The Road to Lindisfarne. 
                                                      by John David Coupland

                                                                                                         www.johndavidcoupland.co.uk

At the end of winter, when the first buds were appearing, the peoples of this isle greeted the coming of spring with mixed emotions. Truly the snows of winter were gone and the cattle which had survived could be led or carried to their pastures but spring was also the time when the kings of the Earth road out to war.

Four nations vied for control of the North. First had come the Britons who crossed the channel from Brittany in Gaul. They held the centre of the country from the borders of Wales to Dumbarton on the River Clyde and then east to Edinburgh.

The Picts were the next to arrive coming, according to legend, in long ships to the Scots of Ireland and asking permission to settle there. The canny Scots refused but said that they would fight alongside their new found friends if only they would colonise the highlands of North Britain.

The Scots themselves had occupied Argyll, naming their kingdom, “Dalriada.”

Last came a tribe of Germanic descent, the Angles or English as they came to be known. They had been invited over from the continent after the departure of the Romans in order to fight as mercenaries to protect the Britons from the Picts, but had turned on their paymasters and now held sway up the East coast from the Humber to the Forth.

The borders of these four kingdoms met near Stirling and seven centuries before Wallace, Bruce and Bannockburn, the coming of Spring once more proclaimed the coming of war!

The fall of the king.

So it was that lament was played for Ethelfrith, King of the Angles. He had been slain in battle by Edwin who had returned from exile with the army he had raised, in what the historian describes as, “Part of an unending cycle of defeat, exile and glorious return,” which was the hallmark of the age.

Now to prevent the tables being turned on a newly victorious king it was not only advisable to kill your opponent but as many of his offspring as you could lay your hands on. Ethelfrith’s nobles realised the danger and while some were busy making peace overtures, others more loyal to the household, were at that moment seeking a place of refuge for the princes Oswald and Oswy and the princess Aebbe.

The flight.

It is often said, “The Lord works in mysterious ways, his wonders to perform,” and so it was that in the disaster which had befallen the children, the Lord was no mere bystander in what was about to follow.

The guardians of the children ushered them north from their native kingdom of Bernicia, as the English lands were known, to the River Forth. From there, reckoning the direct rout overland to be too dangerous, the children’s flight continued by sea, up the east coast into the Moray Firth and hence to Inverness. Amazingly the Pictish King there passed the party down through the Great Glen without any trouble for, had he known that they were of royal blood, he would doubtless have held them for ransom.

They sailed down Loch Ness and, as they passed between the mountains, the sailors took great delight in telling these wide eyed bairns about Columba’s confrontation with the monster when the Saint had stopped the beast from devouring one of his monks and then banished it into the depths forever.

Next they journeyed overland to the site of today’s Fort William. From there a day’s sailing on an early McBrayne’s ferry, with a wee red sail, took them to the Isle of Iona where the successors of Saint Columba tended the abbey which he had founded some fifty years before. There amongst they prayers and psalms of the monks, the children found that which they needed above all else, sanctuary.
While the choice of Iona was not without its dangers, it was probably the safest course of action. Exile amongst the Britons was out of the question, they had after all sheltered Edwin and allowed him to rebuild his army. Legends of dark Druid ceremonies born in the days of Caesar made the Picts equally suspect. So it was to the Scots of Dalriada and the monks of Iona in particular to which the children fled.

The nobles who had brought them, having now discharged their obligations, said their farewells and returned to whatever fate awaited them, while the Scots were left to tame these wild English stallions.

Iona

Iona Abbey had been founded by Saint Columba, not only a man of the cross but by all accounts a man who could be very cross indeed! His temper had been the direct cause of a battle in which some four thousand were killed. According to legend he settled on Iona in order to win as many souls for Christ as had been slain in the battle.

Now central to the teachings of Jesus was not only a need to turn away from our sins but a fresh start thereafter and Columba’s faithful ministry to both his own people and to the Picts stands as a powerful testimony to this Gospel truth. For out of the darkness of man’s stupidity, God can bring blessing.

So it was that, much to their disgust, the children took to learning the ordinary ways of the simple Scots who cared for them, becoming adept not only in the Scot’s tongue but in cutting the peat and mucking out the byre. However the martial arts were not overlooked for these were brutal times and even the monks carried arms on occasion.

Over the years Oswald realised that the humble crofters were not to be scorned for often they seemed to walk with God more closely than any nobleman. Of all these lessons learned on Iona this was clear over all the rest, the gods worshipped by his father were angry and remote compared to the Christ who was there day after day in the small things of life.

Growing up

During his years on Iona Oswald’s inquiring mind led him to ask questions of all who came to the Abbey. Some came to receive the teachings of Christ, others who seemed to him perpetual seekers, came to argue their case and then go on their way untouched by the truth. Oswald saw this and reflected upon it. Clever men believed, clever men disbelieved. Simple men believed, simple men disbelieved. Faith was obviously something apart from intellect or worldly position.

It was this more than anything else which drove him in his search for the truth. His people’s religion had been one grown from the same root as that of the Vikings. It was a bitter and bloody creed which held that an evil dragon was constantly gnawing away at the roots of the Tree of Life. Some day it would fall, killing every god and every man on Earth. In the mean time Woden and the other gods quarrelled and fought with one another to the detriment of mankind who accrued no benefit except to have their lives illuminated by the occasional thunderbolt or crushed by some giant’s hand. Even as a child Oswald could see that this was merely an artfully woven tale.

The call to arms

The years passed slowly for the children of Ethelfrith until some travellers brought news that Edwin had been killed in battle by Penda, the King of Mercia and that two of Edwin’s nephews now ruled in his stead. When Oswald heard this his blood ran cold. Yes it was good that his father’s killer had received his just reward but it was bound to lead to a power struggle and Oswald realised that his quiet life in the cloisters of Iona would soon come to an end. Sure enough within a few weeks a deputation of noblemen arrived on the island to plead that Ozwald should join with them to raise up a new army in order to overthrow Edwin’s two nephews.

Now the nobles who came to Oswald were a breed apart from the monks of Iona and they came expecting to meet in the son of Ethelfrith, a man after their own hearts. Death or glory was their rule of life and they were dismayed to find that a different set of rules now governed the life of Oswald. The bell to prayer now held sway over the trumpet call to war. Indeed when Oswald heard of their arrival he went into hiding, sorry, ”Retreat,” in the island’s marble quarry.

To give you an idea of just how far removed from the Christian idea of loving not just your friends but also your enemies, they brought with them one of their priestesses. Now while she was indeed a buxom lass and a far cry from what passes for beauty in this benighted age, a close examination of her upper arm muscles would betray qualities which one would not necessarily expect in a young lady. She could heft a battleaxe with the best of them but that was not her primary function. You see, after a battle the Angles believed that they should honour the bravest of their opponents by ritually sacrificing them to the gods. It was the duty of the priestess to decide how this should be done. The more painful, the greater the honour bestowed!

Now what happened to make Oswald change his mind is not exactly clear. One version of the story would have it that he emerged from a time of prayer and fasting with a new vision. Another version claims that it was after a rather boozy do with the Angles that he found himself having the visions! Anyway for the next year Oswald travelled the highways and byways calling on one and all to follow him into battle. But what was it that attracted men to him?

Perhaps a few followed to escape their humdrum existence of living between the furrow and the byre, but they could be expected to fall away as soon as the going got tough. Money was no incentive for as both a holy man and a king without a country, he had none to give. Some may have joined the great adventure in the hope of booty to come but most came out of a deep sense of conviction that this man of God, this king to come, had right on his side. Indeed in this respect he could be said to represent a type of Christ who said, “There is no one who has given up wife, brothers, parents or children for the sake of the Kingdom of God, who will not be repaid many times over in this age and in the age to come receive eternal life.”

Preparing for battle.

Oswald’s prayers were indeed answered because before even reaching Bernicia, Edwin’s nephews fled the scene. However the power vacuum created when Penda slew Edwin had not gone unnoticed by the neighbouring kings and Oswald’s main opponent turned out to be the Welsh king Cadwallon, who sallied forth in search of glory.

On the eve of the battle near Hexham, Oswald had a vision in which Saint Columba appeared to him as a giant figure towering over the camp and whose cloak covered the entire army. Columba spoke to Oswald saying, “The Lord has granted to me that your enemies shall be turned to flight and your adversary, Cadwallon, shall be delivered into your hands.”

At once Oswald had a cross erected in the middle of the camp and awoke his followers to tell them of his vision. He then proclaimed that the victory would only be granted if they knelt before the cross and accepted Jesus as their Lord.
Now the cynic would say that this was Oswald merely encouraging his troops but in point of fact Oswald’s army contained only a handful of Christians and he was taking a gamble no sane man would take. Pagans these soldiers might be but they took their religion very seriously and would not risk the wrath of the gods lightly.

Oswald turned his back on the warriors and knelt before the cross, praying more fervently than ever before in all his thirty years. A few in the first rank fell to their knees, some more in the second and yet more in the third until it seemed that the hand of God swept the remaining rows to their knees. Those at the front who were still standing glanced at each other and with a shrug of resignation, bent their knees before this foreign cross and prayed that this new god would preserve them, for their old gods had surely forsaken them now.

Victory.

The details of the battle have been lost in the mists of time but the result was an overwhelming victory for Oswald. Not only did he defeat his rival but the Scots of Dalriada, who were at that time being hard pressed by the Britons, accepted his Lordship and although the Scots retained their own monarch, and for the first time in history the Scots and the English joined together in a union of mutual benefit.

So it came to pass that Oswald was, somewhat ostentatiously, declared to be, “Ordained by God as Emperor of the whole of Britain.” The fact that he ruled over not a single Pict being conveniently overlooked.

Making the peace.

Oswald now wished to consolidate his earthly victories with a spiritual victory for his God and Saviour. He also had several thousand soldiers who now proudly proclaimed themselves to be Christian but who when asked, “So who is this Christ?” did not really have much of a clue. So to address these problems Oswald sent word to Iona requesting someone to come and spread the Gospel (the good news about Christ) throughout his newly acquired kingdoms.

The Abbot of Iona promptly dispatched a bishop to teach the basics truths to the English. Unfortunately this bishop not with the good news of forgiveness but with the bad news of Judgement day, Hell, fire and brimstone. Now while there is an undeniable truth in these teachings they do not win many converts and tend to leave folk with a feeling that they have to attain perfection or be damned if they don’t.

Needless to say this first attempt to convert the English to Christ failed miserably and the bishop returned to Iona stating that the English were, “Intractable, stubborn and barbaric!”

In reply to this a humble brother named Aidan spoke up saying, “It seems to me brother that you have been unreasonably harsh concerning your ignorant hearers. You did not offer them first the milk of simpler teaching, as the Apostle recommends, so that gradually as they grew strong on the food of God’s word, they were capable of receiving more elaborate instruction and of carrying out the higher commandments of God.”

And with that mightily impressive speech, Aidan found himself found himself being herded to the jetty whilst simultaneously being consecrated Bishop with all the pomp and ceremony of a rugby scrum! No mention of stipends, pension rights or fringe benefits simply, “The English need a new bishop and you laddie are it!”

So it was that Aidan found himself on the road to Lindisfarne, chosen by Oswald as the site on which to build a monastery from which the new bishop could reach the two Northumbrian kingdoms of Deira and Bernicia. Lindisfarne was also chosen because it has a good defensible position being connected to the mainland at low tide by a narrow causeway and, at high tide, cut off completely. There was also a spiritual reason for the King’s choice. Remote islands were regarded as spiritual centres where battle could best be done against the powers of darkness.

A bishop of a different kind.

With King Oswald acting as interpreter, Aidan’s ministry proved a great success although it was not noted for the miracles which had accompanied those of Patrick or Columba. Still his gentleness and his willingness to spend time with the humblest of folks made a tremendous impact throughout the land.

He shunned all the trappings which had come to be expected of a bishop who moved in royal circles, not even owning a horse lest its presence hinder some poor fellow from talking to him. In those days it was advisable to lower ones head when a rider approached lest he lop it off your shoulders for showing disrespect.

On one occasion he was indeed given the gift of a horse by a neighbouring king but the very next day a beggar stopped Aidan and asked for charity. The only thing Aidan owned was the horse so without hesitation he gave the animal and its fine harness to the astonished beggar and happily walked away. The king was really quite upset when he heard of this and rebuked Aidan saying that he had many ordinary horses in his stables which would have done the beggar just as well.

The king let his angry silence fill the room as he stood before the fire. At length Aidan spoke, “Is the child of a mare worth more than a child of God?”
The words cut the king like a knife and he threw himself at the Bishop’s feet begging forgiveness, for it came to him that, even for the meanest of men, God gave his only Son.


Epilogue.

Seven years after Oswald’s coronation his reign came to a bloody end at Maserfield in Shropshire. Ironically he fell to the sword of Penda, King of the Mercians, who had slain Edwin all those years before and thereby prompted Oswald’s return. His last prayer was for the souls of his warriors and sadly on August the 5th 642 A.D. he died with them at the age of 38.

But what of his siblings? Well his brother Oswy succeeded him on the Northumbrian throne, defeated Penda and had a long although somewhat bloodstained reign before he too died of unnatural causes. At this we should not be surprised for few kings died in their beds and most that did were smothered!

As for their sister Aebbe, she became the Abbess of Coldingham and, to the best of our knowledge, never did anyone a wrong turn in her life.

Aidan continued his ministry from Lindisfarne, the Columban monks under his guiding hand helping all the peoples of this island to come to know God for themselves, also building a kingdom which, in contrast to Oswald’s, Edwin’s or Penda’s, still stands to this day.

John David Coupland