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Training tips and educational info in support of our free programs, that’s what! What’s mettle? Mettle is, “The ability to meet a challenge or persevere under demanding circumstances; determination or resolve.” Want to cultivate your rough ‘n’ tumble mettle? Complete one of our 100 Feats!
Mettle maker #479: Hammers and Cuffs
I love it when smart people say things that dovetail with my analyses. A little affirmation that one is on the right track academically, experimentally, and practically, is good for the soul. And so I very much enjoyed a recent article entitled, A Paucity of Punches: Why Was Punching so Rare in Pre-modern Martial Arts by Maxime Chouinard, a HEMA-affiliated historical martial arts instructor and researcher in Canada. In it he makes several excellent points.
Chouinard begins by noting that punching with the forefist, as in modern boxing, is assumed to be the way people have always struck one another with their hands. And this presupposition goes on to make us see things in the historic record that just aren't there. Representations of fist fighting in the ancient artworks of Greece, Mycenae, Egypt, and the orient, are very vague and, if taken at face value, could be depicting backfists.
In fact, a quick glance at famous sculptures like The Boxer at Rest, and other representations of Greco-Roman fist fighting, clearly show fighters wearing caestus -- wrist braces that protect the back of the hand rather than the forefist. And even if we look at Western fighting manuals and books from the 17th through 19th centuries, we see hand positions that look like hammer fists rather than blows with the forefist.
Add to this the classical depiction of the 19th century boxer with his dukes up, and we begin to be rather certain that forefist punching in the modern manner only "comes to the fore" (as it were) with the introduction of padded gloves and rules sets that disallow the hammer strike (a.k.a. the "chopper") and forbids grappling techniques, such as throws, in the clinch.
The old-timers weren’t just crazy old curmudgeons waiting to enlightened by our brilliant 21st century minds.
The were right and we are wrong.
So watch the video above and start practicing those backfists, hammers, choppers, and chop-parries.
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Homily for the Twenty-eighth Sunday of Ordinary Time 10/12/25 – Father Mitch
Readings: 2 Kings 5:14-17, Psalm 98:1, 2-3, 3-4, 2 Timothy 2:8-13, Luke 17:11-19
Luke 17:11-19 World English Bible
As he was on his way to Jerusalem, he was passing along the borders of Samaria and Galilee. 12 As he entered into a certain village, ten men who were lepers met him, who stood at a distance. 13 They lifted up their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”
14 When he saw them, he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” As they went, they were cleansed. 15 One of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice. 16 He fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks; and he was a Samaritan.
17 Jesus answered, “Weren’t the ten cleansed? But where are the nine? 18 Were there none found who returned to give glory to God, except this foreigner?” 19 Then he said to him, “Get up, and go your way. Your faith has healed you.”
In today's gospel reading, ten lepers stand at a distance and cry out, "Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!" We can see that they are humble, because they don't even presume to ask for healing. Instead they ask for mercy. This shows that they are willing to accept whatever set of circumstances God has seen fit to visit upon them. And by standing back, we can also see that they are considerate about preventing transmission of their disease and respectful of Jewish purity rules which require rabbis to remain separated from those who are unclean.
Without fancy words, proclamations, or fanfare, Jesus sends them on their way. He says, "Go show yourselves to the priests." A simple command from the Master suffices. En route to be evaluated by the priests, all ten are healed. The lesson here seems to be that walking in the right direction, following commands, and submitting oneself to the guidance of the church, is sufficient to work wonders.
But then a strange thing happens. Only one of the ten returns to thank Jesus as God. Perhaps some of the nine took Jesus' healing for granted. But isn’t the most plausible reason that they saw him -- as many people do today! -- not as the Messiah, but as just another great teacher or healer?
Isn't the world full of people who believe that Jesus is in the same camp as Buddha, Confucius, Lao Tzu, Plato, or Marcus Aurelius? Just another wise man who can provide really good self-help advice? According to a 2017 poll, one quarter of Christians don't believe Jesus actually rose from the dead.¹ A 2019 Pew Research poll found that 31% of Roman Catholics don't believe in the real presence of Christ in the bread and wine -- a central tenet of the religion as attested to by Jesus in John 6:55-59.²
Believing that Jesus is just another wise human teacher is like being a servant hauling life-giving water in buckets riddled with holes. By the time we get there, all of the miraculous power of Christ has been drained out, and there is none left. There's not a single drop of water in the buckets to slake the thirst of those desperately in need of salvation.
Like the nine who do not return to praise God, if we practice the teachings of Jesus as a wise human teacher we might receive a physical healing. We might become a bit more successful in life. We might receive a little solace and some good vibes. We might make some new friends and enjoy the social benefits of churchgoing. We might even be deemed "clean" by the priests and have our egos puffed up -- and isn't that fun? But how long before we begin to doubt the real source of the benefits we received? How long before we begin to take credit for the benefits? How long before that kind of shallow belief falls away?
Ask yourself: Do you want to be truly healed? Ask the people you evangelize: Do you want to be completely transformed, inside and out? Ask your brothers and sisters in Christ: Do you want to be joined in the resurrection with our God and Lord Jesus Christ? And then answer: if you want to be truly healed, transformed, and joined with Christ, then be the one in ten. Return to him in homage and supplication and proclaim his divinity, as Christ the Lord, now and forever. Know that he is Emmanuel, God With Us, in the eucharistic elements, now, today, and forever.
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¹ The Resurrection and the Afterlife: What Do We Believe?
https://christianstandard.com/2023/03/the-resurrection-and-the-afterlife-what-do-we-believe/
² New study says 69 percent of Massgoers believe in Real Presence