No More Learning

The latter wrote to Boniface,3 a. d. 744,4 and expressed his surprise, at that decision he had given, adding, it could not be admitted, because the priest had so baptized persons, simply through igno- rance of the Latin tongue, that such neophytes could be again baptized, with- out introducing a serious error —of practice, since even those who received
5
be reckoned St.
may — Virgilius
2
and
Bishop Saltzbourg Apostle
8 The treacherous how- Astolph,
afterwards of
These found in Bavaria a priest, who had but an
at the hands of he—
retics it had been administered in the
baptism provided
name of the Holy Trinity could not be re-baptized.
Notwithstanding the opposition he encountered, Boniface imposed extra- ordinary obedience to the Holy See, on the German Church which he
founded. 6 He held, at least, eight Councils or Synods in Bavaria, Thuringia '
France, tome ii. , liv. xii. , p. 233.
"See Rev. Alban Butler's "Lives of the
Fathers, Martyrs and other principal Saints," vol. vi. , June v.
Ireland.
3 See "Sancti Bonifacii Archiepiscopi et
Martyris Opera quse extant omnia," &c, edited by Rev. J. A. Giles, LL. D. , vol. i. , Epist. lvi. , Zacharias Bonifacio, pp. 1 19, 120.
78
brother Carloman occurred. See Capefigue's
During this expedition, the death of his
"
79 " "
Charlemagne," tome i. , cap. vi. p. 108.
See Edward Gibbon's History of the s See 1'
Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire," astique," tome ix. , liv. xlii. , sect, xlvii. ,
vol. —
vi. , chap, xlix. , pp. 153 to 155.
p. 305.
6 "Ecclesiastical See Leopold Ranke's
and Political History of the Popes of Rome,"
translated by Sarah Austin, vol. i. , chap, i. , p. 16.
Chapter v.
of November, in this work.
1
«
See his
Life, at the 27th
He, as well as his companion, was a priest at this time, and both were natives of
4 See Baronius" ' Annales Ecclesiastici,"
tomus ix. , A. D. 744, sect, i. , ii. , pp. 139, 140.
Abbe Histoire Ecclesi- Fleury's
i8o LIVES 01 THE IRISH SAINTS. [June 5.
Austrasia, and Neustria. ? He also assisted at another council held in Tivoli. 8 Always a strict observer of rule and discipline himself, Boniface manifests a great desire to have Canons for the good government of his Church introduced and enforced. He often represents his personal trouble of mind, with the state of his pastoral charge to the Pope, from whom he receives aid and encouragement. Especiallydoeshecomplainofthosedisorders,causedby AdalbertandClement. 9 Inconsequenceofsuchcomplaints,acouncilwas convened at Rome, in the patriarchal house of Lateran, on the 25th of Octo-
ber,
a. d.
745.
IO It was
presided
over
by Pope Zachary,
in while person ;
seven bishops, living near the city, seventeen priests, besides deacons and
other clerics, were present. As the messenger of Boniface, a priest named
Deneard had been bearer of documents from him, addressed to Pope Zachary, while he brought also a letter for Gemmulus, Archdeacon of the Roman Church. 11 When that council had assembled, Deneard was intro- duced, and he related, how his master St. Boniface had convoked a synod of the Frankish clergy and nobles, where Adelbert and Clement had been con- demned, deposed, and put into prison, by the princes, while those impostors still remained impenitent. Then were exposed the impious inventions and blasphemies of Adalbert, as set forth in the communications of St. Boniface. Accordingly, having examined the acts and writings of Adalbert and Clement, the council pronounced them to have been guilty of grievous errors 12 and crimes. Their deposition from the priesthood was decreed, with an anathema pro- nounced against themselves and their followers, if they persisted in those errors. ThePope,withallthebishopsandpriestsatthecouncil,subscribed its decrees. The three sessions of this council bear the same date, as if these had been all held on the same day. '3 Afterwards, the Pope sent the decrees of this council to Bonface, with a long letter, which formed the reply to three lettershehadalreadywritten. '+ Thiswasdatedonthe31stofOctober,a. d. 745, and in it, our saint's actions are approved, while he is encouraged to bear with fortitude the opposition he has had to encounter.
A letter written by St. Boniface to Cuthbert, Archbishop of Canterbury, proved
the occasion for
about the commencement of
priests, and other clergy, with Ethelbald and several of his nobles, were present.
assembling
a national council at
Cloveshoe, 747.
Cliff, inEngland, bishops, many
September,
The Acts of this council are comprised in thirty Canons, having relation chiefly
to reforms and to ecclesiastical
discipline.
1 ? It also issued a
general direction,
7 According to the "Concilia Germanise," edited by D. Joan Fred. Schannat, and P. Jos. Hartzeim, S. J. , tomusi. , Sseculum viii. Coloniae, A. D. 1759.
xxviii. . pp. 152 to 155.
" One of these was the introduction of the
names of unknown Angels, such as Uriel,
Raguel, Tubuel, Inias, Tubuas, Sabaoth, and Simiel, into their forms of prayer. See
"
Ecclesiasticse Historiae Bieviarium," Seculum VIII. , cap. iii. , p. 193.
13 See l'Abbe " Histoire Eccle- Fleury's
siastique," tome ix. , liv. xlii. , sect. 1. , li. , pp. 309 to 312.
** See Abbe Rohrbacher's " Histoire Uni-
verselle de l'Eglise Catholique," tome xi. , liv. Iii. , p. 23.
*5 Latinized Cloveshoviense, and it is sometimes called the Council of Abing- don.
"See Sir Harris Nicolas' "Chronology of History,' p. 225.
8
lives of certain priests of his time, Boniiace Berti's
There, making allusion to the irregular stated, that formerly, the priests were of
and the chalices used were of they
gold,
wood, while then those priests were of wood, and served themselves with golden chalices,
See "Les Petits Bollandistes, Vies des e
Saints," tome vi. , v Jour de Juin, p. 463. "
9 See Sancti Bonifacii Archiepiscopi et Martyris Opera quae extant omnia," edited by Rev. Dr. Giles, vol. i. , Epist. lvii. , pp. 120 to 123.
10
See Sir Harris Nicolas' "Chronology of History," p. 225.
11 The
forth by Baionius, in his
astici," tomus ix. , A. D. 745, sect, xxi. , to
1 A excellent very
proceedings
of this council are set
of the ceedings will be found, in Dean Cressy's " Church History of Brittany," book xxiii. ,
"
rendering
pro-
Annales Ecclesi-
a. d.
1 s or l6 Twelve
Jcjne 5. ]
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 181
as to how the Bishops were to discharge their duties. Soon afterwards, Arch- bishop Cuthbert, through one of his deacons, sent the Acts of this council to St. Boniface. 18 The latter felicitated him, on what had been accomplished, in a courteous letter. The Bishop of Wurtzburg, St. Burchard, was engaged by St. Boniface to complain in Rome of his countryman St. Virgil, 1 ? who was accused of fostering enmity between himself and Duke Odilon of Bavaria, besides propagating dangerous errors in theology and philosophy. These charges were contained in a letter, now lost; but, the response of Pope
Zachary,
and
very cautiously guarded
in
terms,
hasbeen
preserved.
20 It
appears,
from the context, that this Pope rather distrusted the too fervid dispositions
of Boniface and his over hasty statements. He wrote another letter to our
21
saint,
Canons of the Apostles, of Nice, of Antioch, and of other Councils, should be read, with the Decretals of the Popes. To it, Adalbert, Godolsace 22 and Clement were to be cited, so that their cause might be judged on the spot,
and if they persisted in asserting their innocence, with two or three of the most virtuous and wise Bishops, they were to appear at Rome, where their affair should be most thoroughly investigated and terminated before the Holy See. 23 As the accused had not been present or properly represented at the Roman Council, it seems probable, that the Pope considered, they had been judged too hastily, and condemned without being afforded an opportunity for defence. SeverallettersofSt. Bonifaceappeartohavebeenwritten,duringthe
or 2+when tothemina on years 747 748, Pope Zachary replies letter, touching
the several topics to which allusion had been made. 25 These were the last letters, which passed between St. Boniface and St. Zachary the Pope ; for, soon afterwards, the latter was called out of this life.
Notwithstanding the incessant active labours of St. Boniface, he contrived to devote some time to studious pursuits, and he procured various books,
character. His 2° which remain have been col- writings
published.
probable,
that the most collection of these de- complete
and in it he was recommended to convoke a council, in which the
of a
lected and published in various forms. ?
chiefly
spiritual
chap, xix. , pp. 606 to 608. 24 See l'Abbe Rohrbacher's
Histoire
2
In them, the reader will find clear-
and unction
A collection of Canons, drawn up for the direction of his clergy, has been
ness, simplicity
; but,
the
style
is neither
pure
20 It is
crees, with historical notices of the various councils held during the lifetime of St. Boniface, is that published by the Rev. Dr. J. A. Giles. 3° Several
"
" From a very ancient Manuscript in Universelle de l'Eglise Catholique," tome Saxon characters which were precisely xi. , liv. lii. , pp. 37 to 43.
—
similar to the Irish Sir Henry Spelman has
published the Acts and Decrees of this Synod.
See "Concilia, Decreta Leges Ecclesiae
Anglise," tomus i.
19 His feast occurs, at the 27th of Novem-
25 of them into See an excellent rendering
"
ber, where more on this subject may be collect Epistles to different persons, and the found. Lives of certain Saints, making two distinct
50
In the collection of St. Boniface's books.
Letters, it is numbered Epistola xi.
2? The Rev. Dr. J. A. Giles has published
Londini, 1844.
28 See Michaud, " Biographie Universelle
Ancienne et Moderne," tome v. , Art. Boni-
face (saint), pp. 5, 6.
29 "
In D'Achery's Spicilegium," tomus ix,
21 This is dated
or
" Sancti Bonifacii et Archiepiscopi
January 5th, 747,
during
Martyris Opera quae extant omnia nunc primum in Anglia, ope Codicum Manuscriptorum Edi- tionumque optimarum," in two 8vo vols,
the twenty-eighth year of Constantine's
reign.
22
Little more is known about him, or the nature of his errors.
23 See " Sancti Bonifacii Archiepiscopi et Martyris Opera quae extant omnia," &c, edited by Rev. J. A. Giles, LL. D. , vol. i. , Epist. lxiv. , pp. 147 to 149.
Church History of Brittany," book xxiii. , chap, xxiv. , pp.
English, in Dean Cressy's
612, 613.
26 Of these, John of Trittenhem only could
nor 28 elegant.
1 82 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
[June 5.
Epistles of this holy man are extant 31 and with these have been published a ;
still greater number,32 addressed by Popes, Princes, Bishops, and others to him. However, those letters have not been chronologically arranged, espe- cially in the earlier editions that have been printed. They are all written in
Latin, although the language of the English Saxons, and that of most parts throughout Germany, in his time, were almost identical. 33 Even St. Boniface and his Anglo-Saxon missionaries there hardly stood in need of interpreters.
AnothercollectionofhisEpistleshasbeenpublished. 3* Thesemostclearly
setforththeunselfishnessandpietyofthesaint; allhisactionsanddesigns
beingevidentlydesignedtopromoteGod'sgloryandservice. Dom. Martene
and Dom. Durand have preserved for us highly interesting letters of St.
Boniface. 35 After a careful revision these were again republished by Wurd-
twein. 36 However,additionallettersweretakenfromtwootherManuscripts,
preservedrespectivelyatMayenceandKarlsruhe. 3? TheRev. Dr. Gileshas
devoted the whole of his first volume to the Epistles of St. Boniface and of his
correspondents 38 while he has introduced letters referring to the saint, and ;
placed chronologically, so far as could be accomplished, in a most satisfactory and scholarly manner. This correspondence affords the mostprecious historical evidences, regarding the civil and ecclesiastical state of Germany and of
England,duringhistime; while,wereceivefromitcorrectlights,regarding the inner life of religious houses and the works of their inmates—. 3^ In this
manifests a desire to obtain books correspondence, frequently especially
4°
he —
of a religious character from England. Among others, he entreated
the
Epistles of St. Peter, written in letters of gold, to be sent him, by the Abbess
Edburge. Thesewereintendedtoinspirecarnalmenwithgreatrespectfor
the succours of Heaven. Besides, as St. Peter was the special patron of his
mission, Boniface greatly desired to satisfy his devotion towards that illus-
trious Apostle. Another Tract, intituled "Juramentum Bonifacii quo se
Gregorio II. Papse adstrinxit," is classed among the works of St. Boniface. * 1
It is that our saint edited another " De Pcenitentia. "*2 St. Boni-
said, Tract,
face was an earnest and an eloquent preacher, and he has left behind him, besides his Epistles, nineteen «3 very excellent Sermons,** or Homilies. *5
30 See Sancti Bonifacii " Opera quse ex- tant omnia," &c, vol. ii. , Section Three, pp. 11 to 49.
31 Serarius published a collection of them,
at Mayence, A. D. 1605, in 4to. Thirty-nine of these were written by St. Boniface himself.
39 See Le Comte deMontalembert's " Les
Moines d'Occident," tome v. , liv. xvii. ,
Chapitre Unique, sect, v. , pp. 332 to 334.
*° See Epistola ix. in the collection of
Serarius.
* x See Rev. Dr. Giles Edition, vol. ii. ,
31 One Hundred and Thirteen. The Second Section,
edition of Serrarius was compiled from two
10.
found stadt and at Vienna.
at
" It has been with Spicilegium. " compared,
a Manuscript of the twelfth century belong- ing to the National Library, Paris, and re- printed by Rev. Dr. Giles, in his "Sancti Bonifacii, Opera quse extant omnia," vol. ii. , Fourth Section, p. 51.
* 3 However, in Ceillier's " Histoire Gene- ral des Auteurs Sacres," &c, there are only fifteen sermons, and a summary of their con- tents is there given. See, also, on this subject, Mre. L. Ellies Du Pin's " Nouvelle Biblio-
des Auteurs tome theque Ecclesiastiques,"
vi. , pp. 90 to 94.
** These are published by Dom. Martene
manuscripts,
respectively
Ingold-
33 This has been observed by Verstegan.
34 These numbered 152, in " Bibliotheca Patruum," and they have been copied from the previous edition of Serarius.
35 See " Thesaurus Anecdotum," tomus ix.
"
Also, in Duchesne's
other lnrge publications, there are many in- dividual letters of St. Boniface.
36 A. D. 1789, Magontiaci, in folio.
37 The four used the two Manuscripts by
editors were the only ancient copies of St.
Scriptores," and in
Boniface's letters known to be in existence.
38 "
In many instances, he has corrected the text of St. Boniface and given various read- ings, by aid of a Manuscript, No. 3285 in the Catalogue of the National Library, Paris.
and Durand in their Thesaurus Anecdoto- rum," tomus ix. A great number of St. Boniface's Letters previously unedited are here to be found.
pp. 9,
** This was first printed in D'Achery's
June 5. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 183
These are remarkable for their directness and simplicity, forming a happy con-
trast, with too many laboured compositions of the kind, and they are always full of downright instruction. One of these discourses has reference to the neces- sity of candidly revealing our sins to the priest, in the tribunal of confession. Another, in^plain language, insists on what his rude and paganized auditors had to believe and 6 The series of St. Boniface's
sermons, given by the Rev. Dr. Giles, in the Second Volume of his collected works, contains but fifteen. *? To St. Boniface's hand * 8 has been ascribed that copy of the Gospels,*? written in the cursive Saxon characters, and which is preserved in the public Library at Fulda. Besides these, " Vita et Martyrium S. Livini Episcopi et Martyris,"5° and a Latin Grammar are said to have been composed
practice. *
2 These
him
be attributed to some different writer or writers.
The French and German nobles entrusted this illustrious teacher with the
education of their sons. To this task, he devoted himself with great care and zeal, regarding these pupils as his adopted children. Even several of these he trained to become useful ecclesiastics for the Church of Christ. So early as the year 689, the holy Irish missionaries, St. Kilian, formerly Bishop of Wurtzburg, St. Colman, a Priest, and St. Totnan, a Deacon,53 suffered martyrdom, after they had preached the Gospel in Germany. The lady Geilena had procured their death, and she wished to conceal it, by having their bodies buried in a secret place. These, however, were miraculously discovered, and in the year 752, St. Boniface desired to have them removed to a more honourable place. He ordered them to be disinterred, and he had the sacred remains exposed for the veneration of devout Christians, before they were enshrined in a new sepulchre. 54
It so happened, that the holy Archbishop now felt himself unable from debilitytoattendsynodsandclericalconferences. Wherefore,havingcon- sulted the illustrious King Pepin, he was advised to select an auxiliary bishop,
« A sermon of St. Boniface, on the Saints," tome vi. , ve Jour de Juin, p. 464. Renunciation made of one's self in Baptism, s* This forms the Section Sixth of Rev.
""
occurs, in the Thesaurus Anecdotorum Dr. Giles' edition. It is headed, ^Enigmata
Novissimus," of D. Bernard Pez, tome iii. ,
pars ii. Augsbourg, 1729.
by
;*"
grand poem. *
regarded
as also a
cannot be
latter, however,
with certainty, as the works of St. Boniface, and they must, in all probability,
46 See Rev. S.
the Saints," vol. vi. , June 5, pp. 47, 48.
" Lives of
de Virtutibus quae misit Bonifacius ad Soro- rem suam. " Then follow sub-headings : Fides Catholica, fatur, dixit,
Spes Justitia Veritas ait, Misericordia ait, Patientia ait, Pax vere Christiana, Humilitas Christiana fatetur, Virginitas ait. These are all in Latin Hexameters. See vol. ii. , pp. 109 to 115. This has been published for the first time, date, more recent than the Manuscript and from a Manuscript, kept in the British
Baring-Gould's
v These form the Fifth section of his edi-
tion, pp. 53 to 107.
48 This is stated, in letters of gold on the
last page of this Codex, and these are of a
itself.
4» In i2mo size.
50 This interesting Tract has a Prologue,
commencing with the words, " Bonifacius
homo peccator. " It forms the Seventh Sec-
turn of Rev. Dr. Giles' edition of St. Boni- covered. See Preface, p. 7. ibid.
face's works, vol. ii. , pp. 117 to 141. How- si Their chief Festival is on the 8th of ever, it may be doubted, if this be a genuine
July.
work of our present St. Boniface. See Pre- 54 See Dean Cressy's
Church History of face, p. 7, ibid. According to Dempster, Brittany," book xxiii. , chap, xxv. , pp. 613
the author of this work, published by Surius, to 615.
in his tomus vi. , at Nov. xii. , was thought to ss His feast is celebrated, on the 13th of havebee—n"HucbaldummonachumElmon- August. Atthisdate,somenoticesregard- ensem. "
Scotorum," tomus ii. , lib. xix. , num. 1157,
P- 639.
"Historia
51 See "Les Petits Bollandistes, Vies des
willbe in a volume inghim found, subsequent
Ecclesiastica
Gentis
Museum. This Poem is imperfect at the
"
end, but most probably only a few of the lines are wanting, as the addresses of nine out of the ten virtues are remaining, while those lines missing may possibly be re-
of this work.
ss His festival is kept, on the 14th of
October.
1 84 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [June 5.
to share with him the duties of ministration. Chiefest among the disciples ofBonifacewereWigbert5S orWictbercht,Burchard,*6 andLullus.