ST GUTHLAC, PRIEST AND HERMIT

ST GUTHLAC, PRIEST AND HERMIT - 11 APRIL

SAINT GUTHLAC, PRIEST AND HERMIT

Saint Guthlac

According to a source cited by the Bollandists*, the name Guthlac signifies "gift of war" - derived from gut or gund (war) and lac (gift).

This holy hermit Guthlac [Guthlake] sprang from a very noble - and according to some sources, royal - English lineage. He was born in the year 673 (or 667). Initially, he served as a warrior under King Ethelred of Mercia. However, witnessing how deeply God was offended in that environment, he withdrew at the age of twenty-four and entered the monastery of Repton (Reponium, Ripandum), where he lived for two years. In 699, with his superior's permission, he retired to the island of Croyland, accompanied by four companions (or two, according to Migne*). There, having been ordained a priest by Saint Hedda, Bishop of Dorchester, he led an edifying life for fifteen years, devoting himself to constant acts of penance and the care of souls. Moreover, he passed his time in such strict seclusion from the world that he refused to see even his sister, Saint Pega, who lived as an anchoress only four hours' journey away - not out of a lack of fraternal love, but solely to mortify his own will. His life was truly extraordinary, filled with spiritual tribulations of every kind, all of which he bore steadfastly with his gaze fixed upon the Crucified One. The Martyrology of Utrecht* makes particular mention of his battles with the Devil; it is said that the Devil, by God's permission, dragged him down into the depths of hell and showed him the torments of the damned - torments he supposedly deserved for his own sins. Through these sufferings, however - and the ever-increasing self-mortification they prompted - he gradually attained the most intimate union with God, as well as complete mastery not only over all temptations but also over animate and inanimate nature, which served him. According to Menzel* (Symb. II. 352), he was constantly surrounded by swallows and lived in such close familiarity with birds that they remained with him continually in his solitude, playing tamely with him and building their nests wherever he wished (Symb. II. 527). He prophesied to Prince Ethelbald, who was then in exile, that the day he would become King of Mercia was near. In the year 719, this prediction was indeed fulfilled. He himself died on April 11, 714, at the age of 41. His holy sister Saint Pega buried him. He is the patron saint of the island of Croyland.

(Information from Stadler's Complete Encyclopedia of Saints, Volume 2, Augsburg, 1861, p. 593)

*A hagiography source used by the authors

Stadler's Complete Encyclopedia of Saints - Sources and Abbreviations

PRAYER:

Grant, we beseech you, almighty God, that the venerable feast of Saint Guthlac may increase our devotion and promote our salvation. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Sources of these articles (in the original German): books.google.co.uk, de-academic.com, zeno.org, openlibrary.org

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