St Paulinus

From Italy to Northumbria to bring Good News

Image of St Paulinus at Bishopthorpe Palace Chapel

‘He was a tall man, with a slight stoop, black hair, a thin face, and a slender curved nose. At the same time, he was both venerable and awe-inspiring in appearance.’

This vivid, eyewitness description of Paulinus comes from one of the ‘great crowd of people’ he baptised in the cold waters of the River Trent in the late 620s, with King Edwin of NorthumbriaEdwin of Northumbria (c.583-633) King of Northumbria. His marriage to Ethelburga, a Christian princess of the Kingdom of Kent in 625, who brought her chaplain Paulinus with her, was followed in 627 by his baptism in York in a specially-constructed baptistery. He appointed Paulinus Bishop of York, and made his kingdom officially Christian. His defeat and death at Heathenfield on 12 October 633 at the hands of the pagan kings Penda and Cadwallon led to his kingdom being broken up. His feast day is 12 October. watching on.  

A stone chair inside a stone columned building with marble tablet behind it
Chair of St Gregory in RomeRome This Italian city was the capital of the Roman Empire and, with the primacy accorded to the bishops of Rome (the popes), the centre of the Western Church from the late-Antique period onwards. Rome was not only the administrative centre, but an important source of innovation, relics and liturgy. Missionaries from Rome played an important role in the conversion of Anglo-Saxon England from late 6th century onward.. Photo credit: Fr Lawrence OP
Chair of St Gregory in Rome. Photo credit: Fr Lawrence OP

In all, this monkMonk Member of male religious community from Italy served the Church in Anglo-Saxon England for forty-three years. He was sent by PopePope Head of the medieval church in the West. Used as a title preceding the name of the Bishop of Rome, the head of the Roman Catholic Church Gregory I from Rome to Kent in 601 to help St Augustine in his missionMission 1. A group of people sent out to share religious faith. 2. The task of sharing faith.. After long service in Kent, Paulinus was dispatched to NorthumbriaNorthumbria Northumbria was an early medieval Anglian kingdom in what is now Northern England and South Scotland. as bishopBishop Bishops exercised pastoral care over a diocese and authority to confirm and ordain to bring the ChristianChristian Name originally given to disciples of Jesus by outsiders and gradually adopted by the Early Church to designate all members of the church. faithFaith 1. Belief and trust in someone or something. 2. Acceptance of particular religious teachings. to Edwin and his kingdom. This was a tough assignment, but Paulinus threw himself into his task. After much deliberation, Edwin decided to follow Christ and was baptised at YorkYork 1. A Roman city and early centre of Christianity. 2. Diocese and province under the leadership of the Archbishop of York..

By this time, Paulinus was probably approaching sixty. However, the historian BedeBede, the Venerable (c.673-735) Anglo-Saxon historian and biblical scholar. Sent to study at the monastery of Wearmouth at seven; later transferred to Jarrow. Renowned in his lifetime for his learning, Bede wrote treatises on poetry, time and cosmography. Historical works include History of the Abbots, prose and verse versions of the Life of St Cuthbert and Ecclesiastical History of the English People. shows him travelling far and wide across Edwin’s kingdom to preach and to baptise all who responded. We have snapshots of Paulinus spending thirty-six days teaching and baptising ‘the crowds who flocked to him’ in the River Glen near King Edwin’s Palace at YeaveringYeavering Residence of early Northumbrian kings where, according to Bede, Paulinus carried out baptisms in 627 in the presence of King Edwin., as well as baptising in the River Swale near Catterick.He built a church near Dewsbury, which still contains examples of Anglo-Saxon sculpture, and another ‘of remarkable workmanship’ in Lincoln. Seventh-century stone crosses which may have been associated with his preaching still stand at Whalley and near Clitheroe in Lancashire, and near Todmorden in West Yorkshire.  

When, after Edwin’s death in battle, Paulinus had to take the Queen and her children to safety back in Kent, he took on the vacant role of Bishop of Rochester until his death in 644

An old stone cross standing upright on a stone plinth. It has a pattern carved into the stone of swirls joined together
Whalley CrossCross Instrument of torture and execution used in the Roman Empire. The means by which Christ was put to death and therefore the primary symbol of the Christian faith, representing the means by which he is believed to have won forgiveness for humankind. The Cross may be represented as Tau-shaped (like a capital T); with a shorter cross-bar or with a circle enclosing the upper intersection (Celtic). In medieval art a cross made of living branches signifies the Tree of Life. St Helena, mother of the Emperor Constantine, is said to have discovered the True Cross (i.e. the Cross in Jerusalem on which Christ died) in 326.
Whalley Cross

 

Drawing of reconstruction of Yeavering Anglo-Saxon royal township around 627
Reconstruction of Yeavering Anglo-Saxon royal township around 627. Credit Historic England.
Reconstruction of Yeavering Anglo-Saxon royal township around 627. Credit Historic England.

Paulinus’ life

Paulinus was a monk vowed to obedience, but it must have taken considerable courage and adaptability to come from Rome to Britain and spend the rest of his life moving from one kingdom to another to spread the Christian faith. His very significant contribution to the history of Northumbria began in 625 when he was made bishop to the Northumbrians and sent North with Aethelburg, daughter of the Christian king of Kent, on her marriage to King Edwin. This strategic dynastic alliance had clear implications for the spread of the Christian message. importantly, that he would consider it for himself and his kingdom.  For Paulinus, this was therefore not just about a marriage but a vast new mission field. Bede says that his ‘whole heart’ was set on calling the Northumbrians to an experience of ‘graceGrace 1. The undeserved favour of God, given to enable an individual to grow spiritually.2. A prayer of thanksgiving said before meals. and faith.’ Paulinus was accompanied by James the DeaconDeacon An ordained minister who ranks immediately below a priest in the hierarchy of the Church.

‘Paulinus saw that it was difficult for the king’s proud mind to turn humbly to the way of salvationSalvation The teaching that God became a human being in the person of Jesus Christ and offered himself to die on the cross in order to save men and women from their sins. There were a variety of interpretations of the doctrine of the Atonement (that is, the reconciliation of mankind to God through the death of Christ). Origen (c.185-254) viewed Christ's death as a ransom paid to Satan, who had acquired rights over man through the Fall of Humankind; but this interpretation was later largely superseded by that of St Anselm (c.1033-1109), who taught that Christ died to take the punishment due to human sin, thus paying the debt owed to God and appeasing his righteous anger and accept the mystery of the life-giving Cross, yet he continued to work for the salvation of the king and the people he ruled.’

Bede, ‘History of the English Church and People’ II. 12 

It took a lot of persuasion and perseverance to bring Edwin and his advisers to accept the Christian faith and the eventual breakthrough came in stages. In 626, Paulinus baptised the king’s baby daughter Eanflaed. Next Edwin consulted his council. Coifi, the paganPagan Derived from Latin paganus, the Roman term for a rural dweller, this word came to be applied to those who were not Christian, particularly the followers of the classical religion of Greece and Rome and those who followed the pre-Christian religions of Europe high priest, was so moved by Paulinus’ words that he rode to Goodmanham and destroyed the pagan shrineShrine In origin a Germanic word meaning a chest or reliquary, this term describes something which contains a sacred object. It can thus be applied to an elaborate tomb around the body of a saint, a cabinet containing a relic or to the whole architectural complex where such a body or relic rest and idols there.

Portion of stained glass window of man in hooded robe, with the name Coifi above him
Stained glass image of Coifi, All Hallows Church, Goodmanham. Copyright Roger Walton
Stained glass image of Coifi, All Hallows Church, Goodmanham. Copyright Roger Walton

Finally, Edwin himself was baptised at Easter 627 in a hastily built small wooden church in York. Paulinus was established as bishop there and Edwin began construction of ‘a greater and more magnificent church of stone’ under his guidance. Before its completion, however, Edwin was killed in battle against the pagan king of Mercia in 633. The rest of the royal family were now also in danger, so Paulinus escorted them to Kent, leaving James the Deacon to continue the mission in Northumbria.

Pope Honorius recognised the ground-breaking work Paulinus had done by appointing him ArchbishopArchbishop Bishop who also presides over a group of dioceses or provinces. of York. Unfortunately, by the time the pope’s message reached Northumbria, together with the palliumPallium A woollen Y-shaped stole given by the Pope to denote elevation to an archbishopric (the accompanying badge of office), Paulinus was already in Kent. The appointment lapsed and York did not finally become an archbishopric until 735. Paulinus served as Bishop of Rochester until his death on 10th October 644. His life and work are still celebrated each year on the anniversary of his death.

Old painting of a tonsured seated scribe, probably Bede, writing.
Bede shown as a scribe in ‘The Life of St CuthbertCuthbert, St (d. 687) Celtic monk and hermit. Bishop of Lindisfarne 685.,’ Yates Thompson MS 26 f002r. Courtesy of the British Library Archive
Bede shown as a scribe in ‘The Life of St Cuthbert,’ Yates Thompson MS 26 f002r. Courtesy of the British Library Archive

St Bede

Cuthbert preaching to people from a village. From Bede’s Life of Cuthbert, MS Yates Thompson 26 f.22v. Courtesy British Library.
Cuthbert preaching to people from a village. From Bede’s Life of Cuthbert, MS Yates Thompson 26 f.22v. Courtesy British Library.

St Cuthbert

St_Hild monument in WhitbyWhitby 1. A monastery was founded in Northumbria in 656 by Oswry, Christian king of Northumbria. The first abbess was Hild or Hilda. 2. Also see Synod of Whitby.. Credit Wilson 44691, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons cr
St_Hild monument in Whitby. Credit Wilson 44691, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons cr

St Hild

St Wilfrid
St Wilfrid

St Wilfrid