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ST WILFRID, Bishop, 634-709AD
Born to a wealthy family in Northumberland, Wilfrid was second generation
Christian.
Although the native Britons were mainly Christians when Roman influence
waned in the 5th Century, waves of Anglo-Saxons had invaded and brought
their Pagan gods. This was also a time of struggle for dominance within
the Church between the Irish/Scottish Celtic Christianity and the Roman
tradition.
Wilfrid had an interest in the things of God from a young age and went to
study in Lindisfarne, a centre of Celtic Christianity, under St Aidan. Immediately he set about restoring the Cathedral and other churches in the diocese. He provided funds for their upkeep and soon had amassed a great fortune for the Church and incidentally the only link with the Lancashire side of the Pennines as he owned much land in the Ribble Valley. Wilfrid loved a good show and though he lived modestly without personal excess he presided over many a magnificent celebrations and some feasts that went on for three days solid. His fortune and growing power earned the jealously and fear of the secular powers. Egfrid, the King of Northumberland, had taken a dislike to Wilfrid when the latter had supported the wishes of Egfrid's wife to remain consecrated to God and withhold conjugal rights. (She was a widow when she married and was many years older than the king) The chance for revenge came in 678, Egfrid called up the Archbishop of Canterbury when Wilfrid was away doing a spot of missionary work. The King suggested that York was too large a diocese and for its better running should be split up. The Archbishop agreed as the proposal had much to commend it pastorally. But upon his return Wilfrid, finding his diocese now shrunk was livid and went off to Rome to complain. A combination of relatively slow transport, keeping out of the way of enemies and the enjoyment of Continental ways of life Wilfrid again took a while. It was two years before Wilfrid was back in England, vindicated by Rome. He was accepted back into his somewhat smaller diocese, but only for a while. Egfrid soon banished him, so Wilfrid, not being a man to waste his time in lamenting his misfortune, went off to do missionary work with the Saxons. In 681 Wilfrid came to Bosham (Bosanhamm) where he came across Dicul and his monks and whereupon the Venerable Bede records the conversion to Christianity of our forefathers! A year after the death of Egfrid in 685, Wilfrid returned to take up York. He remained in power for five years, after which he was banished by the new king who felt Wilfrid was getting too uppity. In 703 Wilfrid, now aged 69, again travelled to Rome to complain. Again he was vindicated and three years later took up the Archbishopric York for the last three years of his life. Source: St Wilfrids Catholic Church, Preston. Lancs.
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St Wilfred
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