by Stephen Allott ; [letters translated from the Latin].

Alcuin of York, c. A.D. 732 to 804 : his life and letters

pp. 36-41

by Stephen Allott ; [letters translated from the Latin]., (1974) Alcuin of York, c. A.D. 732 to 804 : his life and letters
William Sessions Ltd.

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Course of Study: HIST10692 - The Making of Europe, 400-1500

Title: Alcuin of York, c. A.D. 732 to 804 : his life and letters
Name of Author: by Stephen Allott ; [letters translated from the Latin].
Name of Publisher: William Sessions Ltd.
 CHAPTER III

The Raids of the Norsemen

N O R SE raiders sacked the monastery o f Lindisfarne on June 8th, 793, and

plundered Jarrow the following year; Charlemagne himself had to see to
his coastal defences ' in 800, but the main Viking invasions o f England did
not begin till 835. Alcuin regarded the raid as a divine warning prompted
by the degenerate morals o f his country:
Letter 26
To Bishop Higbald and the whole community o f the church o f Lindis­
farne, good sons in Christ of a most blessed father, the holy Bishop
Cuthbert,* Alcuin, a deacon, sends greeting and blessing in Christ.
When I was with you your loving friendship gave me great joy. Now
I am away your tragic sufferings daily bring me sorrow, since the pagans
have desecrated G od’s sanctuary, shed the blood of saints around the altar,
laid waste the house of our hope and tram pled the bodies of the saints like
dung in the street. I can only cry from my heart before Christ’s altar: ‘O
Lord, spare thy people and do not give the Gentiles thine inheritance,
lest the heathen say, “ Where is the God o f the Christians?” *(cf. Joel 2.17).
W hat assurance can the churches of Britain have, if St. Cuthbert
and so great a company o f saints do not defend their own? Is this the
beginning of greater suffering, or the outcome o f the sins o f those who
live there? It has not happened by chance, but is the sign of some great
guilt.
You who survive, stand like men, fight bravely and defend the camp
o f God. Remember how Judas Maccabaeus cleansed the Temple and
freed the people from a foreign yoke. If anything needs correction in
your way o f gentleness, correct it quickly. Recall your patrons who left
you for a season. It was not that they lacked influence with God, but they
were silent, we know not why.
* Prior of Lindisfarne (664), retired to Fame Is. (676) and recalled to be bishop o f Lindis­
farne (684) where he was buried (687).
36
LETTER 26 THE RAIDS OF THE NORSEMEN 37

Do not glory in the vanity o f dress; that is cause for shame, not boasting,
in priests and servants o f God. Do not blur the words o f your prayers by
drunkenness. Do not go out after the indulgences of the flesh and the
greed o f the world, but stand firm in the service of G od and the discipline
of the monastic life, that the holy fathers whose sons you are may not
cease to protect you. May you remain safe through their prayers, as you
walk in their footsteps. Do not be degenerate sons, having such fathers.
They will not cease protecting you, if they see you follow their example.
Do not be dismayed by this disaster. God chastises every son whom
he accepts, so perhaps he has chastised you more because he loves you
more. Jerusalem, a city loved by God was destroyed, with the Temple of
God, in Babylonian flames. Rome, surrounded by its company o f holy
apostles and countless martyrs, was devastated by the heathen, but
quickly recovered through the goodness of God. Almost the whole of
Europe has been denuded with fire and sword by Goths and Huns, but
now by G od’s mercy is as bright with churches as the sky with stars and
in them the offices of the Christian religion grow ?nd flourish. Encourage
each other, saying, ‘Let us return to the Lord our God, for he is very
forgiving and never deserts those who hope in Him’ (Isa. 55.7).
And you, holy father, leader of G od’s people, shepherd o f a holy flock,
physician o f souls, light set on a candle-stick, be a model o f all goodness
to all who can see you, a herald of salvation to all who hear you. May
your community be o f exemplary character, to bring others to life, not to
damnation. Let your dinners be sober, not drunken. Let your clothes
befit your station. Do not copy the men of the world in vanity, for vain
dress and useless adornment are a reproach to you before men and a sin
before God. It is better to dress your immortal soul in good ways than to
deck with fine clothes the body that soon rots in dust. Clothe and feed
Christ in the poor, that so doing you may reign with Christ. Redemption
is a m an’s true riches. If we loved gold we should send it to heaven to be
kept there for us. We have what we love: let us love the eternal which
will not perish. Let us love the true, not the transitory, riches. Let us win
praise with God not man. Let us do as the saints whom we praise. Let us
follow in their footsteps on earth, to be worthy to share their glory in
heaven. May divine goodness keep you from all adversity and bring
you, dear brothers, to the glory of the heavenly kingdom with your
fathers.
When our lord King Charles returns from defeating his enemies by
G od’s mercy, I plan to go to him, and if I can then do anything for you
38 ALCUIN OF YORK LETTER 26

about the boys who have been carried off by the pagans as prisoners* or
about any other o f your needs, I shall make every effort to see it is done.
Fare well, beloved in Christ, and be ever strengthened in well-doing.
Letter 27
To the venerable father, Bishop Higbald, and the holy brothers of our
father Cuthbert, Alcuin, a humble deacon, sends greetings in Christ.
. . . I urge you to keep most carefully the rule the holy fathers
established for your community, in all obedience, chastity and love,
fearing God rather than turning to worldly ostentation, which greatly
harms the purpose of your religion. When he has forbidden ostentation
and costly clothing to women, how much more is vain dress unsuitable to
men? It is especially harmful to those who serve God as monks, who
should in all things show self-control and live religiously, so that their
conduct should be beyond reproach, a pattern o f pure goodness to en­
courage those who see how their good life is pleasing to God.
The punishment that has been inflicted on your monastery must
serve your eternal salvation. You have a stronger defence in the mending
of your conduct and the intercession o f the saints who rest among you
than in the massing o f arrows and the gathering of arms. Remember
how many enemies King Hezekiah laid low by one prayer (Isa. 3 7 .3 6 )....
Keep up the practice o f reading. Let men be heard reading in your
houses, not playing in the street; let there be counsels of salvation heard
among your elders, not drunkenness which is a very pit o f hell to those
who serve God—as the apostle says: ‘Drunkards will not possess the
kingdom of G od’ (I Cor. 6.10). Let all goodness, all practice o f piety, all
beauty of religion, joy of peace and faithfulness to the monastic rule be
seen in you, that the divine protection may save you from enemies, visible
and invisible. . . .

Some o f the monks seem to have fled to less exposed places:

Letter 28
To the venerable father and priest Cudrad, Alcuin, a deacon, sends
greetings.
I grieve for the destruction o f holy places, but rejoice in the constancy
o f your faith. You will have praised the mercy of Almighty God who
spared you in the hands of the heathen. So keep faithfully to your original
* ‘They killed some of the brothers, took some away in fetters, many they insulted and
drove out naked, some they drowned.’ (Simeon o f Durham.)
LETTER 28 THE RAIDS OF THE NORSEMEN 39

purpose, trusting in the mercy of God to preserve you in his goodness

wherever, through your brothers’ advice he wishes you to live. Whether
it be as a hermit or in a group of brothers, keep scrupulously to the
solitary way of life and private prayer and regular fasting, for it is he
who perseveres, not he who begins, who is saved.
Please remember me in your prayers, as Buitta promised me, faithfully
reporting your words.
When brothers visit you, speak earnestly to them of the comfort of
the Holy Spirit and urge them to trust in the protection of God and the
intercession of our father St. Cuthbert. Let them hope for a sure defence,
not from the clamour of arms or masonry that may fall, but from the
wall of goodness above. Let them use the misery of present trouble to­
wards the joy of eternal happiness. Let them turn to God unreservedly,
and if anything in their conduct needs amending let them put it right
whole-heartedly, that their conversion may please God as the penitence
of the Ninevites pleased him, for he spared their city through the tears of
those who confessed their sins. God is merciful and deserts none who
hope in him, for the last state of Job was better than the first. So he will
do for you, I believe, if you have turned whole-heartedly to pray for his
mercy.
The raid on Lindisfarne prompted a long letter to nearby Wearmouth and
Jarrow:
Letter 29
To the holy brothers in Christ of the churches of Wearmouth and Jarrow,
Alcuin, a humble deacon, sends greetings.
I have always loved your religious way of life, since I have known of it,
and have great faith in your united prayers. I am always near you in
spirit, though far away in the body; for the breadth o f love is divided by
no distance, bounded by no limits; the more it burns in the recesses of
the heart, the more it spreads the flame of its gentle w arm th .------
Carefully keep the rule of the monastic life which the most holy
fathers* Benedict and Ceolfrid laid down for you, that you may earn with
them the reward of eternal blessing. . . .
Let the Rule of St. Benedict be read frequently among the assembled
brethren and explained in their own language that all may understand. . . .
Consider whom you have to defend you against the pagans who have
appeared along your coasts. Put your hope in God, not in arms. Trust
* cf. Letter 24.
40 ALCUIN OF YORK LETTER 29

in the prayers o f your fathers, not in physical flight. So you will in the
end be their sons, if you keep to their footsteps. The holiness o f a place
does not help evildoers, but integrity o f religion will make doers of good
worthy o f divine protection. Who is not afraid of the terrible fate that
has come upon the church of St. C uthbert? So mend your ways, lest the
righteous perish for the sins of the wicked, lest the vineyard of the Lord
be given up to be devoured by foxes, lest the feet of pagans tread upon the
sanctuary of God. This seems sacrilegious, but it is far worse if for our
sins the devil ravages the sanctuary o f our heart. The outward enemy has
power because of the enemy within. If therefore God dwells in our hearts
because o f our good and chaste life, he never allows his enemies to ravage
what is his. W hat a mighty Assyrian host perished through one prayer o f a
righteous king who was dear to G o d ! (Isa. 37.36) Let the punishment of
others be a warning to you, and the suffering o f a few the saving o f many.
You live near the sea from which this danger first came. In us is fulfilled
what once the prophet foretold: ‘From the N orth evil breaks forth, and
a terrible glory will come from the Lord’ (Jer. 1.14, Job 37.22). See, the
pirate raids have penetrated the north o f our island. Let us grieve for the
suffering of our brothers, and beware that the same does not happen
to us. . . .
Remember the nobility of your fathers; do not be degenerate sons.
Look at the treasures o f your library, the beauty o f your churches, the
fineness o f your buildings, the order of the religious life. Think how happy
the man is who goes from these fine buildings to the joys o f the Kingdom of
Heaven. The boys should learn to assist in the worship o f the heavenly
king, not to dig out the earths of foxes or course hares.* How wicked it
is to forsake the worship of Christ to track foxes. The boys should learn
the Scriptures, so that when they grow up they can teach others. You
cannot teach, if you have not learnt when you were young. Think what a
love for learning the elder Bede, the most notable teacher o f our age,
had as a boy, and how honoured he is now among men and even more
gloriously rewarded by God. Liven sleepy minds with his example. Sit
with your teachers, open your books, study the text, grasp its sense, that
you may find spiritual food for yourselves and for others. Avoid private
feasting and secret drinking as the snares o f hell. ‘Stolen waters are
sweeter’, according to Solomon, ‘and bread eaten in secret is pleasant,
but those who feast on them are in hell,’ meaning that devils are present
at such feasts (Prov. 9. 17-18).
* cf. Letter 6.
LETTER 29 THE RAIDS OF THE NORSEMEN 41

As sons of G od you should have nobility of character, holiness o f life

and sobriety of dress. A man’s laugh and his dress and his walk declare
him, according to Solomon (Ecclus. 19.27). . . .
I ask you to read calmly what I have written in love, desiring your
present prosperity and future joy. . . .

The following letter gives a glimpse o f normal life on Lindisfarne—

Wit to (L at. Candidus) later became one o f Alcuin's most valued pupils and
a frequent messenger to Charlemagne and Bishop Arno:
Letter 30 c. A.D. 794
To Bishop Higbald, his beloved lord in Christ, Alcuin, a humble deacon,
sends greetings.
The friendship of brotherly love, which should never be broken between
men who are servants of God, was once declared between us by a special
compact. Hoping that it will continue unchanged, I humbly entreat you,
with the brothers of your devout community, which divine grace has
willed you to take under your priestly rule, to pray the mercy of heaven
for me, unworthy as I am and yet your comrade in faith and love. I do
not cease to do the same for you, as far as I can by G od’s grace.
I received Candidus, our common son, when he came to us on a
pilgrimage, and we have kept him for the past year and tried to help
him as far as we could through G od’s help. We have now made him return
to you in safety. If you decide he is to return to us again, we shall willingly
do whatever we believe will be for the advancement of our holy church.*
For whatever I received from my teachers for the use of the holy churches
of God I delight in passing on, especially to men of our nation, and not
only to them but to all who are earnestly seeking, if I can do anything for
the advance of the soul and the increase of the holy church of God.

* Candidus did return to Alcuin and became one o f his closest friends.