St. Cuthbert

Saint Cuthbert, the wonderworker of Britain, was born in Northumbria around 634. 

During our Weeks 1 -13: Following in St. Aidan's Footsteps on this blog, he was mentioned many times.

While the saint was young, he would tend his master’s sheep in the Lammermuir hills south of Edinburgh near the River Leader. One night while he was praying, he had a vision of angels taking the soul of Saint Aidan (August 31, 651) to heaven in a fiery sphere. Cuthbert awakened the other shepherds and told them what he had seen. A few days later they learned that Bishop Aidan of Lindisfarne had reposed at the very hour that Cuthbert had seen his vision.

As an adult, Saint Cuthbert decided to give up his life in the world and advanced to better things. He entered the monastery at Melrose in the valley of the Tweed, where he was received by the abbot Saint Boisil.

A few years later, Saint Eata chose some monks of Melrose to live at the new monastery at Ripon. Among them was Saint Cuthbert. Both Eata and Cuthbert were expelled from Ripon and sent back to Melrose in 661 because they (and some other monks) refused to follow the Roman calculation for the date of Pascha. The Celtic Church, which followed a different, older reckoning, resisted Roman practices for a long time. However, in 664 the Synod of Whitby determined that the Roman customs were superior to those of the Celtic Church and should be adopted by all.

Saint Cuthbert was chosen to be abbot of Melrose after the death of Saint Boisil, guiding the brethren by his words and by his example. He made journeys throughout the surrounding area to encourage Christians and to preach the Gospel to those who had never heard it. Sometimes he would be away from the monastery for a month at a time, teaching and preaching. He also worked many miracles, healing the sick and freeing those who were possessed by demons.

In 664, Cuthbert went with Saint Eata to Lindisfarne, and extended his territory to include the inhabitants of Northumberland and Durham. Soon Saint Eata appointed Cuthbert as prior of Lindisfarne (Holy Island). While at Lindisfarne, Saint Cuthbert continued his habit of visiting the common people in order to inspire them to seek the Kingdom of Heaven.

Saint Cuthbert was a true father to his monks, but his soul longed for complete solitude, so he went to live on a small island (Saint Cuthbert’s Isle), a short distance from Lindisfarne. 

St. Cuthbert's Island

In 676, he retired to Inner Farne, an even more remote location, here he remained for nearly nine years. A synod at Twyford elected Cuthbert Bishop of Hexham in 684. Letters and messengers were sent to inform him of the synod’s decision, but he refused to leave his solitude. The King and Bishop went to him in person, entreating him in Christ’s name to accept. At last, Saint Cuthbert came forth and with great reluctance, he submitted to the will of the synod and accepted the office of bishop. Almost immediately, he exchanged Sees with Saint Eata, and became Bishop of Lindisfarne while Saint Eata went to Hexham.

Bishop Cuthbert remained as humble as he had been before his consecration, avoiding finery and dressing in simple clothing. He fulfilled his office with dignity and graciousness, while continuing to live as a monk. Three years later he surrendered his holy soul to God on March 20, 687.

Saint David, Patron of Wales

 

Saint David, Patron of Wales, commemorated on March 1st, is said to have been the son of a Welsh chieftain. He lived in the latter half of the sixth century during the golden age of Celtic Christianity when saints were plentiful, many of them of noble rank--kings, princes, and chieftain--who lived the monastic life, built oratories and churches, and preached the gospel.

Saint Cadoc founded the great Monastery of Llancarfan. Saint Illtyd turned from the life of a soldier to that of a mystic and established the Abbey of Llantwit, where tradition links his name to that of Sir Galahad. But greatest among them was David, cousin of Cadoc and pupil of Illtyd, who was educated in the White House of Carmarathen and who founded the Monastery of Menevia in the place that now bears his name.

According to his biography, David became a priest, studied under Saint Paulinus, the disciple of Saint Germanus of Auxerre, on an unidentified island for several years. He then engaged in missionary activities, founded twelve monasteries from Croyland to Pembrokeshire, the last of which, at Mynyw (Menevia) in southwestern Wales, was known for the extreme asceticism of its rule, which was based on that of the Egyptian Desert Fathers.

Here in this lovely and lonely outpost he gathered his followers. The Monastic Rule of David was strict, with but one daily meal of only bread with salt and herbs, frequent fasts, the drinking only of water, and hours of unbroken silence. Their days were filled with hard manual labor and no plough was permitted in the work of the fields. The monks spent their evenings in prayer, reading and writing. No personal possessions were allowed, nor did David exempt himself from the same rigorous discipline: he drank nothing but water and so came to be known as David the Waterman.

Eventually, he was consecrated Bishop of the primatial See of Wales, Menevia, afterwards known as Saint David’s in his honor. He reposed in the Lord about the year 601 AD (our St. Aidan lived from 590 - 651) and, through the years, has been venerated as one of the greatest and most beloved saints of the British Isles.

(oca.org and Orthodox Christianity Then and Now.)

Family of Saints: Sts. Kentigerna, Fillan and Comgan

Celtic saints lived all over Wales, Cornwall, Ireland, Scotland, Brittany and on hundreds of large and tiny coastal islands. These western lands indeed produced thousands of saints, who lived mostly from the fourth to the eighth centuries.

Celtic saints were very closely connected with each other. The monasteries they founded were interconnected as well and this continued on to following generations. Amazingly, Celtic holiness is unique for its “families of saints”, which were sometimes very large and included representatives of several generations who were relatives by blood: holy parents and children and grandchildren, holy brothers and sisters, cousins, uncles, aunts, nephews and nieces. We can only wonder at the piety and level of Christian life of that age.

One of the families was the holy relatives Sts. Kentigerna, Fillan and Comgan.

The holy woman Kentigerna († 734) is often called “an island anchoress.” Widowed, she left her native Ireland together with her saintly brother, Comgan, and her children, among whom was St. Fillan, and moved to Scotland in order to preach the Gospel of Christ to pagan people and evangelize some parts of the country that were still not Christian. With time she settled on the island of Inchebroida. The name “Inchebroida” means “the isle of the eldress.” Today this island is commonly known as Inchcailloch, situated on Loch Lomond.

Inchebroida Island

St. Fillan moved together with his mother and other relatives to Scotland. There he became a monk and lived the monastic life until the end of his life. It is known that for some time Fillan preached the Good News together with Sts. Kentigerna and Comgan and then retired to live as a hermit. During his life, Fillan by his prayer healed from many diseases the sick who flocked to him, and worked many miracles.

St. Comgan went to Scotland with his sister Kentigerna and her three children, among whom was Fillan. There were seven companions with them. The missionaries landed in the Highlands in the north of Scotland. Soon Comgan settled at Lochalsh opposite the Isle of Skye (the largest island in the Inner Hebrides off the north-western coast of Scotland) where he founded a monastery and became its abbot. The saint, known as a great ascetic, lived here for many years. St. Comgan has been widely venerated in many parts of Scotland for many centuries. A number of settlements of Scotland bear the name of this saint, among them are Kilcongen, Kilchoan (in Highland, where there is a very ancient ruined church of St. Comgan in this westernmost Scottish village) and others. Several churches in this country are dedicated to him, and there are traces of his monastic and missionary activities in such places as Islay, North Uist, Ardnamurchan and Turriff.

Venerable Kentigerna, Fillan and Comgan, pray to God for us, that He might watch over our families and keep them safe from harm, that He will help us to love and support one another, and always remember that we are blessed. Amen.

Read the full article at orthochristian.com. 

St. Ita

 

Saint Ita was born in the fifth century in County Waterford. At the age of sixteen, she moved to Cluain Credhail, now known as Killeedy (from Cille Ide, meaning ‘Church of St. Ita’) in County Limerick, where she founded a school and convent. A holy well still marks the site of her church, called Tobar Bhaile Ui MhÈidÌn, My Little Ita's Well, although the monastery was destroyed by Viking invaders in the ninth century.

Legend has it that Ita was led to Killeedy by three heavenly lights. The first was at the top of the Galtee mountains, the second on the Mullaghareirk mountains and the third at Cluain Creadhail, which is nowadays Killeedy. Her sister Fiona also went to Killeedy with her and became a member of the community.

The convent became known as a training ground for young boys, many of whom became famous churchmen. She received St. Brendan the Voyager when he was only a year old, and kept him until he was six. She also cared for her nephew Saint Mochaemhoch in his infancy.

Saint Ita once told Saint Brendan that the three things most displeasing to God are: A face that hates mankind, a will that clings to the love of evil, and placing one’s entire trust in riches (Compare Proverbs 6:16-19).

The three things most pleasing to God are: The firm belief of a pure heart in God, the simple religious life, and liberality with charity.

Brendan sailed away from Ireland in 510, traveled the oceans and founded monasteries for 40 years. He then returned to Ireland, visiting the holy island of Iona, off the west coast of Scotland, on the way home to Ireland. St. Ita died in 570 and St. Brendan died seven years later, in 577.

St. Aidan was the founder and first bishop of the Lindisfarne Island monastery. Born in Connacht, Ireland, Aidan was originally a monk at the monastery on the Island of Iona, founded by St Columba. King Oswald of Northumbria spent his youth on Iona, beginning in 616, and brought Aidan from Iona to Northumbria in 634, less than 60 years after the death of St. Brendan the Voyager.

Image and info: oca.org, Wikipedia.

Week 13: Melrose to Tweedmouth

 This week we followed River Tweed 48 km to the coast. The Tweed is known for having more Atlantic Salmon fished each season than any other river in the world. We leave Melrose and follow the river east (below).

Image: Andrew Locking, https://www.andrewswalks.co.uk/eildon-hills.html , no changes

Starting on the other side of the Eildon Hills (below) we head back towards St. Boswells, past the Roman camp of Milrighall at Melrose and on to the Roman Fort of Trimontium at Newsteads (below.) 

Image: https://www.u3ahadrianswall.co.uk/wordpress/newstead-roman-fort/ , no changes

Then we go past the monastery at Old Melrose, along Old Monk's Road, and past the river crossing at Monksford, below.

Image: Walter Baxter, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1203133 , no changes

We pass through the sites of many Roman camps as we make our way along the Tweed to the coast and this route would have been used in the 7th century as well. 4 km from Trimontium are Roman camps at St. Boswells, 2 km further is a camp at Maxton, and at Roxburgh is a Roman station where a road comes up from Jedburgh. This area is one of the most fertile agricultural areas in Scotland and has been in use since Mesolithic times (below).

Image: JThomas, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5113344 , no changes

A little farther along is Kelso, and Wooden Roman Camp where the Votadini tribe had their strongholds. The surname Maxwell comes from here, where a salmon pool was called Maccus's Wiel, meaning Maccus's pool. (below)

Image: cathietinn, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5588598 , no changes

One of our Do-a-Thon participants was very excited to find out that we are walking in the footsteps of her family, as well as St. Aidan’s footsteps. She is learning more about the countryside they lived in every week!

Her mother’s side of the family can trace their roots to 1057 when King Malcolm III gave out land grants to those who supported him in the war for the Scottish crown, with several clans getting their start in the Kelso area.

Her great-great-great-great grandparents lived and worked here through the 1700s / early 1800s during the First Industrial Revolution when coal-powered steam engines created a demand for mass-produced textiles and furniture mills. Small village hand-knit and woven industries quickly turned into 50 massive mills and collieries (coal mines), changing the quiet farming villages forever.

The living conditions became unsanitary and unsafe. Open sewage and crowded living conditions were common in all cities and Cholera outbreaks killed many every year. Fires often devasted cities and working conditions were brutal – long hours and no safety regulations. Both of her great-great-grandparents died in their 40’s.

Many were forced to emigrate to Newcastle-upon-Tyne in the mid-1800’s because of the potato famine and the Highland Clearances. Shipbuilding was one of Newcastle-upon-Tyne’s major industries during the Second Industrial Revolution when steel became the new building material. Her great-grandfather ‘Nafty’ worked in the shipyards as a rigger on ships with masts and sails, and as a riveter on steamships made of steel. (below)

https://flickr.com/photos/newcastlelibraries/4076422158

12 km from Kelso is Carham (Kair means fortification, ham means homestead). There is another Roman camp here, and in 1018 the Battle of Carham was fought here. This battle between Northumbria and the combined forces of Malcom II King of Scots and Owen King of Strathclyde severely weakened Northumbria. Although the Northumbrian kings ruled over the whole area, the Kingdom of Strathclyde (formed by the native Celtic peoples during Roman occupation and converted to Christianity in the 6th century) stayed whole under King Oswald's rule, eventually being incorporated into the Kingdom of Scotland in the 12th century. 

Carham's Church of St. Cuthbert (below) is built upon the site of a much older church, where St. Cuthbert is supposed to have built a daughter house of Lindisfarne. The border between England and Scotland runs down the center of River Tweed, so that the photographer of the image below is in England and the people across the river are in Scotland.

Image: Walter Baxter, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/6389337 , no changes

Heading along the river 5 km to Coldstream, we walk along the riverside part of Coldstream Country Walk from Wark to Coldstream. This village grew up at the lowest point of the Tweed where there was a safe crossing (below). Unfortunately for Coldstream, this meant that Scottish and English troops fought back and forth through the village for centuries as they crossed the river to extend their borders.

Image: DS Pugh, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4158292 , no changes

 

13 km further along the Tweed is Norham, where it is said that St. Aidan crossed River Tweed at Ubbanford (which later was named Norham) on his way from Iona to Bamburgh in 635. St. Cuthbert's Church (below to the left, in the distance) is built on the site of a monastery and church built by King Oswy in 655 and it became an important part of Christian culture. When the monks fled Lindisfarne during the Viking attacks, they rested here with St. Cuthbert's body as they made their way inland.

Image: Maigheach-gheal, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2610888, no changes

We end our walk in Tweedmouth, where there was another Roman fort. On the south side of River Tweed where it empties into the ocean is Spittal (short for hospital - a hospital for Lepers was built here in the Middle Ages). Hallowstell is here (meaning Holy Man's Fishery) where the monks claimed fishing rights for salmon (below, far right).

Image: M J Richardson, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/6530838 , no changes

[wikipedia, ancestry.com, independent.co.uk, mouthofthetweed.co.uk, oldroadsofscotland.com, nationalchurchestrust.org, canmore.org.uk, roman-britain.co.uk, battlefieldstrust.com, co-curate.ncl.ac.uk, britainexpress.com]

Week 12: St. Boswells to Melrose

 The last bit of St. Cuthbert's Way is 12 km from St. Boswells, over the Eildon Hills and down into the village of Melrose. (below, looking from St. Boswells across River Tweed in the direction we will be walking.)

Image: Jim Barton, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5849378, no changes

Soon we come across Dryburgh (below) where the Irish monk St. Modan built a chapel in 522 and was an abbot at the monastery that grew up around it. 

Image: Jum Barton, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/6569914 , no changes

We leave St. Cuthbert's Way for a side trip to Old Melrose, following Monk's Trail along River Tweed (below) to the site of the monastery that St. Aidan built.

Image: Jim Barton, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/6930081 , no changes

St. Cuthbert's Way has the following information about Old Melrose:

King Oswald had spent much of his youth on Iona and was a Christian and he wanted to bring the Christian message to the lands where he was King between 633 and 642 AD. He invited St Aidan and 12 monks from Iona to travel to Northumbria and St Aidan first established “Mail Ros” before setting off further to establish a monastic community on the Holy Island. 

One of the monks was St Boisil and he became the 2nd Prior of the “Mail Ros” monastery. On the death of St Aidan 651-652AD Cuthbert had a vision of Heaven and he travelled to “Mail Ros” and became a monk under the guidance of St Boisil, whom he then succeeded as the 3rd Prior. 

The name Melrose is thought to be derived from “Mail Ros”, this meaning “Bare headland” and was the description of the peninsula of land surrounded by the Tweed on three sides and separated from the rest of the land by the Earthen Vallum. (Below, the River Tweed flowing around the penninsula) At the time of the early monks the headland would have had few trees, hence the description “bare”. A monastic Vallum was typically a deep ditch or series of ditches that enclosed an early Christian monastery. They were common in northern Britain and Ireland in the 5th to 9th centuries. The Vallum served several purposes. It would have provides some defensive protection as well as helping to keep in the monastic livestock. It was also important symbolically to remind all that the monastery was a sacred, holy place, separated from the secular world. 

The Old Melrose monastery was burned to the ground in 839 by order of Kenneth MacAlpine, it was subsequently rebuilt and became one of the temporary resting points for the body of St Cuthbert. By 1073 the site was again in ruins and monks never returned for any period of time to this location. A chapel dedicated to St Cuthbert was however still in place on what is called “Chapelknowe” and this was a place of pilgrimage over the centuries. 

King David I is said to have had a castle on the west side of the Earthen Vallum overlooking the peninsula and in 1130 he granted the land to the Cistercian monks of Rievaulx. The monks arrived but indicated that they preferred to establish their monastery not at “Mail Ros” but 2 mile west at what is now the location of Melrose Abbey. King David granted this move along with the monks request that they should be allowed to still use the name “Mail Ros”, hence the reason for Melrose’s present name and that of the Peninsula land being called Old Melrose.

[ https://www.stcuthbertsway.net/History%20of%20Old%20Melrose.pdf ]

Back on St. Cuthbert's Way, we climb up to the saddle between the two main hills of the Eildon Hills. From the saddle it is a 15 minute walk to each of the summits. (Mid Eildon summit below left)

Image: Walter Baxter, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/565802 , no changes

Eildon Hill North has a massive Iron Age Hill Fort on the summit, once the stronghold of the Votadini tribe until it was conquered by the Romans. Afterward it became a Roman signal station. In the valley below the Eildon Hills is Trimontium ('Three Hills'), the largest and most Northern Roman outpost and the center of Roman/Celtic activity in the area for centuries (below, the fields in the center). Dere Street passes right beside the fort and continues on through the Lammermuir Hills (below, in the far distance, behind Black Hill in the center of the photo) where St. Cuthbert lived as a child, looking after his master's sheep. It was there that he had the vision of St. Aidan's death that prompted him to come to the Old Melrose monastery.

Image: Jim Barton, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/6850287 , no changes

We head down the steep trail of St. Cuthbert's Way to the village of Melrose, where the trail ends.

Next week we will follow the River Tweed back to the coast.

[St. Oswald's Way and St. Cuthbert's Way (Rudolf Abraham), faithincowal.org, wikipedia]

Week 11: Hethpool to St. Boswells

 This week we walk from Hethpool to St. Boswells, a distance of 47 km.

Image: https://www.stcuthbertsway.info/long-distance-route/harestanes-to-yetholm/

We continue our walk along St. Cuthbert's Way, heading towards White Hill, where we first see the type of prehistoric settlement that is 'scooped'. Near the Scottish border, enclosures were dug into hillslopes, with the displaced dirt forming a terrace. These prehistoric field systems caused less erosion on the hills and retained more moisture for crops. Even during the Roman occupation, the Celtic peoples were still building their defended homesteads on these sites. You can see the lines of the terraces on White Hill, just above Hethpool (below).

Image: Andrew Curtis, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4017401 , no changes

We pass through the village of Kirk Yetholm (below), where the Romani gypsies settled in the 1700's. The last King of the Gypsies died in 1902 and they are no longer a separate ethnicity.

Image: Graham White, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/552439 , no changes

Then we continue climbing up and down the steep Cheviot foothills, crossing the blustery moors. The summit of Wideopen Hill is the highest point of St. Cuthbert's Way, and its mid-point (below, looking back towards Kirk Yetholm).

Image: Jim Barton, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3546799 , no changes

Heading down from Wideopen Hill, we start walking down Grubbit Law (below). 

Image: Jim Barton, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3546365 , no changes

If we followed a trail along the ridge to Hownam Law, we would see another Iron Age hill fort (below), with more cultivated terraces. It is one of the highest hill forts in Scotland, and quite large, at 22 acres, 155+ houses, 10' thick walls, and two rainwater ponds.

Image: Trevor Littlewood, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5621654 , no changes

The village of Morebattle ('mere-ba-ol' meant 'Settlement by the Lake') is at the foot of the Cheviots, near Linton Lake  - a large marshland (below). Linton is home of the Linton Worm (dragon). Both Morebattle and Linton have Iron Age hill forts.

Image: Lisa Jarvis, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/191102 , no changes

We follow the trail past sandstone cliffs and through the woodlands (below).

Image: David Purchase, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2211136 , no changes

At Jedburgh bridge we start walking along Dere Street, the Roman road which runs North through Corbridge, through Jedburgh to St. Boswells, and on to Edinburgh. 

Image: Jim Barton, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2615888 , no changes

We follow Dere Street toward St. Boswells (below).

Image: David Purchase, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2211093 , no changes

St. Cuthbert's Way leaves Dere Street here to take the scenic route and follow the River Tweed into St. Boswells. 

Image: David Purchase, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2210992 , no changes

First built on the lower meadows, around the original St. Boisil Chapel, it later relocated to higher ground and was called Lessudden (place of Aidan). It was originally built of pinkish stone like the Iron Age Hill Forts in the area. In the 1500s the name changed from Lessudden to St. Boswells, for the St. Boisil Chapel. Below is where the original 7th-century chapel was located.

Image: James Denham, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3490607 , no changes

St. Boisil (below) was a well-loved monk at the nearby Monastery of Melrose. Trained by Aidan at Lindisfarne, Boisil taught St. Cuthbert at Melrose, and they often went out together to visit the villages and talk to the people. The sick were brought to Melrose to be healed with Boisil's healing remedies and the two nearby springs containing iron salts.

St. Boswells was the site of the annual Gypsy fair, drawing Gypsies from all over Scotland, Ireland and Northern England. The village green is the largest in Scotland, at 40 acres, and hosted the 7-day Gypsy sheep fair in the 1600's and the later horse fairs in the 1800's.

Image: Walter Baxter, https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1814183 , no changes

Next week we continue on the St. Cuthbert's Way to Melrose. 

[St. Oswald's Way and St. Cuthbert's Way (Rudolf Abraham), wikipedia, ancientmonuments.uk, canmore.org.uk, wikishire.co.uk]