THE VENERABLE BEDE
Lindisfarne,
Whitby, Mount Grace, Rivieulx and Byland abbeys all conjure in the mind visions
of places of spirituality and learning. Peaceful cloisters where the early
English saints walked and studied, monks at prayer in the abbey church, the
sound of the chanting of the office. As we, centuries later wander around the
ancient stones we can appreciate and perhaps understand the influences that
these peaceful, holy places had upon those who lived and worshipped within their
walls. From Celtic times to the Middle Ages these abbeys were the power houses
of the Church in the north east of England. Their influence on Christianity in
these islands was considerable. Another must be added to the list. Tucked away
in the town of Jarrow, now surrounded by the trappings of Tyneside industry old
and new, was once a thriving and important Anglo-Saxon monsastery. Sadly, there
is little of it standing today (what remains of it has been
incorporated into the chancel of the parish church.) This monastery, dedicated
to St Peter and St Paul, was the home of one who was in truth the father of
English History. Here from 673 to 735 lived and worked the Venerable Bede.
Bede was born close by at Wearmouth. He was dedicated to the church at an early age and he entered the monastery at the age of seven and there remained until he died fifty four years later. Ordained as a priest in the early eighth century, Bede rarely left Jarrow ñ in fact it is unlikely he ever set foot outside of Northumbria. Unlike other early saints such as Columba and Aidan, and Swithin in the south, he had no dealings with kings and politics. His entire life was devoted to the study of the scriptures and the monastic rule and the daily charge of singing in church. Towards the end of his life, however, his knowledge of the Northumbrian church outside his monastery was considerable and he did indeed make suggestions for its reform in a letter to Egbert, the Northumbria king in 735 before he died.
His other great love, and indeed it is for this he is remembered, was learning and writing. He produced twenty five works of commentary on the scriptures and also a wide range of works on various secular subjects, including science, history and biography. The title "Venerable" was bestowed upon him as an acknowledgement of his wisdom and learning. Today, scholars regard his "Historia Ecclesiastic (Ecclesiastical History of the English People") as the most important. This work was completed in 731 and is an account of Christianity in England up to 729 and is the prime source of early English history for historians. He was the first historian to date events "anno domini ñ AD". Bede was fortunate in that St Paul’s monastery had been endowed with a considerable library by previous abbots Benedict Biscop and Ceolfrith and he acknowledges this in his "Lives of the Abbots."
He died in church singing the Gloria on May 25th 735 having just completed his latest work, a translation into Old English of the gospel of St John. St Boniface, on hearing of Bede’s death, said that "the candle of the Church, lit by the Holy Spirit, has been extinguished". Within fifty years of his death, his cult as a saint had been established. In the middle of the eleventh century, his remains were removed from Jarrow to the cathedral at Durham and they rest to this day in the Galilee Chapel there. Durham and York were the main centres of his cult. His feast day falls on the 25th of May, the anniversary of his death.
Many schools have been dedicated to him in modern times. His life has bee an inspiration to many generations of monastic scholars and historians of widely different backgrounds. His History has become a classic, appreciated for its wealth of information, its listings of authorities and sources and its sifting of evidence. Widely known and appreciated from the eighth century, abroad as well as at home, it is still translated and used today. If historians were to adopt a patron saint then their obvious choice surely must be Saint Bede.
Barbara Hothersall