St Dunstan – England

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This is the day that … St Dunstan is remembered by some churches.  He is one of the 68 saints mentioned in the Anglican Prayer Book.

He is “the most famous of all Anglo-Saxon saints”, according to Alban Butler’s Lives of the Saints (1756-1759).

Dunstan was born in Somerset, England, in the early part of the 10th century.  During his education at Glastonbury he alarmed the monks by sleep-walking on the roof of the church!  (Stars Appearing, by S. Harton, page 208).

He eventually became an abbot at Glastonbury and set about reforming the morals of a scandalous clergy.  This zeal for purity continued when he later became Archbishop of Canterbury (Butler, page 149).

But as was to be expected, there was plenty of opposition.  Especially when he rebuked King Edwy for his unseemly behaviour.  As a result Dunstan’s property was confiscated and he was sent into exile.  After Edwy’s death, King Edgar assumed the throne and Dunstan was re-instated.

And it was Dunstan who instituted bellringing on festival days, and who re-introduced organ playing into the church – “even taking a personal hand in their actual construction” (Harton, page 207).

The story is told (believe it or not!!) that on one occasion, whilst working at his forge, he saw the Devil peering through the window.  “So he pulled the red-hot tongs from the coals and pulled the Devil’s nose with them” (Maypoles, Martyrs and Mayhem, page 147;  Days and Customs of All Faiths, page 127).  Satan ran and dipped his nose in Tunbridge Wells to cool off – and “that is why the water in Tunbridge Wells, to this day, is sulphur water!”  (page 127).

In the Convent of the Holy Child Jesus at Mayfield they even have St Dunstan’s tongs!  (Maypoles, Martyrs and Mayhem, page 147).

And the dear old Archbishop is still regarded as the Patron Saint of blacksmiths.

Columba – Arrival at Iona

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This is the day that … Columba landed on the tiny isle of Iona off the northwest coast of Scotland in the year AD 563.

Columba had been a monk in Ireland … and had surreptitiously copied a Book of Psalms belonging to the Abbot.  When this was discovered, St Finnian demanded the copy be given to him, and Columba refused.  The High King of Ireland at Tara even decided that the copy belonged to the Abbot, but Columba was not going to give up without a fight.  Literally!  A fierce battle took place – both sides had gathered armies – and “the king’s forces were severely defeated” (The Man with the Coracle, by M. Backer-Benfield, page 6).

F.F. Bruce, in The Spreading Flame, also refers to this incredible war that took place over the Book of Psalms – “Some accounts represent Columba as vowing he would not return to Ireland until he had won as many pagans for Christ as had fallen in the battle – 3000 all told!” (page 387).

So to Iona he journeyed, and there founded a monastery.  “From this primitive abbey went missionaries who carried the gospel of Jesus Christ to Scotland, then to England, to France, Germany and all of Western Europe.”  Iona became “a lighthouse to the Dark Ages” (Decision  Magazine, March, 1975).

And it was Columba who first reported seeing the Loch Ness monster!  In 565  (The People’s Almanac, Volume 2, page 1278).

And Columba’s copy of the Book of Psalms is still to be seen at the Royal Irish Academy in Dublin (National Geographic Magazine, May, 1977, page 626).