America celebrates the Mysteries

In ancient times America's goddess Demeter was venerated in the fall by a festival known as the Eleusinian Mysteries over a period which in our calendar is September 14-September 23. Here are some of the events in America's civil religion which took place during that period:

September 14

1814    Francis Scott Key wrote our national anthem

1879    Abortion advocate Margaret Sanger was born

1901    William B. McKinley died

1940    Selective Service Act was passed by Congress

1948    Ground was broken for the UN Headquarters building

1959    Russian spacecraft Luna 2 landed on the moon

September 15

1857    William Howard Taft was born

September 16

1940    Selective Training and Service Act was signed into law

September 17

1787    US Constitution signed

September 18

1793    George Washington laid cornerstone for US Capitol building

1947    National Security Act took effect

September 19

1881    James A. Garfield died

September 20

2001    George W. Bush addressed a joint session of Congress (during the national period of mourning for 9/11, which lasted from 9/14-9/23)

September 21

1996    The board of Virginia Military Institute voted to admit women

September 22

1776    Nathan Hale was hanged

1862    Emancipation Proclamation was issued by Abraham Lincoln

1949    USSR exploded its first atomic bomb

1975    Gerald R. Ford second assassination attempt

September 23

1779    John Paul Jones won famous naval victory

1780    Benedict Arnold’s treachery was discovered

1952    Richard M. Nixon gave his “Checkers” speech

Once again, the timing of these events could all be just a coincidence. However, it is remarkable that what otherwise would have been obscure events (Key's poem, Hale's hanging, Arnold's treachery) have been elevated to mythic status. Was it because they occurred during the Mysteries?