Today is a special feast for our pope and all folks of German extraction. Today is the feat of bonny St. Boniface, patron of Germany (680-754). This man of action, bishop of Mainz (primatial see of all the Germanies -- including Alemannia, Australasia and Thuringia, among others) was above all a man who loved books. In his several extant letters, he is always writing about them: "I pray Almighty God . . . repay you . . . for the solace of the books with which you have relieved my distress." (Letter XXVI) and "We have received with joyful and grateful heart the gifts and books you sent us. . ." (Letter LXXV). He was martyred on the plain of Dokkum, east of Utrecht; the only treasure he left behind were books (which the pagan tribes who killed him left behind in disgust -- they were looking for "real wealth") and, get this, he died holding his book high above his head so it would not be destroyed by the sword when he was. Now that's a book lover.
He was, as I have said, a man of action. Appointed by the pope as missionary in a general sense to all the heathen, he started from England (he was from Devonshire) to Friesland, where he worked with the great St. Willibrord among the people there. As they became more and more evangelized, he moved on to Hesse, where he cleverly combated pagan superstitions. In a well-publicized display, he chopped down Thor's sacred oak (atop Mount Gudenberg) and bravely taunted the false god to punish him. Of course he wasn't and many pagans were converted. Boniface built a church there to commemorate the event.
He stood up to Charles Martel, king of the Franks, and made great inroads with his successor, the devout Carloman, and even crowned his successor, Pepin the Short. You may remember him as the father of Charlemagne. He stood up to immoral and removed heretical priests in his far-flung diocese, but he maintained a moderate, sensible course. "When in the multitude of priests, I find one who has fallen into that same sin [sexual immorality] and with penitence has been reinstated in his former rank, so that the whole body of priests and people have confidence in his good character, if I should now degrade him, his secret sin would be revealed, the mass of the people would be shocked, many souls would be lost through the scandal and there would be great hatred of priests and distrust of the ministers of the Church. Therefore we have boldly ventured to bear with this man and allow him to remain in the sacred ministry." (Letter LXXV) And to think . . . this was back in the mid-700's! We need more bishops like Boniface today.
"Our duty is not to abandon ship but to keep her on course." - St. Boniface.
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