1 HIEROMARTYR ALPHEGE, ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY St.

Alphege was born in 954 of pious parents, who soon handed him over to be instructed in literature and the Christian Faith. Seeking a more total commitment, however, the saint abandoned his paternal inheritance and, ignoring his mother s tears, entered the monaster! of "eerhurst in #loucestershire, whose ancient church survives to the present da!. $here, while still an adolescent, he e%celled in pra!er, vigil, fasting and charit!. Some !ears later, he went to &ath and built for himself a small cell in which he lived the life of a hermit with the strictest asceticism. Soon certain nobles started coming to him for confession and spiritual advice. As his fame increased, donations poured in ' which he immediatel! gave to the poor. (thers left the world and sought to live the monastic life under his direction) and so St. "unstan appointed him abbot of a small monaster!, although he had no desire for such a position. (n becoming abbot, however, he did not slacken his ascetic wa! of life, and continued to live in his little cell. *e appointed a suitable overseer to suppl! the material needs of the monaster!, but decided all important matters himself. $he saint warned his monks that their condemnation would be the greater if, while professing to be monks and wearing the monastic habit, the! continued to live like men of the world. &ut this did not prevent them from indulging in secret nocturnal feasts and orgies. (ne night, however, the leader of the revels was suddenl! struck dead in the middle of a feast. $he saint was, as usual, offering up tearful pra!ers to #od when he heard loud voices coming from the monaster!. $hinking that thieves had broken in, or that the brethren were being disturbed b! some demonic ruse, he came closer. $hen he saw two terrible and foul'looking men beating the man who had +ust died with whips and flaming serpents. $o his pathetic pleas for merc! the! replied, -.ou did not obe! #od, so neither shall we obe! !ou.After repeating this several times, the! dragged their captive awa!. /n 904, the bishop of 1inchester, St. 2thelwold, reposed in peace. /mmediatel! a dissension arose as to who should succeed him. St. "unstan, the archbishop of Canterbur!, was pra!ing about this when the hol! Apostle Andrew appeared to him and said, -1h! are !ou sad, beloved3 1h! do !ou tearfull! pour out such

2 mournful complaints3 4ise, and place !our hand on Abbot Alphege) and when !ou have anointed him with hol! oil make him the bishop of the widowed Church. And do not allow an! power to stop !ou) for this decision has issued, not from a man, but from the mouth of Almight! #od. And lest / should leave !ou in an! doubt as to the identit! of the man speaking with !ou, / am Andrew, the apostle of the Son of #od and the most loving guardian of !our salvation."unstan +o!full! told this vision to 5ing 2thelred, and when a council had been convened ever!one cried out that the! wishes what #od wishes and what #od s archbishop should decide. $hen two bishops, one on either side, led the bishop'elect into the church to the acclaim of the people. -6an! !ears7- the! cried. And then he was consecrated. $his took place on (ctober 89. /mmediatel! after the consecration, the saint set out to visit his new see. $he citi9ens came out to meet him, chanting, -&lessed is he that cometh in the name of the :ord7*e was enthroned in St. 2thelwold s cathedral in 1inchester on (ctober ;0. At 1inchester, as at "eerhurst and &ath, St. Alphege was distinguished b! his charit! to others and severit! to himself. At night he would go out to pra!, barefoot and thinl! clad even in the coldest weather. And his bod! was so emaciated b! fasting that, as man! people noticed, his hands when uplifted seemed almost transparent. At the same time, he attended so carefull! to the needs of the poor that it was said that there were no beggars in 1inchester during his episcopate. And man! were the miracles wrought through his intercession. Among his good works was his confirmation <the western e=uivalent of chrismation> of the ?orwegian 5ing (laf $r!gvasson, who had been ravaging the countr!side. After being confirmed, 5ing (laf promised the bishop never to return to 2ngland with warlike intent. *e then returned to his native land and converted them to the Christian Faith with the aid of 2nglish bishops and priests. (n hearing the fame of Alphege s hol! preaching and life, St. "unstan re+oiced and pra!ed to #od that this man, !oung as he was <onl! thirt! at the time of his consecration> would succeed him in the primatial see of Canterbur!. And his pra!er was granted, though not immediatel! but onl! eighteen !ears after his own death in 900. For in 8@@5, on the death of Archbishop Aelfric, St. Alphege was translated from 1inchester to Canterbur! at the age of fift!'two.

3 A few da!s later, the saint set out for 4ome to receive the archbishop s pallium from the Aope. *e entered a town +ust inside /tal! and rested for a while. &ut the citi9ens, noticing that the! had a stranger in their midst, broke into his house and stole all his goods, driving him out with blows and insults. 1ith admirable e=uanimit!, the saint set out on his return +ourne!. *e had not gone far when the town s ramparts suddenl! caught fire, showering burning ashes on the neighbouring houses and threatening the citi9ens with destruction. $he! rushed out into the streets and watched helplessl! as the flames rose higher and spread further. $hen, coming to their senses, the! reali9ed that the fire was #od s vengeance on them for their maltreatment of the hol! man. $he! rushed after him and tearfull! begged him to return. -:et us return,- he said, -that we ma! see the fire from closer =uarters.1hen he saw the fire, his e!es filled with tears and he pra!ed to #od. Suddenl! the flames were suspended in mid'air, and the fire which had spread through man! houses was found outside the town walls. 4ecogni9ing the author of the miracle, the townspeople flowed out to him like a stream with gifts in their hands. &ut Alphege replied, -5eep what is !ours) / am satisfied with m! own things. (nl! do not cast out strangers from !our homes. 4eceive all who come to !ou and look after them. #od dwells in good men, and therefore it is good for one person to receive another in whom #od dwells. &ut if !our estimate turns out to be mistaken, and the man whom !ou considered to be religious is found to be the opposite, !ou will not lose !our reward. For #od honours the good intention.Finall!, the saint arrived in 4ome and sought an audience with the Aope. $he! spoke together, and the Aope came to love him so much that he honoured him publicl! in the presence of the 4oman Senate. (ne da!, the saint was saddened in countenance. Surprised at this, his companions came to him, one after the other, seeking the reason for his grief. -?o'one,- he said, -will see me happ! toda!) for he who succeeded me at 1inchester has died.$his was difficult to believe, since no'one had come with news from 2ngland. &ut on the other hand, it was eas! to believe) for the saint had never been known to lie. $he Aope and the Archbishop said goodb!e to each other and parted, both +o!ful and sad. And when Alphege had alread! crossed the Alps, a group of 2nglish nobilit! on the wa! to 4ome came up to him and, in answer to his in=uir!, said that the bishop of 1inchester had died on the ver! da!

4 <his companions noted> on which the saint had been so sad. $he news of this further demonstration of the saint s supernatural gifts spread throughout 2ngland. $he nation s morale was at a ver! low ebb when the saint returned. $he "anes were ravaging the land with fire and sword, and the tribute offered them b! the king onl! seemed to increase their greed. "esertions from the arm! were commonplace) and sometimes even noblemen with their ships +oined the other side. $he king with his councillors, including St. Alphege, passed laws strengthening ecclesiastical discipline and penali9ing traitors, with the death penalt! ordained for those who should plot against the king s life. And in 8@@0 the archbishop and his s!nod proclaimed the da! of the mart!rdom of 5ing 2dward, the king s half'brother, a national feastda! ' another clear warning to potential traitors and king'killers. *owever, the sad stor! continued, with indecision, incompetence and treacher! the order of the da!. $hus -when the enem! was in the east,- bemoaned $he Anglo'Sa%on Chronicle, -then our levies were mustered in the west) and when the! were in the south, then our levies were in the north. $hen all the councillors were summoned to the king, for a plan for the defence of the realm had to be devised then and there. &ut whatever course of action was decided upon it was not followed for a single month. /n the end there was no leader who was willing to raise levies, but each fled as =uickl! as he could) nor even in the end would one shire help another.$he upshot of all this was that in 8@8B 5ing 2thelred was forced to go into e%ile through the treacher! of his sub+ects. 2ven worse, perhaps, than this was the treacher! which led to the death of St. Alphege the !ear before. $he stor! was as follows. /n the autumn of 8@88 the "anes besieged Canterbur! and sacked it. $he! were helped, on the one hand, b! Abbot 2lfmar of Canterbur!, who, though he owed his life to St. Alphege, now turned against him and his fellow citi9ens) and, on the other, b! Alderman 2dric Streona of 6ercia. 2dric had come to be involved in the sack of Canterbur! through his brother, a proud and cruel man who slandered the nobilit! of Canterbur! in the king s presence and then violentl! burned their inheritance. &ut the! rose up and killed him, burning down his house. 2dric demanded vengeance from the king for his brother s death) but the king refused, sa!ing that his brother had been +ustl! punished. $hen 2dric, determined to avenge his brother, collected an arm! of ten thousand well'armed men. 4eali9ing, however, that these forces were insufficient, he came to an agreement with the "anes whereb!, in e%change for their help,

5 the! would retain the north of 2ngland in the case of victor! while he held the south. 6eanwhile, St. Alphege had been preaching, redeeming captives, feeding the hungr! and even converting man! of the invaders. $his was another reason wh! the "anes were eager to unite with 2dric against the men of Canterbur!. And as the! approached the cit! from Sandwich, the people fled to the cathedral, convinced that the! were safe there. $he nobilit!, meanwhile, urged St. Alphege to flee. &ut he refused, sa!ing that he had no intention of being a hireling. $hen he gathered the people together and e%horted them to have courage and patience, setting before them the triumphs of the mart!rs. Finall!, having blessed them and communicated them in the *ol! 6!steries, he dismissed them in peace, commending them all to the protection of #od. $he enem! came and laid siege to the cit!. (n the twentieth da!, the saint sent to the "anes, e%horting them to desist from their purpose and warning them that when a father wishes to beat his sons, he afterwards throws the stick into the fire. /n a similar wa! #od would punish the "anes even after using them to chasti9e the 2nglish. &ut the 2nglish traitors under 2dric were onl! the more incited to cruelt! b! the sight of their fellow countr!men s distress. $he! set fire to the houses, and soon, fanned b! a strong south wind, the fire spread ever!where. $orn between whether to sta! on the ramparts and defend the cit!, or rush down to their houses, the citi9ens finall! chose the latter course. And soon the! were dragging beloved wives and children out of the burning houses ' onl! to see them immediatel! cut down b! the swords of the enem!. For now that the ramparts were unguarded the! were able <with Abbot 2lfmar s help> to enter unhindered, with such a terrible clamour of trumpets and voices that it seemed as if the cit! were being shaken to its foundations. -?o'one who was not a spectator of that calamit!,- writes the saint s biographer, (sbern of Canterbur!, -would know how to describe the realit! of it, and the wretchedness of its confusion of evils. Some had their throats cut, others perished in the flames, still more were thrown over the walls. (thers, shameful to relate, were hung up b! their private parts and e%pired thus. :adies more distinguished than others b! their nobilit! were dragged through the streets of the cit! because the! could not produce treasures which the! did not possess. Finall! the! were thrown into the flames and died. $he cruelt! was especiall! savage against those under age) while babes were ripped out of their mother s womb or pierced through with spears or crushed to pieces under waggon wheels...

-$he venerable prelate, unable to bear so man! deaths among his spiritual children, suddenl!, while he was surrounded b! a crowd of weeping monks in the church of the Saviour, slipped out of the hands of those restraining him, rushed to a place full of corpses, hurled himself amidst a dense mass of the enem! and with groans cried out, - *ave pit!, have pit!7 And if !ou recogni9e !ourselves to be men, put an end to !our persecution of the innocent7 /nstead of these, take me, who, to increase the Christian people, despoiled !ou of man! a soldier, and who, with unrestrained lips, alwa!s condemned the crimes of !our impiet!7 /nnumerable hands sei9ed him, stopped his mouth, bound his hands, scratched his face with their nails, punched and kicked him in the sides. $he man of #od uttered not a sound, but his lips moved as if he were speaking to #od. $hen he was forced to witness death after death in front of his ver! e!es so that he might suffer ever! torment, whether in his own person or in the persons of those whom he mourned. $hen the "anes came to the cathedral church of $he! set fire to it, and soon molten lead from the roof into the building. Covering their heads with their palls, monks ran out of all the doors of the building, onl! to b! the swords of the soldiers waiting outside. the Saviour. was seeping the weeping be cut down

(ut of the eight thousand inhabitants of Canterbur!, onl! four monks and some eight hundred others survived the sack. $he survivors, after suffering blows and wounds, were either +udged worth! of being ransomed ' these included &ishop #odwin of 4ochester, Abbess :eofrun of St. 6ildred s and all the clerg! e%cept Abbot 2lfmar of St. Augustine s monaster! <not the traitor> ' or were sold into slaver!. $he archbishop had seen his people slaughtered, the cit! burned down and the cathedral church of Christ the Saviour profaned and devastated. ?ow he was bound and dragged through the north gate of the cit!. $here la! the survivors with stocks on their feet and under militar! guard. (n seeing him, the! all groaned and wept and raised their hands to heaven in pra!er. &ut then, as the saint stood strengthening their shattered souls in pra!er, he was given a ferocious blow between the shoulders, so that his shoulder was cut open and blood poured over his whole bod!. 2ven the "anes were horrified. $hen he was led from the cit! to the ships, from the ships to the prison, from the prison to the +udge, and finall! back to the prison, which was dark, narrow and full of frogs. $here he remained under a guard of twelve soldiers for another seven months. $he

7 "anes offered him freedom in e%change for mone! from the Church s patrimon!) but he refused. And so, as Aascha of the !ear 8@8; approached, the saint was still in prison, celebrating the Aassion of Christ as he was able, in humilit! and contrition of heart. -$hen was he a captive,- wrote the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, -who had been the head of 2ngland and of Christendom. $here could miser! be seen where often bliss was seen before, in that unhapp! cit!, whence Christianit! came first to us, and both spiritual and earthl! bliss...6eanwhile, the wrath of #od was falling upon the "anes. $wo thousand of their soldiers fell ill of a terrible internal malad! and died shortl! after) while man! others, similarl! struck, awaited death. $he Christians advised them to recogni9e their crime against Christ, to confess, weep and make amends to the archbishop. &ut the! did not accept this advice, attributing their misfortunes to the instabilit! of Chance rather than the will of #od. &ut death reigned over all those who had planned to kill the archbishop, great numbers of them were attacked, tormented and wasted awa! b! a terrible pain in the bowels. 6eanwhile, a great fear of death overcame the living. Finall! the! ran to the captive saint, bewailed their sins with tears, and besought him to pra! to #od on their behalf. /t was *ol! $hursda!, the da! on which the :ord gave *is 6ost Aure &od! and &lood to *is disciples. St. Alphege was brought out of prison and honourabl! seated in the magistrate s chair. *e told the "anes that their terrible cruelt! did not merit them a pardon, but that he was determined to imitate the e%ample of his :ord, 1ho gave hol! bread even to the man who betra!ed *im and forgave those who crucified *im. -$herefore,- he said, -forgetting the burning of the cit!, the in+uries which have been inflicted upon m!self, !our past impiet!, and the slaughter of the innocents, / shall intercede for m! torturers as *e interceded with the Father for those who crucified *im. So take this bread ' it will immediatel! heal !ou. (nl!, when !ou have eaten and obtained health in accordance with !our desire, give solemn thanks to the Saviour, or !ou will remain more guilt! of blasphem!.$hen he blessed bread and gave to them. $he! were all healed. From *ol! $hursda! to *ol! Saturda! no'one died. Seeing this, the leaders of the "anes sent four of their militar! commanders to the saint. $he! thanked him, but then said that the! would give him life and libert! in e%change for a ransom of si%t! talents of silver weighing fift! pounds, together with his services in

8 persuading the king to pa! another two hundred talents as the price of a truce between the two nations. $he saint refused, sa!ing that the embass! was illegal and their demands impossible. $he! were mistaken if the! thought he would rob the Church or betra! the honour of his king and countr! to satisf! their avarice. -/t is not done for a Christian to hand over Christian flesh to be devoured b! pagan teeth.$he "anes came to him a second time, asking him ' in a gentler manner this time ' to affi% his seal to an order authori9ing the despoliation of the estates of the Church, in e%change for which he would be redeemed. Again the saint refused, citing the e%ample of the hol! 6art!r :aurence of 4ome, who, on being entrusted with the treasures of the Church, gave them awa! to the poor lest the! should fall into the hands of the persecutors. -/f St. :aurence gave what was not theirs to the poor, how can / take what is theirs from the poor3 $hen the! raged terribl!, gnashing on him with their teeth, and decided to carr! out the sentence that had been passed on him. ?ew tortures were applied) but he remained immovable. $hen, in the night of Frida! of &right 1eek, the devil devised a different and subtler means of breaking the saint s resistance. *aving caused the guards to fall into a light sleep, he appeared to him in the form of an angel of light, declaring that for the sake of the common good he was going to lead the saint out of the s=ualor of the prison. -Fear not the stigma of cowardice,- he said) -!ou are not more sublime than Aeter, nor stronger than Aaul. $he one was delivered from prison b! an angel, and the other was let down in a basket. Christ *imself slipped out of the hands of those who were going to stone *im, and commanded *is disciples to flee in time of persecution."eceived b! these words, the saint followed the deceiver out of the prison. &ut when the! had crossed several water'logged fields in the thick darkness, the devil suddenl! disappeared. 4eali9ing his error, the saint groaned and threw himself down in the middle of the marshes, cr!ing with tears to the :ord, -( #iver of life, ( onl! #uide of the race of Adam, wh! hast $hou deprived me of $h! grace in m! old age when $hou never didst leave me in the prime of life3 $hou hast mercifull! preserved me for so long, and dost $hou now cast me awa! in the e%tremit! of life3 ( $hou 1ho art all / desire, all that / long to en+o!, what use is it to have triumphed in battle throughout the long da!, but at the end of it to be con=uered and deprived of the fruits of victor!3 (r what

9 praise is it to have embarked on the vo!age and escaped shipwreck in the middle of the sea, onl! to suffer the shipwreck of une%pected death on the shore3 *ow man! times have / found $hee to be m! Saviour in the shipwrecks of life7 ?ow, / beseech $hee, send me consolation in this snare of the devil, a helper in troubles and tribulations.-At evening shall weeping find lodging, but in the morning re+oicing- <Asalm ;9.5>. And -the angel of the :ord shall encamp round about them that fear *im, and will deliver them- <Asalm BB.C>. $hus it was for the man of #od. For as dawn arose, a !oung man adorned in golden splendour stood before him, and asked him where he was fleeing to. $he bishop replied that he was not fleeing, but had obe!ed the voice of a "ivine command. -$hat was no "ivine command,- said the angel, -but a device of the devil. *e did not wish so much to lead !ou out of prison as to seduce !ou once outside. 4eturn, therefore, to !our place, where a crown is laid up for !ou in heaven. $omorrow the Father will honour !ou, and !ou will be eternall! in the greatest honour in the heavens with *is Son.$he saint therefore returned to the place of contest and +o!full! awaited the hour in which he would receive his crown from #od. $he hour drew near, and a crowd of turbulent men burst into the prison, sei9ed him, showered him with man! blows, breaking his skull, and finall! thrust him into the place where all the refuse was thrown out and burned. 6ost of the night had passed and on the Saturda! after Aascha, April 89, 8@8;, was beginning to dawn. Suddenl! St. "unstan appeared to the man of #od, his face and vestments shining gloriousl!, amidst sweet'smelling fragrance and the mellifluous chants of the saints. Stretching out his hands to St. Alphege, he announced to him his forthcoming death and the reward of eternal life laid up for him. $hen his bonds were loosed, his wounds closed and his whole bod! was restored to perfect health. (n seeing these things, the guards were terrified. $he! told their fellows, who came rushing up to see the manifestation of #od s grace. $hen the leaders of the "anish arm!, seeing their men deserting in droves to the man of #od, hastil! passed the sentence of death upon him, lest the! should lose more through him than through a multitude of e%ternal enemies. $he saint was bound and led to the place of +udgement under a large armed guard. A great crowd of the faithful followed him, weeping and mourning. &ut he besought them not to hinder his struggle against the prince of this world, but to help him b! their pra!ers.

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*e was onl! an arrow s flight awa! when a vast murmur went through the whole council, -#ive us gold, bishop, or toda! !ou will be a spectacle to the world.$he bishop was silent for a while from e%haustion, and stood still, supported reverentl! b! the hands of his own people. $hen, having recovered his breath, he replied, D/ offer !ou the gold of "ivine wisdom. Abandon the vanit! which !ou love, and devote !our 9eal to the one living, true and eternal #od. &ut if !ou obstinatel! despise the counsel of #od which is announced to !ou through me, !ou will suffer a worse fate than the death of Sodom.At that, the mob, unable to withstand the force of his words and foaming with rage, +umped up from their seats. *owever, $hurkill, one of the "anish leaders, on seeing the wicked men gathering their weapons to kill the saint, ran =uickl! and said, -"o not do this, / beg !ou. / will give to all of !ou with a willing heart gold and silver and all that / have here or can get b! an! means, e%cept onl! m! ship, on condition that !ou do not sin against the :ord s Anointed.:ater, $hurkill, who had interceded for St. Alphege, together with fort!'five of his ships transferred his allegiance from the "anes to the 2nglish and became a Christian. &ut the unbridled anger of his comrades, harder than iron or stone, was not softened b! such gentle words. $he! knocked the saint down with the backs of their battle'a%es, and then stoned him with the heads of o%en and showers of stones and blocks of woods. &ut he, bending his right knee on the earth, pra!ed thus, -( :ord Eesus, (nl!'begotten Son of the 6ost *igh Father, 1ho camest into the world through the womb of an incorrupt Firgin to save sinners, receive me in peace and have merc! on these men.$hen, falling to the earth and rising again, he said, -( #ood Shepherd, ( onl! Shepherd, look with compassion on the sons of the Church, whom /, d!ing, commend to $hee.$hen a man named $hrum, whom the saint himself had received from the font of *ol! &aptism, seeing him in agon! and on the edge of death, took his a%e and clove his head through, thereb! releasing his soul to eternal glor!.

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/mmediatel! one of the "anish leaders was crippled in his limbs, and reali9ed that he had sinned against Christ s elect, as it is written, -Fengeance is 6ine, / will repa!, saith the :ord- <4omans 8;.89>. St. Alphege was mart!red at #reenwich, to the east of :ondon, on the south bank of the river $hames. And the leaders of the "anes now threw his bod! into the river. &ut then a crowd of people who had been taught b! him took arms, determined to die rather than to allow the bod! through which the! had received the m!ster! of *ol! &aptism to be submerged in water. And so the! guarded it, allowing it neither to be submerged nor to be buried. $hen representatives of both parties met to resolve the dispute, and an agreement was reached. $he "anes said, -:ook at this branch cut off from an ash'tree with neither sap nor bark. /f we smear this with his blood and find it flowering in the morning, then we shall agree that we have killed a hol! and righteous man, and !ou can bur! him with honour. &ut if the wood remains dr!, then we shall sa! that !ou have erred in !our love for him and the decision about what to do with the bod! will be ours.$he ne%t morning the dr! wood was putting forth leaves. Seeing this, the "anes rushed to the hol! bod!, embraced it with tears and groans, and then, taking it upon their shoulders, brought it to the tree in triumph. *ere innumerable miracles took place, the sick were healed, the blind were given their sight, the deaf their hearing, the dumb their tongues. $hen at the place of mart!rdom a church was built <its Anglican successor still stands>, and a multitude of leading "anes were bapti9ed and received into the bosom of the *ol! Church. Finall!, &ishops 2dnoth and Alfhun and the citi9ens of :ondon received his hol! bod!, and brought it to :ondon with all reverence, and buried it in St. Aaul s church, where miracles continued to the mart!r s glor!. (n Eune 0, 8@;B, St. Alphege s bod! was placed in an adorned ro!al barge, and then, escorted b! the "anish 5ing Canute, Archbishop 2thelnoth of Canterbur! and other bishops and earls, was taken across the $hames first to Southwark and then to 4ochester. *ere the procession was +oined b! Gueen 2mma and her son, and -with much state and re+oicing and h!mns of praise- the relics were conve!ed to Canterbur!. (n Eune 85, the relics were enshrined b! the bishops and clerg!.Soon both dates ' that of his mart!rdom, and that of his translation ' were entered into the calendar of the 2nglish Church. &ut soon after the ?orman Con=uest, his sanctit! and status as a mart!r was =uestioned b! the first papist archbishop of Canterbur!,

12 :anfranc. *owever, he consulted Anselm, his successor, about this, and Anselm replied that Alphege was a mart!r for +ustice as St. Eohn the &aptist had been a mart!r for truth. ?o trul! Christian hierarch would have =uestioned Alphege s sanctit!. /n an! case, an! residual doubts were removed b! the discover!, in 88@5, that his bod! was still incorrupt. For St. Alphege, ascetic, hierarch, patriot and mart!r, deserved the highest accolade, -#reater love hath no man than this, that a man la! down his life for his friends- <Eohn 85.8B>. <Sources, (sbern of Canterbur!, Vita S. Elphegi, in *. 1harton, Anglia Sacra, 8H98, //, pp. 8;;'84C) The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , 2, 8@@9, 8@8@, 8@88, 8@8;) $hietmar of 6erseburg, Chronicle) Fr. Andrew Ahillips, Orthodox Christianity and the English Tradition , $he 2nglish (rthodo% $rust, 8995, chapter C0) "avid Farmer, The Oxford Dictionary of Saints, Clarendon Aress, 89C0, pp. 8B'84>