Bishop of Lindisfarne was born in
Ireland and died in 651 AD. He is also known as Aeda or Aedan (in old Irish).
Saint Aidan is said to have been a disciple of Saint Senan (f.d. March 8) on Scattery
Island, but nothing else is known with certainty of his early life before he
became a monk of Iona.
He was well received by Kind
Oswald, who had lived in exile among the Irish monks of Iona and had requested
monks to evangelize his kingdom. The first missionary, Corman, was unsuccessful
because of the roughness of his methods, so Aidan was sent to replace him.
Oswald bestowed the isle of Lindisfarne (Holy Island) on Aidan for his
episcopal seat and his diocese reached from the Forth to the Humber.
By his actions he showed that he
neither sought nor loved the things of this world; the presents which were
given to him by the king or other rich men he distributed among the poor. He
rarely attended the king at table, and never without taking with him one or two
of his clergy, and always afterwards made haste to get away and back to his
work.
The centre of his activity was
Lindisfarne, off the coast of Northumberland, between Berwick and Bamburgh.
Here he established a monastery under the Rule of Saint Columcille; it was not
improperly been called the English Iona, for from it the paganism of
Northumbria was gradually dispelled and barbarian customs undermined. The
community was not allowed to accumulate wealth; surpluses were applied to the
needs of the poor and the manumission of slaves. From Lindisfarne Aidan made
journeys on foot throughout the diocese, visiting his flock and establishing
missionary centres.
Aidan’s apostolate was advanced
by numerous miracles according to Saint Bede, who wrote his biography. It was
also aided by the fact that Aidan preached in Irish and the king provided the
translation. Saint Aidan took to this monastery 12 English boys to be raised
there, and he was indefatigable in tending to the welfare of children and
slaves, for the manumission of many of whom he paid from alms bestowed on him.
King Saint Oswald assisted his
bishop in every possible way until his death in battle against the pagan King
Penda in 642. A beautiful story preserved by Saint Bede tells that Oswald was
sittings at dinner one Easter day, Saint Aidan at his side, when he was told a
great crowd of poor people were seeking alms at the gate. Taking massive silver
dish, he loaded it with meat from his own table and ordered it distributed
amongst the poor, and ordered the silver dish to be broken in fragments, and
those too distributed to them. Aidan, Bede says, took hold of the king’s right
hand, saying “Let this hand never decay!” His blessing was fulfilled. After
Oswald’s death his incorrupt right arm was preserved as a sacred relic.
Oswald’s successor, Saint Oswin,
also supported Aidan’s apostolate and when in 651, Oswin was murdered in
Gilling, Aidan survived him only 11 days. He died at the royal castle of
Bamburgh, which he used as a missionary centre, leaning against a wall of the
church where a tent had been erected to shelter him. He was first buried in the
cemetery of Lindisfarne, but when the new church of Saint Peter was finished,
his body was translated into the sanctuary.
Saint Bede highly praises the
Irish Aidan who did so much to bring the Gospel to his Anglo-Saxon brothers.
“He neither sought nor loved anything of this world, but delighted in
distributing immediately to the poor whatever was given him by kings or rich
men of the world. He traversed both town and country on foot, never on
horseback, unless compelled by some urgent necessity. Wherever on his way he
saw any, either rich or poor, he invited them, if pagans, to embrace the
mystery of the faith; or if they were believers, he sought to strengthen them
in their faith and stir them up by words and actions to alms and good works.”
He wrote that Saint Aidan “was a
man of remarkable gentleness, goodness, and moderation, zealous for God; but
not fully according to knowledge…” By which Bede means that he followed and
taught the liturgical and disciplinary customs of the Celtic Christians, which
differed from those of Continental Christianity. Montague notes that one effort
of Anglo-Saxon education being conducted by Irish monks was that English
writing was distinguished by its Irish orthography. Aidan brought to Ireland
the custom of Wednesday and Friday fasts.[1]
[1]
‘Saint Aidan’, Bulletin of Spiritual
Edification, Archdiocese of Thyateira and Great Britain, 31 August 2014,
No. 1351.