SENEGALAISE CATHOLIC ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA
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Today’s saint
MAY 267h 2009
St. Augustine of Canterbury
(d. 605?)
In the year 596 a small party of some 40 monks set out from Rome to
evangelize the Anglo-Saxons in England. Leading the group was
Augustine, the prior of their monastery in Rome. Hardly had he and
his men reached Gaul (France) when they heard stories of the
ferocity of the Anglo-Saxons and of the treacherous waters of the
English Channel. Augustine returned to Rome and to the pope who had
sent them—St. Gregory the Great—only to be assured by him that their
fears were groundless.
Augustine again set out and this time the group crossed the English
Channel and landed in the territory of Kent, ruled by King
Ethelbert, a pagan married to a Christian. Ethelbert received them
kindly, set up a residence for them in Canterbury and within the
year, on Pentecost Sunday, 597, was himself baptized. After being
consecrated a bishop in France, Augustine returned to Canterbury,
where he founded his see. He constructed a church and monastery near
where the present cathedral, begun in 1070, now stands. As the faith
spread, additional sees were established at London and Rochester.
Work was sometimes slow and Augustine did not always meet with
success. Attempts to reconcile the Anglo-Saxon Christians with the
original Briton Christians (who had been driven into western England
by Anglo-Saxon invaders) ended in dismal failure. Augustine failed
to convince the Britons to give up certain Celtic customs at
variance with Rome and to forget their bitterness, helping him
evangelize their Anglo-Saxon conquerors
Laboring patiently, Augustine wisely heeded the missionary
principles—quite enlightened for the times—suggested by Pope Gregory
the Great: purify rather than destroy pagan temples and customs; let
pagan rites and festivals be taken over into Christian feasts;
retain local customs as far as possible. The limited success
Augustine achieved in England before his death in 605, a short eight
years after he arrived in England, would eventually bear fruit long
after in the conversion of England. Truly Augustine of Canterbury
can be called the “Apostle of England.”
Comment:
Augustine of Canterbury comes across today as a very human saint,
one who could suffer like many of us from a failure of nerve. For
example, his first venture to England ended in a big U-turn back to
Rome. He made mistakes and met failure in his peacemaking attempts
with the Briton Christians. He often wrote to Rome for decisions on
matters he could have decided on his own had he been more
self-assured. He even received mild warnings against pride from Pope
Gregory, who cautioned him to “fear lest, amidst the wonders that
are done, the weak mind be puffed up by self-esteem.” Augustine’s
perseverance amidst obstacles and only partial success teaches
today’s apostles and pioneers to struggle on despite frustrations
and be satisfied with gradual advances.
Quote:
In a letter to Augustine, Pope Gregory the Great wrote: "He who
would climb to a lofty height must go by steps, not leaps."