25/05/2025
Happy Feast Day
Saint Bede the Venerable
Doctor of the Church
672/673-735
Feast Day: May 25
Patronage: English writers, historians, Jarrow, St. Bede High School
Saint Bede was a Benedictine monk in Britain. He was the greatest scholar, author, and teacher of his time, deeply versed in the sciences and history, and known as the “Father of English History”. As a linguist and translator, he brought the works of the Latin and Greek writings of the early church fathers to the English, which contributed significantly to English Christianity. St. Bede was the first to date events anno domin (AD). He’s called Venerable to acknowledge his wisdom and learning.
As a monk, Bede gave absolute priority to prayer, fasting and charitable hospitality. He regarded all other works as valueless without the love of God and one's neighbor. However, Bede also possessed astounding intellectual gifts, which he used to survey and master a wide range of subjects according to an all-encompassing vision of Christian scholarship.
Bede declined a request to become abbot of his monastery. Instead, he concentrated on writing, and produced more than 45 books – primarily about theology and the Bible, but also on science, literature, and history. He also taught hundreds of students at the monastery and its school, which became renowned throughout Britain.
During Bede's own lifetime, his spiritual and intellectual gifts garnered wide recognition. His writings on scripture were considered so authoritative that a Church council ordered them to be publicly read in English churches. Some of the most illustrious members of English society made pilgrimages to his monastery to seek his guidance, and he was personally invited to Rome by Pope Sergius.
Bede, however, was unfazed by these honors. Perhaps inspired by the Benedictine monastic ethos, which emphasizes one's absolute commitment to the monastic community, he chose not to visit Rome, or to travel any significant distance beyond the Monastery.