good call. I hope our younger commenters return soon! I love the diversity in this group, especially the honest insight of the youth!
Meredith Hales
I'm kinda stuck this morning! Wish I could vote for both! Odo's humility and persistence in prayer vs. Mecthild's visions, writings and care for the sick, presents a hard choice. So it all may boil down to pearls, wolves, and b flat!
Odo. I love wolves they're beautiful and cute. Also not hurting the foxes was brave we could use that these days.
A difficult choice. Thank heavens that there is heaven where such choices do not have to be made, rather all the saints have golden halos. Nevertheless, I am going to the dogs–the canine cousin wolf–and voting for Odo. Wolves are beautiful singers, too. Maybe he got the B-flat from the wolf? That might be a worthy addition to his hagiography
Well, with my inveterate sympathy for underdogs and anyone connected with music, I went with Odo, even though his connection with music seems rather tenuous, beyond attributing letters to tones and writing a few hymns (the few that survive) about St Martin. But I was rather perplexed by the story about the bread crumbs. Why did he save them? Why didn't he just eat them? I never leave crumbs behind on the table or the plate, and I'm not known for fastidiousness. Sometimes hagiographic myths are really weird. Dragons guarding your cell–yeah, sure!
At first I thought he was saving them for his wolf-dog or (as I have occasionally done) for the birds, but then he decided to give them to the Abbot, which puzzled me. The bread-pearl chalice must have been quite beautiful though.
He could not eat the crumbs once the meal was ended – that would be against the vow of obedience; nor could he throw the crumbs away – that would be against the vow of poverty. No matter what he did with the crumbs he would be breaking one vow or another, so he took them to the Abbot. You have no idea how complicated the Religious Life is until you've lived it!
Thank you, Sister, for the explanation.
Thanks for the explanation. Now it makes sense to me.
Odo, purely for the wolf, even though Mecthild was obviously born a nurse. Tough choice.
I ask as others have: where is Oliver?
As much as I love the story of Odo, the words of Mechtild move me to tears. So I vote for Mechtild. But I remain deeply thankful for Odo's identification of b flat.
Freddie Dwyer
I have Benedictine friends named Odo, but feel no guilt at voting for Mechtild, one of the greatest poets the Christian church has ever produced. Also a feisty woman unafraid to take on the church hierarchy at a time when that was becoming increasingly dangerous.
Odo for his wolf buddy, though he could have taught a thing or two to that saint from a few years ago who got eaten by seals.
Brigid Courtney
being a wolf person myself, I voted for Odo
I voted for both in the last round. I love the sound of bagpipes. One of my favorite characters on Star Trek: Deep Space 9 was the shape-shifting Odo who served as the station's chief security officer. The snippet of a hymn about previous Lent Madness winner Mary Magdalene is lovely.
Yet still I felt the need to vote for the Beguine, Mechtild of Magdeburg, because #ShePersisted in following the Spirit at a time when those in power in the church were not exactly open to the ministry of women in the area of preaching & teaching. That's what tipped the scale today.
And as to the question of who is worthy of care, the only truly Christian answer is every single human on the planet. We are all created in the image of God. Which reminds me of something the Archbishop of York said on the BBC last year about Matthew 25 and our being judged on how we treat others. When did we see You with a pre-existing condition Lord and take away your health insurance?
To clarify the italics at the end is my extrapolation on Matt 25. The Archbishop's remarks were more general.
And speaking of Archbishops . . . I miss the Archbishops' commentary on Lent Madness.
Well done, Miss Jan!
Loved your paraphrase of Matthew 25. Very clever!
Timothy Cole-French
I voted for odo because he created my favorite music note 😀 (legit)
Although I voted for Mechtild I am leaving strict instructions (since I may die before the event) that my first Great Grandchild, be it male or female, be named ODO!
Not a fan of notes labeled as letter. Soooo, it's Odo's doing, eh? That's a point against him 😉
No Latin, no problem! Never learned Latin, never felt the need as the vernacular is living language.
Mechtild got my vote.
ODO!! 🙂
Kathy Wisconsin
In the first round I voted for Mechtild but now I chose Odo. Although both are very worthy, I felt Odo accomplished more and prayed at the tomb of St. Martin who is our patron saint!
I voted for Odo – mainly for his B-flat, a very important note in hymnody.
Mary W.
The Sprit moved me towards Odo today; it must have been the music. Though Mechtild almost had me with the quote about cleanliness in the sick room, one of her earlier quotes was a bit too cloying. Which is hardly fair, but that's the way my thoughts went down. I wouldn't be terribly disappointed if she won.
Gretchen Pritchard
Suggestion to the SEC: Make it the ELECT eight. No, it doesn't rhyme, but it doesn't have to rhyme; the theme here is alliteration, not rhyme. And "Elate eight" is not English. "Elate" is a verb, not an adjective. "Elect" is an adjective AND also actually makes sense in this context.
Maybe they'll make an exception for Luther's bracket, letting him vie for Elect status. (Would be a better fit for Calvin, of course, but he's not playing this year.)
Kathy in Nicaragua
Actually, according to my Webster's, "elate" can also be an adjective (labeled "poetic"). It appears to mean the same as "elated."
Deacon Mildred
Since I watched the PBS show on the Brontë sisters last night, I like Merriam Webster's example sentence for "elate" as an adjective: "I smiled to myself and felt elate — Charlotte Brontë"
The usage is not very common these days, but our saints weren't common, either. SEC, I vote for keeping the Eight Elate rather than Elect.
REX MCKEE
ODO… out in the world, in the tradition of Francis….
Both very worthy of honour, but Odo having a wolf as a prayer companion swayed me in his favour. I miss having a canine prayer companion so my vote is in great thanksgiving for the dogs who have graced my life.
Odo's story of the foxes and wolf remind me of Carlos Castenada and the peyote vision quest.
I much prefer the terror of passion to the terror of attack.
I admire how she faced being in intimate relationship with God; with humility, courage, and delight.
My vote was for Mechtild.
The Beguines were one of the first "active" orders in the church, living together and serving those in need. They had to fight mighty hard to do this, as women were either married or stayed in cloistered convents. Mechtild sounded like a lovely nurse, cleaning and singing and laughing with her patients! She was way ahead of her time. Imagine her up against Florence!
Br. John Ryan, O.C.P.
Both choices seem too far fetched, too much legend I can't bring my self to vote for either one.
Dr Paul
Mechtild the Beguine!
Cindy Lufkin
I voted for Odo, although Mechtild was also worthy, because I'm to present chant as a spiritual discipline Saturday and am still gathering odds and ends, and that last paragraph seemed a gift from a saint.
J.J. Cape Cod
As an often merry but musically challenged Registered Nurse I must cast my vote with
Mechtild.
Lee Greenawalt
Factual or not, the concept of a companion wolf and of B flat causes my spirit to soar.
Jan Curtis
At University, rather long ago, I actually knew a young woman named Mechtild, called "Maggie" I believe. She was a foreign student from Germany, and told me her name was really Mechtild, an old name. I liked her, so in her memory and because of the cleanliness of the sickroom and the laughter in same, I voted for Mechtild.
Bob Faser
I think "Mechtild" is an early German form of the name "Matilda".
Megan Devlin
As one who feeds three animals at home, I thought it no wonder the animals gave Odo a hard time, since he would not share his crumbs. And Mechtild beat the Protestants in sharing her theology in the vernacular (at least for Germans) so she should get credit for that and her good works!
Adelaide Kent
The Beguines were wonderful. I wish we could revive that order in this century. I am for Mechtilde all the way.
I voted for Mechtild this time around, as I did the last time. The style of spirituality and common life practiced by the Beguines was one of the early signs of a broadening and a renewal in Christian faith and life during the later Middle Ages.
As my vicarious Lenten penance for the bad behavior of my fellow foxes, Odo gets my vote and not my fangs or claws. 😉
Mariclaire
I wanted Mechtilde, but was over-ruled by all four of my children. They argued that Mechtilde merely showed signs of mental illness, but I know who I would want at my bedside
Janene
Love Mechtild. Would love to know more about the Beguines. Going to Google them.
Look for the book by Laura Swan. It is a very interesting and inspiring book.
Peggy Hans
As a church organist, Odo's B-flat was very tempting, but I was won over by Metchtild's care and concern for the sick, especially the comment "it is a good thing to be merry and to laugh with them…" However, if I get a new cat sometime, I think I might name him Odo.
Oh to have been able to sit in the quiet beguine garden with Mechtilde …
Walker Shaw
Foxes and wolves aside, I vote for the poet saint, Mechthild of Magdeburg.
"I cannot dance, Lord, unless you lead me.
If you want me to leap with abandon,
You must intone the song.
Then I shall leap into love,
From love into knowledge,
From knowledge into enjoyment,
And from enjoyment beyond all human sensations.
There I want to remain, yet want also to circle higher still."
– Mechthild of Magdeburg
Wow! Thanks for sharing that, Walker.
This was a tough one. I went with Odo because of the music, foxes, wolves and the fact the he was a Benedictine and tried to re-organize the monasteries. I liked Mechthild be-cause here name was close to Matilda (my mother's middle name, which she hated. I don't think I would suggest the name "odo" to one of my grandchildren as a possible name for the next great grandchild.
This was a tough one. I went with Odo because of the music, foxes, wolves and the fact the he was a Benedictine and tried to re-organize the monasteries. I liked Mechthild be-cause her name was close to Matilda (my mother's middle name, which she hated.) I don't think I would suggest the name "odo" to one of my grandchildren as a possible name for the next great grandchild,,however. .
Odo. Wolf as prayer companion, hymns, B-flat, and attributing letters of alphabet to musical notes. Without B (and B-flat), we wouldn't be able to "Begin the Beguine"-this version is by Artie Shaw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCXVxE_YeP4 (not sure link works)
The link worked, Andrea.
Mollie Douglas Turner+
Late weighing in today, but delighted to run into CB Megan Castellan most unexpectedly at a conference center! And to cast a vote for Mechtild, though Odo did make his appeal. It was close!
Linda from St. Ed's
To be honest, I'm not particularly drawn to either of these saints, but I'm going with Odo.
Cornelia Keller
My new email address is. Swmbo1936@gmail.net
I do not want to miss any madnrss!
« Florence Nightingale vs. Henry Beard Delany
Monday Madness — March 27, 2017 »


According to Chael P Sonnen we will see a 'diminished' Jon Jones in his rematch against Alexander Gustafsson later this year. He also makes it clear that Daniel Cormier should not drop down to fight Jon again for a third time at the 205 pound limit. Daniel is almost 40 and cutting weight doesn't get easier with age so the heavyweight champ should stay at heavyweight. Just listen to everything Sonnen says and tell us he doesn't make sense.
Who in the world would pick on Ben Askren? We will admit that we think Ben was unfairly judged by Dana White and that it was easy for everyone in the UFC who wanted to trash talk, call him out because there was zero chance there would be a real chance to take him on. Now that he's finally in the UFC the callouts haven't been as plentiful. It's put up or shut up time. Here's why Chael P Sonnen thinks Ben is calling the world out for his first UFC bout. Check it out.


Here is a list of School Winter Holiday Shows, Assemblies & Workshops. Browse our elementary, middle and high school Winter Holiday show providers. Inquire here about any of these providers or select one to view below.


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These people do not exist and never existed. They were created by artificial intelligence!
Creepy and impressive at the same time. There is a web page in the network where artificial intelligence, creating the faces of people who are absolutely non-existent and never existed, lies dormant. You can try yourself how this mechanism works.
We know perfectly well that artificial intelligence is able to create completely false films, change the faces of people on video materials in such a way that it is difficult to find any cheating in it. AI is able to predict a lot of things and base on huge amounts of data. However, showing her possibilities in the context of creating the faces of people who never existed was something really terrifying. It is difficult to imagine a mechanism that could give us more to think about where AI's development is going.
A face that never existed
However, it is known that the site uses the so-called Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs). The program is based on huge amounts of input data from which, as you can see, he was practicing what a human face should look like. So many photos of real people were loaded into the machine, and then AI was commissioned to create its own images. Thus, the algorithm generates absolutely untrue faces using the information it has acquired earlier.
As it was determined, Thispersondoesnotexist.com uses the code that was previously shared by Nvidia on GitHub. This type of technique has already been used, for example, for "weather changes" in films and photos. What's more, the materials that were recorded at night managed to create those that look as if they were shot during the day, in good lighting conditions.
The graphics themselves are incredibly realistic, although you can find some interesting "artifacts" there. From my observations, it appears that AI has a problem with … teeth. It happens that one missing first incisor is missing, so that the smiling face looks at least unnatural. Generated facial hair also seems to reveal signs that it has been generated – but in quite a few cases.
One of the Reddit users has shared a very worrying discovery with other users. Apparently in the database Thispersondoesnotexist.com one day one had to find the image of a person from the so-called "Bindi", a sign on the forehead worn by Hindu women. By the way, what was most likely introduced into AI was also a photo of a man with a gunshot wound … forehead. Bindi was mistaken with a hole in her head, which makes the image look pretty scary.
Unnecessary and necessary DLL libraries
Thispersondoesnotexist.com
Tags: ai, artifical, fake, intellligence, nvidia, photos, portraits, website
Facebook "closed." Do not be fooled by stupid jokes on the internet
Cryptocurrencies go to the mainstream! You can buy them at the post office

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


SlingPlayer 2.0 escapes beta, Slingbox PRO HD "any day now"
Not that any of you would be shy from running beta software, but at least now your milquetoastian friends can experience Sling's latest, Windows-based SlingPlayer 2.0 without fear of the beta baddies. Still no Clip+Sling sharing, but the new 60-minute buffer, EPG, and on-screen SlingRemote certainly makes this a worthwhile update. We've also got good new for those of you waiting for the SlingBox PRO-HD to ship -- Sling says "any day now" in accordance to their late September pre-order promise. Righteous.


As most IT managers are probably aware, unified stack architectures are all the rage these days, with the likes of IBM, HP, Dell and Cisco each coming out fighting with their own versions. They are popular for good reason, since these stacks make it far easier and faster for IT groups to source and deploy new, highly compact and efficient computing resources.
In short, unified stacks combine all the piece parts necessary to deliver a complete virtualized computing environment, including the server, storage and networking components. They're all assembled by either the vendor, a distributor or partner according to a reference architecture, so what the end customer gets is a set of components all configured, wired and tested for the applications of the customer's choice, ready to go to work.
Or, at least, almost ready.
You still need vital supporting infrastructure around the stack, meaning things like UPSs, PDUs, cooling, environmental monitoring and other management tools, along with a rack or enclosure in which to store it all.
Just as the hardware vendors use distribution and integration partners to integrate compute, storage and networking components, our Schneider Electric partners can integrate all of the supporting infrastructure that you need. Starting with a NetShelter CX or NetShelter SX, we're adding UPSs, PDUs, security cameras, temperature and humidity sensors to the reference architecture and giving our partners the tools to modify, build and deliver these solutions direct to you. We are also including the option of data center infrastructure management software that gives managers at a central site the ability to remotely monitor and control the whole unit, wherever it may be.
We have several options to choose from, all sized appropriately for various hardware stack configurations. That relieves a significant headache for customers, who no longer have to source, size, acquire and configure all those various components.
So now you can literally roll them off a truck and place them wherever you want. Within minutes an entire small business or remote/branch office application environment can be cranked up and communicating with a central data center or cloud provider. A multi-branch office roll-out can now happen in days rather than months.
While our solutions can be used with any vendor's unified architecture, we've gone the extra mile with Cisco, given the company is one of our alliance partners. Cisco and NetApp's FlexPod architecture includes Cisco Unified Computing System (UCS) servers, Nexus and Catalyst switches, FAS storage hardware from NetApp and virtualization software from VMware or Microsoft. Schneider Electric takes all the FlexPod components and wraps them in a 'life-support infrastructure solution' comprising our NetShelter CX enclosures (or a NetShelter SX for server room or data center environments) along with UPSs, PDUs, environmental sensors and the like. We call it FlexPod and FlexPod Express with Schneider Electric, and it really does eliminate most of the time associated with designing, building, testing and deploying new virtualized IT platforms. It also reduces the risk that something will go wrong because it combines the baked-in expertise of Cisco, NetApp and Schneider Electric with the power of our Partner network.
Check out this video to learn more about the FlexPod and FlexPod Express with Schneider Electric. I think you'll be glad you did.


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Tags: mortal kombat 11, netherrealm studios, warner bros. interactive
Mortal Kombat 11 Kollector's Edition Price Feels A Little Expensive
Mortal Kombat 11 has received its first official gameplay reveal today and among the announcements was a Kollector's Edition. It turns out this is going to be quite expensive for a collector.
Mortal Kombat 11 Kollector's Edition will feature the game, steelbook, and a Scorpion mask, as well as special packaging. The contents of this Kollector's Edition were shown during the event today, however, the pricing for it seems to be way off the mark and perhaps a little too expensive knowing the extras included in it. It will be available to purchase from GameStop and the listing for the pre-order is already live on the website giving us a glimpse at the price.
For all of this, you will have to just pay a measly sum of $299.99. Yes, you read that correctly. In order to get your hands on this Kollector's Edition will need you to spend roughly thrice the amount of the Premium edition of Mortal Kombat 11.
The standard game might cost $59.99 but the premium edition, that comes with the Kombat Pack featuring six more playable fighters, will cost $99.99. It also includes the same pre-order bonuses as the standard edition of Mortal Kombat 11.
Mortal Kombat 11 reveal event today gave the fans their first glimpse at gameplay footage. The release date for the game is already set for April 23, 2019, and it is currently announced for PS4, Xbox One, PC, and Nintendo Switch.
John Wick 3 First Trailer Brings Back The Famous Action Hero Into Limelight
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Mortal Kombat 11 Gets Shang Tsung and Kombat League Today
Mortal Kombat 11 Update 1.06 Is Out Today With a List of Fixes
Mortal Kombat 11 Kombat Pack DLC Characters Revealed, Spawn and Ash Confirmed
Mortal Kombat 11 Update 1.05 Makes Several Fighter Adjustments


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Q: How to disable device Automatic Time Zone value programmatically using Reflection I am creating a System Application where i want to enable disable Automatic Time Zone value of the device.
This code doesn't work as we need root permission to change system settings.
Settings.Global.putInt(getContentResolver(), Settings.Global.AUTO_TIME_ZONE, isAutomatic ? 0 : 1);

I have rooted device also but no success, after searching a lot found that it will be possible using Reflection. Anybody knows how to do this.

A: Found the solution by placing the apk in system/priv-app instead of system/app.
Reflection is used to access the private members or classes,the Settings.Global is not private api but need security permission which is solved by placing the apk in system/priv-app folder instead of system/app.
Following code worked if the device is rooted and apk is in path priv-app
 if (Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= Build.VERSION_CODES.JELLY_BEAN_MR1) {
                Settings.Global.putInt(getContentResolver(), Settings.Global.AUTO_TIME_ZONE, isAutomatic ? 0 : 1);
            } else {
                android.provider.Settings.System.putInt(getContentResolver(), Settings.Global.AUTO_TIME_ZONE, isAutomatic ? 0 : 1);
            }

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


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Sex education, because it is important for parents to teach it to their children
Many fathers and mothers avoid talking about sex with their children. But a recent study conducted by researchers from the North Carolina State University showed that targeted speeches by parents to adolescents on the issue result in safer sexual practices and do not increase the likelihood of adolescents engaging in sexual activity.
READ ALSO: Talking about sex to children, here's how
Why it is important to talk about sex with children
Laura Widman, first author of the research and professor of psychology at North Carolina State University, said that 'Parent-based educational interventions related to the issue of children's sexual health have been studied for decades: with this new research we wanted to understand how effective they had been. and find out if there are specific features that make them even more useful ».
In fact, there are, in particular, training interventions for parents: these are ad hoc programs aimed at working with parents, and often with their children, in order to help them deal with issues such as communication relating to the theme of sex, between including the provision of information on sexual health to children and, in general, the encouragement of safer sexual behavior.
For the research was carried out a meta-analysis of 31 studies which involved a total of 12.464 adolescents between the ages of 9 and 18, with an average age of just over 12 years.
One of the most prominent and obvious effects identified by the research was the increase in condom use by adolescents whose parents had taken part in an educational intervention, compared to adolescents whose parents had not participated in such a program. hoc.
This result demonstrates that it is essential to properly discuss sex with your children, teaching them the main information about sexual health.
READ ALSO: The letter your teenager cannot write to you
Better to talk about sex to children from pre-adolescence
In particular, interventions targeting adolescents aged 14 and younger had a more significant effect than those targeting older adolescents. In addition, interventions targeting both parents and adolescents alike were more effective, just as programs of 10 hours or more were more helpful than shorter interventions.
This means that:
it would be necessary to speak in the correct way of sex to the adolescents already from the stage of the pre-adolescence (between 9 and 14 years);
it would be necessary involve parents and adolescents alike;
more time should be spent on the subject.
Another interesting finding was the following: Targeted interventions did not affect the age at which adolescents became sexually active. In other words, children who were taught basic sexual health information did not become sexually active before children who were not told anything. On the contrary, the boys made aware of sexual health issues have shown that they are able to use condoms more once they become sexually active, "explained Widman.
YOU MAY INTEREST: Teens in crisis and spoiled, 8 tips to manage them
SEE ALSO THE PHOTO GALLERY:
Teenagers today: who they are
go to the gallery
Who are today's teenagers? It is the listless and now disillusioned young people who tell us the news, with their heads lost inside the smartphone or video games, or the awake boys capable of ...
teenagers and sex
sex and boys
Education: TOO MANY YES do not help children grow ❯
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Learn how to make Instant Pot Yogurt two different ways – either in a large batch or in small individual jars. With detailed instructions on how to turn it into extra rich and creamy Instant Pot Greek yogurt and different ways to flavor the homemade yogurt to your taste.
I've had my Instant Pot for a little over a year now and by far the one thing I have made the most in it is yogurt! Whenever I share a snippet of the process in my Instagram stories, I receive requests for the recipe.
First of all, maybe you aren't convinced yet that making yogurt in the Instant Pot or homemade yogurt in general is even a good idea. So let me share the reasons why I make yogurt at home instead of just conveniently picking up yogurt containers from the store.
My absolute biggest reason for making pressure cooker yogurt is the fact that I can control the ingredients.
When we arrived here in Mexico I was quite shocked to read all the yogurt labels and realize that with the exception of 1-2 ALL yogurts here have sugar added! Even many 'natural' unflavored varieties.
And the same goes for added thickening agents. Almost all of them list some sort of gum in the ingredients list.
Now that I make homemade yogurt I can be sure that there ate no added sugar or thickeners.
PLUS: I can choose the quality of milk I use. Regular milk from the supermarket works just fine on a regular basis, but when I feel splurgy and want extra creamy yogurt, I buy the organic pastured milk from the farmers market.
No matter how you look at it, homemade yogurt will always be cheaper than store-bought. Dairy prices can vary significantly depending on where you live. But next time you are in the store just look at the price of a quart of yogurt (that's usually the size of the big containers) and compare it to the prize of a gallon of milk.
One gallon can make 4 quarts of yogurt!
I like my yogurt extra tangy. My daughter likes it just a little sweetened. And my husband prefers fruit flavored yogurt.
Instead of buying three different types of yogurt all the time, with homemade yogurt each of us can easily adjust it to our own liking.
Over all the process of making yogurt at home is simple and straightforward, it's just not quick.
Chill the yogurt for at least 4 hours (or overnight) before using.
This recipe is for whole dairy milk. The higher milk fat percentage you can find, the thicker your Instant Pot yogurt will be.
My grocery store whole milk has about 3.25% milk fat. My Farmers Market milk is closer to 4%.
I definitely want to experiment with dairy-free Instant Pot yogurt – like coconut milk, almond or soy milk yogurt – but this post is only for dairy milk. The other ones will get there own post in time.
I use fresh yogurt as starter (not dehydrated starter or probiotic powders). For your first batch of Instant Pot yogurt you'll need to buy some natural, unsweetened yogurt from the store.
You need to make sure the ingredient list includes 'active cultures'. Sometimes they are listed with their actual names: lactobacillus bulgaricus and streptococcus thermophilus.
Go with one you like the flavor of. I recommend thicker, full-fat Greek yogurt.
After you have made your first batch of homemade yogurt, you can use that as starter for the next batch. Be sure to use it within 7 days though for the strongest most active cultures.
I freeze a little bit of the fresh yogurt in ice cube trays to preserve the cultures for longer. According to Cultures for Health you can store starter yogurt frozen for 3-4 weeks, but it may lose some potency. So you may need to double the amount of starter to culture your batch of milk into yogurt.
Incubation refers to the process of letting the milk and starter sit at a warm (not hot) temperature. In this time the bacterial cultures are actively working to process the milk into yogurt.
Minimum incubation time should be 8 hours. As I mentioned before, I like really tart yogurt. So I go for 12-14 hours of incubation. Anywhere in this 8-14 hour time frame is good. You can always increase at your discretion.
To make sure the yogurt is at my preferred level of tartness, I will try a spoon full of the warm yogurt. Not the most pleasant, but better than a whole batch of not quite tart enough yogurt.
If it tastes tart enough, I will move the yogurt over to the fridge. The bacterial cultures will stop actively working at cold temperature. If I am not happy with the tanginess yet, I will add a couple more hours of incubation time.
For your first attempt at Instant Pot yogurt, I recommend to time it so that you can be there at the 8 hour mark to test the tartness.
To make yogurt in the inner pot of your Instant Pot, pour the milk right into the pot and close the lid. Since there will be no pressurizing at all, you can use the glass lid (if you have one).
To scald the milk, press the 'yogurt' button and the display will show 'boil'. How long this takes depends on the amount of milk you use. I usually do 1/2 gallon and it takes 30-40 minutes.
When the 'boil' cycle is finished, immediately whisk the milk and take the temperature. It should be at least 180°F/82°C. If it is not quite there yet, you can hit 'saute' and adjust to 'less'. Carefully watch and whisk occasionally until the milk reaches the right temperature. Turn off the heat by hitting 'cancel'.
Using your thermometer to check, let the milk cool down to 105°F/40°C. Adding the starter yogurt into too hot milk would destroy the bacterial cultures.
You can just let it cool down by itself, which takes about 30 minutes. To speed up the process, fill your sink with cold water and put the inner pot in there. Once cooled enough, remove the skin that may have formed on top of the milk.
Temper the starter yogurt – this means to heat it up slowly. To a bowl with the yogurt, add some of the milk and whisk until combined. Then whisk the yogurt mixture into the rest of the milk in the inner pot. Be sure to avoid scraping at the bottom, as some of the milk may have set up there.
Now it is time to incubate a.k.a. let the bacterial cultures do their magic. Close the lid and press the 'Yogurt' button. Using the 'Adjust' and '+' or '-' buttons select your incubation time.
Anywhere from 8-14 hours may be required (see section about incubation time above).
Now let your freshly made homemade yogurt cool down in the fridge. Let it chill for at least 4 hours (or overnight) before using. During this time the yogurt will thicken and set up.
After that you can start enjoying the yogurt. Be sure to freeze some of it as starter for the next batch. Or move on to the steps below for making thicker Greek yogurt or how to flavor it.
If you prefer really thick Greek-style yogurt you need to strain some of the whey out of your homemade yogurt.
You can use a Greek Yogurt Strainer made specifically for this purpose. But if you have a cheesecloth and strainer you are good to go. That's the setup I use.
Ladle the chilled homemade yogurt into a strainer that is lined with a cheesecloth and suspended over a large bowl. Take care not to scrape too much from the bottom of the inner pot. That way you may loosen bits of milk solids that have set down there during the scalding stage.
Let the yogurt sit in this setup to strain until it reaches desired thickness – in the fridge or on the counter is fine. I like mine best after about 2 of hours of straining.
Now you are ready to transfer the Instant Pot Greek yogurt into storage containers to keep in the fridge until ready to use. Or move on to flavoring the yogurt.
The whey that accumulates in the bottom bowl is super nutritious and full of protein. Don't simply discard it. I like to use it for some of the liquid portion in my smoothies.
You can do the same when making bread or pancakes. Replace some or all of the liquid called for in those recipe with whey.
Whey keeps very well refrigerated. Some say up to 6 months, but I try to use it within 1-2 months.
Another great way to make Instant Pot yogurt is right inside little portion sized jars. It's really super convenient.
That way your Instant Pot isn't out of commission during the chilling period. And my daughter loves taking these little yogurt jars to her preschool even.
I am using the glass jars that one of the good brands of yogurt here in Mexico came in. You can find something very similar here.
You also can use little mason jars. To make sure they won't break in the process check that they are suitable for canning.
There are also sets of plastic containers for sale just for the purpose of making yogurt in the Instant Pot. But I am not a fan of heating any kind of food in plastic – heating plastic makes it leach into the food.
The steps of making Instant Pot yogurt in jars are essentially the same, just a little differently executed.
Start by adding 2 cups of water to the inner pot, then add a trivet. Fill your jars with whole milk up to about 1/2 inch from the top rim.
Carefully place the jars on the trivet and close with the Instant Pot lid. Be sure to use an extra sealing ring dedicated to sweet recipes (to avoid onion, chicken or bean flavored yogurt).
Turn the pressure valve to sealing and select 'Steam' for 1 minute. The pot will take some time to pressurize (it took 8 minutes for me). When the minute is over, quick release (QR) the pressure by turning the pressure valve to venting.
Immediately check the temperature of the milk with your thermometer. At times I don't get it to 180°F/82°C on the first try. In that case I close the lid again, and steam for another minute.
Other times the milk actually boils over a little bit. I haven't figured out why that happens occasionally, but it's not a big deal at all. Just proceed as usual.
Let the milk in the jars cool down to 105°F/40°C. Taking the jars out of the Instant Pot and placing them into a sink filled with cold water will speed up the process.
Once cooled, remove the skin that has formed on top of each little jar.
Add a little starter yogurt to each jar and stir really well. The amount of starter you need depends on the size of your jars.
Use a generous 1/2 teaspoon of starter per cup of milk. I have 1/2 cup jars, so I use a heaping 1/4 teaspoon for each.
You should still have water at the bottom of the inner pot. Place the milk jars on the trivet again.
Cover them loosely with their lids. No need to seal. Covering them will just keep condensation from dripping into the jars.
Cover the Instant Pot with a lid. You can use the glass lid now.
Press the 'Yogurt' button. Using the 'Adjust' and '+' or '-' buttons select your incubation time. Anywhere from 8-14 hours may be required (see section about incubation time above).
To stop the incubation process place your Instant Pot yogurt jars in the fridge. Let them chill for at least 2 hours (or overnight) before using. During this time the yogurt will thicken and set up.
My favorite way to sweeten homemade yogurt naturally is maple syrup. Because it is more liquid than honey and doesn't harden when it comes in touch with chilled yogurt, it is really easy and quick to incorporate.
Vanilla extract is my next favorite thing to add to yogurt. And of course you can use any other extracts that you have on hand.
Cinnamon and other sweet spice blends (pumpkin spice, apple pie, chai) are great healthy natural ways to flavor yogurt.
You can simply add fresh cut up fruit or berries to your yogurt. Or puree the fruit first for flavored yogurt without chunky textures.
And by far the easiest way to flavor and sweeten yogurt at the same time is jam! Use any fruit jam you like and have on hand. Or make this healthier chia berry jam.
You can add it at the bottom of little jars before filling in yogurt (not with the PIP method) for a homemade fruit at the bottom-style yogurt. Just stir well before consuming.
If stored in the fridge, your homemade Instant Pot yogurt should keep for at least 2 weeks.
Learn how to make Instant Pot Yogurt two different ways - either in a large batch or in small individual jars. With detailed instructions on how to turn it into extra rich and creamy Instant Pot Greek yogurt and different ways to flavor the homemade yogurt to your taste.
Fill the whole milk into the Instant Pot and close the (glass) lid. To scald the milk select the 'Yogurt' button. Display will show 'boil'. This will take about 30-40 minutes.
When the cycle is finished whisk the milk and immediately take the temperature. It should be at least 180°F/82°C. If it is not quite there yet, press 'saute' and adjust to 'less'. Carefully watch and whisk occasionally until the milk reaches the right temperature. Turn off the heat by hitting 'cancel'.
Let the milk cool down to 105°F/40°C. Either by itself (this takes about 30 minutes) or speed up the process by filling your sink with cold water and let the inner pot cool in there.
Remove the skin that may have formed on top. To a small bowl with the starter yogurt add some of the cool milk and whisk until combined (this is called tempering). Then whisk the yogurt mix into the rest of the milk.
Close the lid and start the incubation process. Press 'Yogurt' and adjust the time to 8-14 hours (see details in the Incubation section).
Afterwards, move the inner pot to the fridge and chill to let it set for at least 4 hours. Then the yogurt is ready to be enjoyed or move on to turn it into Greek yogurt.
To make really thick and creamy Greek yogurt, transfer the chilled yogurt to a special yogurt strainer or to a sieve lined with a cheesecloth suspended over a large bowl.
This will remove some of the whey from the yogurt. Let it sit in the fridge for about 2 hours.
The Greek yogurt at the top of the strainer is ready to be enjoyed or transferred into storage containers.
To make Instant Pot yogurt with the pot-in-pot method (PIP) fill 2 cups of water into the inner pot and add a trivet.
Fill little glass jars with whole milk up to 1/2 inch from the top rim. Place the jars on the trivet and close the Instant Pot lid.
Turn the pressure valve to sealing. Select 'Steam' for 1 minute. (Pressurizing time is about 8 minutes).
When the steam cycle is over, quick release (QR) the pressure by moving the sealing valve to venting. Quickly check that the temperature of the milk has reached 180°F/82°C. If not repeat the steam process for 1 more minute.
Let the jars cool down to 105°F/40°C. Speed up the process by placing the jars in a sink with cold water.
Remove the skin that has formed on top of the cooled milk. Stir starter yogurt into the jars and combine well (about 1/2 teaspoon of starter for 1 cup milk).
Return the jars to the Instant Pot which still has the water and trivet inside. Loosely cover the jars with their lids. Place the big glass lid on the Instant Pot.
To start the incubation process press 'Yogurt' and adjust the time to 8-14 hours (see details in the Incubation section).
Afterwards, move the jars to the fridge and chill until set (at least 2 hours).
Instant Pot yogurt lasts about 2 weeks in the fridge.
Thank you for the tutorial. I have discovered a super-fast and easy way to make yogurt – just add the culture to a new carton of milk (dairy or non-dairy), add to sterilized jars and then set the IP for yogurt. This saves the step of scalding the milk and waiting for it to cool. Since you are just opening a carton to make yogurt, there should be no bad bacteria there to spoil it.
Just wanted to share my experience in case you want to try it. Great blog!
What a great tip! Thanks for sharing – I have never heard of that before. I'll give it a try with my next batch. Have you tried it with almond milk?
Hi Regina – sorry about the late reply. I haven't tried it with almond milk because I can't find a shelf-stable carton without the extra ingredients. I've done it with shelf-stable soy milk with great success. Trader Joe's and Westsoy are the two brands that work well because they only have soybeans and water as ingredients.
Superb video. I really enjoyed it. The yogurt becomes thicker if we add hot milk to it. Making yogurt is pretty simple and I always recommend homemade yogurt over ready-made.