St Augustine (May 26)

Canterbury’s First Archbishop 605

Isa. 49: 22-25; Ps. 98; 1 Thess. 2:2b-8; Matthew 13:31-33

‘We had courage in our God to declare to you the gospel of God in spite of great opposition . . . just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the message of the gospel, even so we speak not to please mortals, but to please God who tests our hearts.’ 1 Thessalonians 2:2, 4

Sent on a mission

In 596, Pope Gregory sent Augustine, with 40 monks from the monastery of St Andrew in Rome, to England. The company got as far as Provence when, discouraged by rumours of the wild Anglo-Saxons, the monks persuaded Augustine to return to Rome with a request to Gregory to abort the mission. But Gregory had been told that the harvest-ground of England was ready for the gospel, and sent Augustine back to his monks with words of encouragement that gave them fresh heart. They arrived in Kent around Eastertide, 597, to be met by King Ethelbert who had married the Catholic Frankish princess, Bertha. Before long, Ethelbert converted to Christianity and was baptized.

The see of Canterbury

Augustine sailed back to France, where St Vergilius, the Metropolitan of Arles, consecrated him bishop. He set up his see at Canterbury – Gregory would have preferred London, but on this Augustine stood firm. He began evangelizing the Anglo-Saxons, being well briefed from Rome on the details: don’t sack the pagan temples; consecrate them and use them as Christian churches, ordered Gregory. And don’t play around with the calendar: convert the pagan festivals into Christian ones.

Augustine became so busy that he sent a couple of monks, Peter and Lawrence, back to Rome for reinforcements. Gregory sent them back with the saints Mellitus, Justus and Paulinus; with more and more instructions on mission – and with the pallium: Augustine was to be the first Archbishop of Canterbury!

Episcopal conservatism

But it was not all plain sailing for the new archbishop. The English bishops had evolved their own methods – due mainly to England being separated by the Channel from the rest of Europe. Augustine called them to a synod in an attempt to persuade them to come fully into line with European church practice. The bishops deliberated, but at a second synod, where Augustine angered them by not rising to greet them, they refused point blank to recognize his authority. Undeterred, Augustine and his monks continued evangelizing, and established sees at London and Rochester.

On 26 May 605, eight years after arriving in England, Augustine died – with the stubborn English bishops still refusing to help him in his mission to convert the Anglo-Saxons; still refusing to adopt the Roman tradition of baptism; and still refusing to go along with the Roman method of determining the date of Easter.

But this ‘good and faithful servant’ had made his mark: the Church in England was far stronger than when he had landed in Kent in 597.

We may not be the Primate of All England, but can we say that we are making a difference for God, in the place where he has put us?

Suggested hymns

For ever with the Lord; I will go in the strength of the Lord; Lord of all hopefulness; Lord, the light of your love is shining.