Subj : November 7th - St. Willibrord To : All From : rich Date : Wed Nov 06 2019 07:55:18 From: rich November 7th - St. Willibrord (658-739) In the sixth century Irish monks like St. Columban began to carry the gospel to the pagan nations of Germany. A century later, Anglo-Saxon monks from England, inspired by the Irish missionary tradition, began to follow suit. St. Willibrord, born to Anglo-Saxon parents in northern England, became the first of the host of English missionaries. He had joined the Benedictine monks at Ripon, England at an early age. It is interesting to note that he was then sent to a monastery in Ireland for his education. Two years after his ordination to the priesthood in 688 AD, Willibrord was commissioned by his abbot to go with 11 others to work among the Germanic pagans in Frisia, now a part of Holland. When Willibrord seemed to be failing in Friesland, he sought the aid of the Frankish Christian leader Pepin of Heristal. Pepin sent him to Rome to ask the pope for official authorization to labor in the Netherlands. On his return to the Low Countries, he fared better, so on a second trip to Rome in 695, Pope Sergius I consecrated him bishop of Utrecht, giving him the Latin name =E2=80=9CClement.=E2=80=9D Clement/Willibrord now set up= his seat at Utrecht and began a series of missionary journeys. In 698 he established a monastery at Echternach in the present Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. He even moved up into Denmark, but there he had no permanent success. Probably he was able to speak intelligibly to all these peoples because the Anglo-Saxon tongue in those days was rather close to that spoken in the Netherlands. Willibrord was a bold apostle when he knew that boldness was called for. Once he was driven by a storm to the island of Heligoland, which the Danes and Frisians revered as a pagan sanctuary. Pagan law forbade visitors to kill any living creature, eat any produce, or draw water from the central spring without keeping absolute silence. To counter this superstition, Willibrord killed some animals for his companions to eat, and baptized those persons in the sacred fountain pronouncing the words very loudly. When the pagans saw that the Christians did not drop dead, they were, to say the least, puzzled. They asked their pagan ruler Radbod. He said they should avenge their god by killing one of Willibrord's companions. They obeyed. Also, when at Walchere= n, Willibrord toppled a pagan idol. The pagan priest of the shrine tried to kill him, but Willibrord escaped and got back safe to Utrecht. In 715 Radbod regained part of Frisia taken away by the Christian Franks, and destroyed much of what Willibrord had accomplished there. But when Radbod died in 719, the missionary took up again, with the backing of Charles Martel. The Frankish monk-missionary worked with Willibrord for a while before going to Germany proper to establish the faith. Thus, Willibrord/Clement, a comely, cheerful, prayerful and zealous monk, became the =E2=80=9CApostle of the Frisians.=E2=80=9D Eventually, St; Willibrord retired to the monastery of Echternach. After he died there at the age of 91, his tomb became (as it remains) a center of pilgrimage. Ever since at least 1553 AD, pilgrims to his shrine on each Thursday after Pentecost, have taken part in a =E2=80=9Cdancing procession=E2=80=9D = to the monastery church. Participants (bishops and priests or religious as well as lay persons) form a procession four or five abreast, with arms joined or holding on to each other by handkerchiefs. They move in a sort of dancing motion =E2=80=93 three steps forward and two steps back, to the special music of a band. The ceremony ends with a Eucharistic exposition and benediction at the shrine. However unusual, this procession is dignified. It is now performed as a penitential exercise interceding for those suffering epilepsy and other nervous maladies. Those who take part in the procession are called the Springende Heiligen: the =E2=80=9CDancing Saints.=E2=80=9D We usually think of prayer as an exercise just of the mind and heart. But can we not pray with our bodies, too? Bowing the head, striking the breast, blessing oneself, kneeling, prostrating, are all acceptable forms of prayerful =E2=80=9Cbody language.=E2=80=9D The =E2=80= =9CSpringende Heiligen=E2=80=9D of Echternach remind us that procession and dancing can a= lso be made a prayer. Willibrord must enjoy it!! =E2=80=93Father Robert Reflection: Humility is a grand, a stirring thing, the exalting paradox of Christianity, and the sad want of it in our own time is, we believe, what really makes us think life dull, like a cynic, instead of marvellous, like a child. Saint Quote: Our Lord Jesus has given light to all men, but those who do not trust in Him bring darkness upon themselves. --St. Thalassios the Libyan <><><><> Meditation =C2 =C2 Gently breathe in God's spirit, that spirit which, if not barr= ed out by selfishness, will enable you to do good works. This means rather that God will be enabled to do good works through you. You can become a channel for God's spirit to flow through you and into the lives of others. The works that you can do will only be limited by your spiritual development. Let your spirit be in harmony with God's spirit and there is no limit to what you can do in the realm of human relationships. --- NewsGate v1.0 gamma 2 * Origin: News Gate @ Net396 -Huntsville, AL - USA (1:396/4) .