Bell's Cathedrals: The Cathedral Church of Durham: A Description of Its Fabric and A Brief History of the Espiscopal SeeBygate, Joseph E. (Joseph Emanuel)
Religion
Bell's Cathedrals: The Cathedral Church of Durham: A Description of Its Fabric and A Brief History of the Espiscopal See
Bygate, Joseph E. (Joseph Emanuel)
Church of England. Diocese of Durham; Durham Cathedral
Cadwalla and Penda rose against them, and Edwin fell in battle
at Hatfield Moor in Yorkshire. Paulinus, despairing of the cause,
returned to Kent with the queen-widow Ethelburga and her children; and
under Cadwalla and Penda, the kingdom soon relapsed into Paganism.
We must now direct our attention to a small, barren island on the west
coast of Scotland, Iona. Here came a voluntary exile (A.D. 563),
Columba, a monk, said to have been a descendant of the Irish kings. Here
he lived and founded a great missionary monastery, which afterwards
became the centre of Christian influence in Scotland and the north of
England. He and his followers were active workers; they wrote Gospels
and devotional books, preached, and built churches of wood. Columba died
(A.D. 597), but his work was continued.
In 634, Oswald, a son of Ethelfrith, became king of Northumbria. In his
youth he, with his brothers, had been obliged to flee to Scotland,
where, during his exile, Oswald was converted to Christianity by the
teachers of Iona. On his return he defeated and killed Cadwalla at
Hevenfeld, or Heavenfield, near Hexham, in 634, and became the means of
finally introducing Christianity into his kingdom. Soon after he became
king, Oswald sent to Iona for help, and in reply came a monk, who, for
some reason, said by old writers to be his harshness, failed in his
mission. He was replaced by another monk named Aidan (635-651), who was
eminently successful. Beda speaks of him as "a man of great piety and
zeal, combined with tender charity and gentleness." Aidan became
intimately associated with King Oswald, the two working together, and he
chose for his headquarters the small sandy island of Lindisfarne, off
the Northumbrian coast, which we now know as "Holy Island."
Lindisfarne thus resembled Iona, and it is probable that the similarity
of position and surroundings influenced Aidan in his choice. However
that may be, Aidan there founded his monastery and directed the work of
his monks.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account