St Bede, St Boniface and the Anglo Saxons

Fr Brendan Thomas • May 26, 2019

Monastic History in Glass and Stone (4)

How the Chapel of St Benedict, in its stained glass and carving tells us something of the whole history of Benedictine Monasticism, the importance of the English Church, and the place of Belmont in this story.

Anglo Saxon England would produce two of the greatest monastic saints: the much-loved saint of the cloister, the Venerable Bede (673-735), and the energetic missionary and martyr monk, St Boniface (c.675-754).

Bede had joined Benet Biscop’s new monastery of Jarrow, but while he was very young, in 686, it was hit by a plague and only he and Coelfrith, the abbot, survived. They sang the services together in the choir. Bede, who passed almost the whole of his life at the monastery, became a model of monastic stability and learning. He wrote that ‘amid the observance of monastic discipline and the daily charge of singing in the church, my delight has always been in learning, teaching and writing.’

In his writings Bede shared his love of the Scriptures, but we most remember him most for the work he holds up for us to see in the stained-glass window: his Ecclesiastical History of the English People ( Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum ). As the Father of English History, he gave the English people (the ‘ gens anglorum’ - he was the first person to use the phrase) a sense of their own history, a sense of their own selves, and of how they were unified in Christ.

Everyone seems to love Bede: David Knowles described him as ‘simple, sane, loyal, trusting, warm-hearted’ (David Knowles, Saints and Scholars , p.17). It seems incredible that just over a hundred years after the faith was first preached to his forebears, Bede could be such a great exemplar of Christian and monastic culture and Dante could include him amongst the greats in heaven.

Boniface, the missionary monk who became the Apostle of Germany, provides such a contrast to Bede. Born in Crediton, Devon, he became a monk and first was a successful teacher and preacher. But he soon opted for the missionary life, even refusing the office of Abbot of his monastery, Nursling in Hampshire. He went to Rome and was commissioned by Gregory II to preach the Gospel north of the Alps. He worked tirelessly to establish the Church in Germany and reform the Frankish Church, encouraging the adoption of St Benedict’s Rule. From this time mention of other rules begins to disappear and the Rule of St Benedict becomes known simply as `the Rule’, or ‘the Holy Rule’. Approaching the age of eighty Boniface was killed by a gang of pagans while awaiting to confirm some converts. The stained glass shows the saint pierced through by the sword of his martyrdom, holding the Gospel Book in self-defence.

It was the judgment of Christopher Dawson that Boniface had a deeper influence on the history of Europe than any other Englishman. But Boniface was not alone in this endeavour: he was just one of a wave of Anglo-Saxon missionaries to the Continent including St Willibrord in Friesland, St Amand in Belgium and St Anscar in Sweden.

Bede and Boniface between them represent the richness of monastic life in England, but also a tension between the cloister and the mission, the desert and the market-place. It is a tension that would produce fierce debate in the English Congregation as it re-established monastic life in Britain after the Reformation. Cardinal Basil Hume summed it up well: ‘The tension between the two is a constant in the whole monastic tradition, and monastic history is a commentary on that tension. Should we be in the desert, withdrawn, or should we be in the market place, involved?’ Cardinal Basil Hume OSB, Searching for God, p.30.

The Poet Malcolm Guite has written a sonnet in celebration of St Bede that picks up on the words of St Bede,
written in gold lettering over his tomb in Durham Cathedral, which translates as:


Christ is the morning star who when the night of this world is past
brings to his saints the promise of the light of life
& opens everlasting day.


I kneel above your bones and read your words.

Church-Latin letters, shimmering in gold,

A kingdom-glimmer through the dark and cold,

A revelation gleaming on the shards

Of all our broken lives and promises.

Christus est stella matutina

Qui nocte saeculi transacta

Christ is the morning star. He promises

The light of life when this dark night is past…

Lucem vitae sanctis promittit

You speak for all his Wounded witnesses,

The morning star will shine on us at last.

Scholar and saint, illuminate the way

That opens into everlasting day.

https://malcolmguite.wordpress.com/2013/05/22/a-sonnet-for-the-venerable-bede/


By Abbot Brendan Thomas May 17, 2025
Bishop Mark Jabalé OSB Bishop Mark died peacefully on 9th May. Reception of Body and Mass of Remembrance Friday 30th May, 11am, St Joseph’s Co-Cathedral, Swansea Requiem Mass & Burial Thursday 5th June, 12 noon, Belmont Abbey John Peter Jabale was born on 16th October 1933 in Alexandria, Egypt of mainly European heritage. His father was Lebanese/French, and his mother British/Greek/French. He attended the Lycée Français in Alexandria until 1948, when he was sent to England, having expressed a desire to join the Navy. He enrolled at Belmont Abbey School and, upon leaving school, joined the Abbey, taking the religious name Mark. He was ordained to the priesthood on 13 July 1958. He was then sent to the University of Fribourg, Switzerland, where he obtained a Licentiate in French Literature, writing his thesis on Joseph de Maistre, the French counter-revolutionary. He later completed a Diploma in Education at St Mary’s, Strawberry Hill, where he also played rugby for the University. From 1964, he taught sport and served as a housemaster at the school. In 1969, he was appointed Headmaster of Alderwasley School in Derbyshire, though he held that post for only half a term before being recalled to Belmont to serve as Headmaster there, a role he held—apart from a sabbatical—until 1983. From 1964 he was teaching sport and then was a housemaster in the School. In 1969 he was appointed Headmaster of Alderwasley School, Derbyshire, but filled that post for only half a term. He was called back to Belmont to be Headmaster where he served, apart from a sabbatical, until 1983. Fr Mark was a rowing coach of considerable repute. During his sabbatical in 1979, he assisted Dan Topolski in coaching the Oxford crew for the Boat Race. His greatest coaching triumph came when he led a lightweight coxless four to a gold medal at the World Rowing Championships in Bled, Yugoslavia — the only gold medal won by Great Britain that year. The following year, he was invited to coach for the Olympics, but he declined in order to remain committed to Belmont. He was a steward of Henley Royal Regatta and was responsible for setting up and programming its first computerised systems. He was ahead of may in seeing the potential of new technology. In 1983, he was sent to Peru to purchase land and build a new monastery, which included raising funds in the UK. The new monastery was blessed, and the first Mass was celebrated there by the Archbishop of Piura, Oscar Cantuarias Pastor, in June 1986 together with Abbot Jerome, Fr Paul, Fr Luke, Fr David as well as Fr Mark. Dom Mark returned to Belmont as Prior and was elected the 10th Abbot of Belmont in 1993. He later wrote: “My first and most painful task proved to be the overseeing of the closure of the school.” Together with the bursar, John Hubert, he negotiated with the local NHS for the 4 houses to be leased to them. In 2000, he was appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Menevia by Pope John Paul II and was ordained bishop in St Joseph’s Cathedral, Swansea, on 7 December 2000. He succeeded Bishop Daniel Mullins as the 10th Bishop of Menevia on 12 June 2001. During his episcopate, he held several important offices: Chairman of the Department for Christian Life and Worship, Trustee and Visitator of the three foreign seminaries — the Venerable English College (Rome), the Beda College (Rome), and the Royal English College (Valladolid). He was also Bishop-in-Charge of on-going formation for diocesan priests. Upon reaching the age of 75, Bishop Jabale submitted his resignation to the Holy Father on 16 October 2008 and was succeeded by Bishop Tom Burns. He then moved to Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire, and was inducted as Parish Priest of Holy Trinity Catholic Church in March 2009, a post he held until 2014. At the age of 81, he retired to Hendon in London, where he celebrated daily Mass at a local convent, assisted in various parishes, and continued to help with confirmations in the diocese. In October 2019, he moved to Archbishop’s House, Westminster, for nine months. Finally, he returned to Belmont in 2020 as a much-cherished member of the community. He described himself as “very happy.” He remained there until his death in Hereford County Hospital on 9 May 2025, aged 91. He had been a monk of Belmont for 73 years, a priest for 67 years and a bishop for 24 years. Please pray for the eternal happiness of Rt. Rev. Dom Mark Jabalé 10th Bishop of Menevia 10th Abbot of Belmont who died 9th May 2025 in the 92nd year of his age, the 73rd year of his monastic life and the 67th year of his priesthood. May he rest in peace
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Bishop Mark Jabalé OSB Bishop Mark died peacefully on 9th May. Reception of Body and Mass of Remembrance Friday 30th May, 11am, St Joseph’s Co-Cathedral, Swansea Requiem Mass & Burial Thursday 5th June, 12 noon, Belmont Abbey Bishop Mark served this community well for many years, not least Abbot and before that Headmaster of the School. He was then asked to serve the wider church as Bishop of Menevia. May he know eternal happiness with God whom he served. Please pray for the eternal happiness of Rt. Rev. Dom Mark Jabalé 10th Bishop of Menevia 10th Abbot of Belmont who died 9th May 2025 in the 92nd year of his age, the 73rd year of his monastic life and the 67th year of his priesthood. May he rest in peace
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New Title
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We were were honoured and delighted to be joined by the Apostolic Nuncio to celebrate Easter. His Excellency Archbishop Miguel Maury Buendía is the representative of the Holy See in Great Britain, and therefore of the Holy Father. His presence on Easter Sunday morning brought us more consciously in communion with Pope Francis, the successor of St Peter, as we heard the Gospel story of Peter running to the tomb. His patron saint is St Michael, so afterwards, at a festive lunch we were able to present him with some Belmont cufflinks with the monastery coat of arms - very similar to his as Archbishop. We were able to pray for him and his work in this country.
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