St Cuthbert, Praying and Doing

Yesterday, on March 20^th, the Church celebrated Saint Cuthbert. Nowhere more so than the North East of England where Cuthbert came to faith, ministered to people during a difficult time in the life of the Church and led people to deepen their love for God and discover more clearly God’s love for them.

His ministry did not end with his birthday in heaven. The Holy Island of Lindisfarne off the North East coast near Bamburgh remains a centre of pilgrimage and prayerful inspiration to this day. The amazing and richly beautiful Lindisfarne Gospels, created in his honour, are still regarded as one of the most stunning illustrated Gospels alongside the Book of Kells. They can still be  seen in the British Library though there is a facsimile in the museum on Holy Island and it’s much more accessible and actually fun to see it in situ. There are of course many printed versions.
The Gospel was the offering of Lindisfarne monks to God as a thanksgiving for all that Cuthbert had illuminated the world with his faith, Gospel love and prayer. Things that he shared with all the people he met.
When the Vikings raised the East Coast of England, the monks took the Gospel alongside other artifacts of Cuthbert to safety on a journey which took a very long time. This was to lead eventually to Durham where the story of Cuthbert continues.

His first journey in faith was very different.

Long before, above the Lammermuir hills bright light in the borders of England and Scotland a light  brightened the night sky and attracted the attention of a young shepherd boy.  A vision came to him of a holy soul being taken by angels to heaven.  Next morning, he heard that the great St Aidan of Lindisfarne had died.  The boy, Cuthbert, was moved to go his local monastery at Melrose and seek instruction in order to become a monk.  the story of one of the greatest English saints was born.  St Cuthbert was to serve God at Melrose, Ripon and Lindisfarne.  He was, for a time, Bishop of Lindisfarne.

Cuthbert’s real fame was amongst ordinary people to whom he took the Gospel.  Travelling with a portable altar he crossed and criss-crossed Northern England from the Solway to the Tyne.  He encouraged Christians in Cumbria, North Yorkshire, Durham and Northumbria.  He was a tireless missionary for God.  He was also a focus of unity when the Church split after an argument about when and how Easter was to be kept (amongst other things).  The Celtic party lost to the Roman one at a Synod of Whitby in 664AD.  Many of the Celtic monks returned to Ireland and the church was in total disarray.  It fell to Cuthbert and his spiritual companion, St Hilda, to hold the broken church in love and prayer and bring healing and a new unity.  Eventually he retreated to the Inner Farne Islands, where on this day, 20th March in the year 687, he died. 

When, after the Viking raids, the Body of St. Cuthbert was carried by the monks of Lindisfarne to safety, the journey was long and arduous. It involved a stay in Chester-le-Street and a journey over the Cleveland Hills now known as the Lyke Wake Walk or Coffin Walk.

An account of the final part of the journey is to be found in a ‘History of the Church in Durham’ by a medieval monk, Symeon.
He describes the arrival of the shrine at a place on the east side of what is now the city of Durham. The vehicle on which it rested could not be moved and the bishop directed his monks “that they should solicit an explanation of this sign from heaven by a fast of three days, which should be spent in watching and prayer, in order that they might discover where they should take their abode along with the holy body of the father”. This was done and Symeon goes on to relate that “a revelation was made to a certain religious person named Eadmer, to the purport that they were required to remove the body to Durham and prepare a suitable resting place for it”. This resting place was found when the monks were led to a place called Dun Cow Hill Durham), where a wooden cathedral was built to house the remains.  This simple church was eventually replaced by the great Norman Cathedral of Durham, where, today, under a simple slab with the word Cuthbertus ,his body still lies.

An active missionary for God, Cuthbert’s strength lay in his personal communion with God.  He was one of those busy saints who, in the words of Cardinal Basil Hume, was always nostalgic for the desert when busy in the market place.  Like the Lord he followed, he would withdraw to be alone with God.  Often this meant that he had to steal away in the middle of the night.  Once, when he stood in the sea near St Abbs Head, a monk spied on him.  all night Cuthbert stood in the Cross position of prayer, arms outstretched as he gazed on God.  In the morning, when he came ashore, sea otters followed him.  They wrapped themselves round his legs and warmed his frozen feet.  Then, after a blessing, they returned to the sea. 

When busy on Lindisfarne, Cuthbert would steal away to a piece of land which was cut of from the main island at high tide. It’s known today as Cuddy’s Isle. A cross stands where a little cell used to be.  For six hours he could enjoy solitude for prayer.   He ended his life as a hermit on the Farne Islands.
His life of busyness and the mission he carried out, were only possible because he forced out time (often against all odds) to be still before God.  Great things in the name of Jesus can only be achieved when they are backed up by real prayer.  Only when we attend to our praying will our ‘doing’ have any effect. 
It’s a lesson worth re-learning.

[Mr G]– with a lot of help from the Venerable Bede,
Simeon of Durham, the spirit of the North East,
the witness of Durham Cathedral and the sanctified knowledge of Kate Tristram.