Augustine is sometimes called the “Apostle of England.” In the year 596, Fr. Augustine left his quiet life as a monk in Rome to lead a group of monks to preach the Gospel in England. England was a very uncivilized place in those days. It was ruled by tribes of Anglo-Saxons who were brutal and cruel. The monks were also worried about crossing the rough waters in the English Channel. They decided it would be safer to return to Rome.
Augustine went to explain the situation to Pope Gregory the Great. The two men were friends. The pope convinced Augustine to try again.
Augustine and his monks landed in Kent. They were greeted by the pagan king, Ethelbert, who was married to a Christian. Ethelbert found them a place to live. Within a few years, Ethelbert responded to the message Augustine preached and was baptized. Many of his subjects, too, became followers of Christ.
In time Pope Gregory consecrated Augustine as a bishop of France, but in later years, Augustine was assigned again to England. He returned to Canterbury and made it the center of the diocese. He oversaw the construction of a church and a monastery.
Augustine was not always successful in his efforts to spread Christianity through all of England. The original Christians who fled to the Western part of the country to escape the Anglo-Saxons had fallen back to their pagan ways. It was very hard to get them to reconcile with their conquerors, even though they were now Christians. Augustine never gave up. He believed that unity that the two groups would one day be united in their love for God and their neighbor.
The Church honors Augustine of Canterbury as a saint. His work among the English is an example of how the Holy Spirit works through us and the Church. We see evidence of this in Augustine’s patience and faithfulness. We pray that these fruits of the Holy Spirit will grow within us, too.
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